You can’t possibly get bored in Bethesda’s Starfield. Besides completing the 18 main quests, which usually take around 6 to 8 hours, you can enjoy a plethora of fun activities. There are many activities that can easily take your focus away from the main objective. For instance, you can build outposts, join factions, solve major problems, complete miscellaneous activities, and even explore the entire known universe. However, nothing even comes close to the benefits of completing side quests in the game.
The major benefit of completing side quests first is that they yield some of the best rewards to better equip you for the task ahead. Furthermore, you can quickly gain significant amounts of XP and Credits to complete your powerful builds. However, completing all side quests can be a time-consuming task as the total number is yet to be discovered. Therefore, this article provides the top 10 best side quests in Starfield that you shouldn’t miss at any cost.
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Top 10 Side Quests in Starfield:
Starfield offers a plethora of side quests and other fun activities. However, there is no specific or “right” time to complete these optional tasks. As a result, players wander around the universe, completing a mix of all activities. However, if you wish to make your first playthrough memorable, you should go for the best ones first.
Here are the top 10 best side quests in Starfield, their rewards, and how to start them:
In Memoriam: Companion Side Quests
- How to Start: Increase your affinity with Sarah Morgan (companion romance) until you start flirting.
- Rewards:
- 10,500 Credits
- Romance with Sarah Morgan
In Memoriam is one of the most memorable side quests in Starfield. This quest becomes available after you raise your affinity with Sarah Morgan high enough to start flirting with her. During this quest, you must help Sarah reconcile with her past by traveling to Cassiopeia I. She lost her crewmates on this planet, so you must help her recover the Genetags and learn more about her character along the way.
At the end of the quest, she will confess her feelings to you, giving you a chance to live your Sci-Fi romance fantasy. Also, you will earn well over 10K Credits at the end, making your whole journey worth it.
The Audition (Striker Side Quests):
- How to Start: Speak with Andrea in Madame Sauvage’s Place, Ebbside Neon, Volii Alpha
- Rewards:
- 8 to 10K Credits
- 250 XP
- Street Sweeper Pistol
- Striker Gang Outfit
If you like completing faction missions and seeing your actions change society, the Striker gang is the perfect place to start. Strikers aren’t really a Starfield faction. Instead, it is a gang based in Neon’s Ebbside whose sole purpose is to protect its members from rival gangs. You can start this quest by speaking to Andrea in Madame Sauvage’s Place on the Ebbside of the Neon City.
Once you complete The Audition, you will embark on a series of quests to finish off the rival gangs in the Final Showdown. Besides being a heavily rewarding questline, the Striker missions will also give you a sense of a happy ending after the final fight. In short, you will get a Peaky Blinders vibe in completing this short story.
Mantis: Side Quest for a free Ship
- How to Start: Loot Spacer corpses until you find the “Once in a lifetime Opportunity” note.
- Rewards:
- Mantis Legendary Ship
- Mantis Spacesuit Pack
The Mantis side quest is often overlooked by most players. However, it has been deemed a fan-favorite by the majority of the players who completed it. Unlike other Starfield quests, you don’t need to speak to someone to unlock this mission. Instead, you must hunt down spacers and loot their corpses until you find a secret outpost note. This note was written by Leo’s mother, aka Mantis (space Batman), to guide her son to her secret outpost.
This mission consists of various enemies, robots, turrets, and deadly puzzles. So, it would be wise to stock up your Medpacks and grab a lot of ammo. Also, you should reach at least character level 20 before attempting this challenge. However, once you complete the Mantis mission and get the rewards, i.e., Mantis gear pack and Mantis ship (modified Razorleaf), make it worthy of your efforts.
First Contact: A Side Quest from Earth
- How to Start: Board the ship orbiting Porrima II or speak to the head of security of Porrima II.
- Rewards: The rewards depend on your final choice. Here is a list of all possible rewards:
- 3,000 credits, access to the Constant’s resources, and a unique ship upgrade
- 4,750 credits and access to Paradiso and Constant’s resources.
- 6,500 credits and access to Paradiso
When you board the ship orbiting Porrima II, you will meet a unique civilization. This ship departed from Earth during the early days of space travel and has been looking for a new home for about 200 years. When you enter the ship, you will meet several interesting characters and learn their philosophies.
The goal of this mission is to act as a mediator between the inhabitants of the ship and the rich elites of Paradiso. As a result of your skills, the Earthlings will either get a spot in Paradiso or move to another planet. In any case, this quest provides a meaningful insight into the people who lived during Earth’s final days.
Red Tape Reclamation:
- How to Start: Speak to Trevor near the security entrance of Cydonia, Sol System.
- Rewards:
- 50x Iron
- 3,000 Credits
- Deimos Spacesuit and Gear
Red Tape Reclamation is more of a fetching quest rather than some action-packed mission. Once you speak to Trevor (the miner), he will task you with joining the miners. However, before you can go down to the mining camp, you must enlist yourself by visiting the office tasked with approvals.
Once you enter the camp, you must mine some iron yourself and give it to Trevor. One notable bug is that the game doesn’t consider any iron that you find lying around in the camp. So, it would be best to keep mining some yourself until you hit the limit. In any case, this side quest will allow you to understand the bureaucracy, its lies, and how you manage to help the system.
Operation Starseed: An Intriguing Quest
- How to Start: Visit Charybdis III in the Charybdis solar system.
- Rewards:
- 2,000 to 6,000 Credits
- Amelia Earhart as Companion (optional)
Charybdis III is a unique planet filled with clones of historical figures like Genghis Khan, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Amanirenas. The funny part is that none of them knows that he is a clone and acts like the original figure. As a result of so many leaders and dictators living together, they have their own cults, factions, and ideologies.
In short, this quest is funny rather than intriguing as you get to interact with some of the most prominent figures in history. Once you settle the dispute and save the clones, you will receive Amelia Earhart’s allegiance as your crew member. The best way to enjoy this quest is to make sure that you speak with everyone.
Tourists Go Home: Funniest Side Quest
- How to Start: Visit New Homestead (Titan) in the Sol System and speak with Giuliana Lakota.
- Rewards:
- 1,800 Credits
- Monster Costume (optional)
When you visit Titan and land on the New Homestead settlement, you will find a spot filled with tourists and an annoyed doctor. The doctor tasks you with scaring away the tourists by wearing a tardigrade (water bear) costume. This funny side quest shows how humorous Bethesda can be, even in such a serious setting.
You will receive your reward after scaring all the tourists away from the industrial machinery. Moreover, you can repeat this short and simple quest as many times as you want. By the time you complete your third attempt, Giuliana Lakota will give you the monster costume as a reward.
Run the Red Mile:
- How to Start: Speak to Mel in the Red Mile Casino in Porrima III.
- Rewards: You will earn these rewards for completing the run each time until you receive a trophy for completing the Red Mile Challenge.
- 110 XP
- 5,300 Credits.
- 1 or 2 guns (common to rare)
- A bunch of Random Healing Items.
- Mounted Red Mile Apex Trophy (for challenge)
The Red Mile isn’t really a proper side quest, but it’s far more satisfying than completing Alternating Currents. During your visit to the Porrima III for the First Contact quest, take your time to visit the local buildings. You will find a certain casino named the Red Mile that features a unique sport for its regulars. Running the Red Mile is a simple task of going to the other side of the hill, activating the beacon, and returning to the casino.
The only problem is that the gap between the casino and the beacon is filled with monsters and vicious creatures. So, the regulars enjoy the spectacles of bloodbath and place bets on the contestants. You will receive rewards for completing each run, and feel free to loot the corpses of your fellow contestants. If you manage to beat the challenge 29 times, you will get a special reward and your name on the leaderboard.
Groundpounder:
- How to Start: Go to the orbit of Altair II in the Altair system and wait for the distress call.
- Rewards:
- 5,000 Credits
- Modified Peacekeeper (rare)
Groundpounder is perhaps the most action-jammed side quest in Starfield. When you receive the distress signal from the Research Outpost U3-09, go down to take a look. Once you meet Private Mahoney, that’s where the action really starts. Your goal is to stop the spacers from taking over the research center.
The quest requires you to utilize various weapons and battle strategies to slay a huge battalion of spacers. After a while, it starts to feel like a team deathmatch where you keep killing, and they keep coming. In the end, you will receive a special weapon that lasts for a good 20 to 30 hours. Oh, and be sure to pack all your Medpacks and Ammo, as you will need tons of them.
Delivering Devils:
- How to Start: Join UC Vanguard, Complete Grunt Work, and speak with Hadrian Sanon.
- Rewards:
- 1000 Credits
- 250 XP
Delivering Devils is among the best faction quests in the game. This is the final mission in the Terrormorphs problem, and you are actually helping the community. If you are looking for a questline that makes you a true national hero, you should definitely join the UC Vanguard. As soon as you join the ranks, Commander Tuala sends you on a special assignment to Tau Ceti II.
However, things turned out to be far worse than what you were assigned. As you progress through the first quest, you will face a deadly beast and save the colonies. Finally, you must help Dr. Percival and Hadrian to eradicate the Terrormorphs problem from all colonies, putting an end to the chaos. Check our Crafting and Research guide if you want to be a scientist yourself.
Conclusion:
Starfield offers some of the most interesting side quests in modern RPGs. Not only do they help you level up quickly and unlock exclusive rewards, but they also provide a deeper insight into the universe. So, if you turn your attention to side quests and activities, you should expect at least 100 extra gameplay hours. Therefore, this article covers the top 10 best side quests to complete first in Starfield and where to find them.
