Exotics! Lore-wise, they’re the reason every faction in space is so interested in Icarus. Gameplay-wise, they’re the currency you’ll need to unlock the high-tier Workshop equipment. In this guide, we’ll go over how to first acquire Exotics, as well as how to get them to show up all over Icarus.
How to Unlock Exotics
There are currently three ways to extract Exotics from Icarus: Ore Nodes, Veins, and Missions. Unlocking ore nodes and veins each requires a specific mission. On the other hand, some late-game missions provide exotic rewards upon completion.
Exotic Ore Nodes
First, you’ll have to complete the DEEP VEIN mission, which is on the bottom of the ICARUS mission tree. You’ll need to complete the following mission to unlock access to DEEP VEIN. Lucky for you, we’ve got walkthroughs for all the tricky ones:
Once you complete the DEEP VEIN mission (which we’ve also got a walkthrough for), Exotic Ore nodes should appear randomly anywhere that other higher-tier ores would: caves, some ridges, etc. Note that pickaxe yield bonuses do not apply to Exotics nodes: the yield is the same for each one.
An Exotic Ore node
Exotic Veins
Another way to access Exotic Ore is with special drilling equipment. Again, you’ll need to complete a mission, PAYDAY, to unlock this feature. Once you’ve done so, you’ll be able to drill for Exotics all over Icarus. You’ll need to complete the following missions to unlock PAYDAY:
NOTE: For now, you don’t actually have to complete the mission to unlock the ability to collect Exotics. Once you land on Icarus, you can open your tech tree, and as long as you have the two Blueprint Points you need, you can unlock the Extractor and the Radar from Tier 4, and then leave the planet. You should then be able to craft both objects and mine Exotic Veins on most missions.
Finding Exotic Veins is significantly more complex than finding the nodes (which essentially requires stumbling upon them in a cave). You’ll have to tech up to Planetary Tech Tier 4 (the Fabricator) and craft the Radar. The Radar is a piece of heavy equipment that takes up the [G] slot on the hotbar, so you cannot carry an Extractor at the same time. To place either one, press [G] and then left-click.
Note that if you already know where the exotics veins are (either from previous playthroughs or looking up the locations on sites like IcarusIntel), then you do not need the Radar. All you need to craft is the Fabricator and the Extractor.
The Radar can be placed anywhere and activated with [F] — it scans for a few moments, and then adds its data to your map:
Note how the yellow bar in the radar scan circle indicates both direction and distance (though the direction can be inaccurate at longer ranges)
Each radar scan creates a circle with a yellow indicator within it. The yellow bar indicates both distance and direction: the wider the yellow bar, the further the Exotic Vein is. The location of the bar relative to the center of the circle (the black dot) tells you what direction the Exotic Vein is. Once you find the specific location of the vein, you’ll see a special Exotics icon that looks like a rock (see above image).
You’ll then need to head to the exact site — you can double-click the Exotics icon on the map to set a waypoint. Once you find the exact spot (see image below), you can place the Extractor on it. The Extractor needs Biofuel to run; running the Extractor long enough to completely mine a vein requires 5+ Biofuel Cans.
An Exotics Vein
How to Farm Exotics
The DEEP VEIN mission guarantees the spawn of four Exotic Ore nodes, and is repeatable. Until you’ve unlocked the PAYDAY mission, this is the fastest way we know of to grind for Exotics.
Once you’ve completed the PAYDAY mission, you can farm Exotics from Exotic Veins on any mission via the method explained above. Exploration missions are a great way to do this without a time limit. You will have to craft a Fabricator and Extractor to drill Exotic veins. If you look up where the exotic veins are (e.g. on IcarusIntel), then you can avoid having to craft a Radar.
Getting Exotics Back to Orbit
It isn’t enough to simply find and mine Exotics, however. You’ll need to get them back to the dropship, either in your hotbar or in the dropship’s cargo space, in order to reap the benefits of your hard work.
Once you’re back in Orbit, select the same prospector you used to harvest the exotics, and accept your reward in the window that pops up. You should now have your Exotics available to spend in the Workshop.
Missions with Exotic Rewards
Finally, several missions grant significant exotic rewards upon completion, especially with Hard/Hardcore multipliers. These missions are typically longer, multi-objective missions that can require high-level technology and several hours to complete. These missions tend to be late-game, so you will find them toward the right side of the mission tree.
Below is a list of missions with exotic completion rewards, along with the reward amounts at Medium difficulty level. (Click on the name to be taken to a walkthrough.)
We hope this guide on Exotics in ICARUS was helpful! Please leave any questions or suggestions in the comments section below.
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DanielD
Unabashed FromSoftware fanboy still learning to take his time with games (and everything else, really). The time he doesn't spend on games is spent on music, books, or occasionally going outside.
We have the same question. We have spent two days to grind the extractor and radar. after exctracting the exotic from the vein, we start to search the next vein, but pour radar is just indicating the poor vein, we already drilled.
I was doing Ramp Up Stockpile and returning home to finish the mission. It was dark and a blue light caught my eye, found an unexpected deep vein of exotics in the lower left corner of c4. Mining it now actually.
Excellent points, but I’ve also had prospects where the radar does not indicate any vein. Hopefully this is just a bug. The crazy amount of copper and gold needed for the radar is too much for there not to be a reward for the grind.
D Dot
2 years ago
Just a heads up. You just have to have the exotics on you when you leave (inventory or put them in the cargo on ship). The same as the loadout equipment you come with
Chumannn
2 years ago
If i start another character all the missions are completed already for my new character since i completed them with my old character. are the exotics available on my new tune or do i need to re do the missions on this one too?
wendy
2 years ago
I understand there are coordinates but i am unable to locate them on my screen.. Basically where can i find coordinates to tell my teammates to find me when i die
Hi Wendy! If you press [M] and open your map, you’ll be able to see a green triangle that indicates your location. There should also be a grid on that map; each square on the grid will have a letter and a number in the upper left corner. Tell your team the letter/number of the square that your player indicator (the green triangle) is in and they should be able to revive you!
samyala
2 years ago
Just finished a classic prospect (scan, run, scan, go home), but I took the time to build a radar (and extractor — and it took a while to get the gold needed), and now I know exotics are the fastest way to buy stuff from the station. Was also terribly lucky as the exotics node was just a run from where I set up my base. It’s worth doing that 4-5 times on easy prospects to get around 2000 silver, that way you can buy all the best tools faster and much cheaper than the gold you would have to spend.
My mistake: Didn’t know at that time you need to pay both in gold and in exotics (what I called silver – that’s how clear the game is!). It seems exotics from veins pay double (162 from the vein got me 324) while exotics from nodes are paid on 1 for 1 ratio. I build another radar on an other mission but got nothing although also in Riverland.
Last edited 2 years ago by samyala
Phil
2 years ago
Just a quick note on this one, Once youve completed Deep Vein Extraction , it doesent seem as tho you can grind the Exotics just redoing that mission, i just completed it for the second time after unlocking but the exotics i collected arent given to me as a reward. they are an objective only it seems.
Nvm, if you have a friend on the same claim, they have to leave the claim before you get the exotics .
Samyala
2 years ago
PROSPECTS FOR EXOTICS
advanced order stockpile has 2,
agriculture supply stockpile has 1,
beach head recon 1,
bigshot stockpile 1,
clustered extended survey 1,
edelweiss exploration 1,
el camino expedition 1,
fire walk delivery 1,
incursion scan 1,
kill list extermination 1,
lifeline construction 1,
livewire terrain scan 1,
nightwatch geo research 1,
payday extraction 1,
promised land exploration 1,
ramp up stockpile 1,
resurgence bio research 1,
sandbox construction 1,
searchlight scan 1,
snowblind scan 1,
solid metal hard stockpile 1,
spirit walk exploration 2,
station to station extended survey 1,
tundra exploration 1,
voyager recovery 2,
waterfall expedition 1,
wet work extermination 1.
NOTE: With recent game updates, you may now find more veins in some prospects, up to 4., but it'(s a lot of running, from one corner of the map to the other.
Last edited 2 years ago by Samyala
samyala
2 years ago
Maybe you can help with that strange happening.
For the first time my radar show me in the middle of a full yellow circle. I have explored it but there is nothing to be seen as a vein, and no little music announcing I’m are close to one. Any idea?
JayJiggy
2 years ago
Is there any way to tell if the trick to unlock exotics by just unlocking the blueprints worked? It would not be fun to grind out to t4 on another mission, thinking you could mine exotics, only to find out you need to go back to complete payday first
Yes — after trying the trick and leaving the planet, you can open your tech tree (while in orbit or after landing on your next prospect) and see if the blueprints for the Extractor and Radar are greyed-out or not.
Last edited 2 years ago by DanielD
Virethorn
2 years ago
My dad and I recently started playing this and we’re finding that exotics aren’t quite – Well… Renewing if that makes sense? We’ve been doing the Homestead Construction mission a few times. In our last run we dug up an exotic with two extractors and on a run that we’re doing right now the radar is only showing where *one* exotic is as opposed to two.
650, 
200)
Very informative guide, thank you for the information.
Just wondering, can there be more then one Exotic Vein on any given map?
Good question, Kevin. This is something we haven’t yet determined, but we’ll be sure to update the guide once we’ve done more testing.
We have the same question. We have spent two days to grind the extractor and radar. after exctracting the exotic from the vein, we start to search the next vein, but pour radar is just indicating the poor vein, we already drilled.
I was doing Ramp Up Stockpile and returning home to finish the mission. It was dark and a blue light caught my eye, found an unexpected deep vein of exotics in the lower left corner of c4. Mining it now actually.
Excellent points, but I’ve also had prospects where the radar does not indicate any vein. Hopefully this is just a bug. The crazy amount of copper and gold needed for the radar is too much for there not to be a reward for the grind.
Just a heads up. You just have to have the exotics on you when you leave (inventory or put them in the cargo on ship). The same as the loadout equipment you come with
If i start another character all the missions are completed already for my new character since i completed them with my old character. are the exotics available on my new tune or do i need to re do the missions on this one too?
I understand there are coordinates but i am unable to locate them on my screen.. Basically where can i find coordinates to tell my teammates to find me when i die
Hi Wendy! If you press [M] and open your map, you’ll be able to see a green triangle that indicates your location. There should also be a grid on that map; each square on the grid will have a letter and a number in the upper left corner. Tell your team the letter/number of the square that your player indicator (the green triangle) is in and they should be able to revive you!
Just finished a classic prospect (scan, run, scan, go home), but I took the time to build a radar (and extractor — and it took a while to get the gold needed), and now I know exotics are the fastest way to buy stuff from the station. Was also terribly lucky as the exotics node was just a run from where I set up my base. It’s worth doing that 4-5 times on easy prospects to get around 2000 silver, that way you can buy all the best tools faster and much cheaper than the gold you would have to spend.
My mistake: Didn’t know at that time you need to pay both in gold and in exotics (what I called silver – that’s how clear the game is!). It seems exotics from veins pay double (162 from the vein got me 324) while exotics from nodes are paid on 1 for 1 ratio. I build another radar on an other mission but got nothing although also in Riverland.
Just a quick note on this one, Once youve completed Deep Vein Extraction , it doesent seem as tho you can grind the Exotics just redoing that mission, i just completed it for the second time after unlocking but the exotics i collected arent given to me as a reward. they are an objective only it seems.
Nvm, if you have a friend on the same claim, they have to leave the claim before you get the exotics .
PROSPECTS FOR EXOTICS
NOTE: With recent game updates, you may now find more veins in some prospects, up to 4., but it'(s a lot of running, from one corner of the map to the other.
Maybe you can help with that strange happening.
For the first time my radar show me in the middle of a full yellow circle. I have explored it but there is nothing to be seen as a vein, and no little music announcing I’m are close to one. Any idea?
Is there any way to tell if the trick to unlock exotics by just unlocking the blueprints worked? It would not be fun to grind out to t4 on another mission, thinking you could mine exotics, only to find out you need to go back to complete payday first
Yes — after trying the trick and leaving the planet, you can open your tech tree (while in orbit or after landing on your next prospect) and see if the blueprints for the Extractor and Radar are greyed-out or not.
My dad and I recently started playing this and we’re finding that exotics aren’t quite – Well… Renewing if that makes sense? We’ve been doing the Homestead Construction mission a few times. In our last run we dug up an exotic with two extractors and on a run that we’re doing right now the radar is only showing where *one* exotic is as opposed to two.