Complete Starfield Armor Guide

In our Complete Starfield Armor Guide, we will explain Spacesuits, Packs, Helmets, Apparel, and everything you need to know about Armor in Starfield

Starfield Armor

Starfield will have three armor pieces and apparel that you wear under your armor. Here is a list of all the types of armor in Starfield:

  • Spacesuit
    • Full body coverage; no separate slots for chest/legs/gloves as you see in other games.
  • Packs
    • Shorthand for the jet-packs that characters will wear on their backs and you can boost if you have the tech skill unlocked Boost Pack Training.
  • Helmets
    • Headgear has its own slot and will have its own separate stats, aside from simply being a necessary component of space exploration.
  • Apparel
    • Is worn under your armor and gives small bonuses to oxygen, health, persuasion, and more.

Armor and gear will be an important part of the gameplay in Starfield. Players will need to be able to protect themselves from enemy NPCs, as well as potentially from some of the more aggressive creatures and environments on many planets in the game. Armor will play an important role in your Build, and you should always try to match the type of armor to your style of gameplay.

Damage Reduction and Resistance Categories

These resistance stats are based around protection from weapons. There will likely be plenty of space gun battles in Starfield and all of the human enemies will be carrying weapons of these types. Additionally, it’s possible that some of the aggressive alien fauna you come across on various planets may have developed their own offensive or defensive capabilities that use the electromagnetic field.

  • Physical
    • Protects against ballistics and projectile weapons
  • Energy
    • Protection from laser weapons
  • Electromagnetic
    • Protects against this particular type of weaponry

Environmental Resistance Categories

Environmental resistance is obviously referring to the atmosphere of the many alien and some uninhabited planets you’ll be traveling to. The following categories offer several options, though it’s surprising not to see cold environments included. It’s possible that the Apparel layer (which is perhaps worn under the spacesuit) may play that role.

  • Thermal
    • Protection against heat and hot environments
  • Airborne
    • Protection against air-based contaminants such as spores and other organic pollen
  • Corrosive
    • Protection from the effects of salt water or other salty environments
  • Radiation
    • Protection against high levels of radiation, likely found on many planets

Armor Rarity

Starfield Armor Rarity Explained
Armor Rarity

Armors are available in four distinct qualities: white, blue, purple, and the legendary yellow. If an armor piece holds the rarity of blue or higher, it boasts an accompanying perk or trait. These augmentations introduce supplementary effects alongside any modifications. For instance, the “Beast Hunter” perk reduces damage from Alien enemies by 15%. While most of these enhancements are bestowed randomly, noteworthy exceptions include quest-related items that possess standardized attributes. Optimal resource utilization suggests reserving modifications for blue or higher quality armors, preventing the squandering of materials on non-perk gear that ultimately holds limited potency.

The legendary item seen in the above image contains the following armor effects, perks, or traits.

  • Beast Hunter: -15% damage from Alien enemies
  • Liquid Cooled: +25 Thermal Resistance
  • Repulsing: 5% chance to disarm nearby attackers

And that’s one piece of gear that dramatically increases your character’s power and strength. Your goals is to find traits that fit your individual build profile.

Acquiring Armor

Starfield-Science-Crate-Loot
Loot Crate Example

Armor should be available through purchase from merchants, as quest rewards, drops from enemies, and built through crafting. Armor can also be bought and sold from traders in major towns, or even through ship-to-ship conversations. Armor is literally everywhere, and getting Legendary Quality can be difficult.

Companion Armor

Starfield - Equip Companion Gear
Equip Companion Gear

Companions are able to equip armor via their inventory. Simply interact and hit “let’s trade.” Once you get into their inventory (see at the bottom of the menu) highly something you want them to wear and hit “EQUIP.” This interface will look different than yours, will be unsorted but it works in the same fashion. They will equip the gear, but mostly wear “apparel” when not in combat or space. That too can also be changed out and you can fully customize your companions gear and apparel.

Modding Starfield Armor

In order to mod an armor piece in Starfield you need the armor, resources, research unlock, and Spacesuit Workbench. Once you access the spacesuit workbench, you can select individual armor and then go into the individual pieces to modify. Depending if you have the research unlocked and materials, you can then instantly upgrade your armor.

The Research Laboratory Station has been shown on your Starship as well as Outpost, in addition to the Lodge after starting the main story. You will harvest and collect materials similar to other games in order to create modifications to your existing armorResearch takes a massive amount of materials and storage can be difficult. You can use your ship storage and create containers at your outpost. You can also buy materials from general vendors and mineral merchants.

Below is a list of the individual Starfield Armor types and modification slots:

  • Spacesuits
    • Slot 1: Shielding
    • Slot 2: Shielding or Reduced O2
    • Slot 3: Shielding or Melee damage
    • Slot 4: Reduce Noise or Weight
    • Skin: Cosmetic
  • Pack
    • Slot 1: capacity, protection, or oxygen.
    • Slot 2: healing bonus
    • Boost Pack: The type of boost you want
    • Skin: Cosmetic
  • Helmet
    • Slot 1: Shielding
    • Slot 2: Shield or Detection
    • Slot 3: Shielding
    • Slot 4: Detection reduction
    • Skin: Cosmetic

Looking for more about Starfield?

Thank you for reading the Complete Starfield Armor Guide! We’ll do more deep dives into Starfield and cover the game. Additionally, you can also watch Deltia streaming the game on Twitch.