ATOMFALL upgrade weapons: Gunsmith and Pristine Guide

How Weapon Upgrades Work in Atomfall

That second rusty shotgun can become the ingredient for a better gun. The ATOMFALL upgrade weapons system lets you combine matching firearms into higher-quality versions, increasing damage and accuracy. If you’re searching for an ATOMFALL upgrade weapons walkthrough, the essential steps are to find a Crafting Manual, purchase Gunsmith, and collect matching weapons, Gun Oil, and Scrap.

The catch is that finding duplicate guns doesn’t immediately let you upgrade them. You need to reveal the relevant skill through a manual, then spend the resources required to unlock it. After that, the weapon recipes become available in your Crafting menu.

Atomfall’s official Steam page describing its survival, scavenging, and crafting systems emphasizes scarce weapons and ammunition. Upgrading gives those duplicate firearms a practical purpose, although you still need to manage your supplies.

Requirement	What it does
Crafting Manual	Reveals Gunsmith, Deep Pockets, and Crafting Speed
Gunsmith skill	Unlocks upgraded weapon crafting recipes
Matching firearms	Provide the weapons combined into a higher-quality version
Gun Oil and Scrap	Supply additional crafting materials

There are three weapon quality tiers: Rusty, Stock, and Pristine. According to IGN’s weapon upgrade guide, higher quality increases damage and accuracy. This guide focuses on those quality upgrades and the two documented routes to the manual.

Find the Crafting Manual Through Morris

One documented way to begin the ATOMFALL upgrade weapons process is to obtain the Crafting Manual from Morris in Wyndham Village. IGN’s guide describes three options: trade for it, blackmail him, or kill him and loot his body.

Image: Steam / Rebellion

Those choices lead to the same essential item, but the blackmail route requires an investigation. It also provides a Training Stimulant alongside the manual.

Method	What you need to do	Documented result
Trade	Barter with Morris in Wyndham Village	Obtain the Crafting Manual
Blackmail	Investigate the murder and confront him with evidence	Receive the manual and a Training Stimulant without trading
Kill and loot	Kill Morris and search his body	Obtain the Crafting Manual

A good approach is to consider the investigation before spending trade goods. The documented blackmail reward includes both the manual and a resource needed for skills. Trading remains another option if you already have goods you’re willing to exchange.

Follow the Murder Investigation

To pursue the blackmail route, investigate St. Katherine’s Church in Wyndham Village and begin the murder mystery. Next, visit the Brewery Cellar at 30.5E, 80.5N.

Inside, find these two notes:

• “Captain Sims Doesn’t Suspect a Thing”
• “Kill the One They Call Maisie”

IGN’s guide identifies these notes as evidence implicating Morris in Maisie’s murder. Return to Morris, confront him with that information, and bargain to keep it quiet in exchange for special treatment.

The documented reward is the Crafting Manual and one Training Stimulant, with no barter payment required.

Read the Manual, Then Unlock Gunsmith

Once you have the manual, read or activate it from your inventory. This reveals Deep Pockets, Crafting Speed, and Gunsmith.

Revealing Gunsmith and purchasing it are separate steps. IGN lists seven Training Stimulants as its unlock requirement, while the supplied player video shows a seven-skill-point cost in the skill menu.

The practical checkpoint is straightforward: make sure Gunsmith is actually unlocked before attempting an upgrade. Owning or reading the manual alone doesn’t complete that process.

Find the Alternative Manual in Data Store Delta

Morris isn’t the only documented source. Another Crafting Manual sits in the Storage Room of Data Store Delta within The Interchange.

Image: Steam / Rebellion

IGN’s guide identifies the key requirements: reach the corpse on the overhead walkway, collect the Storage Room Key, and power the area with an Atomic Battery so you can interact with the Key Reader. The manual is on a metal tray inside the storage room.

For this ATOMFALL upgrade weapons route, distinguish between entering The Interchange and powering the area containing the manual. The supplied player video shows separate battery insertions during that journey.

Prepare an Atomic Battery

Player experience: The video demonstrates obtaining an Atomic Battery by trading with Molly at a trader camp. The creator reports that Molly favors Molotov cocktails as barter goods.

A good approach is to check what you can offer before heading into the facility. The video provides an example of obtaining the battery through barter, but it doesn’t establish a universal exchange price.

Player experience: Once inside The Interchange, the creator uses an access card, reaches a body with another Atomic Battery nearby, and inserts that battery into a power point. An intercom conversation follows, after which power becomes available to some rooms.

The video then shows the creator heading toward Delta and inserting the battery obtained earlier into its generator.

Reach the Storage Room

The essential sequence for the Delta manual is:

1. Reach Data Store Delta within The Interchange.
2. Power the area using an Atomic Battery.
3. Climb across the data banks to reach the corpse on the overhead walkway.
4. Take the Storage Room Key.
5. Use the powered Key Reader to enter the storage room.
6. Collect and read the Crafting Manual.

Player experience: The video also shows two Training Stimulants in the room containing the manual. Those are useful finds, but the demonstrated Gunsmith cost remains seven skill points.

If you reach the storage room and cannot use the reader, check the area’s power. If you can use the reader but lack access, check whether you collected the key. IGN’s instructions establish both as requirements.

Combine Matching Guns From Rusty to Pristine

With Gunsmith unlocked, the ATOMFALL upgrade weapons process moves to the Crafting menu. The upgrade combines two matching weapons of the same quality into one weapon of the next quality.

Image: Steam / Rebellion

IGN confirms that upgrades also require Gun Oil and Scrap. The supplied material doesn’t specify their exact quantities, so check the recipe displayed in your menu before committing supplies.

Player experience: The video demonstrates combining two Rusty shotguns into a Stock shotgun. It then demonstrates the same Rusty-to-Stock process with two matching Lee number fours.

Upgrade	Matching weapons required	Weapon produced
Rusty → Stock	Two Rusty copies of the same gun	One Stock copy
Stock → Pristine	Two Stock copies of the same gun	One Pristine copy
Rusty → Pristine, starting entirely from Rusty copies	Four matching Rusty guns, combined through both stages	One Pristine copy

The four-gun total follows directly from the demonstrated recipes: two Rusty copies make one Stock copy, and you need two Stock copies for Pristine.

Plan the Full Upgrade Chain

Suppose you have one Rusty shotgun and want a Pristine version. You’ll need three additional matching Rusty shotguns if you build both Stock ingredients from Rusty weapons.

The sequence is:

• Combine the first pair of Rusty shotguns into one Stock shotgun.
• Combine the second pair into another Stock shotgun.
• Combine the two Stock shotguns into one Pristine shotgun.

Gun Oil and Scrap are additional requirements along the way. Four matching Rusty weapons account for the firearm ingredients; they don’t represent the complete material cost.

If you already have a Stock weapon, the remaining firearm requirement is another matching Stock copy. Two matching Rusty copies can supply that second Stock weapon through an intermediate upgrade.

Match the Weapon and Its Quality

A useful ATOMFALL upgrade weapons habit is to check both the firearm model and its condition before collecting ingredients.

Two different guns don’t satisfy a recipe calling for matching copies. Likewise, the documented Pristine recipe calls for two Stock weapons, so one Stock and one Rusty copy don’t meet that requirement.

Before crafting, compare your inventory against the recipe itself. This helps you distinguish a missing duplicate from a shortage of Gun Oil or Scrap.

Manage Duplicates, Materials, and Skill Resources

The preparation behind an upgrade is as important as pressing the craft option. Gunsmith, matching firearms, and materials each create a separate requirement.

A good approach is to pick a firearm you want to improve, then track its duplicates and condition. That keeps your scavenging focused on an upgrade you can actually complete.

What you have	What remains for the next documented step
Crafting Manual, Gunsmith still locked	Purchase Gunsmith
One Rusty firearm	Find another matching Rusty copy, plus recipe materials
One Stock firearm	Obtain another matching Stock copy, plus recipe materials
Four matching Rusty firearms	Complete two Stock upgrades, then the Pristine upgrade
Matching weapon ingredients	Check Gun Oil and Scrap requirements

Store Duplicates for Later

IGN recommends keeping extra copies of weapons you like and storing them in Pneumatic Dispatch Tubes to clear inventory space.

That advice fits the upgrade recipes: a duplicate you don’t need to carry right now can still become an ingredient later. A good approach is to store matching extras while gathering the remaining weapons and materials.

Check the Actual Bottleneck

If an upgrade isn’t available, review these requirements:

• Have you read the Crafting Manual?
• Have you purchased Gunsmith?
• Do you have matching copies at the required quality?
• Do you have the Gun Oil and Scrap shown in the recipe?

The manual also reveals Deep Pockets and Crafting Speed. Player experience: The video’s skill descriptions show that Deep Pockets increases crafting-supply and ammunition capacity, while Crafting Speed reduces crafting time. Neither replaces Gunsmith’s role in unlocking upgraded weapon recipes.

For ATOMFALL upgrade weapons planning, prioritize the requirement that is currently blocking your chosen recipe. Finding more duplicates won’t solve a locked skill, and unlocking Gunsmith won’t supply the missing second gun.

FAQ

What do I need for ATOMFALL upgrade weapons crafting?

Read a Crafting Manual, purchase Gunsmith, and gather matching firearms plus Gun Oil and Scrap. Two matching Rusty guns produce one Stock gun; two matching Stock guns produce one Pristine gun.

Where can I find the Crafting Manual?

The documented locations are Morris in Wyndham Village and the Storage Room in Data Store Delta within The Interchange. Morris offers trade, blackmail, and loot routes. Delta requires the Storage Room Key and power for its Key Reader.

Does reading the Crafting Manual automatically unlock Gunsmith?

Reading the manual reveals Gunsmith as an available skill. You still need to purchase it. IGN lists seven Training Stimulants as the requirement, and the supplied player video shows a seven-skill-point cost.

How many Rusty weapons do I need to make a Pristine weapon?

You need four matching Rusty firearms if you’re starting entirely from that quality. Combine them into two Stock weapons, then combine those into one Pristine weapon. You also need Gun Oil and Scrap for the upgrade recipes.