Rocket Lab’s upcoming mission is planned to deliver a multitude of satellites to orbit utilizing the company’s Kick Stage, a specialized “space tug” system. This launch will also carry a unique item: a 3D-printed garden gnome commissioned by Gabe Newell of Valve Software. This inclusion serves as both a trial of a novel manufacturing process and a charitable contribution from the prominent figure in the gaming world.

The launch, currently scheduled for no earlier than November 15th or 16th from its New Zealand site, has not yet been given one of Rocket Lab’s signature playful names. However, the company has announced that this mission will be its “most diverse” to date, as detailed in a recent press statement.

A total of 30 satellites will be deployed through Rocket Lab’s Kick Stage, a deployment system similar to other “space tugs.” This system separates from the rocket’s second stage after reaching a preliminary orbit and then precisely positions each payload along its designated trajectory. This represents the highest number of individual satellites Rocket Lab has ever launched in a single mission.

Among the payloads are 24 SpaceBEEs from Swarm Technologies, compact communications satellites designed to support a cost-effective, low-bandwidth global network for Internet of Things (IoT) devices.

Perhaps the most noteworthy payload is “Gnome Chompski,” funded by Valve president Newell. This 3D-printed figure will remain attached to the Kick Stage until it is destroyed during reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere. The figure is modeled after a popular item from the Half-Life series of PC games and was created by Weta Workshop, the visual effects studio known for its work on Lord of the Rings and numerous other films. It functions as a test of a potentially valuable new component printing technique and is intended as “a tribute to the ingenuity and imagination of gamers around the globe.”

Significantly, Newell will donate one dollar to Starship Children’s Hospital for each viewer of the launch broadcast, making it a particularly worthwhile event to watch. (Further details from Newell are being sought.)

The launch will also include satellites for TriSept, Unseenlabs, and the Auckland Space Institute, with the latter carrying New Zealand’s first spacecraft built by students.

Rocket Lab has focused on developing a comprehensive launch platform, aiming to provide customers with a complete solution and eliminate the need to source various services or components independently. The company’s CEO has expressed the goal of enabling customers to simply deliver their payload and have the rest of the process managed by Rocket Lab.

“Operators of small satellites shouldn’t be forced to accept compromises regarding their orbits when utilizing a rideshare mission, and we are pleased to offer customized access to space for 30 satellites on this mission. This is the reason we developed the Kick Stage – to allow for tailored orbits on every launch and to remove the additional complexity, time, and expense associated with developing independent spacecraft propulsion or employing a separate space tug,” stated Beck in the press release.

Rocket Lab recently launched its own satellite, First Light, to demonstrate that achieving orbit doesn’t need to be a difficult undertaking, as Beck previously described.