It’s hard to imagine many people out there playing through Starfield without engaging a little bit of illegality. You won’t find any judgment here, just hints and tips on how to hide and sell contraband, illegal goods that can fetch high prices in the right places. You will end up moving just about anything from harvested organs to the black market’s finest space powders, however. So, it’s not a career for folks with any strict moral compass.
How to find and spot contraband
Contraband is rare but easy to spot. Where goods that have been stolen from a restricted or secured area will be marked with a red chevron, contraband will have a yellow chevron, making them very distinct. When it comes to where you might find them, they can pop up just about anywhere that is not controlled by the United Colonies of the Freestar Collective. The reason you are unlikely to find contraband in those systems is that both groups perform security scans on ships when they drop in, making it very difficult to get contraband into the system. This is also something you will need to overcome if you wish to smuggle it. The good news is that nobody scans you on the way out of a system, so if you do just happen to find something in an unlikely place, you can make your getaway with it.
Anywhere that contains some Crimson Fleet is a likely place to find contraband, as they are known for their smuggling ways. They will usually be locked away behind some form of lock, so make sure you have plenty of Digipicks on you at all times. You can also find them by boarding ships, nestled away in their cargo holds.
How to hide your ill-gotten goods
To hide contraband, you need a shielded cargo compartment for your ship. Usually, you will need to join the Crimson Fleet and do some missions for them to get access to the right options in the ship builder menu. This can actually done by joining the Vanguard, and they will eventually ask you to go undercover in the Crimson Fleet. You could also put in the work to get your hands on the Legendary spaceship, the Razorleaf. This little beauty comes with shielded cargo containment already, making it a great help to you in the early game. You can also invest some skill points in Deception, which will help you get past the scans when they do happen. You could also just steal any other ship that you happen to run into and hope that it has one, although this is a bit hit-and-miss. Ensure you actually store the contraband in the cargo hold, as if you keep it in your inventory, it will set off a scan.
How to sell contraband and other stolen items
For the most part, traders try to live an honest life in Starfield, and few of them will accept stolen goods or morally dubious ones. The main exception to that rule is the Trade Authority. While they have offices on most worlds, including United Colonies and Freestar Collective worlds, they are not averse to bending the rules. Once you can get past the initial scans, you can drop into any major settlement and trade down the Trade Authority there. They generally have the name written in huge letters across their offices and buildings, and you can just stroll in and sell them whatever you wish.
