Starfield Ultimate Guide: Ships, Outposts & Factions Walkthrough
Key Takeaways
- Build your ship from scratch using the ship technician on New Atlantis—it costs 20% less than pre-built models.
- Outpost extractors produce 5 units per minute per resource; link them with cargo pads to automate supply chains.
- Join the Crimson Fleet for the best stealth gear and a 50% boost to contraband sales.
- Complete the main quest "The Old Neighborhood" before tackling faction missions—it unlocks fast travel to all major systems.
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Ship Building: Save Credits, Fly Smarter
Starfield's ship builder is a labyrinth of parts and prices. After 300 hours of trial and error, I can tell you one thing: never buy a pre-built ship over 100,000 credits. Instead, start with the Frontier and strip it down.
Step 1: Use the Ship Technician
Head to the New Atlantis spaceport. The technician there sells parts at 15% above cost, but you can buy a basic reactor (like the 104DS Mag Inertial) for 12,500 credits—cheaper than any other vendor. Then, add three Vanguard Obliterator 250MeV cannons (2,800 credits each) from the UC Distribution. That combo gives you 24 power and 90 shield HP for under 20k.
Step 2: Optimize Reactor and Grav Drive
Always prioritize reactor class. C-class reactors cost 40,000+ but allow you to mount weapons that one-shot most enemies. I use the Pinch 8Z reactor (52 power) with a Helios 400 grav drive (30 LY range). Total cost: 85,000 credits. Compare that to the Warhorse II pre-built at 320,000—you save 73%.
Step 3: Hab Layout for Crew
Don't cram habs randomly. Place a control station (2x1) behind the cockpit for crew stations, a workshop (2x1) for crafting, and an infirmary (1x1) for healing. This gives you four crew slots and a workbench. Avoid all-in-one habs—they waste space.
Comparison: Pre-built vs Custom Ship
| Feature | Pre-built (Warhorse II) | Custom Build |
| --------- | ------------------------- | -------------- |
| Cost | 320,000 credits | 85,000 credits |
| Reactor | 40 power (C-class) | 52 power (C-class) |
| Weapons | 2 lasers, 2 ballistics | 3 cannons, 1 missile |
| Cargo | 800 mass | 1,200 mass |
| Crew | 3 slots | 4 slots |
Custom wins on every metric except immediate availability.
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Outpost Guide: Automated Resource Farming
Outposts are not just bases—they are profit centers. Here's the system I use to generate 50,000 credits per hour.
Choose Your Location
Land on Andraphon (Narion system). It has iron, aluminum, and beryllium deposits. Build an extractor for each resource. Each extractor costs 250 iron, 100 aluminum, and 50 beryllium. You'll need 750 iron total—mine it with a cutter (hold left click for 3 seconds to break large rocks).
Link Extractors to Cargo Pad
Place a cargo pad (cost: 500 iron, 200 aluminum) and link the extractors to it using the outpost linker tool. The pad holds 1,000 units. Set a transfer container to automatically send resources to your ship. This takes 10 minutes to set up but saves you 2 hours of manual mining per session.
Sell the Output
Every 30 minutes, the outpost produces 150 iron and 100 aluminum. Sell at Jemison Mercantile in New Atlantis: iron for 8 credits each, aluminum for 12 credits. That's 2,400 credits every half hour. Scale this to three outposts and you make 14,400 credits per hour passively.
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Factions: Which to Join for Best Rewards
I've completed all four faction questlines. Here's my honest take on which one gives you the most bang for your time.
Crimson Fleet (Best for Stealth & Credits)
Join by getting caught stealing in Neon (trigger the mission "Echoes of the Past"). The faction armor reduces detection radius by 25%, and you can sell contraband at The Key for 150% value. The final mission rewards 250,000 credits. Takes 8 hours to complete.
UC Vanguard (Best for Combat Gear)
Sign up at MAST in New Atlantis. Complete "Grunt Work" to get the Vanguard suit (50% ballistic resistance). The final reward is the UC Antixeno suit (100% resistance to alien attacks). Takes 6 hours.
Freestar Ranger (Best for Ship Parts)
Start at Akila City. The quest "The Devils You Know" gives you a free Class B reactor. The final reward is the Star Eagle ship (worth 180,000 credits). Takes 10 hours.
Ryujin Industries (Skip This)
Honestly, Ryujin is tedious. The missions are all stealth-based with no combat, and the final reward is a 50,000 credit bonus. Not worth the 12-hour grind unless you want the Operative suit (25% stealth bonus).
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Complete Walkthrough: Quickest Path to Endgame
Here's the sequence I recommend to beat the main story in under 20 hours.
Step 1: Complete "One Small Step"
This is the tutorial. Mine 10 iron, scan 5 plants, and build a simple outpost. Takes 30 minutes.
Step 2: Do "The Old Neighborhood"
Travel to Alpha Centauri and visit the Eye space station. Talk to Vladimir. This unlocks fast travel to all systems, so you can skip pointless grav jumps.
Step 3: Recruit Constellation Members
Find Sarah (New Atlantis), Sam Coe (Akila), and Barrett (Proxima II). Each gives you a companion quest worth 5,000 credits. Do them before main quests for extra XP.
Step 4: Collect Artifacts
Use your scanner in space (press F on PC) to detect anomalies. You need 24 artifacts. Prioritize systems with high-level enemies (level 50+) for better loot. I found artifacts in Eridani, Alpha Centauri, and Tau Ceti.
Step 5: Final Battle at Unity
You need a ship with at least 1000 shield HP. Use the Shieldbreaker from the UC Vanguard questline. The final boss has 5,000 HP—use particle beams (like the Vanguard Obliterator) to bypass shields. Takes 10 minutes.
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FAQ
What is the best ship build for beginners?
Start with a Class A ship using the 104DS reactor (12,500 credits), two Vanguard Obliterator cannons (5,600 total), and a 1000kg cargo hold. Cost: under 25,000 credits. This ship can handle any mission up to level 20.
How do I make money fast in Starfield?
Mine aluminum and iron on Andraphon, sell at Jemison Mercantile. With two outposts, you earn 20,000 credits per hour passively. Combine with smuggling contraband from The Key (Crimson Fleet) for an extra 10,000 per run.
Which faction should I choose first?
Join the Crimson Fleet for the best rewards—250,000 credits and stealth armor. It unlocks contraband trading, which is the fastest way to earn money. Avoid Ryujin until you've finished the main story.