Surveyor

Unlocking the Surveyor Class

The Surveyor is a crafting support profession in SnapCats, specializing in locating, extracting, and managing valuable resources from the environment. Surveyors are essential for gathering high-quality raw materials that other crafting professions, such as Weaponsmiths, Armorsmiths, and Architects, need to produce powerful items, equipment, and structures. The availability and quality of resources change over time, making the Surveyor’s role dynamic and crucial for the game’s economy and crafting system. To unlock the Surveyor class, players must first master basic resource gathering and exploration skills.

Basic Classes Required to Unlock Surveyor:

1. Scout (Basic Class):

   • Why It’s Important: The Scout class provides critical skills in exploration, terrain navigation, and survival, which are essential for locating and surveying resource-rich areas. Surveyors need to be proficient in navigating different terrains and environments to find valuable resources.
   • Key Skills to Unlock:
     • Exploration: Enhances the ability to travel through diverse environments to locate resource deposits.
     • Survival Skills: Improves the ability to gather materials safely in hostile environments.

2. Artisan (Optional but Beneficial):

   • Why It’s Important: The Artisan class offers a foundation in crafting and resource management, giving Surveyors the ability to understand the quality and attributes of the materials they gather.
   • Key Skills to Unlock:
     • Resource Identification: Helps Surveyors assess the quality of resources based on their attributes, making it easier to collect high-value materials for crafters.

Skill Tree Progression for Surveyor

Once the Scout class is mastered, players can unlock the Surveyor class. Skill trees for the Surveyor focus on resource detection, extraction, and management. Surveyors are essential for ensuring that the game’s crafters have access to high-quality materials, influencing the outcome of crafted items based on the resources they provide.

Surveyor Skill Tree:

1. Resource Detection:

   • Grants the Surveyor the ability to scan and detect resources in the environment, providing information on resource types, availability, and quality. This skill improves the accuracy of scans and allows Surveyors to find rare resources more easily.
   • Example: The Surveyor uses a specialized tool to detect high-quality mineral deposits in a mountainous region, giving them a significant advantage in crafting valuable items.

2. Hand Sampling:

   • Allows the Surveyor to manually gather small quantities of resources from detected deposits. Hand sampling is useful for quickly collecting materials in the field without the need for machinery.
   • Example: The Surveyor uses hand sampling tools to extract a small amount of Titanium Ore for immediate use in crafting lightweight armor.

3. Resource Attributes Identification:

   • Unlocks the ability to assess the quality of resources based on their attributes, such as durability, conductivity, resistance, and more. This skill is essential for finding materials that will enhance the outcome of crafted items.
   • Example: The Surveyor identifies a High-Conductivity Copper deposit, which will be valuable for crafting energy weapons with enhanced damage.

4. Harvesting Installations:

   • Grants the ability to place and manage harvesting machines on resource-rich nodes. These machines automatically extract resources over time, allowing the Surveyor to gather large quantities without constant monitoring.
   • Example: The Surveyor sets up a harvesting machine on a Plasma Gas node, collecting large quantities of the rare resource for use in high-end crafting.

5. Resource Management:

   • Improves the Surveyor’s ability to manage and maintain resource harvesters, ensuring they run efficiently and gather the maximum amount of materials. This skill reduces downtime and increases resource yield.
   • Example: The Surveyor checks on their harvesters, performing maintenance to prevent downtime and ensuring a steady supply of high-quality Iron Ore.

6. Resource Shifts Awareness:

   • Enhances the Surveyor’s ability to track the shifting availability of resources, allowing them to adapt quickly and locate new resource nodes when old ones are depleted or when quality shifts. This skill ensures a constant supply of valuable materials.
   • Example: The Surveyor detects a sudden shift in resource availability and quickly moves to a new area where a high-quality Carbon Composite deposit has appeared.

7. Resource Trade:

   • Unlocks the ability to trade high-quality resources with crafters or other players, ensuring that Surveyors can profit from their discoveries. This skill enhances the Surveyor’s role in the game’s economy, allowing them to become key suppliers of rare materials.
   • Example: The Surveyor negotiates a trade with a Weaponsmith, exchanging a rare Plasma Ore deposit for a custom-made plasma rifle.

Pros and Cons of the Surveyor Class

Pros:

1. Essential for Crafting Professions:

   • Surveyors are vital for locating and providing the raw materials needed for high-quality crafting. Crafters rely on Surveyors to gather the best resources, making them essential to the economy.

2. Dynamic and Strategic Role:

   • Surveyors play a dynamic role in the game, as resource availability and quality change over time. Their ability to adapt and locate new resource nodes ensures they remain highly valuable to the game’s crafting community.

3. Resource Management and Profit:

   • Surveyors not only gather resources but also manage them, ensuring efficient extraction through harvesters. Their ability to trade high-quality materials makes them a lucrative profession in the game’s economy.

Cons:

1. Non-Combat Role:

   • Surveyors are focused on resource gathering and management, with limited combat abilities. They may need protection from hostile environments or enemy players while gathering materials.

2. Resource-Intensive:

   • Setting up and maintaining harvesters requires a steady supply of resources and credits, making resource management critical. Surveyors must balance the cost of running harvesters with the value of the materials they extract.

3. Dependent on Shifting Resources:

   • The availability and quality of resources shift regularly, meaning Surveyors must stay on top of changes in the game world. They need to be adaptable and constantly searching for new deposits.

Conclusion

The Surveyor class is a key support profession in SnapCats, specializing in finding, gathering, and managing valuable resources that are essential for crafting professions. Surveyors play a dynamic and strategic role in the game, locating high-quality materials with attributes that directly affect the outcome of crafted items. With skills in resource detection, management, and harvesting, Surveyors ensure a steady supply of materials for crafters, making them a crucial part of the game’s economy. However, their non-combat focus and reliance on resource availability mean they must carefully manage their time and resources. Players who enjoy exploration, resource gathering, and supporting the game’s economy will find the Surveyor class both rewarding and engaging.