Violence isn’t always the right answer to every situation in Starfield. The beauty of Bethesda’s latest title is that it gives you the freedom to complete your adventure however you want. For instance, you can start with a battle-ready build and answer every call with bullets. Alternatively, you can bring out your persuasion skills and charm the enemy into submission.
The only problem is that it is a game of luck, at least in most cases. You can fail a persuasion check with one answer, reload the game, and pass it with the same option. The good news is that you can use certain tricks to increase your odds and avoid unwanted conflicts. Therefore, this article explains how persuasion works in Starfield and how you can pass every check.
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How Persuasion Works in Starfield?
Persuasion in Starfield is a completely different mechanism than most modern RPGs. Firstly, there is no right or wrong answer, i.e., everything is randomized. So, if you fail to judge a character’s attributes, it isn’t always your mistake. The biggest example of this randomization is that you can pass a previously failed check by save scumming the mini-game.
However, you can’t completely ignore the art of charm, as it can save your time, energy, ammo, and hard-earned credits. Furthermore, the heroic feeling that you get after succeeding in persuasion is just out of this world. Fortunately, the game gives you some options to increase your odds using different techniques. So, it can easily become your strongest weapon to pass various quests like Delivering Devils without firing a single bullet.
Similarly, quests like “A Legacy Forged” mainly depend on your talking skills. One wrong decision can cost someones life, ruin your companions romance, and even yield lower quest rewards.
Starfield Persuasion Explained:
Before we dive into the factors that boost your persuasion scores, it would be best to first understand the concept. As soon as you start a critical dialogue option, you will see several answers corresponding to [Persuasion], [Bribe], and [Offend]. Selecting the [Persuasion] option opens up a new screen with several options to assist you in the mini-game. Here is a brief explanation of the Persuasion menu:
- Persuasion Meter: The first option you see in the picture above is the persuasion meter. This meter shows your progress in the current persuasion check. Successful checks will fill up the meter, whereas wrong answers will drain this meter, depending on the level of your choices.
- Persuasion Dialogues: The second option shows your available dialogue options. Each dialogue option will add some points to the persuasion meter, and you can find the value for each answer as +1. +3, and +5. Similarly, the color coding behind these values shows the level of risk attached to each answer. Green options yield the lowest points and pertain to lower risks. Similarly, orange and red options will yield higher values but will also increase your chances of failure.
- Remaining Turns: Each persuasion check comes with a limited number of turns. Each answer will decrease the turn count by 1. So, you must fill up the persuasion meter within the available turns, or else you will fail the check. Lastly, if you pass the check on your last turn, you will get a bonus turn to fill the meter and pass the mini-game.
- Auto Persuasion: The last option in this menu is the auto persuasion mode. You can unlock this mode after progressing in the persuasion skill. Moreover, you must pass 6 turns to fill the meter and unlock this option. When you press this button, the game will take over and automatically pass the mini-game after a few additional dialogues.
How to Pass Starfield Persuasion?
Persuasion in Starfield is a game of luck. Each answer corresponds to a hidden dice roll, which in turn results in your success or failure. Furthermore, every dice roll is completely random, so you can get different outcomes from the same answers. Fortunately, you can use various techniques to increase your odds and pass every persuasion check without any problem. Here are a few ways to pass this Starfield mini-game:
Upgrade the Skill:
The most obvious way to increase your odds is to upgrade your skills. You can earn skill points through character levels. Once you have enough points, you can invest them in the persuasion skill under the social skills tree to increase your success rate. Each upgrade grants you an additional 10% rate of success, and at rank 4, your persuasion success adds up to 50%.
Choose the Best Background:
While you can unlock the persuasion skill with any background, some of the best backgrounds come with built-in persuasion. For instance, if you start as a Diplomat, you get 30% persuasion right from the very beginning. Afterward, you can invest additional skill points to further increase your odds. Here is a list of all Starfield backgrounds with built-in persuasion skills:
- Diplomat
- Space Scoundrel
- Sculptor
- Industrialist
Save Scumming:
Another practical method to pass every persuasion check is the save scumming technique. Basically, you must save the game before initiating the mini-game and choose your desired answers. If you fail the check, you can always reload the game and start all over again. Repeat this process until you pass the mini-game.
However, this is a time-consuming method, so you must reserve it for critical scenarios. Otherwise, you can use other methods to increase your odds and practice your skills, and eventually, you will become unbeatable at this mechanism.
Use Chems and Medicines:
Unlike other permanent ways to increase your persuasion success rate, this is more of a temporary method. You can find various consumables in Starfield to temporarily boost your stats. The good news is that most of these effects last just long enough to help you pass the next mini-game.
In this regard, items like Hippolyta and Paramour are extremely effective for your cause. Hippolyta boosts your persuasion by 20% for the next 5 minutes. Similarly, Paramour will increase this rate by 25% for 15 minutes. Combine these boosts with your base 50% persuasion at rank 4, and you will end up with a whopping 75% success rate.
Lastly, if you have alcohol, wine, or some other booze in your inventory, it will come in handy. While we can’t confirm this in real life, you definitely become charming after consuming alcohol. So, you can use this to your benefit, as the charm of alcohol will directly increase your persuasion stats for some time.
Bonus:
Upgrading the persuasion skill is the surest way to increase your odds of success. However, you must invest the valuable skill points that you acquire after hours of grinding and fighting. So, if you are looking for a shortcut way to boost your stats and you don’t really care about Starfield Achievements, this method is the best remedy for you.
You can upgrade the persuasion by a +1 rank without investing any skill points. Simply press the “~” key to bring up the console command menu. Next, type the following command and press enter to increase your skill rank.
player.addperk 0022EC82
As you can only gain one rank after each cheat, you must repeat the process 4 times to reach the maximum rank. However, this method will block you from Starfield’s achievements for the current playthrough. The good news is that you can re-activate the achievements through mods.
Conclusion:
Persuasion is perhaps among the best mechanisms in Starfield. You can use this option to avoid unnecessary conflict, talk your way out of any situation, lower the cost of bribes, and even get the best deal on your transactions. However, everything in this mechanic is randomized, and your fate rests in the hands of a hidden dice roll. Fortunately, you can use certain tips and tricks to increase your rate of success. Therefore, this article explains how persuasion works in Starfield and how you can turn the tables in your favor.
