Everspace 2 Guide – All Challenges and How to Complete Them

Everspace 2 is a massive game, whether you’re completing the story and some side content or min-maxing to tackle Ancient Rifts. Completionists will notice there are currently ten challenges to complete, and each grants rewards. You can earn Credits, an XP bonus, item discounts, ship colors, and more. Completing some challenges will also unlock further challenges.

Of course, each has different requirements. Wthout further ado, let’s take a closer look at how to easily complete them all.

How to Complete All Challenges

Amateur Tinkerer

Objectives:

• Dismantle 20 Common items.
• Craft an Energy Core.
• Upgrade a weapon.

If the “amateur” part of the name wasn’t a dead giveaway, this challenge is easy to complete. As it should be since it teaches you about the basics of crafting, like dismantling and how to upgrade a weapon to make it stronger. To unlock crafting, a cargo unit must be attached to your ship. You can get one from a trading outpost or by finding one in the wild. Dismantling items is required for earning crafting XP, which unlocks more blueprints.

Completing these objectives nets 3,000 Credits and an XP bonus.

Master Objective

• Unlock all Common module blueprints.

Modules provide passive benefits to your ship, though in many cases, they’re required to run a ship. An Energy Core, for instance, is used to recharge your Primary Weapons, shields and boost. The other Modules include Shields, Platings, Sensors, Boosters and Cargo Units. You’ll unlock blueprints for these as you dismantle items and gain XP.

Completing this objective grants the Hunyadi Royalty color for your engine and 20 Power Couplings for crafting.

Outlaw Hunt 1

Objectives

• Hit five Outlaw Scouts with an EMP and then kill them.
• Destroy 10 Outlaw Drones using missiles.
• Destroy three Outlaw Webbers without getting webbed.

The Outlaws are the first major enemy type encountered in Everspace 2. They take the player hostage and show up when you’re trying to get Dax’s base online. Again, the objectives of this challenge are straightforward. Ensure you’re within range of the Outlaw Scouts when triggering an EMP, or it won’t hit them.

Completing these objectives will net 3,000 Credits and an XP bonus, along with unlocking Outlaw Hunt 2 objectives.

Master Objective

As you travel the universe, you’ll receive Distress Calls and Unknown Signals. These are essentially random events and tasks that pop up. The latter is very rewarding since you can obtain loot and resources. To complete this Master Objective, you must receive an Unknown Signal to destroy an Outlaw Base without suffering hull damage. Note the word ‘hull.’ If your shields are the only thing affected, this challenge still counts as completed.

When tackling an Outlaw Base, target the turrets first, preferably from long-range with missiles to suffer less damage. Go after the structures and the potential core. An Elite Outlaw will then arrive to seek revenge – defeat it for some extra Renown.

Completing this provides the Cinnabar color for your engine and a 10 percent discount on equipment items sold at the Flying Dutchess.

Outlaw Hunt 2

Objectives

• Take down an Outlaw Anti-Missile Drone with missiles.
• When fighting a Bloodscar Overseer, destroy its armor plates.
• Using its own mines, destroy an Outlaw Demolisher.
• Without destroying its drones, destroy an Outlaw Drone Carrier.

Each of these objectives tests a variety of things. Using missiles to destroy an Outlaw Anti-Missile Drone is easy enough – hit it with an EMP beforehand and then unleash missile hell. For the Bloodscar Overseer, Armorbreaker Missiles will get the job done.

An Outlaw Demolisher’s mines can be turned against it with the Bomber – fly over the mines to convert them to your side. Finally, the Scout with a railgun can take down an Outlaw Drone Carrier from a safe distance without dealing with its drones.

Completing these objectives awards 8,000 Credits and an XP bonus.

Master Objective

From 3,000 meters minimum, slay an Outlaw Sniper Drone. Once again, the Scout and a railgun will accomplish this, dealing enough damage to outright one-shot it. Activate Shadow Strike to guarantee the kill.

This objective awards the Blush color for your engine while increasing the chance of Outlaw Ravagers dropping items of higher rarities.

Advanced Combat

• Use a Flak Cannon to destroy a missile.
• Afflict an enemy with three or more debuffs and then destroy it.
• In five seconds, kill five enemies.
• Destroy two drones with one mine.

To destroy a missile with a Flak Cannon, you can use the Vanguard ship and activate Time Extender. It slows time around the ship, making it much easier to intercept the missile before it hits. Taking out two drones with one mine is a little trickier, but possible with the Bomber. Not because it’s more accurate, but the reduced lock-on time and using energy for Secondary Weapons instead of ammo lets you spam them quickly.

The Bomber is also good at killing an enemy with three or more debuffs. Equip Web Missiles, EMP Missiles and Corrosion Missiles, hit them with one of each and use a Primary Weapon to destroy them (if the missiles themselves don’t accomplish that).

Finally, you have a range of options for killing five enemies in five seconds, but this objective is tailor-made for the Striker. Use Quantum Tether to connect up to five enemies to a single target and then deal damage at close range (since it gains up to 30 percent more damage for each ship within 500 meters). The damage will hit all targets caught in the Tether and easily slay them.

Completing all these objectives awards 15,000 Credits and an XP bonus.

Master Objective

From at least 4,000 meters, destroy an enemy. You know the drill – use the Scout and a railgun, activate Shadow Strike, and annihilate them in one fell swoop.

Completing this objective grants the Erin engine color. Also, when you’ve entered a new location, you gain 50 percent more damage for 20 seconds.

Ceto Explorer

Objectives

• Travel to all of the system’s regions.
• Complete 10 Location Challenges.
• Answer three Distress Calls and fulfill their requests.

This is the first of four exploration-based challenges you’ll need to complete. Going to each of the seven regions in the system is easy enough, especially if completing the Location Challenges. So is answering Distress Calls, though they’ll pop up randomly.

It’s the Location Challenges that will take a bit of time. They are as follows:

• Mining Remnants – Located in the Home Turf region, there’s a hidden stash here that you need to find.
• Outlaw Frontier – Located in the G&B Mining Fields and home to Outlaws. Kill them all to complete this.
• Abandoned Facility – In the G&B Mining Fields, there’s an abandoned station with mines. Locate the hidden stash here to complete this challenge.
• Grady and Brunt Refinery – This a mining station on an asteroid – you’ll recognize it by the smaller asteroids nearby. Its challenge requires breaking a hardened ore patch.
• Deserted Mining Station – Located in the G&B Mining Fields, specifically on an abandoned mining station on an asteroid, you must trigger the rigged asteroid to complete the challenge.
• Outlaw Outpost – Found in the Deep Fields region, you must slay the Outlaw leader in the outpost here.
• Abandoned Military Outpost – In the Hinterlands region is a large asteroid with an abandoned outpost. Some Outlaws have made their home here – it’s your job to evict them, physically and mortally. Kill all the Outlaws to complete this challenge.
• Asteroid Cluster – Also found in the Hinterlands, several Hydra Anemones must be killed here to fulfill this challenge.
• Destroyed Mining Station – Another abandoned mining station, this time in the Shattered Planetoid region, that requires breaking an ore patch.
• Abandoned Structure – In the Hinterlands, you’ll find an asteroid, some wreckage and a green cloud. There are three containers cloaked here – find them all to complete the challenge.
• Station Debris – In the Home Turf region, you’ll encounter an asteroid cluster with derelict structures. Some Outlaws set up defenses here, but your main objective is to find the hidden stash.

There are puzzles and likely other Location Challenges to discover, but you only need to complete 10 for this objective.

After completing all these objectives, you’ll receive 3,000 Credits and an XP bonus.

Master Objective

This objective is a little weird – you must get close to Ceto’s sun. Like, really close. If you want to fly through it as well, that’s fine. Completing this awards the Tea Leaf color for your engine and the ability to fast-forward time in the system if boosting with the auto-pilot on.

Union Explorer

Objectives:

• Visit all the regions.
• Finish five Location Challenges.
• Answer and complete three Distress Calls.
• Finish three High-Risk Areas.

As with Ceto, you must visit all the regions of Union. There are five to explore by flying around or completing the Location Challenges. The Distress Calls are random, and you can learn more about High-Risk Areas below under the Daredevil Challenge section.

Here are all the Location Challenges in Union. Remember, you only need to finish five of them:

• Abandoned Transit Point – Located in the Zharkov Border region, it’s a pinkish area with some asteroids and a Flying Dutchess beacon. Your job is to locate and repair five buoys.
• Station Wreck – In the Ceto Supply Route is wreckage and a large asteroid. Locate the hidden stash to complete this challenge.
• Warship Remains – Found in the EMP Fields, inside the remains of a massive Colonial Warship. You’ll need to find the black box hidden here.
• Cracked Asteroids – Also located in the EMP Fields, orbiting the planet Volta, is this asteroid with a ring of smaller asteroids around it. The asteroid has a large crack, making it easier to spot. The challenge is to find six ore veins and manually detonate them.
• Torn Station – Another challenge in the EMP Fields involves finding a hidden treasure. You’ll find it near several asteroids with a destroyed station where Outlaws have set up a base.
• Asteroid Cluster – Found in Smuggler’s Wheel, you must look for several large asteroids and Outlaw bases clustered together (hence the name). Take out the leader to complete this challenge.
• Freelancer Outpost – In the Ceto Supply Route is an independent station, surprisingly not destroyed. You must locate and repair six gas leaks to complete the challenge here.

Your reward for completing these is 5,000 Credits and an XP bonus.

Master Objective

You know the drill – fly close to the sun in Union, or through it if you’re feeling particularly destructive. Do that, and you gain the Fluorescent Algae color for your engine, and the ability to fast-forward time while boosting through Union with the auto-pilot on.

Zharkov Explorer

Objectives:

• Travel to all regions.
• Complete three Location Challenges.
• Answer and complete two Distress Calls.
• Finish two High-Risk Areas.

There are only three regions in Zharkov, so travelling to all of them should be easy. As usual, check the “Daredevil” Challenge section for details on High-Risk Areas and fly around to find two Distress Calls.

Check out all the available Location Challenges below:

• Ancient Depot – Ancient Depots are located throughout the star map and have Glyphs and Ancient Maps to collect. They’re randomly generated, and will never spawn in the same location twice. You’ll also need to defeat an Ancient Warden to collect the Glyph and complete this challenge.
• Ogni Mining Fields – Located in the Dust Rim region, you must blow up a rigged asteroid. Since this location has several asteroids (along with some G&B structures), it can be tough to locate.
• Union Border Control – Also located in Dust Rim, you’ll have no trouble finding it since this is where the Jump Gate to Union is. Your challenge is to inspect six cargo drones.

Completing all these objectives grants 3,000 Credits and an XP bonus.

Master Objective

Once again, get very close – or fly through – Zharkov’s sun to complete this Master Objective. Your rewards are the Electric Buzz color for your engine and fast-forwarding time when boosting through Zharkov on auto-pilot.

Khait Nebula Explorer

Objectives

• Visit the Nebula’s four regions.
• Finish two High-Risk Areas.
• Finish four Location Challenges.

Once again, fly through all the regions in the Khait Nebula to complete the objective, see below for details on High-Risk Areas. Check out all the Location Challenges below:

• Khosh Orbit – Located in the Athorian Reef region, its criteria are unknown, so explore around and beware of the shadow creatures.
• Ancient Citadel – In The Naught Side is a massive Ancient structure above some asteroids. Your task is to “investigate the ancient secret,” which likely involves defeating the Ancient Warden and acquiring another Glyph and Ancient Map.
• Bri Bioplant – Also in The Naught Side region, you need to investigate the three biomes – Jelly, Hydra and Crawler – that are part of the research station. Each requires piloting a drone to access them.
• The Ascension – Found in The Naught Side, you must investigate the ancient secret here. The Ancient Structure is located in the centre, surrounded by several other asteroids with their pillars (which isn’t foreboding at all).

Upon completing all these objectives, you gain 12,000 Credits and an XP bonus.

Master Objective

As before, you must get close to or fly through Khait Nebula’s sun. Completing this awards the ability to fast-forward time when boosting through the system with auto-pilot active and the Clear Summer engine color.

Drake Explorer

Objectives

• Visit all three regions in the system.
• Complete six Location Challenges.
• Complete two High-Risk Areas.

There are three regions in Drake – Alpha Draco Claim, Gilbert Range and Terra Nova. Again, you can fly around to visit them, but beware since this is one of the most challenging systems. Information on the Location Challenges is also a bit sparse, so here’s what we know:

• Gilbert Shelf – Located in the Gilbert Range region, the challenge requires repairing three Submarine Wrecks.
• Galiano Gate – Located in the Terra Nova region, there are some secure containers, a bulletproof container and a valuable shipwreck.
• Drake Research Station – Found in the Alpha Draco region, completing the challenge allows access to a secure container at the station’s center, so complete any puzzles to get inside.

Completing all the objectives nets 17,000 Credits and an XP bonus.

Master Objective

Travel close to Drake’s sun to complete this. You receive the Ruddy Sky engine color and the ability to fast-forward time when boosting through the system with auto-pilot on.

Daredevil

Objectives

These four objectives ask for different ways to complete a High-Risk Area. You must complete a High-Risk Area without using your Primary Weapon, Ship Device or Ultimate, receiving hull damage, or having a shield/armor.

High-Risk Areas are procedurally generated areas with modifiers that increase their difficulty. You first need a Signal Decoder, which must be for that system (so a Signal Decoder found in Ceto doesn’t work in Drake). They’re found in secret stashes (guaranteed) and have a chance to drop from Outlaw bases or destroy capital ships and Elite foes. You can also purchase random Signal Decoders at Prescott Starbase’s Black Market Dealer.

Depending on the rarity of a Signal Decoder, you’ll receive different modifiers which can increase or decrease the loot quality. It’s worth noting that the Decoder won’t activate if you’re more than three levels over its requirement and have less than four areas revealed in the system.

As for completing the objectives, the first – finish a High-Risk Area without firing your Primary Weapon – can be done by relying on Secondary Weapons. The Bomber and even the Vindicator are useful in this endeavor since they rely on Secondary Weapons and drones. Completing a High-Risk Area without a Device or Ultimate isn’t too difficult, especially if you’re skilled with your ship of choice.

Completing said area without taking hull damage can be easy if you have a ship with excess shields (like the Vanguard). Likewise, you can clear a High-Risk Area without shields or armor by relying on ships with lots of hull health and regen. The Bomber and Vindicator are both good in this regard, though you can also rely on the Striker thanks to its mobility or the Scout due to its stealth and high-damage output.

Completing these objectives awards a whopping 20,000 Credits and an XP bonus.

Master Objective

Time to put those skills to the test and clear a High-Risk Area in less than six minutes. Perhaps the best way to do this is to have modifiers like G&B Allies and Wealthy Foes. They result in decreased loot quality, but the former offers allies while the latter grants lots of Credits for slaying enemies. More importantly, they won’t significantly increase the difficulty like other modifiers. Your reward for completing this is the Chartreuse engine color.

Khione Explorer

It’s worth noting that there’s a sixth system, Khione, recently added with the 1.0 release. Its challenges are still relatively unknown, but it offers two regions – the Ice Fields and Vapor Cloud – with objectives like securing containers, salvaging shipwrecks, discovering Sealed Ancient Structures, and finding cloaked containers. Here are some of the Location Challenges:

• Khione Barrier – Found in the Ice Fields region, use Ancient Lenses and Runes on the Ancient Structure to open it and complete the challenge.
• Zethes Research Station – Also found in the Ice Fields region. A secure container at the top of the station requires completing the challenge to access it, so explore around for other objectives.
• Outer Flare Zone – It’s Located in the Vapor Cloud region. First, fix the beacon and then follow its trail to each secret. You’ll eventually receive the Power Core to open the secure container.

Everspace 2 is available for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC. Check out our official review and head here for more tips and tricks.

---