Crafting

Enhancement Materials

Enhancement materials and nucleotides

Three enhancement materials, each named for a real enzyme a virus depends on, plus the four nucleotides (A, T, C, G) that combining costs and dismantling returns. Tap any resource counter in game to see where it comes from. The same materials also craft run modifiers.

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Polymerase Shard
Chaperone Protein
Ribozyme Core
Nucleotides
Run modifier crafting

Polymerase Shard

Common material

The everyday enhancement material, a fragment of the viral polymerase. Every enhancement level needs some.

Drops from ordinary kills (1–2 at a time), elites, vesicle chests (3–6), Key Guardians, rival viruses, Endless sets and challenges
Challenge rewards: 6 / 15 / 36 / 72 / 150 from Easy to Legendary
Winning a Pandemic Game Mode run pays +4
Needed for every level: 150 for +1 up to 4,700 for +10 on a Common
Used by 19 of the 30 run modifiers

From the Codex

The enzyme that copies a virus's genome. RNA viruses carry their own RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, which cells don't have.

Fun fact: Because cells lack this enzyme, it's a prime drug target: remdesivir and favipiravir both jam viral polymerases.

Viral Polymerase in the Codex

Chaperone Protein

Uncommon material

Helper proteins that fold other proteins, used at every enhancement level.

Drops from Killer T cells (2–3), bosses (3–5), purple-and-up elites, vesicle chests (half the time), puzzles, tumors, Key Guardians, rival viruses and Endless sets
Challenge rewards: 2 / 7 / 14 / 29 from Normal to Legendary
Each Pandemic city taken pays +3
Needed for every level: 1 for +1 up to 110 for +10 on a Common
Used by 23 of the 30 run modifiers

From the Codex

Helper proteins (like heat-shock proteins) that guide other proteins into their correct folded shape.

Fun fact: Many viruses hijack host chaperones such as HSP70 and HSP90 to fold their own proteins.

Chaperone Proteins in the Codex

Ribozyme Core

Endless Game Mode

The rare material for enhancing from +3 to +10. It only drops in Endless Game Mode.

Every Endless set pays at least one (more as sets climb), boss sets pay extra, and bosses, Killer T cells, orange-and-up elites and rivals drop them too
In Infect and Pandemic Game Modes those drops condense into 2 Chaperones each (1 from kills, which pay chaperones at half)
Each Pandemic city taken also pays 1
Needed from +3 (1 on a Common) to +10 (32 on a Common)
Used by 9 of the 30 run modifiers

From the Codex

RNA molecules that act as enzymes, cutting and joining RNA without any protein help.

Fun fact: The ribosome's core catalytic site is a ribozyme, a living fossil of an early "RNA world".

Ribozymes in the Codex

Nucleotides

A · T · C · G

The game's currency. Combining costs them and dismantling returns them.

G is the scarcest base
Combining costs equal A and T, about two-thirds as much C and a third as much G
Dismantling returns them in the same proportions

From the Codex

The building block of DNA and RNA: a sugar, a phosphate and a base (A, T, C, G in DNA; A, U, C, G in RNA).

Fun fact: Influenza stores its genes as RNA, so it uses U in place of T.

Nucleotide in the Codex

Run modifier crafting

Level 8

Run modifiers are crafted from nucleotides plus these materials, then up to 3 are loaded into a run.

30 modifiers: 19 use Shards, 23 use Chaperones, 9 use Ribozyme Cores
Cheapest example: Tropism Map costs 20 C, 10 T and 5 Shards
Priciest example: Latent Reservoir costs 40 A, 25 G, 3 Chaperones and 2 Ribozyme Cores

From the Codex

Consumables crafted between runs that change the next run.

Fun fact: A loaded modifier stays loaded until you run out of it.

Run Modifiers in the Codex

Polymerase Shard

Chaperone Protein

Ribozyme Core

Nucleotides

Run modifier crafting

See also