Starfield digipicking
You’ll find a number of locked doors and chests throughout the Settled Systems, which is where Starfield digipicking comes in.
Replacing the traditional lockpicking, Starfield digipicking is another revamped system for Bethesda’s expansive universe. Rather than turning a bobby-pin or lockpick in a keyhole, a whole new mini-game has arisen to freshen it up.
Whether you’re breaking into someone’s home or opening a weapon crate, be sure to pick a supporting Starfield background, and rank up the right Starfield skill with our guides. To find more general stores and Trade Authority retailers to pick up some extra digipicks, check out our Starfield map hub, with interactive versions of the New Atlantis Map, Cydonia map, Neon map, and Akila City Map.
Starfield lockpicking
The renamed lockpicking mechanic – Starfield digipicking – requires a Digipick for each attempt, much like we’ve seen with lockpicks in previous Bethesda titles. Similarly, containers have a difficulty level beginning with Novice and progressing through Advanced, Expert, and Master.
In order to attempt the locks, you will need to rank up the corresponding skill: Security. If you don’t begin the game with one of the Security skill backgrounds, such as Bouncer, Cyber Runner, Cyberneticist, or Industrialist, you need to unlock at least Rank 1 before attempting to digipick any safes or storage units.
Compared to the keyholes that Fallout and Elder Scrolls you may be familiar with, Starfield’s digilocks are a bit more complicated. Rather than searching for the sweet spot on a lock and turning a lockpick, digipicking is more of a matching puzzle.
Each digilock has a series of rings and notches. In order to progress, you’ll need to match the correct notches on your digipick to the gaps in the lock and rotate them into place to complete the ring. Once you’ve cleared all of the rings, you can plunder or trespass to your heart’s content and get a little XP to boot.
How to get more digipicks
You’re going to have a hard time digipicking every safe you see if you lack the materials to do it. While you can pick up new digipicks by looting fallen spacers, this method isn’t nearly as reliable as just visiting some stores to pick the items up in bulk. So, we’ve got some suggestions below for retailers that often stock digipicks. If they run out of stock, just wait for 24 in-game hours and they should replenish.
- Trade Authority in Cydonia.
- Trade Authority in The Well in New Atlantis.
- Newill’s Goods in Neon.
- Jemison Mercantile in New Atlantis.
It’s also worth saying that if you’re playing on PC, you can utilize the Starfield console commands to get all the digipicks you could ever need.
Starfield master digilocks
Higher-level digilocks become progressively more difficult to solve. Thanks to the Rank 4 description of the Security skill, we can offer you a better idea of how this difficulty will increase. The Security Rank 4 digipick skill confers the following benefits: “Expend a digipick to eliminate keys that aren’t required to solve the puzzle. 5 auto attempts can be banked.” So, if you’re struggling to get into some of the locked cabinets and PCs throughout the Settled System, your best bet to unlock master digilocks is to level up your Security skill to Rank 4.
Starfield auto-digipicking
Fortunately, an Auto-Slot exists, though you can’t use it for every instance while digipicking. This is great for those Spacefarers who want to skip the mini-game. As your Security skill rank progresses, you’ll be able to store more automatic digipicking attempts. However, you’ll need to build them up through successful digipicking attempts, so don’t rely on this new mechanic to get you out of a jam.
There you have it, our guide to Starfield digipicking. While you’re here, find out how to smuggle some of your stolen items into secure locations with our guide to Starfield contraband.
