Thonky.com's Final Fantasy XIV Guide

In Cosmic Exploration, you can help Searchingway explore the cosmos, and develop your Cosmic Tools.

How to Unlock Cosmic Exploration

If you have completed Endwalker, you can go to Old Sharlayan, switch to a Crafter or Gatherer class that is at least level 10, and talk to Namingway to begin the quest A Cosmic Homecoming. Complete the quest to go to Sinus Ardorum and unlock Cosmic Exploration.

How to Go to Sinus Ardorum

To return to Sinus Ardorum if you leave, go to Mare Lamentorum (X:21.9 Y:13.2) near Bestways Burrow and talk to Drivingway, southeast of the Aetheryte. (You can only visit Sinus Ardorum on your Home World.)

Cosmic Tools

Main article: Cosmic Tools Guide

The Cosmic Exploration unlock quest gives you a Cosmic Tool coffer. You can open it to get the prototype tool for your current class. To get more prototype tools (free of charge), talk to Researchingway at the Moongate Hub. Stellar Missions will give you research data to level up your tools, even if you don't have them equipped, so be sure to get the prototypes for the Stellar Missions you want to do, and keep in mind that some Stellar Missions require you to use more than one class.

How to Move Quickly in Sinus Ardorum

Stellar Sprint

You can't use a mount in Sinus Ardorum, but your Sprint action changes to Stellar Sprint, a permanent sprint buff that works only in this area. If you press Stellar Sprint again, you will turn the Sprint buff off, so make sure not to do this unless you want to stop sprinting.

Stellar Return

While in Sinus Ardorum, you have the duty action "Stellar Return" which teleports you back to the Moongate Hub.

The Cosmoliner

If enough progress has been made in your Cosmic Exploration area, the Cosmoliner (special teleporter gateways) will be built in Sinus Ardorum. You can step through the Cosmoliner gateways to be quickly teleported along a ring of tracks around Moongate Hub as well as a set of tracks shaped like a + that goes through Moongate Hub. If you are not near a Cosmoliner gateway, use Stellar Return (see above) to quickly reach the gateways in the middle, and use them to reach the areas where you need to go.

The Exotablet

When you are in Sinus Ardorum, there is a new HUD element called the Exotablet that has several buttons, explained below.

Stellar Missions

The upper-left button on the Exotablet opens the Stellar Missions window. There you will see missions that you can undertake as your current class. If you switch classes, be sure to close and reopen the Stellar Missions window to refresh the list. Complete the mission objectives to earn Cosmocredits and Lunar Credits. Missions can also give research data to level up your Cosmic Tools. In addition, when you participate in a Mech Op, you get a bonus to your next 20 Stellar Missions, increasing the credits you earn (but not the research data). You can get a bonus to research data by getting a Silver or Gold Star in the mission (see below for more details about Silver and Gold stars).

If you reach Gold Rank during a mission, you will no longer be able to perform the mission activity. At that point, click the Stellar Mission button to see the Mission in Progress window, then click Report to complete the mission and receive your reward.

The Mission in Progress window (mentioned above) will show you the requirements for each rank (also displayed in the duty list), and it also gives you the option to abandon the mission.

For Stellar Reduction missions, you can open the Mission in Progress window (see above) to find the Stellar Reduction button. It is to the left of the Report button. Click it to see a list of collectables you have gathered, then click a Collectable to use Stellar Reduction on it. After that, click "Automatic" to automatically reduce any remaining collectables for this mission.

Sequential Missions

Sequential Missions are available for five minutes after you complete certain Stellar Missions with Gold Star rank. If you can complete Sequential Missions with the highest possible score, more Sequential Missions will appear.

Weather-restricted Missions and Time-restricted Missions

These missions only appear during certain weather or times of day. Check the tab that looks like a clock 🕒 in the Stellar Missions window to see if any of these missions are active. After you complete Weather- or Time-restricted Missions, you can click "Mission Log" near the top of the Stellar Missions window to review the weather or time requirement for those missions.

Critical Missions

Red Alerts occur approximately every 3 to 4 hours.

During a Red Alert, there will be two gauges at the top of the screen, each with class icons next to them. Each gauge shows the progress for each group of classes. In the Stellar Missions window, click the Critical Missions tab, which looks like an alert light 🚨, to see the current Critical Missions. Be sure to go to the correct map location for your chosen class. Choose "Display on Map" from the Stellar Missions window to find the correct location. There will be two different map locations, one for each gauge.

After you complete a mission, look for the special icon in the minimap where you can drop off the items you crafted or gathered. If you don't see such an icon, you may be in the wrong location, so check your map. If both gauges are filled before time runs out, all contributors get more bonus rewards.

Mech Ops

The second button from the left in the top row is for Mech Ops. Mech Ops will be announced in a message along the top of the screen. During Mech Ops, you can pilot a mech or provide ground support.

Piloting a Mech

Talk to Alerot in Moongate Hub to spend 1000 Lunar Credits on a pilot application. (You can get 1000 Lunar Credits from the Stellar Successes menu per day; see below.) Then when a Mech Op is announced, click the alert, or if the alert disappeared, press the Mech Ops button, and click "Apply" at the bottom for a chance to be selected to pilot a mech. Five random applicants will be selected. Those not selected will get their pilot application back, and can use it again another time, and will have a higher chance of being selected next time.

Ground Support

To participate in a Mech Op as ground support, you can talk to Alerot (the one you buy Pilot Applications from; see above) and ask to be transported to the Mech Op location. When the Mech Op starts, choose Join Event (available in the Duty List if you're at the Mech Op location), then look for the small sparkling objects in the green circles in the minimap, and use your FATE action when standing near the sparkling objects. You will collect one or more items after you have performed the FATE action, and you will increase your contribution to the FATE. You can only carry up to 20 of these items. Step into the glowing green circles that are marked with a special icon in the minimap to turn in what you have collected. This increases your FATE contribution further.

Mech Ops Bonuses

After the Mech Op is complete, if you have made enough of a contribution, you will earn Cosmocredits, Lunar Credits, EXP, and a buff to credits earned from the next 20 Stellar Missions that you do. This buff doesn't apply to research data earned.

Stellar Successes

The second button from the right in the top row of the Exotablet opens the Stellar Successes window, where you will see Daily missions that reward Success Points. If you fill your Success Points gauge, you will get a total of 600 Cosmocredits and 1000 Lunar Credits (enough to purchase a pilot application or Cosmic Fortune; see below). The reset time is displayed in the bottom-right corner of the Stellar Successes window.

There is also a Standard Successes tab that displays long-term goals, which reward credits or research data.

Infrastructure Index

The upper-right button in the Exotablet opens the Infrastructure Index, which shows you the overall progress of your Home World's Cosmic Exploration. You can increase progress by completing Stellar Missions. If the progress bar is full, it will display the date and time when the next progress FATE will take place, and you can click the bell button 🔔 to set an alarm to remind you.

In the Infrastructure Index, you can also click the Development Logs on the left and click Video Log in the bottom right to view the cutscenes that were displayed when players completed the progress FATE for each step.

Cosmic Research

The leftmost button in the second row in the Exotablet opens the Cosmic Research window, where you can see the data you have collected for each of the Cosmic Tool prototypes that you have. You can earn data by completing Stellar Missions as the corresponding class; no need to equip the tool. If you fill the research gauge(s) for a prototype, the Cosmic Research button will show an arrow. When this happens, use Stellar Return to go to the Moongate Hub, and talk to Researchingway to upgrade your Cosmic Tool prototype.

Cosmic Class Scores

The second button to the left in the second row of the Exotablet opens the Cosmic Class Scores windows, where you can see your accumulated scores for each crafter and gatherer class. These scores are used for rankings (see below). If you can earn a cosmic class score of 500,000 points as every Disciple of the Hand and Land, you get an achievement, and you can click the achievement in the chat window or view the achievement in the Achievements window to claim your reward: the High Mobility Vacuum Suit mount.

Currencies

Below the buttons on the Exotablet, you will see the currencies you have accumulated. Participate in Stellar Missions, Mech Ops, Progress FATEs, and other Cosmic Exploration activities to earn one or more of these currencies.

Cosmocredits

Talk to Mesouaidonque at the Moongate Hub to spend Cosmocredits to purchase gear, furnishings, and more.

Lunar Credits

Talk to Alerot at the Moongate Hub to spend 1000 Lunar Credits to buy a Mech Ops pilot application, or talk to Orbitingway to spend 1000 Lunar Credits each to draw cosmic fortunes (see below).

Cosmic Fortunes

Talk to Orbitingway to spend Lunar Credits to draw Cosmic Fortunes. You can choose between two different roulettes, each of which has a different set of possible prizes. Choose whichever roulette has the prizes that you want.

If the roulette wheel lands on Stellar Opportunity, you get to roll the roulette with better chances of rare rewards.

If you receive a Big Bang Ticket from piloting a mech and contributing significantly to the Mech Op, you can talk to Orbitingway to use it to get roulette wheels with better chances of rare items, similar to Stellar Opportunity.

Star Contributors

Ranking periods reset daily at 2:00 a.m. PDT and become active or inactive every 24 hours. Participate in Stellar Missions, Mech Ops, and projects to increase your rank, and talk to Scanningway to find out your current standing.

Commendation

Star Contributors get the following recognition for 14 days:

• After Cosmic Exploration overall progress has reached a certain point, Holograms of Star Contributors will be displayed at Sinus Ardorum (X:21.1 Y:21.1).
• Names of Star Contributors will be displayed on the starward standings stela in Sinus Ardorum (X:21.1 Y:21.1).
• Star Contributors will receive a buff that gives them a special visual effect. This buff can be disabled if desired.