In Starfield, if players commit crimes like stealing, attacking someone, or destroying ships, they get a bounty placed on them by the factions that control the area. The more serious the crime, the higher the bounty. This bounty is known across that faction's territory, so if players enter a system where they've committed a crime, they'll immediately be recognized as a criminal. While interesting, this system needs to be overhauled by the Starborn DLC.

The current system doesn't offer much for players who want to play as pirates. While piracy is an option, especially if players side with the Crimson Fleet faction, the consequences make it hard to pursue that lifestyle without sacrificing other aspects of the game. There aren’t any long-term ways to escape the authorities, which forces players to either live as pirates and miss out on many features or give up piracy to enjoy the rest of the game. This all-or-nothing choice restricts players' chances to roleplay as a pirate in the game.

Your Bounty In Starfield Becomes Unpayable Quickly

Stealing A Sandwich Was Never More Expensive

In Starfield's settled systems, even a small crime can quickly spiral out of control, leading to violence and skyrocketing fines. Once there's a bounty on the player's head, every place they visit becomes a dangerous challenge. When they dock at a space station, security forces immediately search for them and often attack. If players want to escape, they have to fight the station guards and patrol ships that come after them when they leave.

Taking out these ships is sometimes necessary to survive, but it only makes things worse. Every ship that players destroy adds more to their bounty, turning what may have started as a minor issue into an enormous problem. This creates a frustrating situation where players try to defend themselves from the fallout of a small crime that just leads to much bigger consequences. Soon, the bounty can get so high that players can never pay it off, trapping them in endless conflict.

There are mods to make being a Pirate much more viable, but the Starborn DLC can improve the main game.

This limits the player's ability to explore and interact in civilized areas of the game, locking them out of a lot of content if they step outside the rules. Overall, the current system punishes players for wanting to be free and experiment, turning what could be an exciting pirate adventure into a grind of managing resources and constant fighting. Starborn is the only hope of fixing this, since the core of piracy feels unfinished, thanks to this system.

What The System Could Learn From The Elder Scrolls

The Elder Scrolls Takes It More Seriously

Starfield's system for dealing with crime and punishment takes a lot from the Elder Scrolls series, but not everything that could help. The Starborn DLC could improve it by adding features that worked well in Bethesda's previous games. For instance, in The Elder Scrolls games, players can criminal groups like the Thieves Guild or Dark Brotherhood, which provide special quests, skills, and connections to a life of crime.

While Starfield has the Crimson Fleet faction, it doesn't offer the same depth or ties to the overall game. It would be great to have smuggling routes, settlement black markets, or detailed heists requiring planning and strategy. Elder Scrolls games tend to let players use social tactics like persuasion, bribery, or intimidation to escape trouble or handle tricky situations. Starfield mostly lacks these options. A better dialogue system with choices and skill checks could let players bargain out of issues, build relationships with shady characters, or manipulate leaders.

Starborn can learn a lot from Shattered Space, but one of the main things to learn is not to release a DLC without major fixes to vanilla content. Starfield could improve by adding outlaw areas or secret bases on asteroids that major factions can’t touch. These areas could serve as safe places for pirates, smugglers, and criminals, creating unique communities and economies outside the normal systems.

Why Starborn DLC Needs An Outlaw System

A True Outlaw System

The Starborn DLC is a great chance to fix a big issue in Starfield's gameplay: the lack of a good outlaw system. Right now, if players want to be pirates or smugglers, they face a lot of restrictions, and the current approach to crime is too simplistic. The bounty system becomes overwhelming, making it impossible to enter major cities or complete quests, because players are instantly attacked when they arrive in a new system.

The current system feels really lazy. It is almost as if the developers added the bounty system, so crimes could be punished, but Bethesda didn't think much further than that. Players can be space pirates, but they'll get nowhere because the developers didn't add ways to live as a space pirate. There is an entire faction that somehow has done nothing to make their own economy or way of living, like the Thieves Guild in The Elder Scrolls. It's very poorly done compared to other Bethesda games.

What Starfield's Outlaw System Could Look Like

A True Outlaw System

Starfield's Starborn DLC could make several changes to make the outlaw life more engaging. A reputation system should be added to the criminal world. When players commit acts of piracy, they can gain recognition with groups like the Crimson Fleet, opening up special missions, ship upgrades, and access to the black market. Conversely, if players betray these groups, they could face revenge and conflicts with other factions, adding risk and reward to their actions.

Smuggling mechanics should also be expanded beyond just hiding illegal goods. The game could feature secret trade routes and s that let players transport contraband and launder money, requiring careful planning and tactics to avoid getting caught. There should be more ship customization options geared towards piracy. This could include upgrades like cloaking devices to escape scans, jamming systems to disrupt enemy targeting, or stronger hulls to resist boarding attempts.

Bounty-hunting mechanics could also be made more diverse. Instead of facing constant patrols from one group, there could be various bounty hunter factions with different ships, strategies, and motivations. Players could have the option to bribe or negotiate with these hunters, which would add more social interaction to the outlaw experience.

Finally, a system for creating fake identities or disguises would allow players to sneak into secure areas or escape from relentless chases. This might involve getting forged documents, going through physical changes, or using advanced holographic disguises. These changes would lead to a much better outlaw system, letting players dive into a space pirate's life in Starfield's Starborn DLC.