Starfield High Price to Pay: Should You Build the Armillary on Your Ship or an Outpost

Following the conclusion of the High Price to Pay mission in Starfield, everyone at Constellation needs to regroup and rethink their strategy. One of the first things the team agrees on is that the Lodge and the Eye are no longer safe and place the Armillary back with you, and you have to choose where to hide it.

There are two locations you can pick to keep it: Your Ship or at an Outpost. These choices might not seem like much, but they dictate where you encounter the dreaded Starborn as they continue to hunt you and your team for the Artifacts. Should you build the Armillary on your ship or at an Outpost in Starfield?

Related: Starfield Complete Guide – Quest, Lore, Story & Trailers

Building the Armillary on Your Ship in Starfield

The choice to add the Armillary to your ship is one of the easier ones you can make for this situation. You can find this menu next to your ship’s Cargo Hold menu in Starfield. Interact with the screen to activate the Armillary, which will be on your ship. Now, whenever you find a new Artifact while exploring Starfield, you can add it to the collection there, and it should be safe from the Starborn.

However, because you have the main thing the group is trying to find, they will hunt you down. There’s now a chance for a Starborn to appear whenever you use your Grav Drive in Starfield, and that means you should prepare for a space battle. If you don’t have the best ship or ship skills, this might not be a good option for you to select, and I would recommend having the Armillary placed at an Outpost somewhere in the galaxy.

It is important to note that the Armillary is eventually placed on your Starship. This is what you need to unlock to reach the end of the game, and gives you the choice to start your character’s New Game Plus version in Starfield. Without it being on your ship, you can’t reach Unity. However, you might run into more Starborn in your travels, which is the only reason you’d likely want to place the Armillary at an outpost, with trusted crew members who can protect it.

Building the Armilliary at an Outpost in Starfield

When you choose to build the Armillary, there’s more work to it than you have to deal with placing it on your ship. Rather than having a ready-to-go menu, there are certain requirements you need to meet in Starfield. You will need to collect at least five Titanium, and then three Neodymium. These can be found by exploring various planets and bringing them back to your Outpost. Once you have those resources, you can place the Armillary anywhere in your Outpost as if it were a standard item.

Now, rather than the Starborn attacking your ship or you while you’re traveling, there’s a chance they could attack the Outpost. This means you’ll want to set up a handful of defenses to protect against them, such as turrets, robots, or additional crew members who can defend themselves. I ultimately did not decide to place it down at the Outpost, but this might be a good choice for those who prefer operating at their outposts, and not having to find themselves in ship battles.

I had a co-worker who did this, and they shared they had to place up suitable defenses to protect it at their outpost. For anyone who wants to check out and try Starfield’s base-building mechanics, this is a great excuse for it, and you won’t have to worry about Starborn ships sneaking up on your vessel before you’re ready to fight them.

Should You Build the Armillary on Your Ship or an Outpost in Starfield?

Between the two options, it all comes down to preference. For anyone who actively enjoys base building Starfield, and creating several defenses that can withstand attacks from the Starborn, the Outpost will be the more fun option. It’s important to keep in mind that whenever you find an artifact, it needs to be placed at the Armillary. You’ll have to return to it at the Outpost whenever you need to bring the collection together, and again, Starborn attacks will occur there, so defenses are a must-have.

Ultimately, I felt keeping the Armillary on my ship was the better option for my playthrough. I have a high ship skill, and several bonuses to flying on my Starfield character, which made it a much more obvious choice.