Become the best smuggler in the galaxy.
What good would a Bethesda game be without the ability to carry stolen goods? Starfield takes this one step further with the introduction of contraband.
Not to be confused with stolen items, contraband is instead items that are illegal to own. Your ship will even be scanned each time you try to enter a planet containing an area owned by the United Colonies or Freestar Collective.
Essentially, you will need to sell any of your collected contraband before entering another planet. You will be rewarded greatly for your illegal contraband, of course, but actually managing to sell it could prove difficult…
This is why you might want to instead try to hide or smuggle any of it you have on board. Fortunately, we’re here to help you with this.
Read on to find out everything there is to know about Starfield contraband, including what it is, how and where to sell it, and how to hide or smuggle any contraband from the authorities.
What is contraband in Starfield?
Contraband in Starfield is a catch-all term for a selection of illegal items, items you will be scanned for when you enter a planet or system that contains an area or settlement controlled by either the Freestar Collective or United Colonies.
Starfield contraband items include banned Aurora drugs from the planet Neon, harvested organs, stolen files, AI components, mech components, xenowarfare tech and heretical scripture.
You’ll find contraband in bases and abandoned research facilities. You’ll know when an item is contraband as you’ll see a yellow checkmark/tag icon next to its name.
More illegal than stolen goods, contraband will sell for a much prettier penny and is worth picking up when you come across it – if you can sell it before you’re caught.
Before you try to sell any contraband you’ve picked up, though, it’s definitely worth hiding it so you don’t get caught carrying.
How to hide and smuggle contraband in Starfield
To hide contraband in Starfield, you need to equip your ship with a shielded cargo hold. A scan jammer will also help you to successfully smuggle your contraband without being caught by the authorities.
To unlock the shielded cargo hold, you can commandeer a ship that has one or build one yourself to add to your ship. The simplest way to get your own shielded cargo hold is to join up with the Crimson Raiders faction.
Head to The Key in the Kryx System after joining up with the Crimson Raiders faction to unlock the shielded cargo hold.
Get your contraband into your shielded cargo hold as soon as you can if you plan on going planet-hopping.
The scan jammer, meanwhile, can be unlocked by levelling up your Starship Design skill. Increasing your Smuggling skill will reduce the chances of being caught carrying contraband, too.
It’s worth noting that you can pick up contraband on a planet, and travel elsewhere on the same planet to sell it without being caught in possession. Scans only take place when entering a different planet/system.
Another tip to help hide contraband is to store it in your outpost while you’re working on adding a shielded cargo hold to your ship. Once you have a storage crate in your outpost, you can store whatever you like there without it being taken from you.
If you’re caught with contraband on board your ship, you will be immediately arrested. Follow the advice above to minimise those chances! Now it’s time to sell that successfully smuggled contraband.
Read more on Starfield:
- Starfield review – our final verdict
- Starfield missions list – how far are you?
- Starfield tips and tricks – how to get started
- Starfield romance – all potential relationships
- Starfield character creation – all your options explained
- Starfield digipick – how to lockpick
- How long is Starfield? The hours you’ll need
- Will Starfield ever come to PS5? Developer comments
- Starfield cast – all voice actors
- Starfield companions – who to recruit
- Starfield soundtrack – how to listen
- Starfield storage guide – don’t be overburdened
- Starfield FOV – change your point of view
- Starfield FPS – developers explain 3ofps
- Starfield PC requirements – specs needed
- Starfield performance – potential fixes
- Starfield factions – all possible groups
Where to sell contraband in Starfield
The Trade Authority shop on Neon is a known location that’ll buy your contraband. You’ll need to level up your Commerce skill before you can receive close to what each piece of contraband is worth, however.
Other Trade Authority merchants will have a decent chance of buying your contraband, but their shop on Neon is your best bet. You may even find Trade Authority Merchant ships orbiting a planet, so you can sell before you get scanned!
Planets and systems without the Freestar Collective or United Colonies involved are safe havens for the more criminally-minded adventurers. The Den in The Wolf System is a decent location to sell your contraband, for example.
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