Guide to Engineering

As an engineer, you'll be the first person people call when things explode or the power goes out. Once you master the arts of electricity, construction, and basic atmospherics there will be no problem you can't fix on the station. With your trusty tool belt and non-existent health insurance plan you can make NanoTrasen proud.

If you're brand new to all of this, it's best you stick with your fellow engineers and the Chief Engineer who can show you the ropes. Areas like the alternate construction area and Assembly Line are great places to experiment with building so make sure to utilize them when you have down time.

Resources available

An engineer is only as good as the tools they use. Make sure to stay well equipped and well informed of what tools you have available. There's usually a tool that can help you in any situation. Some tools may only be available from Cargo, Secure Storage, or Science so keep that in mind.

Tools

Basic Tool	Advanced Tool	Usage	Notes
Crowbar	Jaws of Life	Prying things in/out of place.	Can pry open unpowered airlocks/lift floor tiles. Jaws of Life can pry open powered airlocks. Can be used to remove damaged electronics. Jaws of Life performs actions faster.
Wirecutters	Jaws of Life	Snipping wires/grilles.	Can snip fingertips off gloves. Jaws of Life performs actions faster.
Welding Tool	Experimental Welding Tool	Welding/slicing metal.	Can seal airlocks/vents while on harm intent Can repair structures while on help intent. Can repair brute damage for robotic limbs. Experimental welder regenerates fuel.
Cable Coil	Cable Layer	Wiring systems together	Can repair burn damage for robotic limbs. Cable Layer rapidly spools and lays cable. Has a capacity of 90 individual wire lengths.
Screwdriver	Power Drill	Securing/opening panels.	Can open airlock panels for Hacking. Can open vents to slide paper into them. Power Drill performs actions faster.
Wrench	Power Drill	Ratcheting/unsecuring objects.	Used to deconstruct most things. Can secure/unsecure most machinery. Power Drill performs actions faster.
Multitool	N/A	Modifying/specifying special parameters.	Used to connect systems together. Can toggle certain machinery on/off.
T-Ray Scanner	N/A	Locating Wires and Pipes under floor tiles.	Toggle on and off to see piping/wires under station flooring.
Analyzer	N/A	Analyzing various things.	Can help contain anomalies. Will detect the current Atmospheric Composition in the air as well as give readings of the contents of pipe systems.
Rapid Construction Device	Combat RCD	Rapid construction/deconstruction	Combat RCD issued to ERT engineers. Has improved magazine that contains 500 material. Can select from a variety of different structures. Can deconstruct most basic structures (walls, windows, floors)
Pipe Dispenser	Rapid Piping Device	Dispensing disposal/air pipes.	Dispenses unfastened pipes. Dispenser must be anchored to dispense pipes. No magazine/material limit on RPD or dispenser. Bluespace RPD upgrade can dispense pipes at range. Alt-click the RPD to change modes via the radial menu. Modes can also be changed via its popup window.
Welding Mask/Goggles	Superior Welding Goggles	Protecting your eyes against bright lights.	Prevents eye damage from welder usage. Superior welding goggles only found in the CE and RD's office
Black Gloves	Insulated Gloves	Protecting your hands from danger.	Prevents damage from picking up hot light bulbs and broken glass. The Funny Yellow Gloves (Insulated Gloves) protect you from shock when working with wires and hacking.

EVA Equipment

Eva Suit	Location	Notes
Engineering Hardsuit	Secure Storage, Engineering	Built-in Welding-Helmet Retractable Helmet Has A helmet light 75% Radiation Protection
Regular Eva Suit	EVA	Basic EVA Suit Has a Separate helmet
Atmospheric Hardsuit	Atmospherics	Built-in Welding Helmet Impervious to High/Low Pressure Impervious to Super Heated/Cooled Gases 25% Radiation Protection
Chief Engineer's Hardsuit	CE's Office	Built-in Welding Helmet Resistant to Super Heated/Cooled Gases Built-in Jet pack Radiation Proof
Mag Boots	Engineering, EVA	Allows you to negate the effects of zero-gravity when adjacent to a structure(walls,lattice,floors, etc) Small speed slowdown when activated
Atmospherics Mag Boots	Atmospherics	Prevents you from being thrown back from pressure when unwrenching pipes
Advanced Mag Boots	Engineering, EVA	Allows you to negate the effects of zero-gravity when adjacent to a structure(walls,lattice,floors, etc) No speed slowdown when activated
Jet Packs	EVA	Allows you to change direction or stabilize yourself in space without nearby structures Needs Oxygen or C02 tank to work. May need to wear it in backpack slot depending on the EVA suit.

Misc Items

Equipment	Location	Uses
Space Heater	Engineering, Emergency Storage	Will raise the temperature in the surrounding area Can Melt Snow
Portable Air Pump	Atmospherics, outside Engineering, Locker Room	Insert a tank into the pump and it will dispense the gas into the surrounding area Good for restoring atmos in badly vented areas(see Maintenance)
Portable Air Scrubber	Atmospherics, outside Engineering, Locker Room	Use this to scrub bad/toxic gases out of the air A must-have for N2O and Plasma Gas Spills
Emergency Shield Projector	Secure Storage	Use this to deploy Impassable energy shields in space Will absorb meteor strikes
P.A.C.M.A.N Generators	Engineering, Protolathe	Produces lots of power while consuming uranium/plasma Can Explode if left on high too long or EMP'd Useful for setting up the engine to keep left SMES powered so containment won't fail
Radiation Suit	Engineering, Gravity Generator	Gives you total protection from radiation Needed around a Singularity, supermatter crystal, or supermatter shard to prevent injury via radiation.
Inflatable Walls	Engineering	Easily deployable wall to seal breaches

Fixing Stuff

When shit hits the fan and stuff starts breaking, it's up to you to fix it.

You should always prioritize the most public and damaged areas first, especially hull breaches and mass casualty incidents. If there's a lot of widespread damage make sure to work with your department to delegate tasks out to different engineers in order to be more efficient.

General Destruction

An Area which may have been welderbombed

Whether it be your occasional welderbomb or a less than friendly xenobiology mob, the station is bound to be damaged in some way. You will hear about this over comms or find it on your patrols around the station.

The Guide to Construction will be your best friend so go ahead and keep it open.

Flooring

If a floor tile has burn marks on it then you will need to crowbar it and replace it with a new floor tile. In the case that the plating underneath it is damaged (burn marks) then you will need to weld it before you can put a new floor tile on it.

The same is true for wood/carpet tiles. Planks in the wood floor will be missing and the carpet will be burned away.

Walls

If a wall has burn marks on it, all you need to do is use the welder on it.

If the metal is just peeled away, go ahead and use two metal on the girders to rebuild the wall.

If the wall is completely gone, stand on the plating where it used to be and use the metal in your hand to create girders. Once that is done, apply more metal to the girders to complete the wall.

If the wall is a reinforced wall, then you should instead apply plasteel to the girders to complete it.

Windows

All the windows on the station use reinforced glass, so make sure to utilize that instead of regular glass. If you're out of reinforced glass then use metal rods on glass to create more. Glass shards can be welded to create regular glass.

In order to fix a damaged window, weld it. If it's completely gone, then you can click on the grate with reinforced glass to build a new window. This new window needs to be screwed to the floor, crowbarred into the frame, and screwed again to the frame.

If the grille is partially destroyed, use a single rod on the remaining grille to repair it. This applies to broken grilles that are under secured windows as well.

If the grille is completely destroyed use two metal bars in your hand to build a new grille.

Airlocks

You can get airlock electronics from the Engi-Vend in Engineering.

See the Guide to Construction

If someone uses a Cryptographic Sequencer on an airlock, or "emags it", then you will need to fix it. If the door is emagged, simply open the door panel with a screwdriver and apply a crowbar. You will be given a charred airlock electronic. Replace the charred airlock electronics with a new airlock electronic. Make sure to properly set the airlock permission by using the airlock electronics in your hand and select the necessary permissions.

If the door has sparks coming from the panel, open the panel and make sure all of the wires are mended. After, screw the panel back on and weld the door on help intent.

Computers and Machines

See the Guide to Advanced Construction

Hull Breaches

A Hull Breach

The first thing you should do in the case of a hull breach is to seal off the breached area from the general public in order to prevent injuries and further atmospherics loss. Have someone use an Atmospherics Holofan Projector to seal off areas and the engineering barrier projector to keep people from entering spaced areas. If you do not have holofans, consider using inflatable barriers to do the job instead.

If there are missing floors, use metal rods to create lattice and then use floor tiles on the lattice to create floor plating. Otherwise, replace the walls and windows as needed.

Restoring Atmospherics

This is a job for your local Atmos Wizards but if they're not available you'll need to help out. Ensure that all of the supply pipes (blue pipes) are wrenched down and all the unary vents are also wrenched down. If the Air Alarm is intact then air should flow into the room and pressurize it.

If this is an area without vents, then use Oxygen grenades or a portable air injector with an O2 tank to finish the job.

For more information check the Guide to Atmospherics.

Widespread Destruction

The results of a Syndicate Bomb

A max cap will inevitably be detonated on the station or the SM might decide to have a meltdown. This often leaves sections of the entire station destroyed and rendered unusable. Sometimes you can fix it, sometimes you cant. Engineering will have to work as a team to fix this issue.

While there's no one way to go about fixing these issues here are a few tips

Focus on sealing breaches as quickly as possible first. Mesons are useful for seeing breaches through walls.
Make sure to establish a pressurized escape route for those who are isolated because of the damage.
Prioritize rebuilding parts of the station in this order: Escape, Central Primary Hallway/Starboard Primary Hallways, Arrivals, Medbay, other departments, everything else.

If you cannot rebuild an area, consider just walling it off and having the CE condemn the area. Doing so will bar anyone from going into it.

The Power Grid

Power monitoring and Distribution

Power grids are a network of cables. For example, the engine has its own power grid as its network of wires don't actually directly connect to the rest of the station, but are instead separated by SMES units. On each grid, you can have a power monitoring computer, which will show power input and the consumption of the APCs connected to it. These can also be accessed remotely by a PDA with the PowerOn! cartridge inserted.

The station's power grid cannot handle the amount of wattage an engine produces without arcing electricity off of very conductive assistants. The SMES' primary use is as a battery, but can also be used to regulate power output. Maximum input and output values for SMES units can be upgraded with capacitors and the storage capacity can be upgraded using power cells.

An APC or Area Power Controller is located in every room. It will always be locked by default, but you can be unlocked by swiping an ID with engineering permissions. Alternatively, the APC can be hacked similarly to doors in order to unlock the interface. From the APC you can toggle power to things like equipment, lighting, and environment in a room. Without an APC, machines and computers cannot turn on. Each APC is connected to the grid via a floor terminal placed on top of a wire node that is also connected to the station power grid. APCs are charged via this grid connection. An APC also has a power cell inside to store power. A power cell is needed for an APC to properly function.

Generating Power

Where the Engine is Contained

One of the primary purposes of engineering is to maintain the station's power. This can be done in multiple ways, the easiest of which is most likely Solar Panels. At the beginning of the shift, engineering is also provided with the Supermatter engine and room for a Tesla Engine or Singularity Engine on some stations. These can be extremely dangerous if handled improperly. A supermatter delamination will result in the total loss of engineering and the atmospheric departments and a tesloose or a singuloose will always require a shuttle call. As a result of this, you should really really read the guide to setting up the Supermatter and set it up with an experienced engineer

Alternatively, the station can run on solars alone, but the solars must be wired in order for them to work as well as properly setting up the solar tracker and computer. DO NOT hotwire the solars, if there is a solar flare then the station grid will overflow with power and the APCs will begin arcing lightning.

Additional power sources include the Tesla Engine, Singularity Engine, TEG, and the Gas Turbine. Each of these has different requirements to construct. Some easer than others and some are much more efficient than others.

Lastly, PACMANS. They are small mobile generators that run on plasma and uranium sheets. To use one, wrench it on top of an exposed wire node. Then use its menu to turn it on, on the output you desire. The station can run on solely PACMANs depending on how they are set up. You should also pay attention to PACMANs constantly, as leaving it on too high of a setting will lead it to explode. Examining the PACMAN will show you the maximum safe power setting.

Wiring

If a part of the station loses power it is either because wires have been cut, eaten by a hungry rat, or the grid is connected to a power sink. To search for cut wires under floors you will need a T-Ray Scanner. In order to place wires, hold cable coils in your hand and click the floor in the direction you want them placed. Doing this to an already placed wire will create a node, which is used for shocking grilles and powering certain machines. In order to remove wires, use wirecutters on them while wearing insulated gloves.

For more information on how to place wires see the Guide to Construction.

The Anatomy of a Room

Every room on the NSS Cyberiad has a few things:

Vents and Scrubbers
An Air Alarm
An APC
Wiring
A Sealed Hull
Blueprinted Area

Without those, a room will have problems that may include having no atmosphere or no power.

Creating a Room

In order to create a room, you must follow the criteria listed above.

You can start by laying flooring and walling off an area with airlocks included. Next, you will want to run wires into the station's power grid into the room. At this point, use the Station Blueprints or a building permit to declare an area as a room. You can name it whatever you want.

Now you should use metal in your hand to make an APC frame. Use that frame on a wall, place a power control module in it, wire it, a screwdriver it, wire it again, and then place a battery inside it. You can finalize the APC by crowbarring the panel closed. Now you can install an Air alarm. It's the same exact process except you use an Air Alarm frame, air alarm electronics, and you don't need a battery.

At this point your room is about ready to go, however, you will need an Atmospheric Technician to run the waste and distribution pipes into the room and properly pressurize it before it's safe to go in without an EVA suit on.

Station Goals

Every shift, Central Command assigns the station one goal to fulfill. These are known as the Station Goals. They can range from artillery pieces to scientific machines that pull amazing objects out of bluespace. After setting up power and keep the station intact this is the primary thing you should focus on.

Getting Crew out of Danger

When the integrity of the station is in peril, more often than not, there are casualties that the medical staff can't retrieve due to environmental hazards. If the Paramedic isn't available you'll have to retrieve people using your EVA suits and bring them to a safe area where they can be treated by medical.

Use your tools to break into places that are unpowered/unaccesible. You may need to hack bolted doors (see Hacking) in order to get to restricted areas.

Firefighting

Engineers get access to maintenance hallways, which contain several firesuits and extinguishers. If a fire breaks out somewhere, put it out. Firesuits allow you to walk in almost any fire. Extinguishers have a limited capacity. Refill them with water tanks, which can be found all around the station.

If you're dealing with plasma fires, it's best just to wait it out and use the Portable Air Scrubbers to clean up toxic gases.

Other Scenarios

Creepy Crawlies From the Unknown

Occasionally the station will be infested by various creatures that use the station distribution and waste pipes as a method of transportation. Of the many creatures that can vent crawl, Terror Spiders, Swarmers, and Xenomorphs are the most prolific, common, and dangerous. As an Engineer it's your job to weld vents closed.

You can help the station by welding vents and scrubbers to close off access/exit to pipes across the station. Places like the Turbine and the Vault are most commonly forgotten about so make sure to hit those locations. In order to ensure that the vents stay closed it's important that the pressure in the distribution network stays below 1000 kPa. Otherwise, the vents will burst open and will continue to do so until the pressure is reduced.

Keep in mind that some creatures can break open welded vents so make sure to go back and check areas!

DO NOT unwrench pipes to prevent antags from using the pipe networks. This will not only free creatures sealed into the pipes via welded vents but cutoff oxygen/waste access to and from Atmospherics all while attracting the ire of the Gods.

Asteroids

Occasionally you will hear over the intercoms that harrowing words that will send even the most experienced engineer into a fit of rage: "Meteors have been detected on a collision course with the station." Do not fear! There is many solutions to this here.

If your station objective is meteor satellites, then simply putting more out all around the station will go a long way towards eliminating the possibility of the NSS Cyberiad turning into Swiss cheese. In the case that you don't have meteor satellites(or enough) then you will need to take more extreme precautions.

In the case of a shorter wave of meteors, it's best to weather the storm and keep an eye on the engine so containment doesn't fail. However, if you're stuck with more meteors than you can realistically wait out you will have to construct defences.

Utilize Emergency Shield Projectors to provide heavy-duty protection to important areas such as Containment, Arrivals, and Escape. You will also need to construct soft barriers(grilles/walls) a little away from the station in order to absorb explosions from large meteor impacts.

Utilize Oxygen grenades and inflatable walls/doors to seal breached areas as well as Atmospherics Tanks.

Malfunctioning AI

What happens when your AI becomes bugged and turns into a murderous killer who has full control over the station's electronics? Well, besides not dying, there's a lot you can do as an engineer.

You can go around the station cutting cameras to disable the AI's view of the station. Additionally, all APCs, Air Alarms, and Airlocks have an AI control wire. You should go and cut every one of those so the AI can't shock/bolt doors or disable power.

Borgs are essentially the hands of the AI so you should disable them. Besides the good ol' smash and dash tactic, you can indirectly disable them by destroying all on-station borg recharging ports.

Additional Resources

Guide to Engineering

Contents