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The stakes in Bethesda‘s sci-fi story couldn’t get much higher, leading the player to a series of fateful decisions. After spending most of the game hunting down and collecting fragments of an artifact, the player is at last ready to assemble the Armillary. It’s not so simple as just slapping the pieces together, however. The Hunter launched a deadly attack during High Price to Pay, and the Starborn pose an ongoing threat to Constellation. As you near the end of Starfield, you must choose whether to build the Armillary on your ship on an outpost, but it’s not clear which is best. Here’s everything you need to know to make that difficult decision.
Building The Armillary On Your Ship
The first option is to reassemble the pieces of the Armillary aboard your ship. There are pros and cons with both Armillary construction options, but there’s a strong argument for using your ship. That’s because the Starborn will launch attacks wherever you choose to keep the artifact. Because you spend so much time on or near your ship in Starfield, keeping the Armillary onboard means you’ll never be far from it when it needs defending. That’s really convenient since you’ll be able to trust in your own skills whenever the Starborn appear and need to be driven off again.
The problem with keeping the Armillary aboard your ship is that you will be harassed by the Starborn there. Do you mostly want to mind your own business and pursue side objectives before wrapping up the main story? If so, this might not be the best decision. Even though Starborn attacks on your ship aren’t common, they’re not unheard of. That can get frustrating if you have other plans for the day. By this point in the story, you’ve already completed High Price to Pay and seen the potential cost of Starborn attacks.
Building The Armillary At Your Outpost
Building the Armillary at your outpost has its own pros and cons. On the plus side, out of sight can very much mean out of mind. The Starborn will attack your outpost instead of your ship. Assuming you’re spending most of your time jumping around the galaxy and exploring, these attacks won’t cause nearly the disruption they would have otherwise. This choice is ideal for those who want to put off completing the Armillary and finishing the main quest. That’s especially true if you already have a fully developed outpost.
The downside to building the Armillary at your outpost is you won’t be there to defend it most of the time unless you’re roleplaying there. Leaving a single crewmember at the outpost to defend the artifact alone is a bad idea, which means you’ll need to construct some defenses. Installing turrets isn’t difficult, but it is a bit of a hassle. The main problem is coming up with resources with which to build defenses. It’s simply much easier to purchase and install new weaponry on your ship than it is to upgrade your outposts. If you don’t already have an operational outpost with some defenses, putting the Armillary there is probably more trouble than it’s worth.
Build the Armillary on Your Ship in Starfield
Overall, the best place to build the Armillary is on your ship. This option offers a high degree of flexibility because the artifact will never be far from your sight. There are a couple of important things to keep in mind when doing so, however. First, it’s a good idea to upgrade your ship as much as possible. After all, it’s not wise to pick a fight with the Starborn when you’re unprepared. The Frontier is a fine starting ship but mediocre later in the game. If you haven’t already traded it in for something newer and sturdier, now would be the time.
In Starfield, it’s simply safer to build the Armillary on your ship instead of at your outpost. If the Starborn attack and your ship’s defenses turn out to be too weak, you can always use your Grav Drive to jump away. Doing so is just stalling for time, however. Sooner or later you’ll need to carry on with the main mission. It’s a temporary fix at best, but that’s all you need if you’re just trying to finish a bit of business before bringing Bethesda’s epic sci-fi story to its dramatic conclusion.
Starfield is available for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
