In Starfield’s persistent universe, you will be held responsible for any crimes that you are witnessed committing, leading to a bounty being set on your head. Now unless you want to constantly live on the brink of being shot at or caught outright, you may want to have that bounty released. This Starfield guide will show you how to accomplish the removal of faction bounties that have been placed on you.
When And Why Are Bounties Set
Anything you might consider a criminal act in the real world is also modeled as such in the game. So theft, burglary, acts of violence, unauthorized entry into restricted areas, and hacking are all punishable offenses, but only if actually witnessed. Every subsequent crime committed will stack the bounty higher and higher.
Witnesses to crimes can potentially include some of your own companions and crew, and especially heinous actions can lead to them both turning you in and abandoning your side. Your best bet is to practice stealth and subterfuge when engaging in criminal behavior and doing it solo.
An active bounty marks you as a target for all members of that faction, making their territories no-go areas, and leading to hostile interactions even in the depths of space. It can also lead to stymying your gameplay progression with quests and objectives. Bounties can be viewed on the Starmap, as noted in the top right corner after selecting a given system, since bounties are set by whichever authority controls that particular system.
Pay The Fine Remotely
Find a Trackers Alliance Self-Service Bounty Clearance Kiosk which are usually located somewhere or the other in most settlements, generally in the vicinity of landing sites or public spaces like public hubs and bars. Bounties that are payable to any given faction must be paid from outside of their jurisdiction. You can actually opt to build a kiosk (under the Miscellaneous tab) within the territory of your own Outpost, making it valuable if you are a repeat offender, or when there is just no safe place for you to touch down and make amends.
The value of the bounty itself is determined by the crime you committed to begin with, as well as a few other conditions like your reputation. There is a 10% surcharge for the Trackers Alliance to facilitate this service. The process is fairly straightforward: select a given faction’s bounty on you, choose “Pay XX credits to clear bounty”, the penalty will be deducted, and your criminal record will be cleared.
Pay The Fine In-Person
Faction security can accost you, and present you with the option of paying up as well. This will not only deduct the bounty from your coffers, but additionally confiscate all contraband on your person. You will be teleported to the jail for processing, affording you the opportunity to steal your confiscated stuff right back, and potentially get yet another bounty placed on you, if witnessed in the act. You could also bribe your way out of being searched for contraband in the first place, by paying a defined sum over and above the actual bounty’s value.
Be Imprisoned
If and when you are captured successfully, you will be whisked off to jail. The duration of your sentence is based on your crime, just like the bounty. While you do not lose Credits this way, you do lose XP on a per-day basis, with a caveat: it will only set you back to the start of your current XP level at worst. On top of that, you also have to surrender any contraband on you. You can attempt to escape for whatever reason, thus keeping the bounty going.
Practice Bribery
Bribing your pursuers is an option, and you can even flex your Negotiation and Charisma skills to lower or entirely eliminate the base cost of a bribe. This choice can also backfire heavily, as failure can lead to an even higher bounty, and immediate arrest. Only bounties of a certain mild severity will even offer up the option to bribe the authorities.
Pay The Blood Price
If you are killed by members of the faction that placed the bounty on you, the bounty is considered fulfilled, and withdrawn.
And that’s how the bounty system works in Starfield.
