Starfield:Backgrounds

Backgrounds allow you to decide what your character did before you were in control of them. There are 21 different backgrounds, and they affect starting Skills and some dialogue options in the game.

List of Backgrounds

Background	Starting Skills	Description
Beast Hunter	Fitness 1 Ballistics 1 Gastronomy 1	From the Ashta of Akila to the Terrormorphs that plague the whole of the Settled Systems, hostile alien life abounds. You've learned the skills to trackthem, find them, and take them down.
Bouncer	Boxing 1 Security 1 Fitness 1	You've worked the line at the toughest clubs in the Settled Systems. Back then, you learned that most non-lethal confrontations can be solved one of twoways: a strong right hook, or a more strongly secured door.
Bounty Hunter	Piloting 1 Targeting Control Systems 1 Boost Pack Training 1	Wherever there are wanted individuals, there are those who profit from their capture. And your quarry knows that in the vastness of space, they can run... but they can't hide.
Chef	Gastronomy 1 Dueling 1 Scavenging 1	While the unrefined masses scarfed down Chunks by the shipload, you catered to those with a more... discerning palate. In your kitchen, countless alien species became true culinary masterpieces.
Combat Medic	Pistol Certification 1 Medicine 1 Wellness 1	Leave it to human beings to fight over something as infinite as outer space. That's where you come in. You've never been afraid to take on the enemy... but you'd much rather take care of your friends.
Cyber Runner	Stealth 1 Security 1 Theft 1	From Neon to New Atlantis, the megacorps stand as monuments to power, prestige and profit. You've worked both for and against them, on the inside and out, often sacrificing conscience for credits.
Cyberneticist	Medicine 1 Security 1 Lasers 1	Robots? Mere toys. Neuroamps? Good for parlor tricks. The Colony War may have made implants and upgrades available to veterans, but you once saw a greater future. Humans and machines, as one.
Diplomat	Persuasion 1 Commerce 1 Wellness 1	The wars are over. Peace now reigns over the Settled Systems. But only because there are those quietly fighting to keep it. Because of you, agreements were signed, words were heeded... lives were spared.
Explorer	Lasers 1 Astrodynamics 1 Surveying 1	They said exploration is a lost art. You didn't listen. As the major factions argued over the space they desperately tried to control, you were busy uncovering the wonders of the Settled Systems.
Gangster	Shotgun Certification 1 Boxing 1 Theft 1	You were always disgusted by suckers killing themselves to make an "honest wage." As soon as you were old enough to hold a weapon, you took what you wanted from anyone unlucky enough to have it.
Homesteader	Geology 1 Surveying 1 Weight Lifting 1	The discovery of the Settled System' many oxygen-rich planets and moons meant humans could live just about anywhere...if they had the know how. You did, and utilized it to great effect.
Industrialist	Persuasion 1 Security 1 Research Methods 1	There was a time when all you wanted to be was a titan of industry, maybe a ship designer or megacorp exec. Thankfully, that skillset never goes out of style in the settled systems.
Long Hauler	Weight Lifting 1 Piloting 1 Ballistic Weapon Systems 1	Let those other hothead pilots obsess over laser weapons and manoeuvrability. You're a space trucker, pure and simple. Pack the cargo, get it there fast, get paid, repeat. Life is simple and good.
Pilgrim	Scavenging 1 Surveying 1 Gastronomy 1	Wayfarer, wanderer, seeker...transient. You've been called many things during your travels, and learned something those others could never understand - the journey IS the destination.
Professor	Astrodynamics 1 Geology 1 Research Methods 1	You've always enjoyed learning, but nothing could compare to the joy of teaching others. As humankind spread throughout the stars, there was never a lack of knowledge to obtain, and you gladly assisted.
Ronin	Dueling 1 Stealth 1 Scavenging 1	Masterless and unbound, you wandered the Settled Systems as a blade for hire. To some, you were a simple mercenary. To others, a hero. And to a select few... a nightmare they could never wake from.
Sculptor	Medicine 1 Geology 1 Persuasion 1	With your knowledge of anatomy and skilled, steady hands, you could have become a surgeon. Instead, you followed your heart, and created works of art to amaze and inspire.
Soldier	Fitness 1 Ballistics 1 Boost Pack Training 1	The Settled Systems is no stranger to warfare, and if there's one thing armed conflict relies on its trained warriors with guns and guts. You had both. Simple, bloody work... and you were great at it.
Space Scoundrel	Pistol Certification 1 Piloting 1 Persuasion 1	Good? Bad? Whose right is it to say? If there's anything you've learned traipsing through the galaxy, it's this: space may look black, but it's really one shade of grey.
Xenobiologist	Lasers 1 Surveying 1 Fitness 1	The Settled Systems is home to untold alien species. And while none of them have yet proven sentient, that never deterred you. So you sought out and studied them for whatever gifts they offered.
FILE NOT FOUND	Wellness 1 Ballistics 1 Piloting 1	Oddly, there's no information on file about your past life. Clerical oversight? Deletion by some powerful unknown faction? Or was there just nothing of note to mention? Whatever the reason, your past is known only to you. What's important is the here and now, and the path you're about to forge.