INVENTING
Most people know how to put a battery in a torch… but how many know how to wire that torch so it turns on automatically when a door opens? Well… not many, to be honest, but those with an inventor’s mind have the knowledge and imagination to figure it out!
COMPONENTS
There’s a lot of junk out there in the world, and it takes the right sort of eye to discern trash from treasure. Some inventors and survivalists are particularly good at this, and can identify what bits and pieces may be of use in creating new items. These items will be lammied or stickered to indicate they are a usable part. If there is no lammie/sticker on an item, it is useless junk. You may be able to convince someone it’s not, however...
BOOKS
Books are the biggest commodity of an Inventor, as they contain knowledge of how to make things the inventor may otherwise have not been able to come up with. Some books will provide all you need to make a whole new item, while others will be more based around components.
BLUEPRINTS
Once you know how to build several components, you can blueprint it into a working item. For example, if you know how to build a battery pack, wire up a speaker, and attach it to a motion sensor, you could create a door alarm. You require a blueprint form from the Inventor NPC and draft out your ideas, and they will help you realise them.
Any Inventor can attempt to prototype something. However, if you have a relevant skill (ARMOURER, ELECTRICIAN, MECHANIC or MEDICAL TECHNICIAN) then your chances of success are far higher.
PROTOTYPING
Once the Inventor NPC has green-lit your plan, you must create a prototype! Find the listed items for your creation (which will be labelled and hidden within the world for you to find…) and put them together. Be wary, not all tests go well!
FINAL PRODUCT
If a prototype is successful, it becomes a final product! It may, however, take several attempts to get an item past the prototype stage, and there is no guarantee it will last forever.
REPAIRING ITEMS
Most items that have been broken or destroyed can be repaired by an Inventor. This takes about five minutes to do, and requires components, unless you have the RECYCLER skill. Repairs require components from the following lists, and they can be in any condition:
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WEAPONS. Scrap Metal or Heavy Duty Tape, depending on what is more appropriate.
One piece for Small and One-Handed Weapons, two pieces for Two-Handed Weapons. -
LIGHT ARMOUR. Hardened Leather Scraps, Kevlar Scraps or Fur Scraps, depending on what is more appropriate.
One piece per location of armour. -
HEAVY ARMOUR. Scrap Metal or Ballistic Panel Scraps, depending on what is more appropriate.
Two pieces per location of armour. -
SHIELDS. Scrap Metal, Good Quality Wood or Ballistic Panel Scraps, depending on what is more appropriate.
Four pieces per shield.
DUCT TAPE
The DUCT TAPE skill allows you to attempt to repair a Red Star item into a Green Star item.
To use this skill, inform a ref that you wish to use DUCT TAPE to improve an item. You will then be asked to roll a six-sided dice. If you roll 1-3, you are successful. If you roll 4-6, you are unsuccessful. You may try this up to three times. However, if you roll three failures, the item will be broken in the process. You can choose to stop rolling after two tries.