Starfield First Contact quest guide with all routes
There’s no telling what you’ll find out in the stars, and the First Contact mission is certainly one of the stranger encounters. Above the skies of Porrima II (where the Paradiso resort is located), you can find a 200-year-old ship of colonists.
Their ancestors set out from Earth in search of a new home two centuries ago, but the rapid advance of technology since they left meant that the rest of the human race beat them to it. You’ll need to dock with their ship to talk with them, as their out-of-date comms unit can’t contact modern ships, and you’ll eventually find that they still stake a claim on Porrima II.
It’s your job to decide how to resolve the situation, so we’ll explain your options.
How to deal with the colonists – Starfield First Contact
Bethesda
Go down to Paradiso and talk to Oliver, the CEO resort and he’ll suggest three ways you can proceed:
- Destroy the ship and kill all of the colonists
- Allow them to settle on Porrima II, but only as indentured servants of Paradiso
- Set them up with a modern grav drive so they can find a new home, at your expense
Option 1 – Destroy the ship
Certainly the most heartless of all the options, but arguably the easiest way to solve the problem. Head into the Engineering bay of the colonist ship and pickpocket the key off of the chief engineer. Now interact with the three terminals and change the settings like so:
- Redirect the Turbopump to Port
- Adjust the Plasma Run-Off Inhibitor power to 5%
- Decouple the Magnetic Flange Pipe Enclosures
Now head to the desk, hack the control terminal in front of the captain’s chair, and activate the Emergency Reactor Overdrive. Everyone in the ship will immediately attack you but just flee back to your ship. Undock and the colonist’s ship will immediately explode.
All that’s left is to return to Oliver for your reward – you monster.
Option 2 – Indentured servants
It may not be an ideal option, but it is one that guarantees everyone’s safety. However, before the crew can land and begin their work, they need some resources to set up shop that you’ll have to gather for them:
- 10 Lithium
- 80 Iron
- 20 Sealant
- 40 Fiber
Sort that out for them and the quest will be complete.
Option 3 – A new grav drive
Forcing the colonists to search for yet another new home may not feel like the best option, but with a modern grav drive it shouldn’t take them too long to find somewhere they can set themselves up. The only problem is, it’s very expensive.
Oliver will direct you to someone who he thinks can do the job, and they can, but they ask for 40,000 credits to do it. If you’re handy at persuasion then you can get that price lowered to 25,000 credits, but that’s still a hefty chunk of change. Still, hand it over and the new grav drive will be installed – you’ll need to help ensure the ship’s systems can cope with the modern tech, but after that, you’ll be rewarded for your efforts as the crew set off to new horizons.
The rewards for this path are quite interesting too, as they are relics from Earth’s past. They’re cool collectibles, but they also sell for a decent chunk of change, which should help offset the cost of the grav drive somewhat.
Which option should you choose? – Starfield First Contact
Bethesda
If you have the money then getting the Colonists a new grav drive feels like the best option from a moral standpoint. Plus, it’s arguably the easiest of the three routes, as there is no resource collection or fighting involved. This means everyone comes away alive, and the colonists are still free to choose their own way of life, instead of being forced to work for Paradiso.
