Starfield

What Happens When You Get Caught With Contraband In Starfield?

Here is what happens when you carry Contraband without shielded cargo and get caught in Starfield.

By Karan Pahuja
How To Not Get Arrested With Contraband In Starfield

Planning to carry and sell contraband but not sure what would happen if you get caught in Starfield? The consequences can be a bit serious but not too much. The reason contraband is so sought out in this game is that it pays you handsomely when sold. But the problem is these goods aren’t legal. There is also the authorities’ standard ship scan whenever you enter a new system. So getting arrested is easy, but here is what happens when you get arrested and what you can do to avoid it.

What happens when Contraband is Found on You in Starfield?

Starfield What Happens When You Get Caught With Contraband

You get arrested when Contraband or any other illegal or stolen items are found on your ship. When you enter a new city most of them will scan your ship before letting you enter. Once the scan is over and if they find the above items, the authorities will arrest you, leaving you with 3 options:

  • Pay the Fine: When you pay a fine, you not only lose the Contraband and stolen items. But lose in-game time, some XP, and Credits.
  • Paying Bounty: When you pay up your bounty, you only lose the Contraband, stolen items, and some Credits.
  • Attack: You can try attacking the authorities to escape, but it may add up to the bounty for the arresting faction.

But if you get caught with Contraband in New Atlantis, you have a chance to join the Crimson Fleet. Here is how you can do that:

  1. After going to New Atlantis with Contraband, UC Sec Chimera will scan your ship and inform you about your arrest and confiscate your Contraband.
  2. Here, choose the Stand Down option.
  3. You will now get arrested and get the Deep Cover mission.
  4. Talk to Commander Ikande and you can choose to take up his offer to join Crimson Fleet and help him in its destruction.
  5. Or you can simply go to jail if you change your mind.

How to Avoid Getting Caught with Contraband

You can safely carry contraband in your ship and even sell it in major cities by adding Shielded Cargo to your ship. Alternatively, you can also go to the Den in the Wolf System and sell all your illegal goods there. Your ship isn’t scanned here, so no authorities are alerted.

Now, you know what happens when you get caught with Contraband in Starfield and how to avoid it. You should also find our other guides useful on how to get cold resistance, change your name, and save Barrett.

Karan Pahuja 2752 posts

Karan is a Soulsborne enjoyer who grew up playing NES classics like Contra, Mario, Zelda, Kirby, Megaman, and a list of other games that go on. He also enjoys FPS games like Overwatch 2 and Valorant. Currently, he is maining Cammy in Street Fighter 6, while experimenting some Sorcerer builds in Diablo 4. And if you need help with some boss fights in a game, he is your guy!