Spoiler Alert! This guide contains spoilers for certain end-game/NG+ mechanics. Proceed with caution!
As players make their way through Starfield's futuristic galaxy, they will likely be surprised when they encounter the ability to acquire mysterious abilities known as 'Powers.' Starfield was marketed as a space exploration game, with Bethesda's typical RPG elements apparent from the earliest reveals. But when players actually got their hands on the game, it was clear that Starfield is much more than a simple exploration game. It leans heavily into very specific sci-fi tropes, with special, other-worldly powers at the forefront.
Regardless of their place in the game, Starfield's 'Powers' do offer a fun gameplay experience, well-worth experiencing and experimenting with. This guide will reveal each of Starfield's 24 Powers, and provide information on how to use them. It is important to note that, even though each Power is tied to a specific temple, the location of each temple will usually not match up for different players. This makes it virtually impossible to pinpoint where and when each player will get a specific power. This is mitigated by the fact that all powers can be acquired through the 'Power from Beyond' quest, which will lead players to each temple throughout the course of the game.
All Powers in Starfield
There are 24 Powers in Starfield. What they do and how they work depends entirely on the Power itself. Some Powers are designed to help in combat, like Supernova or Solar Flare. Powers like Precognition are more social in nature, helping players make the best choices in conversations. Determining which Powers are the best in Starfield can be difficult, as a players style will determine what they find to be the 'best.' Because of this, it is highly recommended that players experiment with each Power themselves.
Power | Official Description | Best Use | Power Cost | Associated Temple |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Alien Reanimation | Life, gift of the cosmos, granted once more to a fallen alien beast, so that it may serve thankfully. | Revive a fallen alien creature. This is only helpful when reviving a higher-level beast. Most are not worth the trouble. | 35 | PHI |
Anti-Gravity Field | Generate a localized field of intense low gravity, and behold a planet's true power. | This power can be fun to use when taking on large groups of enemies. All enemies will begin to float, making them easy targets. | 45 | ETA |
Creators' Peace | Fill your foes with the silent calm of the universe, compelling them to temporarily abandon their weapons. | When it works, it will disarm several enemies. It can be hard to judge this Power's range. The closer, the better. | 25 | NU |
Create Vacuum | Oxygen, fuel of humanity, is withdrawn from a localized area at your command. | In theory, having the ability to replenish O2 is great, but the small amount gained is hardly worth the effort. | 25 | GAMMA |
Earthbound | Earth, the cradle of humanity, shares its gravity in the area of your choosing. | Quickly change an area's gravity to that of Earth. On planets with extremely harsh gravity, like Porrima III, this can be helpful. | 15 | EPSILON |
Elemental Pull | Elements, the true treasure of planet and moon, are drawn to your being. | Incredibly helpful when resource farming. Pulls in all inorganic resources from a large area around the player. | 25 | PSI |
Eternal Harvest | What has blossomed will blossom once more, ripe for the picking. | Use to repeatedly respawn plant resources - no limit on how many times. Great way to farm specific items. | 25 | LAMBDA |
Grav Dash | Manipulate gravity to propel yourself forward, and briefly increase any damage you inflict. | Sounds better on paper, but the damage increase is not much, and the dash length is too short. | 15 | ZETA |
Gravity Wave | Emit a gravitational force strong enough to propel almost anything...or anyone. | More fun than truly useful, this will propel explosive cannisters towards enemies, or enemies themselves off cliffs. | 25 | BETA |
Gravity Well | Generate a focal point of crushing gravity that draws in anyone caught in its field. | Pulls enemies into a central area. Groups enemies together, making good targets for explosives or heavy weapons. | 45 | DELTA |
Inner Demon | Tap into the endless multiverse and summon forth a friendly duplicate of an unfriendly foe. | Powerful tool when used on high-level enemies with good weapons. | 35 | UPSILON |
Life Forced | Transfer the very lifeforce of an enemy, harming them while healing yourself. | Sounds great, but damage is tiny and health recovery miniscule. | 25 | PI |
Moon Form | Channel the energy of Luna, Earth's beautiful moon, to be as unmoving and resilient as stone. | Increases all defensive power, but at the cost of any movement. | 35 | RHO |
Parallel Self | From across the vast multiverse, a friendly version of yourself arrives, armed and ready to lend aid. | Can be immensely powerful if done when armed with good weapons, armor, etc. | 45 | SIGMA |
Particle Beam | Emit a powerful ray of cosmic energy, dealing terrifying damage to a single target. | One the best combat Powers, only for one on one fights. | 15 | OMEGA |
Personal Atmosphere | Oxygen, pure and clean, brought forth to breath deep and counteract harmful carbon dioxide. | Almost instantly restore all oxygen. High cost means it can't be used over and over quickly without Quantum Essence. | 45 | ALPHA |
Phased Time | Time itself is yours to manipulate, as you slow the world...and all those in it. | Incredibly powerful power, slows everything around player. Move through and kill all enemies. | 45 | FINAL TEMPLE - Complete 'REVELATION' Mission |
Precognition | Bend time and glimpse the future, seeing the path someone will walk and the words they will say. | See enemy path while sneaking, see response before asking questions. Does not work on Persuasion. | 35 | IOTA |
Reactive Shield | Form a shield of pure cosmic light that can weaken and even reflect enemy projectiles. | Great defensive Power. Use when facing high-level enemies. Deflections can kill lower-level enemies. | 35 | TAU |
Sense Star Stuff | Bind yourself to the particles of creation, sensing the life force of any human, enemy, or Starborn. | Shows the location of all lifeforms within a certain range. | 15 | CHI |
Solar Flare | Tap into the power of the sun and release a directed orb of searing hot plasma. | Too weak to use in place of other weapons. Better off with Particle Beam or Supernova. | 25 | THETA |
Sunless Space | Introduce your enemies to the cold of space, freezing them in their tracks. | Great tool for putting an enemy of pause for a moment, leaving them vulnerable. Not useful in large crowds. | 35 | KAPPA |
Supernova | Cosmic energy explodes around you, with the terrible force of a dying star. | Incredibly powerful power that can cause devastating damage to enemies in a large area. | 45 | XI |
Void Form | Channel the very darkness of space, rendering yourself nearly invisible to those around you. | Very useful when sneaking, such as Crimson Fleet missions that require stealth. | 45 | OMICRON |
How to Upgrade Powers in Starfield
Upgrading Powers in Starfield is only possible through the New Game Plus mechanic. Every time the player finishes a game cycle, they will begin another (if they choose to go through the Unity into a new universe), bringing only their skills, XP, and Powers through with them. In this new cycle, any time the player visits a temple of a Power they already have, they will 'upgrade' that Power, which is noted by adding a number next to the Power name. The first time upgrading, Supernova will become Supernova II, then Supernova III, and so on.
Currently, the only known benefit to upgrading Powers is found in the cost of use. However, there is no uniform rule that all Powers follow. For example, some powers, like Anti-Gravity Field, cost less with every upgrade. But a power like Phased Time does not start lowering in cost until the 7th time through. The only rule that holds across all Powers, is that the 10th cycle is always the last cycle that affects cost. All fully upgraded powers will end with the Roman numeral X.
Starfield is available now on Xbox Series X/S and PC.