Fallout 4 ’s latest DLC, Contraptions Workshop, is now available to download. What’s in the new content? A ton of new objects to build for your settlements. This stuff is way more complicated than anything released yet, so here’s some beginner’s tips and a few ideas to get your new contraptions started.
Pro-Tips
For this DLC, you’ll need lots of power. Make sure you have your Science perk leveled all the way up so you can build a Fusion Generator. This will produce 100 power points for you to use on all your new contraptions.
You’ll also need copious amounts of gears and circuitry to build all of these items, so make sure you’re stocked up. You can always highlight crafting components, making a magnifying glass appear next to an item that contains the components you want.
Sorting Machine
The sorting machine can be helpful to organize all of your junk by craftable components. Follow the steps to get your own sorting machine running on one of your settlements.
Build a hopper to store all of your junk
Build a terminal to control the hopper and wire the two together
Line up a conveyor belt to be under the hopper spout
Run the conveyor belt into a sorter or component sorter
Put a storage compartment at the end of either side of the sorting machine
With those steps done, make sure the conveyor belts are all running in the right direction. When everything looks good, go over to the sorter and put one item you want sorted inside. For example, if you want all of the items that have adhesive, put one adhesive in the component sorter. When junk comes rolling through, all the items that have adhesive will be filtered from the rest of your junk. You’ll hear a satisfying “ding” sound if you have it running properly.
Go to the terminal you have set up and select how frequently you want items to drop, and how many will get dropped at a time. When the terminal is set up, fill the hopper with your junk and watch the machines take over.
Once you have the filtered items going into the storage compartment you want it to, you can repeat the steps above to make even more sortings take place. Ultimately, you could have a machine where you dump all your junk into the hopper, and it spits out your gear filtered by adhesives, gears, screws, circuitry, oil or whatever component you happen to be looking for.
Fireworks Displays
Fireworks are new additions to Fallout 4’s crafting system, and you can create your own shows if you set everything up right.
First up, you’ll need to build a fireworks mortar. This can be found in the Power > Miscellaneous option of the crafting menu. Get the mortar set up and powered, then hook up a terminal to it. Program the amount of time you want between fireworks shots on the terminal.
Once that’s done, you’ll need your fireworks. Go to a chemistry station and craft a few options. With these, walk back to the mortar and transfer the fireworks into the mortar’s inventory. Step back and enjoy the show!
Weapons/Ammo/Armor/Clothing/Etc. Forge
It’s now possible to make your own weapons, ammo, clothing and more using the Contraptions Workshop DLC. To do this, simply build the forge for whatever you are interested in making. Once you have all the forges you want, hook them up to the same terminal. This machine will allow you to make whatever you want from the forges.
Of course, you can’t make something out of nothing. You’ll need to fill up the forges with the right resources like steel, cloth and fertilizer for bullets. Once all the right resources are in position, craft away.
There are more new items like elevators, logic gates and more for those who really want to sink their teeth into the crafting mechanics. Unfortunately, there are no new missions or story content with Contraptions Workshop, just more crafting tools.
So what do you think? Are you going to try out any of these basic contraptions? Will you try to make something a little more complex? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
