Implant Creation

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Implant Creation

One of the most complex tradeskill tasks for the average tradeskiller is implant creation. There are so many clusters and variables that a neophyte can easily be overwhelmed. This guide will attempt to cover, in great detail, everything you need to know about implants (and probably a lot of stuff that you don't need to know, as well!).

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Implant Basics

Implants can modify pretty much every skill in the game. They generally require an ability and some amount of treatment to equip, with the help of a Surgery Clinic (portable or otherwise). There are 13 slots for implants:

Each implant can be fitted with up to three different clusters, each of a different grade: Shiny, Bright, and Faded.

Shiny clusters give the highest bonus and are the hardest to combine. The icons have three "dots" inside them.

Bright clusters are in the "middle" in terms of bonuses and difficulty to combine. They typically have 60% of the bonus of the Shiny cluster and have two "dots" in the icon.

Faded clusters have the lowest bonus (40% of the Shiny bonus) and are the easiest to combine. The icons have one "dot" in them.

Each individual skill/ability/bonus has a single Shiny, Bright, and Faded cluster, and thus, can be fitted to three slots in various different implants depending on the skill or ability. There is a fair amount of overlap between certain bonuses, and thus you will often have to choose between several equally viable options. Note that if an implant has an "empty" slot, this slot can be filled at any time with a cluster of the appropriate grade.

Basic Implants can be purchased in varying QLs from the Implant Booth at any general store:

Basic General Stores have QLs 1, 5, 10, 15, and 20.
Advanced General Stores have 20, 30, 50, 70, and 90.
Superior General Stores have 70, 80, 90, 110, and 125.

Basic implants above QL 125 cannot be bought in stores, but can be rolled on missions. The trade department of each general store also has at least one booth which sells random QLs of implants.

The bonus that is received from an implant is based on the QL of the implant, rather than the QL of the clusters inserted. In other words, there is no point to inserting a QL 200 cluster in a lower implant, unless that was all that you had available; you won't get a higher bonus for using a higher cluster. It also means that the bonus listed in the cluster description is, by and large, worthless.

The basic implant combine is simple. Just combine together the Cluster you want with the implant you want in the tradeskill window:

Evade-ClsC Cluster - Faded (Waist)

Basic Waist Implant

Waist Implant: Evade-ClsC, Faded

The difficult part is determining how much skill you need to insert a cluster into an implant...

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Clusters (The Hard Way)

Each skill and ability has one (and only one) cluster for each grade, and each cluster grade is in a different location. This means that you cannot have the same skill in two different grade slots in a single implant, although you can have three separate implants, each with a different grade of cluster for that skill. Having all three grades of a skill or ability implanted is often called "Triple Implanting" that skill or ability.

Note: Max Nano and Nano Pool both increase Max Nano, and can both be implanted in different grades in the same Head, Chest, or Waist implant.

This table lists the Nanoprogramming base multiplier and location for each cluster. To determine the Nanoprogramming requirement, you multiply the QL of the target implant by the base multiplier. If it is a Faded cluster, then you use this number (x1). If it is a Bright cluster, then you multiply the base number by x1.5. If it is a Shiny cluster, then you multiply the base number by x2.

Cluster Name	Multiplier	Shiny (x2)	Bright (x1.5)	Faded (x1)
1h Blunt	1.8	Right Arm	Right Wrist	Right Hand
1h Edged	1.9	Right Arm	Right Wrist	Right Hand
2h Blunt	1.8	Right Arm	Left Arm	Chest
2h Edged	1.9	Right Arm	Left Arm	Waist
Adventuring	1.5	Leg	Waist	Chest
Agility	2.25	Leg	Feet	Waist
Aimed Shot	2.1	Eye	Right Wrist	Right Hand
Assault Rif	2.25	Right Arm	Right Hand	Eye
Bio.Metamor	2.4	Head	Chest	Waist
Body Dev	2.0	Chest	Waist	Leg
Bow	2.0	Right Arm	Left Arm	Eye
Bow Spc Att	2.0	Head	Right Hand	Right Wrist
Brawling	1.65	Left Arm	Right Arm	Waist
Break & Entry	2.0	Right Arm	Left Arm	Chest
Burst	2.1	Right Arm	Right Wrist	Right Hand
Chemical AC	2.0	Waist	Right Arm	Left Arm
Chemistry	2.0	Head	Eye	Right Hand
Cold AC	2.0	Waist	Right Hand	Left Hand
Comp Lit	2.0	Head	Eye	Right Hand
Concealment	1.8	Feet	Ear	Eye
Dimach	2.25	Chest	Head	Waist
Disease AC	1.75	Head	Leg	Chest
Dodge-Rng	2.0	Leg	Feet	Waist
Duck-Exp	2.0	Leg	Waist	Feet
Elec Engi	2.0	Eye	Head	Right Hand
Energy AC	2.25	Chest	Leg	Waist
Evade-ClsC	2.0	Feet	Leg	Waist
Fast Attack	1.9	Left Hand	Right Hand	Right Arm
Fire AC	2.0	Waist	Left Hand	Right Hand
First Aid	1.8	Head	Right Hand	Left Hand
Fling Shot	1.8	Right Arm	Right Hand	Right Wrist
Full Auto	2.25	Right Arm	Right Wrist	Waist
Grenade	1.9	Right Arm	Eye	Right Hand
Heavy Weapons	1.0	Right Arm	Eye	Right Hand
Imp/Proj AC	2.25	Leg	Chest	Waist
Intelligence	2.25	Head	Eye	Ear
Map Nav	1.25	Eye	Head	Ear
Martial Arts	2.5	Right Hand	Feet	Left Hand
Matter Crea	2.4	Head	Right Hand	Eye
Matt Metam	2.4	Head	Chest	Left Arm
Max Health	2.5	Chest	Waist	Leg
Max Nano	2.5	Head	Waist	Chest
Mech Engi	2.0	Head	Eye	Right Arm
Melee Energy	2.0	Head	Left Wrist	Right Wrist
Melee Init	2.0	Feet	Leg	Waist
Melee AC	2.25	Chest	Waist	Leg
MG/SMG	2.0	Right Arm	Right Hand	Chest
Multi Melee	2.25	Left Wrist	Eye	Right Wrist
Multi Ranged	2.0	Left Wrist	Right Wrist	Eye
NanoC Init	2.0	Head	Eye	Chest
Nano Pool	3.0	Chest	Head	Waist
Nano Progra	2.0	Head	Eye	Right Hand
Nano Resist	2.0	Head	Right Wrist	Left Wrist
Parry	2.1	Right Wrist	Left Wrist	Right Arm
Perception	2.0	Ear	Eye	Head
Pharma Tech	2.0	Head	Eye	Right Hand
Physic Init	2.0	Feet	Right Arm	Left Arm
Piercing	1.6	Right Arm	Left Arm	Waist
Pistol	2.0	Right Wrist	Right Hand	Eye
Psychic	2.25	Head	Chest	Ear
Psycho Modi	2.4	Head	Eye	Ear
Psychology	2.0	Head	Ear	Eye
Quantum FT	2.0	Head	Eye	Right Hand
Radiation AC	2.0	Waist	Left Arm	Right Arm
Ranged Energy	2.0	Head	Eye	Left Hand
Ranged Init	2.0	Right Wrist	Head	Right Hand
Rifle	2.25	Eye	Right Wrist	Left Wrist
Riposte	2.5	Right Wrist	Left Wrist	Right Arm
Run Speed	2.0	Right Wrist	Left Wrist	Leg
Sense	2.25	Chest	Waist	Head
Sensory Imp	2.20	Head	Eye	Chest
Sharp Object	1.25	Right Wrist	Right Hand	Eye
Shotgun	1.7	Right Arm	Right Hand	Waist
Sneak Attack	2.5	Feet	Right Wrist	Eye
Stamina	2.25	Chest	Leg	Waist
Strength	2.25	Right Arm	Left Arm	Chest
Swimming	1.25	Leg	Right Arm	Left Arm
Time & Space	2.4	Head	Right Hand	Eye
Trap Disarm	1.8	Right Hand	Left Hand	Head
Treatment	2.15	Head	Eye	Right Hand
Tutoring	1.3	Eye	Ear	Head
Vehicle Air	1.0	Eye	Ear	Head
Vehicle Ground	1.5	Head	Eye	Ear
Vehicle Water	1.2	Head	Eye	Ear
Weaponsmithing	2.0	Right Hand	Head	Eye

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Clusters (The Easy Way)

Instead of manually calculating all the requirements needed to insert various clusters into implants, most people use a program or website to calculate everything. It saves a lot of time and effort (as well as headaches).

Some popular implant designers include:

Auno's Implant Designer - Web-based, simple, profiles can be shared online. Sometimes inaccurate with Jobe clusters, although oddly enough, the Equipment Config option there (which shows implants) does not share the same inaccuracies.
Nano Nanny - Installable offline application. No longer supported, still a favorite among the community. Many features, somewhat inaccurate and has some typos in the database.
Implant Helper - Installable offline application, accurate.
TinkerPlants - Web-based, simple and accurate. Profiles can be shares as files. Saavick's recommendation for 2023.

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Cluster Shopping

When inserting a cluster into a basic or partially-filled implant, the QL of the cluster has be at least a minimum QL depending on the grade of the cluster:

Shiny clusters need to be at least 86% of the implant's QL.
Bright clusters need to be at least 84% of the implant's QL.
Faded clusters need to be at least 82% of the implant's QL.

The clusters can be any QL above the implant's QL, as long as it is above the calculated minimum value. Note that because of QL bumping, you may want to add a few QLs to your minimum threshold for cluster shopping, if you intend to implant multiple clusters at one time into the same implant.

When shopping for clusters, keep in mind that you can shop in the trade departments of other faction's stores.

Since the 18.7 patch, neutral Fair Trade stores no longer sell clusters. Instead, clusters are now available in specialised implant stores. As an example, there is one accross the street from Fair Trade in Borealis, and another one in Newland City near the West gate. These shops sell clusters in a few fixed QLs: 25, 50, 100, 200 and 300. Note that QL 200 Clusters are 5x more expensive than in sided stores, but it may still be worth it to avoid shopping around for a good QL.

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QL Bumping

When creating an implant, often the QL of the implant will raise several points, improving in quality. This QL raising (also known as "bumping") is solely dependent on the Nanoprogramming skill of the tradeskiller versus the tradeskill requirement of the implant creation process. The QL of the cluster has no bearing on whether or not an implant will bump.

The requirements to bump an implant vary according to the grade of the cluster, with Faded being easiest to bump:

For Faded RK clusters, every 100 Nanoprogramming above the tradeskill requirements of the combine will bump the implant by 1 QL. For Faded Jobe clusters, every 200 skill above the requirement will bump the implant by 1 QL.
For Bright RK clusters, every 200 Nanoprogramming above the tradeskill requirements of the combine will bump the implant by 1 QL. For Bright Jobe clusters, every 300 skill above the requirement will bump the implant by 1 QL.
For Shiny RK clusters, every 300 Nanoprogramming above the tradeskill requirements of the combine will bump the implant by 1 QL. For Shiny Jobe clusters, every 400 skill above the requirement will bump the implant by 1 QL.

For example, if you are implanting a Shiny 1h Blunt cluster into a QL 100 implant (360 Nanoprogramming required), then you will need at least 660 Nanoprogramming to bump the implant by 1 QL (360 + 300 = 660), and at least 960 Nanoprogramming to bump the implant by 2 QLs (360 + 300 + 300 = 960).

QL Bumping is limited by the QL of the implant being created:

QL 1 to 49 implants will never bump
QL 50 to 99 implants will bump a maximum of 1 QL per cluster
QL 100 to 149 implants will bump a maximum of 2 QLs per cluster
QL 150 to 199 implants will bump a maximum of 3 QLs per cluster, to a maximum of QL 200
QL 201 to 249 implants will bump a maximum of 4 QLs per cluster
QL 250 to 299 implants will bump a maximum of 5 QLs per cluster, to a maximum of QL 300

Note that if you repeatedly clean and bump the QL of an implant, you can get the implant to steadily rise in QL, to a limit of QL 200. Many people use Faded clusters for this implant raising cycle.

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Jobe Clusters

Jobe clusters are special clusters that are occasionally found in missions and sold in implant stores as the

Shop in ICC

Andromeda - 3348x835

. They used to be sold in Jobe by a gentleman named Christen "Techie" Thorwaldsen, but this is no longer the case since they became available in shops on Rubi-Ka. Despite the Shadowlands-related name, Jobe clusters are usable by froobs. Aside from the usual Nanoprogramming skill needed to implant the cluster, they also require another tradeskill, depending on the type of cluster:

Shiny clusters take x6.25 skill of the implant's QL to combine.
Bright clusters take x4.75 skill of the implant's QL to combine.
Faded clusters take x3.25 skill of the implant's QL to combine.

Cluster Name	Skill	Shiny (x6.25)	Bright (x4.75)	Faded (x3.25)
% Add All Def*	Psychology	Left Arm	Right Arm	Feet
% Add All Off*	Psychology	Left Arm	Right Arm	Feet
% Add Damage**	Quantum FT	Right Hand	Left Wrist	Right Wrist
% Add XP	Psychology	Ear	Feet	Leg
Heal Delta	Pharma Tech	Left Arm	Feet	Leg
Max NCU	Computer Literacy	Ear	Right Wrist	Leg
Nano Delta***	Pharma Tech	Right Wrist	Right Arm	Feet
Nano Point Cost	Quantum FT	Waist	Ear	Left Arm
NF Interrupt	Psychology	Leg	Left Hand	Chest
RangeInc NF	Nanoprogramming	Left Arm	Left Hand	Right Arm
RangeInc Weapon	Weaponsmithing	Eye	Feet	Right Arm
Shield Chem/Cold/Melee/Poison AC	Quantum FT	Left Hand	Feet	Left Wrist
Shield Energy/Fire/Proj/Rad AC	Quantum FT	Left Wrist	Left Hand	Leg
Skill Time Lock Modifier	Psychology	Leg	Left Hand	Chest

*Add All Defense/Offense adds a fixed value, not a percentage
** All % Add Damage adds a fixed value, not a percentage. There is a cluster for every damage type except Cold.
*** Nano Delta clusters appear as "A Shining/Bright/Faded NanoCluster of Nano Regeneration" and do not have a "Jobe" tag. Also, Nano Delta clusters have lower skill requirements to install, requiring x5.25 for Shiny and x4 for Bright and 2.75x for Faded. Nano Delta clusters are the only clusters that can be rolled on missions and can come in QLs that are unusable due to being too low for a QL 99/100 implant.

Jobe clusters cannot be inserted into implants below QL 99. They can be inserted in QL 99 implants only if the result will be bumped to QL 100. If you receive a message to state that the combine is not possible, you need to increase your nano programming skill enough to ensure that the bump to QL 100 can happen. Without this the combine will fail.

QL 100 implants with a Jobe cluster are locked to title level 3. QL 101+ Jobe clusters are locked to title level 4, with higher title level locks for refined implants. Also, implants with Jobe clusters have higher requirements in both ability and treatment than implants that do not have Jobe clusters. Finally, implants with Jobe clusters cannot be cleaned by an Implant Disassembly Clinic.

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Refined Implants

Implants above QL 200 are called "Refined" implants. These implants scale linearly above QL 200, although the ability and treatment requirements are on a much higher scale. Refined implants are usable by froobs and follow some special rules. Refined Implants can only be combined with refined clusters (clusters above QL 200) and are title level locked at TL5 for QL 201-250 and TL6 for QL 251-300. They cannot be cleaned. QL 300 Basic Refined Implants and clusters can be bought in implant stores, but for a very high price; up to tens or even hundreds of millions. Alternatively, Basic Refined Implants and refined non-Jobe clusters can be blitzed in missions, and they are common drops from Primus camp mobs. Refined Jobe clusters can be found found as rare chest loot in mission (with the exception of Nano Delta, which can be rolled). Fully-made Refined implants occasionally drop as chest loot in high QL missions, as well.

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Cleaning Implants

Implants can be cleaned by using an Implant Disassembly Clinic. This process requires x4.75 in Breaking and Entering and x1 in Nanoprogramming skills of the implant's QL. This process removes ALL clusters (you cannot selectively remove just one or two), and gives you a basic implant of the same QL. Many people commonly blitz already-filled ("dirty") implants above QL 125 and have them cleaned afterwards. Refined and Jobe-cluster modified implants cannot be cleaned.

Last updated on 04.10.2023 by bitnykk
Written by Hahnsoo
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