Learn about all the skills you will need before wandering around in the world of Starfield.
Starfield will be rolling in a couple of days. And Bethsheda has been hyping us up since 2018’s E3. Here, we will be the Humans that have colonized the stars. We will be able to explore the solar system, there will be quests to complete, and on top of that, we can explore a whole planet on foot if necessary.
And to explore the plants, we will depend on multiple skills. Skills that we have to perfect before going into exploration in this vast open world. There will be skills that are based on your morphology, social interactions, combat, tech and science-based skills. Each of these skills has several attributes and ranks to reach. So without further ado, let’s jump right into it!
All Character Skills in Starfield
There are, in total of 5 primary skills. Each of the skills has several tiers with multiple abilities. Each of the abilities again has 4 ranks. Each of the ranks has upgraded perks than the previous one. Let’s dive deep.
Physical Skills
- Tier-1
| Ability | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boxing | ⁍ +25% unarmed attack damage ⁍ -25% O2 usage for power attacks | ⁍ +50% unarmed attack damage ⁍ -50% O2 usage for power attacks | ⁍ +75% unarmed attack damage ⁍ 30% less O2 is used while running unarmed in combat. | ⁍ 100% unarmed attack damage with a chance to knock down opponents |
| Fitness | +10% available oxygen | +20% available oxygen | +30% available oxygen | 4 Reduced oxygen usage for sprinting and power attacks. |
| Stealth | ⁍ Adds a stealth meter. ⁍ 25% harder to detect when sneaking. Suppressed weapons deals +5% sneak attack damage | ⁍ Upgrades the stealth meter. ⁍ 50% harder to detect when sneaking. Suppressed weapons Deal +10% sneak attack damage. | ⁍ 75% harder to detect when sneaking. ⁍ Suppressed weapons deal +15% sneak attack damage. | ⁍ 100% harder to detect when sneaking. ⁍ Suppressed weapons deal +20% sneak attack damage. ⁍ Doors interacted with while in stealth no longer alert enemies. |
| Weight Lifting | +10 kg to carrying capacity. | +25 kg to carrying capacity. | +50 kg to carrying capacity. | ⁍ +100 kg to carrying capacity. ⁍ Gain 50% resistance to stagger. |
| Wellness | Increase maximum health by 10% | Increase maximum health by 20% | Increase maximum health by 30% | Increase maximum health by 40% |
- Tier 2
| Ability | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pain Tolerance | Physical damage reduced by 5%. | Physical damage reduced by 10%. | Physical damage reduced by 15%. | 5% chance to ignore physical damage at low health. |
| Nutrition | Food and drink 10% more effective. | Food and drink 20% more effective. | Food and drink 30% more effective. | Food and drink 50% more effective. |
| Gymnastics | Unlock combat slide, 15% less fall damage. | Move faster in Zero-G, 20% less fall damage. | More stable firing in Zero-G, 30% less fall damage, replenish some O2 after mantling. | Increased jump height, run faster after combat sliding or mantling. |
| Environmental Conditioning | 10 resistance to Airborne damage. | 10 resistance to Thermal damage. | 10 resistance to Corrosive and Radiation damage. | Reduced afflictions chance from environmental damage sources. |
| Energy Weapon Dissipation | Energy damage reduced by 5%. | Energy damage reduced by 10%. | Energy damage reduced by 15%. | 25% chance to reflect energy damage when below 50% health. |
- Tier 3
| Ability | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cellular Regeneration | Slightly increased chance of natural recovery. | Moderately increased chance of natural recovery. | Noticeably increased chance of natural recovery. | 20% chance to avoid gaining an injury when otherwise possible. |
| Decontamination | Slightly increased chance of natural recovery. | Moderately increased chance of natural recovery. | Noticeably increased chance of natural recovery. | 20% chance to avoid gaining an infection when otherwise possible. |
| Martial Arts | 15% increased chance to crit with melee/unarmed. | 15% chance to disarm with melee/unarmed power attack. | 10% less damage when unarmed/wielding a melee. | Reflect 50% damage when blocking a melee/unarmed attack. |
- Tier 4
| Ability | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Concealment | No longer trigger enemy mines. Ranged sneak attacks do 2.5x normal damage, melee sneak attacks do 4x. | ⁍ Running while sneaking doesn’t affect stealth. ⁍ Ranged sneak attacks do 3x normal damage, melee 5x. | ⁍ Gain Chameleon-like ability when still and sneaking. ⁍ Ranged sneak attacks 3.5x, melee 8x damage. | ⁍ Engaging stealth causes distant enemies to lose you. ⁍ Ranged sneak attacks 4x, melee 10x damage. |
| Neurostrikes | 10% chance to stun an NPC with an unarmed attack. | Unarmed attacks now do additional EM damage. | 20% chance to stun an NPC with an unarmed attack. | After stunning an enemy, knock down nearby enemies. |
| Rejuvenation | Slowly regenerate health outside of combat. | ⁍ Regenerate health more quickly outside of combat. ⁍ You can now slowly regenerate health in combat. | ⁍ Regenerate health much faster outside of combat. ⁍ You can now regenerate health quickly in combat. | ⁍ Regenerate health even faster outside of combat. ⁍ You can now regenerate health quickly in combat. |
Social Skills
- Tier 1
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commerce | Buy for 5% less, sell for 10% more | Buy for 10% less, sell for 15% more | Buy for 15% less, sell for 20% more | Buy for 20% less, sell for 25% more |
| Gastronomy | Craft specialty food, research recipes | Research and craft gourmet food and drinks | Research and craft food and drink delicacies | Crafting doesn’t use resources, craft exotic recipes |
| Persuasion | 10% increased chance of success | 20% increased chance of success | 30% increased chance of success | 50% increased chance of success |
| Scavenging | Find extra credits | Find extra ammo | Find extra aid items | Tracked resources highlighted |
| Theft | Unlock pickpocket ability | 10% greater chance to successfully pickpocket | 30% greater chance to successfully pickpocket | 50% greater chance to successfully pickpocket, pickpocket holstered weapons |
- Tier 2
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deception | Ships 10% stronger surrender, less effective scans | Ships 20% stronger surrender, less effective scans | Ships 30% stronger surrender, less effective scans | Ships 50% stronger surrender, less effective scans |
| Diplomacy | Force lower-level NPC to stop fighting | Force higher-level NPC to stop fighting | Force higher-level NPC to stop fighting | Force target NPCs to permanently stop fighting |
| Intimidation | Force lower-level NPC to flee | Force higher-level NPC to flee | Force higher-level NPC to flee | Intimidated targets flee for substantial time |
| Isolation | +10% weapon damage, gain 15 Damage Resistance | +20% weapon damage, gain 30 Damage Resistance | +30% weapon damage, gain 45 Damage Resistance | +40% weapon damage, gain 60 Damage Resistance |
| Negotiation | Access to Bribery, reduces cost by 25% | Reduces bribery cost by 50% | Occasionally, bribery won’t cost any money |
- Tier 3
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instigation | Force lower-level NPC to attack allies | Force higher-level NPC to attack allies | Force higher-level NPC to attack allies | Enemies attack allies until dead |
| Leadership | Companions gain affinity 25% faster | Companions have more health and capacity | Companions heal you when low health | Doubles bonuses of Combat and Physical Crew Skills, companions pick themselves up |
| Outpost Management | Additional cargo links at outposts | Additional robots at outposts | Additional crew at outposts | Outpost extractors produce twice as fast |
- Tier 4
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manipulation | Force lower-level NPC to obey commands | Force higher-level NPC to obey commands | Force higher-level NPC to obey commands | Manipulated targets obey commands longer |
| Ship Command | Up to four active crew members | Up to five active crew members | Up to six active crew members | Up to eight active crew members |
| Xeniosociology | Force alien creature to stop fighting | Force alien creature to flee | Force alien creature to attack allies | Force creature to obey commands |
Combat
- Tier 1
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballistics | Ballistic weapons do 10% more damage | Ballistic weapons do 20% more damage | Ballistic weapons do 30% more damage | Ballistic weapons range is increased by 30% |
| Dueling | Melee weapons do 25% more damage | Melee kills make you run 20% faster | Melee weapons do 50% more damage | Melee kills heal you for 10% of your health |
| Lasers | Laser weapons do 10% more damage | Laser weapons do 20% more damage | Laser weapons do 30% more damage | Laser weapons have a 5% chance to set targets on fire |
| Pistol Certification | Pistols do 10% more damage | Pistols do 25% more damage | Pistols do 50% more damage | Pistol kills grant +25% critical hit chance for 5 seconds |
| Shotgun Certification | Shotguns do 10% more damage | Shotguns do 20% more damage | Shotguns do 30% more damage | Shotgun kills grant chance to stun additional targets for a limited time |
- Tier 2
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demolitions | Throwing grenades shows trajectory arc, explosions have 25% larger radius | Explosives do 25% more damage | Reduce damage taken from explosives by 25% | All previous bonuses are doubled |
| Heavy Weapons Certification | Heavy weapons do 10% more damage | Heavy weapons do 20% more damage | Heavy weapons do 30% more damage | Gain 25% Physical resistance while aiming down sights with a heavy weapon |
| Incapacitation | EM weapons do 5% more damage | EM weapons do 10% more damage | EM weapons do 15% more damage | EM weapons have a 15% chance to do 300% EM damage |
| Particle Beams | Particle beam weapons do 10% more damage | Particle beam weapons do 20% more damage | Particle beam weapons do 30% more damage | Particle beam weapons have +5% crit chance |
| Rifle Certification | Rifles do 10% more damage | Rifles do 20% more damage | Rifles do 30% more damage | Reload rifles 30% faster while standing still |
- Tier 3
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marksmanship | Increase crit hit chance by 3% with non-automatic ranged weapons | Increase crit hit chance by 8% | Increase crit hit chance by 15% | Critical hits with non-auto ranged weapons without scope do double damage, scoped shots knock down enemies |
| Rapid Reloading | Reload Ballistic weapons 30% faster | Reload Energy and EM weapons 30% faster | Reload Particle Beam weapons 30% faster | Chance to increase reload speed for all weapons by 50% on hitting enemies for 15 seconds |
| Sniper Certification | Scoped weapons steadier, less sway | Longer breath holding with scoped weapons | Scoped headshots have +25% crit hit chance | Scoped weapons do 50% more damage with scope |
| Targeting | Increased accuracy/range shooting without aiming, marks up to 1 enemy within 25m | Notably increased accuracy/range, marks up to 2 enemies within 50m | Greatly increased accuracy/range, marks up to 3 enemies within 75m | 10% chance to disarm targets, marks up to 4 enemies within 100m |
- Tier 4
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armor Penetration | Attacks ignore 15% of target’s armor | Attacks ignore 30% of target’s armor | Attacks ignore 50% of target’s armor | Enemy armor decreased by 25% for 6 seconds after critical hit |
| Crippling | Human enemies have 30% increased chance to enter downed state | Humanoid enemies have 50% increased chance to not recover from downed state | Human enemies enter downed state earlier | Previous ranks apply to all enemy types, do 100% more damage to downed enemies |
| Sharpshooting | Increase headshot crit damage by 50% | Increase crit damage to enemy legs by 50% | Increase all crit damage to enemies by 50% | Ranged crit hit kills increase crit hit chance with all ranged weapons by 25% for 20 seconds |
Science
- Tier 1
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Astrodynamics | Increase grav jump range by 15% | Reduced fuel cost by 15% | Increased grav jump range and reduced fuel cost by 30% | Reduced fuel cost of jump drives by 50% |
| Geology | Get more common and uncommon inorganic resources from surface objects | Get more rare inorganic resources from surface objects | Get more exotic inorganic resources from surface objects | Occasionally harvest additional rarer resources from surface objects |
| Medicine | Healing items restore 10% more Health 10% faster | Healing items restore 20% more Health 20% faster | Healing items restore 30% more Health 30% faster | Healing items restore 50% more Health 50% faster, chance to cure affliction |
| Research Methods | Resources required reduced by 10% | Resources required reduced by 20% | Resources required reduced by 40% | Sudden developments during research are twice as common, resources reduced by 60% |
| Surveying | Hand scanner zoom, scan distance 20m | Hand scanner zoom, scan distance 30m | Hand scanner zoom, scan distance 40m | Hand scanner zoom, scan distance 50m |
- Tier 2
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Botany | Get more common and uncommon organic resources from plants, info from scanner, cultivate plants at outposts | Get more rare organic resources from plants, learn info quickly using scanner | Get more exotic organic resources from plants, learn info quickly using scanner | Occasionally harvest additional rarer resources from plants, learn info quickly using scanner |
| Scanning | Detect uncommon inorganic resources on surfaces, more info about ships in space | Detect rare inorganic resources on surfaces, more specific info about ships in space | Detect exotic inorganic resources on surfaces, better combat info about ships in space | Detect unique inorganic resources on surfaces, complete list of cargo on ships in space |
| Spacesuit Design | Craft improved spacesuit, helmet, pack mods, research additional mods | Research and craft superior mods | Research and craft cutting-edge mods | Construction of mods occasionally doesn’t cost resources |
| Weapon Engineering | Craft improved weapon mods, research additional mods | Research and craft superior weapon mods | Research and craft cutting-edge weapon mods | Research and craft master-level weapon mods |
| Zoology | Get more common organic resources from creatures without harm, info from scanner, produce animal resources at outposts | Get more uncommon organic resources from creatures, learn info quickly using scanner | Get more rare organic resources from creatures, learn info quickly using scanner | Occasionally harvest additional rarer resources from creatures, learn info quickly using scanner |
- Tier 3
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Astrophysics | Scan moons, 10% chance to discover a trait when scanning | Scan any planet or moon in this system, 20% chance to discover a trait | Scan any planet or moon within 16 Light Years, 30% chance to discover a trait | Scan any planet or moon within 30 Light Years, 50% chance to discover a trait |
| Chemistry | Craft improved chems, research additional chems | Research and craft superior chems | Research and craft cutting-edge chems | Crafting chems occasionally triples amount created |
| Outpost Engineering | Construct improved outpost modules, research additional modules | Research and construct superior modules | Research and construct cutting-edge modules | Outpost modules cost 50% fewer resources to build |
- Tier 4
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special Projects | Research experimental projects | Craft rare manufactured components | Craft exotic manufactured components | Craft unique manufactured components, outpost extractors chance for additional resources |
| Planetary Habitation | Build outposts on extreme temperature planets, increase max outposts by 4 | Build outposts on extreme pressure planets, increase max outposts by 8 | Build outposts on toxic or corrosive planets, increase max outposts by 12 | Build outposts on extreme gravity planets, increase max outposts by 16 |
| Aneutronic Fusion | Ship reactors produce 1 extra unit of power | Ship reactors produce 2 extra units of power | Ship reactors produce 3 extra units of power | Ship reactors produce 5 extra units of power |
Tech
- Tier 1
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballistic Weapon Systems | +10% damage, -20% cost in Targeting Mode | +20% damage, recharge 15% faster | +30% damage, recharge 30% faster | +50% damage to individual systems |
| Boost Pack Training | Unlock boost pack use | Reduced fuel consumption | Faster boost pack fuel regeneration | Doubles previous bonuses |
| Piloting | Unlock ship thrusters | Improved ship maneuverability | Unlock Class B ship piloting | Unlock Class C ship piloting |
| Security | Attempt to hack Advanced locks, 2 auto attempts | Attempt to hack Expert locks, 3 auto attempts | Attempt to hack Master locks, 4 auto attempts | Expend a digipick to eliminate unnecessary keys, 5 auto attempts |
| Targeting Control Systems | Unlock ship targeting functionality | Faster target locking, slower enemy fire | Faster target locking, increased crit chance | Faster target locking, +20% system damage |
- Tier 2
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy Weapon Systems | +10% damage, -15% cost in Targeting Mode | +20% damage, -30% cost in Targeting Mode | +30% damage, -45% cost in Targeting Mode | Energy weapons recharge 30% faster |
| Engine Systems | +10% ship top speed | Improved boosts | +20% ship top speed | Enemies disengage while boosting |
| Payloads | +10% ship cargo capacity | +20% ship cargo capacity | +30% ship cargo capacity | +50% ship cargo capacity |
| Shield Systems | +20% shield capacity | +40% shield capacity | +60% shield capacity | Shields occasionally resist 100% of damage |
- Tier 3
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Missile Weapon Systems | +10% damage, -20% cost in Targeting Mode | +20% damage, -40% cost in Targeting Mode | +30% damage, -60% cost in Targeting Mode | +20% Range, Travel Speed, Reload Speed |
| Particle Beam Weapon Systems | +10% damage, -10% cost in Targeting Mode | +20% damage, -20% cost in Targeting Mode | +30% damage, -30% cost in Targeting Mode | Increased critical hit chance |
| Robotics | +10% damage to Robots and Turrets | +20% damage to Robots and Turrets | +30% damage to Robots and Turrets | Force higher-level robots to obey commands |
| Starship Design | Install improved ship modules | Install superior ship modules | Install cutting-edge ship modules | Install experimental ship modules |
| Starship Engineering | Ship systems repair 10% faster | +25% damage mitigation | Ship systems repair 25% faster | Repairing one block repairs entire system |
- Tier 4
| Skills | Rank 1 | Rank 2 | Rank 3 | Rank 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Automated Weapon Systems | +10% damage, -20% targeting cost | +20% damage, -30% targeting cost, less ship damage | +30% damage, -40% targeting cost, +20% crit chance | Turret recharge 40% faster, +20% damage to subsystems |
| Boost Assault Training | Boost damages nearby enemies, chance to catch on fire | Chance to knockdown nearby enemies | Aim down sights while boosting to hover | Time slows down while hovering |
| EM Weapon Systems | +10% damage, -15% cost in Targeting Mode | +20% damage, -30% cost in Targeting Mode | +30% damage, -45% cost in Targeting Mode | Small chance to disable enemy engines |
