Bethesda's Starfield

[Blackhawk]

It's unrelated really, but, Fast Travel to the Lodge shouldn't just take you right outside the door to the Lodge. Why make me load New Atlantis just to walk 20 feet to the door and then load the Lodge each time?

Immersion, bitches! Yeah!

[Blackhawk]

One trick I've discovered in regards to lockpicking:

If you rotate a section and switch to another, the first maintains its rotation. That means that you can go through the sections and position each one before committing to any of them, giving you a sort of 'test run.'

[Smoove_B]

It's unrelated really, but, Fast Travel to the Lodge shouldn't just take you right outside the door to the Lodge. Why make me load New Atlantis just to walk 20 feet to the door and then load the Lodge each time?

Immersion, bitches! Yeah!

Also, what if you wanted to go to the Lodge Basement but they spawn you in the foyer? Or you wanted to go to your bedroom? The bar upstairs? Having you appear at the front door is the best option - short of the ability to Star Trek beam into a specific location. And clearly that can't exist in this type of fantastical sci-fi future where people read magazines to increase carrying capacity.

[Unagi]

One trick I've discovered in regards to lockpicking:

If you rotate a section and switch to another, the first maintains its rotation. That means that you can go through the sections and position each one before committing to any of them, giving you a sort of 'test run.'

That's the only way I know how to do it.

Also - when you go about filling in this 'test run' - - prioritize combinations that only apply to a single layer, and only then find ones that are left over and applicable at every layer of the lock.

[Unagi]

It's unrelated really, but, Fast Travel to the Lodge shouldn't just take you right outside the door to the Lodge. Why make me load New Atlantis just to walk 20 feet to the door and then load the Lodge each time?

Immersion, bitches! Yeah!

Also, what if you wanted to go to the Lodge Basement but they spawn you in the foyer? Or you wanted to go to your bedroom? The bar upstairs? Having you appear at the front door is the best option - short of the ability to Star Trek beam into a specific location. And clearly that can't exist in this type of fantastical sci-fi future where people read magazines to increase carrying capacity.

?? you would load into the zone the same/only way you can - at the front door... but at least you wouldn't be loading a zone you have no intention of being in first. What's to get?

It would be like if I selected MAST, and it put me at the metro-station where I could then select the train and actually load up the MAST zone.

[Blackhawk]

It's unrelated really, but, Fast Travel to the Lodge shouldn't just take you right outside the door to the Lodge. Why make me load New Atlantis just to walk 20 feet to the door and then load the Lodge each time?

Immersion, bitches! Yeah!

Also, what if you wanted to go to the Lodge Basement but they spawn you in the foyer? Or you wanted to go to your bedroom? The bar upstairs? Having you appear at the front door is the best option - short of the ability to Star Trek beam into a specific location. And clearly that can't exist in this type of fantastical sci-fi future where people read magazines to increase carrying capacity.

Oh, come now - everyone knows that site-to-site transports are too risky! What if you materialize inside of a bulkhead?

[Alefroth]

Conclusive evidence that Starfield is No Man's Skyrim rather than Fallout in Space:

I need help with this one.

The active status effect is shown as an enchantment. The Elder Scrolls games have enchantments, Fallout does not. We see that sort of thing reflected in console commands (e.g. references to spells), but this is right out in the open, in the user interface.

Ha! I didn't get it either, but I was reading it as enhancement.

[Unagi]

I think that's what my casual eye saw as well.

[disarm]

One trick I've discovered in regards to lockpicking:

If you rotate a section and switch to another, the first maintains its rotation. That means that you can go through the sections and position each one before committing to any of them, giving you a sort of 'test run.'

That's the only way I know how to do it.

Also - when you go about filling in this 'test run' - - prioritize combinations that only apply to a single layer, and only then find ones that are left over and applicable at every layer of the lock.

This is how I've been doing it, with the added habit of starting with the inside rings first and working my way out. I got tired of starting with outside rings and then realizing that pieces I needed for the end were already lined up for a different layer. I never lock anything in until I've solved it all, but backtracking wastes time.

Maybe the difference is all in my head because you can still use the wrong pieces at the wrong time, but I seem to be struggling with that issue less since I started going from inside to out.

In any case, I do enjoy this form of lockpicking much more than their other games because it's purely based on thinking through the puzzle, removes luck from the equation, and seems to be something I have a pretty good knack for solving.

[Unagi]

For some reason, I also try and get it solved from the inside out. I think my instinct feels that most of the tricks/pitfalls would be traps for if you solved it outside-in, so that may be what drives my approach. I've, so far, never spent more than one digipick per lock.

[Brian]

Get far enough down the skill tree and you can spend a digipick to remove all of the unused combinations which really makes it easier.

[jztemple2]

After seeing Coop's comment on how fast he was solving Expert locks, I ditched the scratch paper and reassessed how I was doing things. The way I'm doing it now is to trying the solutions with the most "notches" first and work to the ones with less notches. Otherwise I just eyeball the lock and try to figure out which solution circle works best. Also, I always work from outside in. Now I'm doing Expert locks in a minute or two. Of course I've been playing for over 125 hours so there's that

[Blackhawk]

I actually start with the most complex picks (because they fit the fewest locations), and start on the outside (because it is easier to see if they line up.)

[Unagi]

the most complex picks

This too. The 'smaller' the key - it got a better chance for more uses (a single being entirely universal)

[jztemple2]

Made a big mistake yesterday during my playing. I had built an XP Farm like the one Coop suggested. I had about an hour to watch, actually listen to, some TV so I spent the hour grinding out adaptive frames and getting about a dozen or so skill points. Then I spent time using up about half of them right away. Then I spent the evening going from planet to planet just trying to pick fights so I could destroy enemy ships and get the count I needed to be able to use a skill point in each of three areas. And eventually I finished using all the points and was just about to sit down and grind out some more points when I asked myself, "Am I having fun?"...

The answer was no. The game was getting to be a chore. So I put it away last night and didn't touch it again till a couple of hours ago. I still have about half the Constellations missions to go, and what I'm sure is the big finale to the United Colonies mission chain. And a bunch of activities. So I decided to quit trying to grind my way up (err, down) the skill trees and just play the game.

I do always have the option later on of using console cheats to just give myself the various skills, but I'll hold off on even thinking about that

[Smoove_B]

when I asked myself, "Am I having fun?"...

I've finished the game with ~72 hours of play time. I did every faction quest and completed the main story. I *did* spend about 10 hours (!!) getting XP to level myself thinking the final leg of the game was going to be more difficult; it wasn't. I would highly recommend the random (radiant) quests provided by the Freestar Rangers and UC mission boards (assuming you join); they're a great source of XP and a ridiculous amount of gear/ammo/stuff.

I felt like I've done everything I wanted to do. Like coop, I immediately started in on NG+ and somehow managed to put *another* hour into the game just to sorta see what things are like. I will probably let it sit for a few days (or less) and then jump back in and do more.

I don't want to spoil anything, but I'm going to strongly (strongly) recommend you finish any and all faction quests prior to finishing the main story - assuming you are playing for the story. If you aren't (and don't really care about all that faction / story stuff), then just finish the game when you want to.

I really enjoyed the main story and how it ended. Not sure if the source material helped them with the ending (and the concept) but I think it really, really worked.

No regrets from an early purchase and I'm quite curious to see what the first DLC expansion looks like - mainly, how will it be able to pull me back into the game world.

EDIT: This also continues my long tradition of finishing a Bethesda game before the first patch is released.

[jztemple2]

I don't want to spoil anything, but I'm going to strongly (strongly) recommend you finish any and all faction quests prior to finishing the main story - assuming you are playing for the story.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll finish that faction quest (as much as I dislike those big nasty creatures ) before finishing up the main campaign.

[Max Peck]

I don't want to spoil anything, but I'm going to strongly (strongly) recommend you finish any and all faction quests prior to finishing the main story - assuming you are playing for the story.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll finish that faction quest (as much as I dislike those big nasty creatures ) before finishing up the main campaign.

If I understand Smoove's point correctly, he's just saying that all side story progression will reset and you'll need to replay it in NG+ to see how it turns out if you don't complete it beforehand, no?

[Smoove_B]

If I understand Smoove's point correctly, he's just saying that all side story progression will reset and you'll need to replay it in NG+ to see how it turns out if you don't complete it beforehand, no?

That is true, but it should not be your only consideration. I can't say much without spoilers so I won't. I'll just say if you're the type of player that actually likes story elements, I think it's in your best interest to do as much of the story and faction questions as you feel inspired to do.

[Blackhawk]

Fallout was a 1950s/60s vision of the future.

Looking at the civilian fashion in Starfield, I can't help but think that it is the 1980s version.

[Max Peck]

If I understand Smoove's point correctly, he's just saying that all side story progression will reset and you'll need to replay it in NG+ to see how it turns out if you don't complete it beforehand, no?

That is true, but it should not be your only consideration. I can't say much without spoilers so I won't. I'll just say if you're the type of player that actually likes story elements, I think it's in your best interest to do as much of the story and faction questions as you feel inspired to do.

Ah, OK, I think I understand what you're getting at.

Perhaps the Pilgrim's choice is the right one for me for now.

[Unagi]

My character taking a selfie on Akila:

Spoiler:

Me on Neon

Spoiler:

Me on Paradiso

Spoiler:

[Max Peck]

Ok, has anyone else had the...um...ship land on the planet you're exploring? I went and took a look, but I couldn't get in. I searched around a bit and found a...uh, crewmember and we had a very short conversation (something about a heretic then several loud bangs...) and...poof. Hoping for some loot, but nothing.

Can I expect this to continue? Can I get in and steal the vessel? Or is that a spoiler? Should I stop asking questions?

That is all perfectly normal and will continue. I've never been able to steal any of this particular faction's ships, but I don't know for a fact that it can never be done under any circumstance.

NG+5 and still true so I think accurate.

I stand corrected. I'm still pre-NG+, but I just boosted this ride tonight. I'm not sure if it's supposed to be possible, but it happened.

Spoiler:

[Moliere]

The companion following is comically bad. They are either vibrating halfway through a wall, jumping in front of you when you're shooting at someone, or blipping out of existence at random times. Tonight I was standing next to a ship about to take off and Heller somehow glued himself to the outside of the ship. As the ship took off Heller floated next to the ship into space. Good news though. When I went back to my ship he teleported back safely.

[Max Peck]

My current solution for emptying out my ship's cargo hold was to build a massive array of storage containers of all possible types at my main base and just warehouse everything that I don't need to carry around with me.

I need to get around to doing something like this. I still am making periodic encumbered walks back to the lodge to unload gobs of things over to my safe-of-holding. It's getting a little... OCD.

This is a big-brain solution for storage. I haven't tried it myself, but a friend confirmed that it works like a charm.

[Max Peck]

1.7.33 Update

A small update has gone out for Starfield on Xbox Series X|S, Microsoft Store, and Steam. This update addresses some issues with performance and stability as well as a few general gameplay issues. We are continuing to work on a larger update that will add features and improvements that we noted in our last update notes. Thank you so much for your continued feedback and support of Starfield and we look forward to a future with you on this journey.

[Blackhawk]

For those who haven't figured out the gear system, here's what I've discovered.

There are three different factors that apply to gear: Quality, Rarity, and Modifications. You start off with a generic piece of equipment (a Grendel, a Deep Mining Spacesuit, etc), and then add the modifiers.

Quality is simply how well made it is, and determines the base stats.

Quality, in order:
None
Calibrated
Refined
Advanced
Superior

Rarity determines how many special modifiers (Bashing, Space-Adept, Mirrored, Analyzer, etc) the item has. It affects only those modifiers, and not the base stats.

Rarity, in order:
Blue (1 modifier)
Purple (2 modifiers)
Gold (3 modifiers)

Modifications are the 'mods' that you install on the gear at a workbench (or that come pre-installed.)

Side note: Both modifiers and modifications can change the name of the weapon, but only those listed under 'Quality' actually change the weapon.

So if you want the best weapon, you'll need to find gold colored Superior version of that weapon where the three modifiers suit you, then mod it up. That'll take a while, but means that there's always something better to find.

[raydude]

When I first started playing I would always run back to my ship then get into the cockpit, liftoff and then select my next system/planet once I'm in orbit. Made me feel like it was more of an Elite game with RPG elements instead of a Fallout game with Elite elements. I've since given up on running to my ship and just fast travel to my ship but I still manually blast off and select a new target once in orbit. I don't know why, but it gives me the warm fuzzies to see my character pull the ship console to herself prior to launching and then flipping switches prior to a grav jump.

[Blackhawk]

I do the same. If you just teleport from planet to planet, the fact that it's different planets gets lost - it had might as well just be different regions of the same map. The limitations of the engine already make it so that it rarely feels like you're actually flying from place to place.

I look forward to the frequently-requested mod that lets it play the 'landing' scene on every visit to a planet, not just the first time.

[Unagi]

This is a big-brain solution for storage. I haven't tried it myself, but a friend confirmed that it works like a charm.

Thank you - I will need to check that out.

[Max Peck]

Ok, has anyone else had the...um...ship land on the planet you're exploring? I went and took a look, but I couldn't get in. I searched around a bit and found a...uh, crewmember and we had a very short conversation (something about a heretic then several loud bangs...) and...poof. Hoping for some loot, but nothing.

Can I expect this to continue? Can I get in and steal the vessel? Or is that a spoiler? Should I stop asking questions?

That is all perfectly normal and will continue. I've never been able to steal any of this particular faction's ships, but I don't know for a fact that it can never be done under any circumstance.

NG+5 and still true so I think accurate.

I stand corrected. I'm still pre-NG+, but I just boosted this ride tonight. I'm not sure if it's supposed to be possible, but it happened.

Spoiler:

I'm pretty sure that this was the result of a bug. In addition to being able to board these ships, other grounded ships were behaving oddly: they never dropped their boarding ramps, and they never deployed away teams. I think (but can't be sure) that I know what triggered the bug, and reverting to a save from before that suspect event seems to have corrected the glitch, in that the cool ships are inaccessible again. I need to find a regular pirate ship to confirm that those are behaving normally again as well.

The thing that I believe caused the bug is end-game spoilery:

Spoiler:

In the lead-up to the conclusion of the story, I told both the Emissary and the Hunter to go to hell. At the time that I confronted them for the big battle, I had installed the Armillary on my ship and put all the artifacts I had up to that point in it. After the battle, I had the remaining artifacts in my inventory but didn't install them because I didn't want to do the thing that ends the story just yet. Sometime after that, I captured a new ship, a Claymore, and made it my new home ship. IIRC, I had to go back to my old ship and manually uninstall the Armillary and when I then installed it in the new ship all the artifacts in my inventory automatically installed themselves, triggering the ability to jump to the Unity. I uninstalled the Armillary, but that seems to have been the point where things went sideways. When checking different saves, I found that the last save I had before this happened had normal behavior, but the first one after had the odd behavior. Assuming that I'm correct about this causing the glitch, I'm still not sure if it was the automatic transfer of the Armillary between ships that was the actual cause, or if it was having the Armillary fully active then uninstalling it. Or it could be unrelated and just a coincidence that there seems to be a correlation with when things took a turn for the strange.

The end result is that I had to roll back from level 50 to level 43 and have to redo the penultimate mission in the main story in order to not have accidental access to Starborn ships but still be able to boost pirate ships (and whatever else was broken that I haven't discovered). But I do still have a save in the alternate reality where I'm flying around in a stolen Starborn ship if I want to go on some more joyrides.

[Unagi]

Quite the place for a dung pile

[Blackhawk]

Giant space pigeon.

[jztemple2]

How can I have 138 hours in the game and this is the first time I've come across Gagarin Landing?

[Smoove_B]

How can I have 138 hours in the game and this is the first time I've come across Gagarin Landing?

I was running random missions and towards hour 65 I discovered an island fortress on some otherwise empty planet that was the home of a presumed crime lord. Well...former crime lord. House was filled with blood and space pirates.

There really is a ton of stuff in the game. That's also kinda why I liked doing all the faction quests - they did a good job (I thought) of taking you to places you might not have otherwise seen (like Gagarin Landing. )

[Blackhawk]

I've found that the Vanguard and Constellation missions make a great pair early on - you start with the first Vanguard mission, and (for a while), you're going to be going to the same places for the two factions.

The one mistake I think they made was sending you to Sol early on. The planets aren't terribly interesting. They should have sent you somewhere with a bit of scenery (and fauna) for a bit to help draw you in, then sent you to Sol later on.

[jztemple2]

I met and defeated a level 64 ship today (highest value so far)... and defeated a level 98 pirate

[Hyena]

I met and defeated a level 64 ship today (highest value so far)... and defeated a level 98 pirate

Yeah, the level system doesn't make a whole lot of sense... When I became a certain insect vigilante, I was level 6 or 8, and I went in and mopped the floor with the level 30 spacers in there. Full disclosure, I am about as far as you can get from a first-person shooter expert, and my reflexes are average at best, and I didn't have a single problem clearing them out.

[Unagi]

Humor:

[Blackhawk]

I read through the text three times before I got it.