Starfield is an open-world RPG from Bethesda, and so (obviously) it features Skills. Here is an explanation of how to unlock Skills, and an overview of every single Skill in Starfield that we know about so far.
Skills have always played a vital role in Bethesda games. In these open-world RPGs, skills govern the abilities, proficiencies, and effectiveness of the player's character. They serve as the foundation for the player's playstyle and determine their aptitude in various areas.In Skyrim, for instance, a skilled archer will have enhanced accuracy and damage, while a skilled alchemist can create potent potions. While in the Fallout series, a high skill level in Science may enable the player to hack terminals or repair advanced technology, opening up new paths and hidden rewards.
Bethesda's upcoming game Starfield is expected to continue emphasizing the importance of skills. While we don't have all the exact details, we could already see from the various gameplay previews that skills will function in much the same way as they do in other Bethesda games. In this article, you can find all the info we know so far about skills in Starfield. We have a basic description for most of the skills, but we don't have exact numbers yet.
How Do You Get Skills In Starfield?
You will get three skills for "free" during character create when you pick a background, and then free skill unlocks every time you level up. Instead of having to buying new skills with every level up, you can also choose to spend the level up by upgrading the skills you already know from Rank 1 to 4.
If you've played any Bethesda game before you will feel right at home.
All Skills In Starfield
The Skills in Starfield are broken down into five categories: Physical, Combat, Social, Science, & Tech. Here is a brief overview of what each category of skill is focused on:
- Physical: These skills will provide you with increased strength, stealth and agility. If you choose martial characters in most games, these will be the skills for you.
- Combat: Everyone will dip into this category. These Starfield skills are basically all about improving your shooting with various weapons.
- Social: Prefer to talk it out? Social skills will help you persuade (deceive) the NPCs you meet.
- Science: Science skills are going to be great for players that want to fulfill the whole No Man's Sky-style astronaut fantasy. These skills will allow you to survey new planets and harvest them most efficiently.
- Tech: If you want to be an ace pilot and build the ultimate spaceship: Get Tech skills in Starfield!
We have a list of all the skills we know about below. This list is not perfect and it is merely based on various gameplay previews and leaks. The exact skills might be slightly different on launch, in which case we will update this article.
Starfield Skills: Physical
Here are the physical skills:
| Skill | Description |
| Concealment | Harder for enemies to spot you when crouching. |
| Decontamination | Naturally recover from infections more quickly. |
| Gastronomy | You can "craft" food and drink in the research lab. |
| Martial Arts | Increased unnarmed damage. |
| Neurostrikes | Unknown. |
| Stealth | Increased damage when attacking with surprise. |
| Weight Lifting | Increase carry capacity. |
| Wellness | Larger health pool. |
Everyone will probably take Wellness, but we are particularly interested in Stealth and Concealment.
Starfield Skills: Combat
These are all the combat skills:
| Skill | Description |
| Ballistics | Guns do more damage. |
| Demolitions | Explosives do more damage. |
| Dueling | Melee Weapons do more damage. |
| Heavy Weapons Certification | More damage with Heavy Weapons. |
| Laser Certification | More damage with Lasers. |
| Marksmanship | Unknown. |
| Particle Beams | More damage with Particle Beams. |
| Pistol Certification | More damage with Pistols. |
| Rapid Reloading | Faster Reloads. |
| Rifle Certification | More damage with Rifles. |
| Shotgun Certification | More damage with Shotguns. |
| Sniper Certification | More damage with Snipers. |
| Targeting | Improved hip-fire accuracy. |
We're really hoping that sniping will be fun in Starfield.
Starfield Skills: Social
Social skills? We got you:
| Skill | Description |
| Bargaining | Buy items for less and sell them for more. |
| Commerce | Unknown. |
| Instigation | Unknown. |
| Intimidaton | Force NPCs to flee rather than fight. |
| Leadership | Companions grow closer to you more quickly. |
| Outpost Management | Unknown. |
| Persuasion | Higher levels will allow you to "persuade" NPCs at various points during dialogue. |
| Scavenging | Improved loot rates. |
| Theft | Easier to pickpocket NPCs. |
| Xenosociology | Allows communication and interaction with aliens. |
Starfield Skills: Science
For the scientists among you, all of Starfield's Science skills:
| Skill | Description |
| Astrodynamics | Unknown. |
| Astrophysics | Unknown. |
| Botany | More yield from plants. |
| Chemistry | Create and upgrade chems. |
| Geology | More yield from rocks and minerals. |
| Medicine | Med Packs do additional healing. |
| Outpost Engineering | Unknown |
| Surveying | Unknown |
Starfield Skills: Tech
Last but not least, Tech skills:
| Skill | Description |
| Boost Pack Training | Improve your jetpack. |
| Particle Beam Weapon Systems | Get Particle Beams on your ship. |
| Payloads | Improve ship's carry capacity. |
| Piloting | Improve ship's handling. |
| Robotics | Unknown |
| Security | More pick-lcoking/hacking attempts before failure. |
| Starship Engineering | Unknown. |
And that's all we know so far about skills in Starfield, we hope you found it helpful. Are you pleased with the skills you've seen so far, or are you holding out for potentially the greatest RPG of all time before buying an Xbox?
Please don't make these mistakes Bethesda: