Your background in Starfield can be quite important. You pick it during character creation, and it will instantly set the tone for how you play the game, as it gives you access to your starting skills. If you are unsure about what background to take, read on for some advice based on hundreds of hours of playtime.
The best starting backgrounds in Starfield
Which background you pick will really depend on the gameplay style you prefer. There are options that will suit you if you like to solve everything with violence and others that will suit the sneakier players out there. It’s also not just about what you start with but also what you can instantly begin leveling up because of how skills get upgraded in Starfield.
Bounty Hunter
Bounty Hunter is a great option for people who really want to be able to hold their own in space right from the start of the game. You will start with Piloting, Targeting Control Systems, and Boost Pack Training. All of these are quite useful very early in the game, making it a great option for skills that you will absolutely want to unlock to be able to take advantage of your ship.
- Piloting – This skill will unlock your ship’s thrusters, giving you an important tool right from the start of the game.
- Targeting Control Systems – this unlocks the ship’s targeting systems which will come in useful in those early fights.
- Boost Pack Training – allows you to use the Boost Pack, and you will get your first one early enough in the game.
Bouncer
Don’t sleep on the advantages a Bouncer has in the early game. With Boxing, Security, and Fitness skills, if you pick Bouncer, you will be equipping yourself very well to deal with some of the more common challenges in the early hours of the game. One of the key parts of this background is that it makes you use less oxygen in a couple of different circumstances, and it also lets you breach tougher security measures early in the game.
- Boxing – Unarmed attacks do 25% more damage. 25% less O2 is used when using a power attack.
- Security – You can attempt to hack Advanced locks, and 2 auto attempts can be banked.
- Fitness – You have 10% more oxygen available.
Cyber Runner
The Cyber Runner gets to go sneaky right from the start, and if you don’t like the idea of shooting everything all the time, this is a great option. It comes with the Stealth, Security, and Theft skills that will make you a bit of a menace for the various security guards you will be running into in Starfield.
- Stealth – Adds a stealth meter. You are 25% more difficult to detect when sneaking. Suppressed weapons do an additional 5% sneak attack damage.
- Security – You can attempt to hack Advanced locks, and 2 auto attempts can be banked.
- Theft – Unlocks the ability to pickpocket targets.
Long Hauler
The Long Hauler is a great option as it gives some important bonuses right from the start. You’ll get Weight Lifting, Piloting, and Ballistic Weapon Systems as skills, giving you a jump on three quite important areas.
- Weight Lifting – Increases your carrying capacity by 10 kilograms.
- Piloting – This skill will unlock your ship’s thrusters, giving you an important tool right from the start of the game.
- Ballistic Weapons Systems – Ballistic ship weapons for 10% more damage and cost 20% less to use in Targeting Mode.
Professor
The Professor is a great option if your primary concern is to start gathering resources as quickly as possible and getting your base-building skills humming. It comes with the Research Methods, Astrodynamics, and Geology skills.
- Research Methods – Resources required to craft items and complete research projects is reduced by 10%.
- Geology – Get more common and uncommon inorganic resources from surface objects.
- Astrodynamics – Increase grav jump range of jump drives by 15%.
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The [File Not Found] background is definitely an interesting mystery. You will start with the Wellness, Ballistics, and Piloting skills. The lack of history and the general skew of skills toward combat in different ways could mean some kind of secret military background. Perhaps some secrets quests lurk behind this background?
- Piloting – This skill will unlock your ship’s thrusters, giving you an important tool right from the start of the game.
- Wellness – increase maximum health.
- Ballistics – Ballistics will increase the damage you do with ballistics weapons, so anything that fires a physical projectile.
Combat Medic
If you are very worried about potentially dying, then the Combat Medic might be for you. It will start with the Pistol Certification, and some of the pistols in this game slap, so don’t worry about combat effectiveness. You will also have the Medicine and Wellness skills.
- Wellness – increase maximum health.
- Pistol Certification – grants you 10% more pistol damage, scales up to 50% more damage, and increases critical chance after kills. Pistol ammo is also plentiful in the game, adding more value.
- Medicine – Med Packs, Trauma Packs, and Emergency Kits heal 10% more and 10% faster.
Gangster
It will come as no surprise that the Gangster background is a solid option for those who are criminally inclined. Comes with the Shotgun Certification, Boxing, and Theft skills.
- Shotgun Certification – Shotguns will do 10% more damage. (Shotguns are very strong, so this is a great skill to max them out).
- Boxing – Unarmed attacks do more damage and power attacks will use less oxygen.
- Theft – Unlocks the ability to pickpocket targets.
Ultimately, your background will give you a jump start on three different skills, and which ones you want to go with is entirely up to you. There are definitely skills that are incredibly useful in the early game, so leaning into some of them can be a great idea.
