‘No Man’s Sky’ Multi-Tool Guide: Mining, Combat And Everything You Need To Survive In Space

As you make your way through the vastness of No Man’s Sky , you’ll need to make yourself acquainted with your trusted pal, the Multi-Tool.

The Multi-Tool is your weapon in No Man’s Sky , but it does a lot more than blast unruly aliens and space pirates. It’s also your tool for mining elements to replenish your Life Support gauge, maintaining your starship and other useful tasks.

We compiled this guide to getting to know your Multi-Tool in No Man’s Sky , because there’s no better companion than a gun.

BASICS

First off, if you want to use your Multi-Tool all you need to do is press R2. The Multi-Tool will appear and you can fire by pressing R2 again. The Multi-Tool will have other functions as you upgrade it, but we’ll get to that later.

What you need to know is that your Multi-Tool, like your Exosuit and Starship, comes with an allotted number of inventory slots. The one you get when you start the game comes with only five inventory slots but you will come across others that have more slots.

Pro tip: Place upgrades from the same category next to each other in your inventory. They get an adjacency bonus, which will be indicated by a green, red or yellow box outlining the upgrades.

You can’t carry elements or goods in the Multi-Tool inventory, only upgrades.

To see the many upgrades your Multi-Tool can have, check out our Recipe Guide.

SCANNERS

When you first start the game, your Multi-Tool will only have a few settings. You can use your Mine Beam (which we’ll get to later) to harvest elements, but you’ll need to fix your Multi-Tool’s scan functions.

There are two scan functions in your Multi-Tool: the first is your Analysis Visor, which is the tool you use to identify plant and animal life. This also helps identify distant waypoints and alien constructions. Hold down L2 and move the scanner to the target and wait for the Analysis Visor to analyze.

The second scan is your Scanner, which you can activate manually by pressing L3. Once you do, a sonar will admit from your Multi-Tool and show you what’s in your area, from elements to constructs to waypoints.

MINING BEAM

The main focus of your Multi-Tool when you start No Man’s Sky is the Mining Beam. This function lets your Multi-Tool emit a laser at different objects to mine elements from it. The amount you need to destroy a rock structure or plant life varies but you can track how much you need by the circle gauge when you aim your Multi-Tool at it.

Once punctured or destroyed, the elements within will pull towards you.

However, the Mining Beam cannot be used continuously. There are two gauges to be aware of when using the Mining Beam. The first is the heat gauge, which is the bar that fills up in white when the Mining Beam is used. If you hold the Beam down until the bar is full, then the Multi-Tool will overheat and a cool-down will begin.

The other gauge shows the amount of ammo you have. Beginning from 100 percent, the more you use the Mining Beam, the percentage will decrease.

To refuel you Mining Beam, you need to use Isotopes (red elements) to charge it.

COMBAT

Along your No Man’s Sky journey, you’ll encounter aggressive alien life and need to defend yourself.

Your Multi-Tool has many functions to ward off attackers. The first is the aforementioned Mining Beam. You can harm your aggressors with the Beam, but in our experience, the damage is minimal.

This can be upgraded but there are better options for combat like the Boltcaster.

This upgrade you’ll need to find on your journey, but the Boltcaster acts like a traditional gun, using ammo instead of a continuous laser. These do a lot more damage and can fire quicker. The Boltcaster doesn’t overheat, but the ammo will run out and you’ll need to reload. Again, Isotopes will charge up your Boltcaster.

Upgrades are plentiful for the Boltcaster, ranging from a wider spread to reduced kickback on more powerful shots.

To switch between Mining Beam and the Boltcaster, simply press TRIANGLE.

You can also strike aliens by pressing the R1 button.

GRENADES

Another upgrade to the Multi-Tool, Grenades pack a much needed punch in combat. They can also be used to help excavate elements quicker.

By pressing the L1 button, your Multi-Tool will launch a Grenade. Different upgrades give your Grenades added properties, from being able to ricochet off objects to a larger blast radius.

Grenades and the Boltcaster also give you a way to break into doors that won’t open automatically. When you aim your Multi-Tool at a door and a gun image appears, that’s your cue to use both to break it down, but beware of Security Sentinels lurking around.

To charge your Grenades, you’ll need to use your Isotopes.