Starfield A Beginner To Pro Play Guide

Starfield: A Beginner to Pro Play Guide

So, you’ve jumped into the vast universe of Starfield, huh? It’s a pretty big place, and it can feel a bit overwhelming at first. Don’t worry! This guide will take you from a fresh-faced explorer to a seasoned space veteran. We’ll cover everything from the very basics to some advanced tips and tricks. Get ready to explore, build, fight, and become a true Starfield legend!

Getting Started: The Early Game

The beginning of your Starfield journey sets the stage for everything that comes after. Making smart choices now can really help later on. Let’s look at the key things you’ll encounter right away.

Character Creation

This is where you make you in Starfield. There are a lot of options, and they do matter! Here’s what to keep in mind:

• Background: Your background gives you three starting skills. Think about how you want to play. Do you want to be a smooth-talking diplomat, a tough-as-nails fighter, or a tech wizard? Your choice here will influence your first few levels. For example, the “Combat Medic” background gives you skills in medicine, lasers and targeting. That’s great for a character who wants to heal allies and use energy weapons.
• Traits: Traits are like little quirks that can both help and hinder you. Some are helpful, others have trade-offs. For example, “Introvert” makes you a better solo traveler, but having a companion lowers your skills. Take some time to read them and pick traits that fit your playstyle. You can always remove some traits later in the game, but it costs some in game credits.
• Appearance: You can customize how you look in pretty good detail. This is mostly cosmetic, so have fun and make a character that you like. You will be seeing this character in cutscenes, inventory and more often in game. So it is a great idea to spend a little time here to make your character unique.

Understanding the User Interface (UI)

Starfield has a lot going on, and it’s important to know where everything is on your screen. Here’s a quick rundown of important elements:

• Health and Oxygen: Watch your health and oxygen gauges! Running out of either means trouble. Use med packs to heal, and be careful when sprinting or using jetpacks in low-oxygen environments.
• Compass and Markers: The compass at the top of the screen will help you navigate. Use markers to track your quests and objectives. Also the markers will help you to navigate through the cities or planets very easily.
• Inventory: This is where all your loot and gear goes. Organize it carefully, because there is a limit to how much weight you can carry. There is also a quick select system for your weapons, that will help you during battles, or when exploring.
• Skills Menu: Keep a tab on your skill menu, to keep track on your unlocked skills and what is needed to unlock the next tier of skills. You will need this to become powerful and upgrade your character.

The First Few Missions

The initial missions are like a tutorial. They’ll introduce you to the basic gameplay mechanics, such as:

• Combat: You’ll learn how to shoot, use cover, and use different types of weapons. Start with basic weapons and gradually discover your preferences.
• Exploration: You’ll get a feel for the world, how to navigate, and how to find resources. Be curious, and explore as much as possible.
• Crafting: You will be introduced to the basic crafting and modding system. This is an essential component of the game and you will find the system useful as you go further into the game.
• Dialogue: Learn how to talk to NPCs. The choices you make in conversations can affect the story.

Skills and Progression

As you play, you’ll earn experience and level up. This is where the skill system comes into play. Let’s dive deeper into how it all works.

Skill Trees

Starfield has five major skill trees: Physical, Social, Combat, Science, and Tech. Each one is filled with different abilities and benefits. Choose your skills wisely based on your play style.

• Physical: Skills that improve your health, carry capacity, and other physical attributes. Perfect for players who like to be on the front lines.
• Social: Skills for persuasion, intimidation, and bartering. Ideal for players who want to talk their way out of situations.
• Combat: Skills that increase your damage output with various weapons, and skills that help you in combat. A must-have for players who engage in frequent fights.
• Science: Skills that allow you to research new technologies, craft better items, and understand the universe. This skill tree is good for players who like to explore and craft.
• Tech: Skills that make you a better ship pilot, builder and modifier. If you like ships, you will like this skill tree.

Ranking Up Skills

To improve a skill you must complete challenges specific to that skill. For example to improve the piloting skill you must destroy ships, and for the weight lifting skill, you must carry a specific amount of weight. After completing each of these challenges, you can invest a skill point into them, and unlock a more powerful version of that skill.

It is beneficial to unlock skills as soon as they are available. The challenges will automatically start and you will get your upgrades as soon as you earn them.

Choosing Your Skills

Don’t just randomly put points into skills! Think about how you like to play. Here are some general recommendations:

• For Fighters: Invest in Combat, Physical and some Tech skills. Prioritize weapon damage, health and armor skills.
• For Explorers: Focus on Science and some Tech skills. Boost your scanning, surveying, and crafting capabilities.
• For Smooth Talkers: Put points into Social, and some Tech skills, such as ship building skills, which allow you to build a better ship.
• For Ship Builders: Put points into the Tech skill tree, which allows you to modify, build or repair your ships.

Combat Strategies

Combat in Starfield can be intense. Here are some techniques to help you survive and come out on top.

Weapon Types

There are many weapons in Starfield, each with its strengths and weaknesses:

• Ballistic Weapons: Use bullets. They’re good all-around, especially against unarmored foes.
• Laser Weapons: Use energy to deal damage. Effective against robots and armored targets.
• Particle Beams: High-damage weapons that use a combination of laser and ballistics. Good for taking down big enemies.
• Melee Weapons: Use them for close-quarters fights. Can deal serious damage, but you have to get close.

Tactics in Battles

Don’t just run into a fight guns blazing. Here’s how to engage:

• Use Cover: Find walls, rocks, or crates to protect yourself from enemy fire.
• Aim for Weak Points: Target enemy heads or other critical areas for extra damage.
• Use Grenades: Explosives can clear out groups of enemies or damage heavily armored foes.
• Be Patient: Don’t rush. Plan your approach. Observe enemy movements and patterns.
• Use Med Packs and Boosts: Don’t forget to use med packs to heal and boosts to increase your damage, or defensive abilities.

Ship Combat

Space battles are a big part of Starfield. Here’s what you need to know:

• Targeting: Lock onto enemy ships before you shoot. Different types of weapons are more effective at different ranges.
• Shields and Hull: Manage your ship’s shields and hull health. Depleted shields leave your hull vulnerable.
• Power Management: Distribute power to your weapons, engines, and shields as needed.
• Maneuvering: Use your thrusters and other maneuverability options to evade enemy fire.

Exploration and Resource Gathering

Exploration is a massive part of Starfield. Finding new planets, and locations, gathering resources and finding interesting locations is all part of the game. Let’s see how it works.

Scanning Planets

Before you land on a planet, scan it from space. This reveals what resources are there, any Points of Interest, and the main terrain types. This information is essential for planning your exploration.

Resource Types

You’ll find many types of resources on planets, such as:

• Minerals: Used for crafting and building. You’ll find minerals all around the place, from mountains to plains.
• Gases: Used for crafting and powering equipment. They will be found usually near vents or areas with geological activities.
• Organic Materials: From plants, creatures, and other organisms. You can find these by harvesting plants or hunting creatures.

Surveying

Use your scanner to find resources, animals, and plants. Scan them, collect samples and complete surveys to get experience and improve your exploration skill. Keep an eye out for rare or valuable resources and lifeforms.

Outposts

Outposts can be built on planets. You can set up resource harvesters, research stations, crafting stations and even homes. You can connect your outposts and share resources between them.

Understanding the Map

The map will show you various locations and points of interest. Use the map to plan your route and find things that you want. The map also indicates the distance and type of planet you are in. So learn how to use it to move around efficiently.

Advanced Tips and Tricks

Once you’ve got the basics down, it’s time to get into some more advanced strategies to push your gameplay to the next level.

Ship Building

Building and customizing your ship is essential for survival, and you can completely change the ship’s look, and performance. It can be complicated at the beginning, but with time you’ll get the hang of it.

• Start with a Plan: Before buying parts and slapping them on, think about what kind of ship you want. Do you want a fast scout, a heavily armed battleship or a multi-purpose ship? Each type of ship requires different parts and have different strengths.
• Understand the Stats: Pay close attention to the ship stats like hull, shields, weapon damage, maneuverability, and cargo capacity. Each part will contribute to these stats. So keep track and build what you want.
• Experiment with Parts: You can build many types of ships, and you have many different types of parts. So take your time and experiment with the parts that you have. You can find some interesting combinations and build powerful ships.

Companion Management

Companions can be very helpful in battles, and during exploration. But they can also be a liability if you don’t know how to use them. Here’s a quick guide.

• Choose the Right Companions: Each companion has different skills. Pick companions that complement your playstyle. Some are good at combat, some are good at tech, and some are good at social skills.
• Equip them well: Give them good weapons and armor. They will be more effective in battle, and are going to protect you. Don’t give them outdated equipment.
• Learn their skills: Each companion has unique skills. Learning and using these skills will greatly enhance your experience.
• Use their unique powers: Some companions have unique powers or benefits. Learn how to use them to your advantage.

Money Making Strategies

Credits are important in Starfield, and you will need lots of them to buy things. Here are some efficient ways to get them.

• Selling Loot: Sell weapons, armor, and resources you don’t need. Explore locations and sell what you don’t want.
• Completing Missions: Complete quests and jobs for factions and NPCs. You will get experience and credits in return.
• Trading: Find the best places to buy and sell goods. Different locations will have different prices. Use this to your advantage.
• Resource Farming: Set up resource farming outposts and sell the resources.
• Piracy (if you dare): You can steal ships and loot them. But be aware that this will make some factions hate you.

Faction Choices

Starfield has many factions that you can join. Each faction has different ideologies and their own missions. Join the one that best matches with your playing style. Here is a short list:

• Constellation: The main faction of the game. The are explorers who investigate mysteries of the artifact.
• United Colonies: The biggest and most powerful faction in the Settled System. They are very organized and have strict rules.
• Freestar Collective: A group of independent systems that are less controlling. They represent freedom, individuality.
• Ryujin Industries: A powerful corporation that values profits. They are sneaky, and powerful.
• Crimson Fleet: A group of pirates, that raid ships and locations. They are unlawful, and violent.

You can join multiple factions but in some situations, you will have to choose between them. So consider your choices before joining a new faction.

The Importance of Research

Research is an important part of the game. It can help you unlock new equipment, buildings, weapon mods, ship parts and other useful things. So keep in mind to keep researching new stuff. You will need to scan various items on various locations and planets. Make a habit to scan everything you find.

Learning Enemy Weaknesses

Different enemies have different types of resistances and weakness. Figuring these out will be an important task in higher difficulties. Learning this will greatly increase your survivability and power.

Starfield is a vast and complex game, and you will probably continue to learn new things as you play, and this guide is designed to help you start with a clear path. Explore the universe, experiment, and have fun, because that is the main goal. Remember, there is no one single way to play the game. Build your own story and become a true Starfield legend!