Today, a Starfield “scientist” shared a disconcertingly thorough document containing a full analysis of the loot dropped by a Space Pirate that they killed 100 different times.
In a post on Reddit, user Endecc linked a scientific report about their killing spree that is complete with a Test Subject Name and Personal Observations footnote. The document contains information on a level 98 “test subject” that the player killed 100 separate times.
After killing a Pirate Legend, Endecc recorded loot data, loaded their game, and did it again. 100 different times. We’re not sure exactly how legit scientific reports are meant to look, but the one shared by this Starfield scientist looks pretty damn good.
The madness had a method, in which it was determined that Elite Enemies (Starfield‘s version of a mini-boss) have some set weapons and spacesuits that they are more likely to drop, but that ultimately the quality of gear received can vary greatly no matter how high of a level that enemy is.
The document also breaks down exactly how likely the foe was to drop Legendary gear, which seems to have a 10 percent chance.
We imagine that Endecc formatted their research so formally partly as a joke, but the document and data actually is very helpful and interesting. In Starfield, Elite Enemies are guaranteed to drop special loot that has unique modifiers. Until now, players had no way of knowing exactly what that meant. Does the item scale by player level or by enemy level? What rarity is the item most likely to be? Do Elites have a set item type that they’ll drop, or can that vary as well? All of these questions were answered by what is perhaps one of the greatest gamers/scientists of our generation.
The redditor did also share a photo of the “test subject” that they performed the experiment on, and seemed to express remorse or some semblance of guilt by referring to them as the “poor, poor test subject.” It seems reasonable to conclude that the observer did not lose touch with human empathy during the course of the experimentation (dammit, now I’m doing it too).
What our data gathering friend does not include is just how the hell the Pirate got lodged in the ceiling.
According to the post, it only took the player a few hours to kill the enemy 100 times, record all data, and sort it in a clear and comprehensive fashion. We think (and hope) that the time commitment is being slightly understated—otherwise, it’s a little concerning that they seem to be pretty used to this sort of thing.
