Starfield’s Deep Cover mission is part of an overall story arch that sees you being tasked by the UC to go undercover with the Crimson Fleet.
Deep Cover is the first of Starfield’s Crimson Fleet missions. In this mission, you are tasked with making contact with the brutal faction so you can begin infiltrating them. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to complete the Deep Cover mission in Starfield.
How to start the Deep Cover mission
The easiest way to start the Deep Cover mission is to commit a crime, like getting caught stealing or smuggling Contraband. Instead of throwing you straight into jail, the UC takes you to its Vigilance Ship where you are interrogated by Commander Kobwe Ikande. Commander Ikande then makes you an offer: either go undercover amongst the Crimson Fleet or go to jail.
If you choose to go to jail and turn down the offer, you won’t get the opportunity again so think carefully before making this decision. If you choose to take Ikande up on the offer, then he tells you to follow the guard to speak to him properly in the ship’s operations center.
If you would rather avoid committing a crime, then you can pick up this mission after completing the UC Vanguard missions Supra Et Ultra and Grunt Work. You are summoned the the Vigilance Ship to speak to Commander Ikande in the operations center, rather than being forced there. This isn’t an option if you have already been arrested and turned down the offer, however.
You can find the UC Vigilance Ship orbiting Mars, in the Sol system.
Speak to Commander Ikade
Regardless of how you started the mission, the steps are the same once you speak to Commander Ikande, you find him standing in front of the main console in the operations center.
The commander explains more about what the mission involves. He wants you to infiltrate the Crimson Fleet, find evidence of their misdeeds, and report back to the UC with it. Keep in mind, though, that if you are arrested from here on you will be arrested and go to jail as normal.
You can choose to attack the Commander rather than listen to him, but I advise against this as it stops you from completing the mission and you’re seriously outgunned. He then tells you to speak to Lieutenant Toft for more information.
Speak to Lieutenant Toft and proceed to Cydonia
Lieutenant Toft is standing to the left-hand side of Commander Ikande (right if you’re looking at the Commander face on). She explains that you need to bring any “suspicious or incriminating” records you find on the Crimson Fleet to her. This includes data slates, computer downloads, and handwritten notes. She also explains that you will be paid for every piece of evidence you bring back to her. Being a mole just got a lot more enticing.
Toft then tells you that the UC has loaded a container of Aurora, a Contraband item, into your ship’s cargo and she gives you a ‘sample’ to tease the goods to a prospective Crimson Fleet buyer. The plan is simple: Go to Cydonia and use this Contraband as a means of getting access to the space pirates. She suggests Saoirse Bowden at the Trade Authority may be the best place to start.
Speak to Saoirse Bowden at the Trade Authority
Head to Cydonia, a city on Mars in the Sol system. Saoirse Bowden can be found in the Trade Authority, your mission marker shows you exactly where this is. Saoirse isn’t the most pleasant person in the world and, when you make it clear you have some Aurora to unload, she surprisingly isn’t keen to buy it.
She does, however, know who you could offload your Contraband with, for a price. Saoirse asks for 1,000 Credits to divulge this information and it seems like there’s not a way to get around paying her. I tried both threatening her and refusing to pay and ultimately ended up having to hand over the Credits because neither worked. Once you hand over the Credits, Saoirse suggests you go see Adler Kemp, a Crimson Fleet member who hangs out in the Broken Spear bar in Cydonia.
Speak to Adler Kemp at the Broken Spear
Adler Kemp can be found hanging out in the Broken Spear bar in Cydonia, not far from the Trade Authority. He’s interested in your goods and willing to set up a meeting between you and the Crimson Fleet to sell it but, like all good space pirates, wants something in return.
Adler Kemp wants you to recover a 3,000 Credit debt from miner Karl Fielding. He doesn’t quite care how you do it, as long as he gets his money back.
Recover Karl Fielding’s debt
You can find Karl Fielding in the Residential area of Cydonia and it’s up to you how to approach this situation. You can either persuade Karl to hand over his debt or offer to pay it for him. Paying Karl’s debt is the simplest and kindest way to resolve the situation but, if you don’t want to spend any Credits, you can try to persuade Karl but this does require passing a persuasion check.
When I did this, I only had Rank 2 Persuasion but still managed to succeed. Here are the options I chose to get Karl to pay his debt:
- “[Persuade] I’m tired of playing games.”
- “Is this really worth the risk? You could always make the money back later.” [Persuasion +2]
- “There’s no reason for us to have a problem, is there?” [Persuasion +1]
- “I know there’s a way to get past this.” [Persuasion +1]
If you are successful then Karl apologizes for trying to wiggle out of his debt and hands the Credits over. If you fail then you need to pay the Credits for him.
Return to Adler Kemp
Once you have collected Karl’s debt, you need to return to Adler Kemp. You don’t need to tell him how you obtained the Credits but he asks you whether Karl “got the message.” Karl has been through enough so I advise telling him he did.
Satisfied, Adler Kemp then agrees to set up a meeting between you and the Crimson Fleet’s second-in-command, Naeva Mora, on Europa. And that’s it, you have now completed Starfield’s Deep Cover mission.
