The Cosmos update (version 7.0) adds a fresh Corvette module called the Tractor Beam and lets you take control of a Space Station you can decorate inside and out. Both unlock through their own systems, so you need a Corvette for the first and a claimed station for the second.
Quick answer: Buy the Tractor Beam at the Corvette Workshop (via the teleporters in any Space Station) under basic modules, then install it in the ship modification menu. To get Space Station parts, meet the directorship requirements at a station’s Station Core, claim it, then unlock exterior decoration blueprints at the Space Anomaly’s Construction Research Station.
Get the Tractor Beam Corvette module
The Tractor Beam is a hull attachment for Corvette-class starships. It pulls in and refines physical salvage and minerals from deep-space points of interest, and it can process oversized objects so they fit in your Corvette hold. You need an existing Corvette before you can add it.
Once installed, the Tractor Beam receives salvage in a collection zone inside the ship. Launch material at the beam with the Gravitino Coil to store it in the hold, and haul the loot back to a deep-space outpost for processing. The beam also includes an automated venting system that gathers and ejects all collected cargo in seconds.
Note: floating debris can be in a dilapidated state, so approach large derelict material carefully to avoid trouble while salvaging.
You can also craft supporting components straight from the starship inventory. Open the craft product menu to build items such as Voltaic Components, including the Concentric Transducer and Fibreglass Grip.
Claim a Space Station to unlock station parts
Space Station decoration parts only become available once you become the director of a station. Find a station that can be claimed, then meet the directorship requirements shown at the floating Station Core terminal inside it.
| Requirement | Amount |
|---|---|
| Local Gek Standing | 30 |
| Local Merchants Guild Standing | 15 |
| Salvage Contracts Completed | 5 |
| Units Donation | 1,000,000,000 |
A practical order is to clear the salvage contracts first, because they also reward race and guild standing. Take the Tractor Beam-equipped Corvette into space, open the Star System Map from the Quick Menu, and lock coordinates to a deep-space outpost such as Iksyonye Operations.
Land at the outpost, accept multiple salvage and ice extraction contracts at the delivery management terminal, then fulfil them by salvaging marked targets like comet dust and condensed stellar ice. Turning them in raises your standing and can reward Exosuit Upgrade Charts.
For the standing requirements, local mission contracts from a Mission Agent award both Gek and Merchants Guild standing. Donating items such as Salvaged Data and Circuit Boards to the Merchants Guild envoy also builds guild standing quickly.
To lift Gek standing directly, speak to Gek NPCs on the station and pick the option to offer a gift, using a Gek Relic to add +1 each time. You can buy Gek Relics from landed NPC pilots in a capital freighter hangar and from NPCs at planetary Trading Posts, which you locate with an Economy Scanner.
With every requirement met and the Unit total covered, interact with the Station Core and choose Claim Station. The exterior view animation confirms you now own the station. You know it worked when the Station Core opens the Manage Station options and directorship menus.
Get and place Space Station decoration parts
After you take ownership, decoration parts split into exterior modules and interior furnishings. Exterior pieces need blueprints, while interior decorating reuses the parts you already have for base building.
Exterior modules
From the Station Core, open Manage Station and then Modify Station Exterior to place items like lift-off statues, logos, and coloured floodlights. New exterior decoration blueprints are unlocked with Nanites at the Construction Research Station inside the Space Anomaly. Rare pieces can also be granted to Travellers who discover anomalies deep in space. Every module has a material cost you must cover before placing it.
Interior furnishings
Interior decorating works the same as base building. Enter build mode from inside the station to delete unwanted objects, rearrange existing furnishings, and add new parts. Every decoration available for your base can be used to style the central hub and walkways. Station directors can also add extra rooms through a dedicated construction area to create custom layouts.
Once you are director, you can go a step further and found your own galactic alliance from the Station Core, giving it a name, tag, emblem, and colours. Between the Tractor Beam salvage runs and the station you now control, the salvage you haul back doubles as both a source of income and the raw materials for customising your station’s exterior.
