Choosing the right starting background and traits greatly impacts your early game experience in Starfield, so consider your playstyle carefully when making these choices.
Starting your journey in Starfield can feel overwhelming with so many options. But fear not, making informed decisions right at the beginning shapes your entire playthrough. Following some crucial Starfield tips to make the right early choices helps you establish a solid foundation. This guidance can make all the difference in enjoying the game.
It is crucial to pay attention to which background and character traits you select. These choices significantly influence your abilities and relationships with factions. You don’t want to get too far before you realize you chose wrong.
Starfield Tips to Make the Right Early Choices
Getting started in a huge game like Starfield can feel a bit overwhelming. There’s so much to see and do, and your early decisions can really shape how your adventure plays out. Think of it like choosing your own path in a storybook – the choices you make at the beginning create your unique journey. This guide will help you navigate those initial steps, making sure you’re set up for success in the vast universe of Starfield.
Choosing Your Background and Traits
The first big choice you’ll make is selecting your character’s background and traits. This isn’t just about aesthetics; it affects how the world reacts to you and what special skills you start with. Your background is like your character’s past life, giving you a little head start in specific areas. Traits are special bonuses (or sometimes challenges!) that add another layer to your character.
Understanding Backgrounds
Each background is tied to three starting skills. These skills help you in different aspects of the game. Let’s look at a few examples:
- Diplomat: If you love talking your way out of trouble, the Diplomat background gives you points in Persuasion (talking), Commerce (buying and selling), and Wellness (keeping healthy). These skills help you make friends and get the best deals.
- Explorer: Want to boldly go where no one has gone before? Explorer gives you boosts in Astrodynamics (space travel), Surveying (scanning planets), and Lasers (using laser guns). Perfect for space adventures.
- Bounty Hunter: If action is your thing, Bounty Hunter gives you points in Piloting (flying ships), Targeting Control Systems (shooting accurately), and Ballistics (using regular guns). Get ready for exciting combat and space battles.
Don’t worry too much about picking the “best” background. All backgrounds are useful. Think about how you want to play and pick the one that fits your preferred playstyle.
Understanding Traits
Traits are another way to make your character unique. Unlike backgrounds, you can choose up to three traits during character creation. These provide special effects, both good and bad. Here are some things to keep in mind:
- Introvert: You are more effective when travelling without companions but struggle when you do. This might suit a lone wolf style of gameplay.
- Extrovert: On the other hand, you perform better when you have companions with you. Pick this trait if you plan to explore with the Constellation team frequently.
- Taskmaster: When travelling with a companion you can use them to craft items for you, making your life easier.
- Wanted: You’re always being chased. This trait gives you a small boost in damage but means you will randomly face bounty hunters who are out to get you.
Traits can significantly affect your early game experience. Some traits can make the early game a bit more challenging, but they also add extra depth. It’s good to choose traits that match your personal style and how you want to experience the game. For example, if you don’t mind being chased but enjoy the reward of extra damage, choose “Wanted”. If you are playing as a lone explorer, you might want to choose “Introvert” for its extra bonuses while adventuring solo.
You can also choose to have no traits at all; if you choose that option, you won’t be penalized. Choosing no traits can help someone trying out the game to get used to things or if you’re unsure how you might play Starfield.
Early Game Skills to Invest In
As you play, you’ll earn skill points, and spending them wisely early on is crucial. You might find yourself wanting to max out your favorite weapons or improve the skill that you have invested early on. There are a lot of skills in Starfield, spread across five categories.
Essential Skills for Starters
These skills are useful for most players, regardless of their play style.
- Boost Pack Training: This skill allows you to use a boost pack, letting you quickly move around in fights and explore areas more easily. The boost pack can be an absolute gamechanger for exploration.
- Medicine: Being able to heal yourself effectively is always important, no matter your playstyle. Medicine helps you use healing items more effectively.
- Persuasion: This skill lets you talk your way out of situations, get better deals, and convince people. It’s great for role-playing and avoiding conflict.
Combat Skills
If fighting is your main priority, then these skills might be worth looking at:
- Ballistics: This skill increases damage of regular guns that shoot bullets. Perfect for those who like a more traditional gun combat style.
- Lasers: This skill increases the damage of weapons that shoot lasers. It’s great if you like using laser guns.
- Stealth: If you prefer sneaking around, this is the skill for you. Stealth allows you to hide better from enemies.
Exploration and Ship Skills
If you plan to explore every planet and fly every ship, make sure to invest in these skills:
- Astrodynamics: This skill will help you travel further across the solar system. Useful for exploration.
- Surveying: Scan planets more efficiently and gain more information. A must-have for explorers.
- Piloting: Unlock more ships to fly and make them easier to handle. This skill is important for anyone wanting to take to the stars and is important for ship combat.
Skills to Avoid Early On
Some skills, while valuable later, are not necessary right away. Here are some you can postpone for later:
- Weapon Engineering: Modifying weapons is useful, but you won’t need it right away when starting out.
- Gastronomy: Crafting food items might be interesting, but isn’t a priority early in the game.
- Research: Spending points on research early on might not be ideal as you may not have access to all of the items you need to research.
As you play the game, it’s important to experiment with different skills to see what suits your playstyle the most. Don’t be afraid to try new things. If you want to be able to fly more ships, start with points in Piloting, whereas if you wish to be the ultimate stealthy warrior, put points into the Stealth skill early on.
Understanding the Starfield Economy
The Starfield universe runs on credits, and managing your money wisely is important. This also involves knowing what items are important to keep and what items you can sell without worry.
Earning Credits
There are many ways to earn money in the universe of Starfield:
- Completing Missions: Doing quests and helping people is a reliable way to earn credits. Always look for new missions, as this is the easiest way to earn money early on.
- Selling Items: Pick up items you find and sell them at shops. Some items are worth more than others. Focus on selling guns and ammo if you have no use for them.
- Mining Resources: Visit planets and mine valuable resources. This is important for crafting items but can also earn you a lot of money.
Spending Wisely
Here are some guidelines on how to make your credits count:
- Prioritize Ship Upgrades: Getting ship upgrades like better weapons or a bigger cargo hold is a good idea.
These upgrades can make your life easier. - Buy Ammo and Medkits: Always keep stocked up on essentials. You never know when you might need them.
- Don’t Buy Everything You See: Some things might look appealing, but be careful not to waste your credits on useless items.
Trading Tips
Understanding the trading systems in Starfield can help you get a better deal. Here are some general tips for getting the most out of selling and buying items:
- Know Your Prices: Some merchants will pay more for certain items than others. Check around before selling valuable items.
- Use the Commerce Skill: If you choose to invest in the commerce skill, you can get discounts and better buying prices.
- Consider Bartering: Sometimes, you can trade items instead of just selling them.
It can be easy to waste money on items that you don’t need, but if you prioritize the areas above, you will find that your finances quickly start to grow. It’s often better to hold onto useful resources, such as aluminum or iron, as you can use these for crafting. Trading can also be an efficient way to quickly build up your cash reserves.
Ship Management and Combat
Your ship is your home and your lifeline in Starfield. Understanding how to manage your ship is important for survival, exploration, and making sure you can travel where you need to go. Early investments into your ship will make the game far easier.
Essential Ship Upgrades
Investing in the right areas early on can make a massive difference.
- Shields: Better shields will help you survive attacks in space combat. This should be a top priority.
- Weapons: More powerful weapons will make space combat much easier, as you will do more damage.
- Cargo Hold: This allows you to carry more items, which helps for collecting resources and selling them. You will want this to be as big as possible as early as possible.
- Grav Drive: This allows you to travel to more distant places, opening up more areas of the solar system.
Learning Space Combat
Space combat can be challenging at first, but here are some things to keep in mind:
- Use your Boost: Use your boost to dodge enemy fire and get into a better position for an attack.
- Targeting Systems: Make sure to target weak points on enemy ships to do more damage.
- Shields are Important: Make sure to keep your shields up; if they drop too low, your ship is vulnerable.
Ship Building
While ship building is complex, you can start playing around with it early on. Here are some tips for when you get started:
- Start Small: Don’t try to build a massive ship right away. Experiment with simple designs and upgrades first.
- Try out Different Parts: Try out new parts to see what works best for your ship. Some parts might give you more power or a bigger cargo hold.
- Have Fun: Ship building is a chance to make your ship unique, so enjoy the process.
Managing your ship is essential for success in Starfield. Learning the basics of ship upgrades and space combat will make your exploration and adventures far more enjoyable. You’ll want to upgrade your weapons, shields, and cargo hold as soon as you can afford to. The game is very flexible when it comes to shipbuilding, but starting small and upgrading over time is best for new players.
Exploration Tips and Tricks
Exploration is a huge part of Starfield. Learning how to navigate the galaxy and get the most out of your time on different planets is a huge part of the game. The planets have a range of different biomes that you need to look at if you want to get the most out of exploration.
Scanning and Surveying
When you arrive at a new planet, make sure you scan everything:
- Use Your Scanner: Scan plants, animals, and geological formations for research data.
- Look for Anomalies: Always be on the lookout for strange occurrences; they might lead to new discoveries.
- Complete Surveys: Completing a full survey of a planet can be very rewarding.
Finding Resources
Resources are needed for crafting and can be sold for a profit. Here are some ways to gather resources:
- Mine Outcrops: Look for mineral deposits on planet surfaces.
- Collect Flora: Pick plants and other natural materials that you find on the planet.
- Use the Survey Skill: The survey skill is useful for finding valuable resources more quickly.
Navigating Planets
Exploring a planet might be confusing at first, but here are some things that can help you:
- Use Your Map: Use your map to mark points of interest and find your way back.
- Look for Landmarks: Use tall structures or landmarks to help find your way around.
- Pay Attention to Your Compass: Your compass shows where different objectives are located.
Exploring can be very rewarding, but you have to be thorough. Make sure you are scanning everything you find and keeping your eyes open for new locations. Don’t be afraid to move away from the landing zone and to explore what is around you. Some of the best locations in the game are hidden away from the main areas that you will be sent to.
Making the right early choices in Starfield can greatly influence your gaming experience, and hopefully, this article helps with that. From character creation to ship upgrades, understanding the core gameplay elements will put you ahead of the game. Experiment, explore, and most importantly, have fun in the vast, intriguing universe of Starfield!
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Final Thoughts
Prioritizing exploration is key; choosing the right skills early, like piloting and persuasion, can improve your initial experience. Selecting the correct background gives a better start to gameplay.
Remember to gather resources; they are must for crafting and upgrading. Carefully consider your first ship purchase to match your playstyle and avoid early game frustration.
Implementing these Starfield tips to make the right early choices will greatly influence your playthrough. A well-informed beginning sets the stage for a much enjoyable journey.



