Nanofabrication

If you have a nanofabricator and either blueprints or Program skill, you can make things from scratch. Nanofabricators come in several sizes, some with specialized functions (Nanotech). The only other things you need are raw materials and time. Living things such as smart animals and non-tangible goods such as apps cannot be nanofabricated.

Raw Materials

Raw materials are generally easy to acquire, as most nanofabricators are equipped with disassembler units that will break down just about anything into its constituent molecules. Feedstock is also easily/cheaply available in most habitats, either in bulk blocks or via utility feedline pipes direct to residential units. Many habitats route their recycling and waste products directly into disassemblers.

At the GM’s discretion, certain nanofab designs may require hard-to-get rare materials. This is especially true of explosives, ammunition, sensors, and some scientific gear and electronics. This could include rare heavy metals (platinum, tungsten, depleted uranium), uncommon radioisotopes, fissionables, or antimatter. Any print job that requires massive amounts of a particular material (notably water) can also be difficult, given the sometimes limited supplies. Acquiring rare materials might require a major favor or Resources expenditure — or could be an adventure unto itself.

Blueprints

In order to print something on a nanofabricator, you need a blueprint. Most have a small inventory of essential items. Others may have blueprints in storage, but locked to specific users (these can be hacked per standard Infosec intrusion tests).

Getting Blueprints

Nanofab blueprints come in four forms: single use, limited use, multi use, and open source:

Single-Use Blueprints: Most single-use blueprints are accessed via a digital distribution platforms which use digital rights management (DRM) to protect copyright. This means you can access the file to print it once, but it cannot be copied or printed again. If you need a file you can print without mesh access, some single-use blueprints are available as downloadable digital files that block efforts to copy them and erase themselves after use. The inner-system hypercorps and capitalist economies use these methods to control scarcity and keep you dependent.

Single-use blueprints are acquired with GP, rep, or Resources trait, using the item’s complexity.

Limited-Use Blueprints: A few hypercorps and transitional economies allow limited licenses. These work the same as single-use blueprints, except that if you recycle the item by disassembling it in a licensed fabber, you receive a credit which you can then use to print the item again. This is ideal for those who egocast often but wish to bring their gear with them.

Multi-Use Blueprints: A multi-use blueprint is more akin to purchasing a personal license. You can print the item repeatedly and copy the blueprint, but it is keyed to your ID. These are also acquired via GP, rep, or Resources trait. For a non-erasing, re-usable, multi-use blueprint, increase the complexity by one step (Minor becomes Moderate, Moderate becomes Major). Multi-use blueprints for Major complexity items are rare and largely unavailable.

Open-Source Blueprints: In autonomist regions and many other areas, some blueprints are freely available from open-source libraries. These blueprints are re-usable, can be copied, and do not require your authenticated ID to use. A Research Test (using the Rep Modifiers on the Rep Tests table) or (@-rep, i-rep, r-rep, or x-rep) favor equal to the item’s complexity plus one step will get you an open-source blueprint, even for things like weapons and drugs.

The drawback is that open-source prints are sometimes less reliable, more experimental, or carry hidden malware payloads. Every open-source blueprint acquired via Research (not rep) has a 20% chance of being unreliable: a −10 to −30 modifier, unexpected bugs, dangerous malware, etc. These blueprints are also illegal in certain inner-system polities (many are cracked proprietary designs) and may not work on inner-system fabbers.

Restricted Items

Blueprints for Restricted items cannot be legally purchased using Resources (though they can be purchased illegally…). Likewise, most inner-system nanofabricators will not print blueprints that are restricted or not properly licensed, though they can be hacked to do so.

Writing Blueprints

If you don’t have a blueprint, you can make one. This requires two skill tests. The first is a skill test appropriate to the item type: Hardware: Electronics for personal electronics, Medicine: Pharmacology for a drug, Medicine: Biotech for bioware, etc. If successful, this provides the knowledge needed for the design. Note that programmers can collaborate with others who have the necessary skills, including their muse or an ALI. Following this, you need a Program Test to actually code it.

Both of these tests together constitute a single task action. The timeframe is the same as acquiring gear, but in months instead of hours (2 months for Minor, 8 months for Moderate, 24 months for Major). Most programmers use forks and time-accelerated simulspaces to speed the process, however, so a subjective week of programming can be done in about an hour of real time. Only superior results from the Program Test reduce the timeframe.

Cracking Blueprints

The digital restrictions that prevent single- and multi-use blueprints from being shared can be defeated, given enough time. This requires a Program Test task action with a timeframe of 6 months (or 3 days in a time-accelerated VR). If you succeed, the blueprint can be re-used and copied freely.

Printing Tests

Printing an item with a blueprint does not require a test in most circumstances — the blueprint is enough, the nanofabber does the rest. The exceptions are print jobs that are exotic, complicated, or have limited feedstock or incomplete or suspect blueprints. In those cases, a Program Test is in order. Note that most nanofabbers have a built-in ALI with a Program 30 (Nanofabrication 40) skill.

Once the raw materials and blueprints are in, nanofabrication is simply a matter of time. The printing time is based on the item’s complexity, the same as acquiring gear (2 hours for Minor, 8 Moderate, 24 Major). GMs may feel free to modify this period as appropriate for the object.