Starfield ‘The Empty Nest’ quest walkthrough

Starfield’s “The Empty Nest” quest is the first to give off some of those “space Western” vibes that we Star Wars fans love so much. You’ll meet Sam CoeA former marshal who speaks with a Southern drawl, and the cute little kid who follows him everywhere he goes.

“The Empty Nest” is part of the first major block of Starfield quests, and the game will serve up “Into the Unknown” and “Back to Vectera” at the same time. We recommend saving “The Empty Nest” for last, as it’s the least rewarding quest in this chain. This mission is still a rootin’-tootin’-space-tumbleweed of a time, however, so don’t let our recommendation lower your expectations too much.

This is what you should do. Starfield guide, we’ll walk you through “The Empty Nest” quest and show you how to solve a bank robbery and find an artifact all in one mission.

Artifact Maps: How to find them

Image: Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Softworks via Polygon

When you first meet Sam Coe, he’ll tell you about some artifact mapsThat he knew about in Akila City. The maps below will lead you to another map. Constellation’s mysterious artifacts, but you’ll need to find them first.

Sam Coe

In Constellation, walk through the glass doors into the garden and you’ll find Sam Coe and his daughter, Cora. Sam is a specialist in the Freestar CollectiveHe has an idea about a possible artifact. Sam is on his way to the ship after chatting with him and their daughter.

Sam is waiting for you in Akila City

Image: Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Softworks via Polygon

Fly to Akila city, located in the Cheyenne system.

You might run into a problem when carting your way to Cheyenne: the “Explore the unexplored routes” prompt. If the system is red, that means you haven’t traveled to a close enough system to make Cheyenne — and therefore Akila — active.

Follow the red line and wait until it becomes white. Then travel to the closest white dot that’s connected to the red — the Olympus This is the case. Jump your way to Olympus and then, once you’ve loaded in, Grav Jump up to the Cheyenne system and Akila.

Once you’ve awkwardly made your way into Akila’s orbit, use your scanner on the planet and land in Akila City. Talk to Sam and he’ll join you as your temporary companion and tell you about Solomon’s mapsHe thinks that he might find an artifact.

Go to the Galbank Vault // Complete “Job Gone Wrong” // Search for the maps // Talk to Sam

A guard will be waiting to stop you if you enter the center of Akila City. He’ll tell you the city isn’t safe at the moment since robbers are holding hostages in the local bank. Follow the waypoint and tell him you would like to help. Daniel Blake. Speak to the marshal about volunteering your services. You’ll start the “Job Gone Wrong” quest, and will need to deal with the bank robbers while saving the hostages — a bit on the nose for this western-themed town, no?

You can solve this problem by following the waypoint and quest markers. It was easy to use Persuade You can use this to convince the robbers of the bank to release their prisoners. You get multiple shots to persuade them, so don’t sweat it if you fail the first one. Still, it’s a tough persuasion with eight pips needed. If you fail too many times, you’ll have to sneak into the bank and take them out violently. You can use an auto-persuade If you have money in your account, now is the time to make use of it.

With the bank robbers dealt with, talk to the marshal to finish the quest, then head inside the bank and go to Sam’s vault. Search through the lockers that Sam marks and you’ll eventually find a note addressed to him aptly called the “Sam’s Note.” Grab it and talk to Sam. He’ll see that it’s from a guy named “Jacob” and be pissed before you even get the chance to read it. However the following convo goes, you’ll need to pay Jacob a visit.

Jacob/Sam: Talk with each other

For this section, follow the waypoint until you reach Jacob’s house. You’ll mostly be a fly on the wall for a bit as you watch this awkward familial interaction go from bad to worse. Sam is free to speak his mind or have someone else do so. Either way, Jacob won’t simply hand over the maps, and you’ll need to get them yourself. Here are your options.

• Ask Cora for help.
• You can use Sam is a good distractionWhile you spy around.
• Persuade Jacob direct

Sam is available to talk about the map.

Image: Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Softworks via Polygon

If you use the Persuade tactic, you’ll need to pass a low difficulty (four pip) persuasion conversation. Jacob may let you in his office to grab maps from the cabinets if you’re successful.

It’s a bit messier to let Jacob and Sam fight it out while you sneak around. You’ll need to pass a Novice lock-pickingPuzzle to enter his office. Grab the maps from the cabinets to the right of the door and leave the office.

Regardless of what you end up doing, talk to Sam once you have the map and he’ll suggest you head out to Empty NestA cave on the outer edge of town.

Infiltrating the Empty Nest

Image: Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Softworks via Polygon

Once you have the maps in-hand, you’ll actually need to use them to find the artifact. Now you’ll need to follow the waypoint to The Empty Nest cave to find your buried treasure — and maybe deal with some enemies and wildlife along the way.

The Empty Nest: Get the Artifact and Leave!

Open your planetarium map in Akila City and go to The Empty Nest. It looks like a mining site.

You’ll find it overrun by the villagers. You’ll find it overrun by the Shaw Gang. Use a little old west violence to dispatch them before heading into The Empty Nest — just take special care of their turrets They can easily drop you or Sam.

Inside The Empty Nest, you’ll come across a few more members of the Shaw Gang. As you explore the cave, kill them. When everyone else is dead, make your way to the waypoint and you’ll find the artifact buried behind some crystals, as usual. You can use your Cutter To liberate an artifact, and to pocket it.

You’re about to face an ambush.

Deal with Shaw (Optional). Kill the Ashta

Outside you’ll run into Shaw — you know, of “Shaw Gang” fame. She’ll be pretty pissed about the whole situation.

Shaw offers you a number of options. You can:

• Persuade She will let you go.
• You can pay here Four Thousand Credits.
• Attack herAnd her friends.

Shaw has a 6-pip conversation of persuasion, so you can use it if your confidence is low. Persuade, it’s a good option here but you really can’t go wrong with any approach.

The situation gets complicated when there is a conflict between the Ashta attack. Essentially space cougars, they’ll swarm the camp as soon as you finish talking to Shaw. If you want to help Shaw, there is a reward. Otherwise, she will be left alone. If you decide to help, keep in mind that if you accidentally hit one of her goons, she’ll turn on you instantly — even if you passed the persuasion check. If you’re using an explosive weapon, be especially careful, as even incidental splash damage can cause Shaw to turn on you.

Sam is waiting for you at the Lodge.

As you return to the area, with Shaw in either the ground or your side and the artifact still in your pocket, it is time to begin. New AtlantisYou can also read about the Lodge. As usual, enter the library to drop off the artifact. Sam will catch up to you and tell him all about your adventure. He’ll thank you for the help and offer his services to your cause — as long as you’re cool with Cora tagging along.

With “The Empty Nest” done, you’ll need to finish the rest of this quest block, including “Into the Unknown” and “Back to Vectara.” If you saved “The Empty Nest” for last — as we recommend — you’ll instead be ready to tackle the next main quest: “All That Money Can Buy.”