Starfield: Complete Guide to Pickpocketing

While playing Starfield, you will constantly run low on credits as the game provides you with very few, and the items available for purchase are quite expensive. It reaches a point where legal sources of income are not sufficient, and you have to start considering other methods to obtain your money.

One of these methods is the ability to steal from almost any NPC in the game. The game allows you to look into an NPC's inventory, and you can decide whether or not to take the risk of alerting the authorities if you find something interesting in it.

How To Unlock The Pickpocket Mechanic

Unlike other mechanics such as lockpicking or persuasion, the pickpocketing system in Starfield is not unlocked from the beginning. You need to level up your character and invest a point in the pickpocketing skill to unlock it. This skill is located in the Social tab and is represented by a hand with a diamond symbol for the first rank.

After investing the first skill point here, you can start pickpocketing every NPC in the game, provided you meet certain conditions. Completing the challenge and investing additional points in this skill increase your chances of success in pickpocketing and allow you to extract weapons at the maximum level.

How To Pickpocket

Even after unlocking this skill, you will find that you don't have the option to pickpocket someone normally. To gain the option, you need to get close to your target and crouch near them. This will replace the conversation option with "Pickpocketing." Pressing this key allows you to see everything in their inventory.

Looking into someone's inventory is not a crime, but taking something from it is. If you are caught taking an item from someone's inventory using pickpocketing, you will immediately receive a bounty, and nearby guards will pursue you. There are a few things to keep in mind to avoid being detected:

• You're guaranteed to get caught if you try to Pickpocket an NPC while you're Detected. Upgrading the first level of the Stealth Skill allows you to see a special bar when you're crouched. This bar helps you understand when you're Detected or Hidden.
• Even if you're Hidden, there's a chance that you'll get caught when you're Pickpocketing. This chance is displayed beside the item you're trying to take, and there's a higher chance of failure if the NPC you're trying to steal from is more aware.

Since the likelihood of being detected is based on chance, it is always recommended to save your game before attempting to pickpocket someone. Once you have looked into the inventory and found something you like, save the game first and then attempt the theft. This allows you to return directly to where you started and try again if you get caught.