When you first start Starfield, immediately focus on completing the initial story missions. These will guide you through basic gameplay mechanics and introduce key characters.
So, you’ve just jumped into the vast universe of Starfield what to do when you first start? It can be a bit overwhelming with so much freedom at your fingertips, right? The game throws a lot at you very quickly, and it’s easy to get sidetracked.
Instead of aimlessly wandering, following the main quest will teach you the ropes, and give a sense of direction. This makes sure you’re equipped for the challenges ahead while learning the core systems. Don’t worry, the universe will still be there when you are ready to explore at your own pace.
Starfield What To Do When You First Start
Okay, you’ve just booted up Starfield, the vast universe is at your fingertips, and… now what? It can feel a little overwhelming with all those planets and possibilities. Don’t worry! This guide will help you get your space legs under you. We’ll break down everything you should focus on when you first begin your Starfield adventure so you can go from newbie to space explorer in no time. Let’s get started!
Choosing Your Character’s Background
Before you even set foot in space, you need to create your character. This isn’t just about how they look; it’s about their past too! Starfield gives you a bunch of backgrounds to pick from, each with its own starting skills. Think of these backgrounds as like having a head start in certain areas.
Understanding Backgrounds and Starting Skills
Here’s a quick peek at what some backgrounds might offer and how they impact your early gameplay:
- Diplomat: If you love talking your way out of trouble, this is a good one. You might start with skills in persuasion and negotiation, making conversations more rewarding and avoiding fights.
- Bounty Hunter: Prefer action? This background starts you with weapon skills, letting you hit hard right away. It’s perfect for players who like combat.
- Explorer: You enjoy going to places where no one has gone before? Explorers get skills that help with surveying and understanding alien life. You will likely spend more time exploring than shooting.
- Cyber Runner: If you’re into stealth and tech, this is a great option. You will get started with abilities that support your stealthy actions and computer access.
- Chef: This may sound silly but this background can help improve your trading skills, and some helpful survival skills.
The skills you get with your background are useful early on. Pick one that fits how you like to play games. Don’t sweat it too much though; you can build on your skills as you go, making your character more rounded over time.
Making Your First Steps in the Mining Camp
Your Starfield journey begins at a mining outpost, and this is where you’ll learn the basics. This is like your tutorial, but it’s a lot more fun. Here’s what you should focus on during your time at the mining camp.
Understanding the Controls
Take some time to get comfortable with how everything works, this will make you more efficient later on.
- Moving around: Learn how to walk, run, and jump. Get the feel of navigating the terrain.
- Using your scanner: Your scanner is your friend. Use it to find ore deposits, resources and interesting things around you.
- Interacting with objects: Try out the different buttons. It’s also a good idea to collect every item and see how they are used.
Gathering Resources
Mining is your first real task. Listen to what your overseer tells you and start collecting those resources. Here’s why this is important:
- Resources are vital: You’ll need them for crafting, building, and upgrading gear.
- First time to make money: You will be able to sell the extra resources for money.
- Practice makes perfect: Mining early will make you efficient in the long run.
Talking to Characters
Starfield is full of interesting characters, even right at the start. Take your time to chat with them. You will start to understand what is happening in the world.
- Learn from dialogue: Characters will give you information about the game, how to play it, and also some lore for the universe.
- Get quests: Talking to characters will give you your first quests. These quests will lead you to better equipment.
- Building relationships: As you progress through the game, relationships with other characters will become important.
The First Mission: “One Small Step”
After you complete the mining tutorial, you will be given your first mission “One Small Step.” This will take you on a path of discovery, and you will learn many things about the game. Here is what you can expect during your first mission.
Heading to the Space Port
You will be sent to a spaceport. This is where your journey into the stars will truly begin. This also means a lot of new things to experience.
- Learning to travel: At the spaceport, you will learn how to travel between places using the navigation map.
- Your first Space Ship: You will get your own spaceship to travel the stars, and you can customize your ship as the game progresses.
Exploring the Artifact
The main focus of “One Small Step” is the mysterious artifact. This artifact is going to be very important in the future of the game. There are also some more important things to learn from this part of the mission.
- Learning to use your powers: You will start to gain some unique powers after touching the artifact.
- Understanding the main story: The artifact will make it more clear the goals of your game.
- Meeting New Characters: You will meet more characters in the universe and you will start to create some of your first relationships.
Getting Involved with Constellation
Constellation is the main group you will be working with in Starfield. It’s a group of explorers and scientists, and they’ll quickly become your main companions. So what do you need to do with them?
What is Constellation?
Constellation is like your home base and they will be your mentors for exploring the universe.
- Your Home Base: They give you a safe place to come back to after some adventuring.
- A Source of Quests: They will give you quests that will lead to other places and items.
- Lore and Story: As you play more of the game, the characters of Constellation will become important to you.
Your First Missions with Constellation
After joining Constellation, you’ll get your first real taste of exploring. Here are some things that you can expect:
- Learning Ship Systems: You’ll learn how to fly your ship, navigate, and manage the different systems.
- Exploring New Planets: Constellation will send you on missions to explore new planets. This will allow you to gather resources and unique items.
- Meeting New Companions: In Constellation, you will meet some of your first companions. They will be very useful in different situations.
Understanding the Game’s Systems
Starfield has a lot going on. Let’s explore some key systems you should familiarize yourself with early on.
The Skill Tree
The Skill Tree is how you’ll improve your character, think of them like upgrades for your abilities.
- How to Level Up: After doing missions, you will gain experience points which can be used to level up and get a skill point.
- Spending Skill Points: Every time you level up, you get to spend a skill point. You can improve your combat, social, science, and tech skills.
- Planning Your Skills: Try to think about how you play so that your skill points are used in the best way possible for you.
Crafting and Research
Crafting and research are really important in Starfield. They allow you to create items to help you on your journey.
- Finding Resources: You will need to gather resources to make items for your characters.
- Using Research Stations: Research stations allow you to create blueprints to upgrade your weapons and armor.
- Creating useful items: Make new items to help you in certain situations. Items can provide healing, boost stats, and other unique benefits.
Ship Building
Your ship will be your home in Starfield, you should learn to customize it and make it your own.
- Changing your Ship: You can upgrade many different areas of your ship, from its engine to the weapons, as long as you have the right parts.
- Adding New parts: You can also add new parts to your ship like new cargo holds, or living spaces.
- Making it your own: As you progress through the game, you will be able to change almost everything about your ship, from the color to the weapons to make it truly your own.
Commerce, Selling and Buying Items
In Starfield, trading will become important as you explore the different planets.
- Selling items: You will come across a lot of items as you adventure. You can sell these at different vendors for money.
- Buying items: Vendors also sell important resources, weapons, and armor which you might find useful.
- Finding the best deals: Each vendor will offer different values for your items and also offer different prices for items. You will need to find vendors that provide the best value for both items you are buying and selling.
Important Tips for the First Few Hours
Starting a game like Starfield can be tough. Here are some additional things to keep in mind when you first begin.
Loot Everything
Don’t be shy about picking stuff up! You never know when something might be useful.
- Resources: Items will be used to create things, so always grab as much as you can.
- Weapons and Armor: You never know when you will need an upgrade to your gear, so always have a good stock.
- Valuables: Some items are specifically for selling, which will help get you some quick money.
Explore Thoroughly
Take your time when you are on different planets. There is a lot of hidden content that is easily missed.
- Side Quests: Some characters will have side quests for you. Side quests can be as interesting as the main missions, and they provide more experience points and items.
- Hidden Loot: There are many hidden chests that can contain valuable items if you take some time to search for them.
- Points of Interest: You may find some locations on planets that provide unique information about the world.
Don’t Rush the Main Story
While the main story is engaging, Starfield is a game that rewards exploration. Here is why you should explore the world.
- Leveling Up: Exploring the world is a great way to gain experience points, which will make it easier to complete the story missions.
- Valuable loot: Exploring will allow you to gain many valuables that can be sold for money, and also give you many resources which can be used for crafting.
- Learning about the universe: Starfield has an interesting story and learning about the world makes the experience much more fun.
Save Often
It’s always a good idea to save your game often. You never know when something unexpected will happen.
- Keep your Progress: You don’t want to lose a ton of progress if you accidentally die.
- Testing Different Choices: Saving allows you to try new things, and revert your choices if you don’t like the outcome.
- Exploring the World: There are so many different things to see in Starfield, saving your game is essential.
Starting out in Starfield might seem like a lot to take in, but by taking things one step at a time and focusing on the early parts of the game, you will have a great time. Your adventure is just beginning!
Starfield Guide: 15 Things You NEED To Do First
Final Thoughts
Focus on looting, questing, and exploring immediately after landing. Prioritize the main quest; it guides you through basic mechanics. This approach will ensure you get used to controls quickly.
Make sure to gather resources constantly. Crafting essential items will aid your survival. This is a must for any new player. This method sets you up nicely for later sections.
Therefore, focusing on these simple actions answers the main question “Starfield what to do when you first start”.



