Starfield: Should You Side With the UC SysDef or Crimson Fleet?

The finale of the Crimson Fleet’s quests in Starfield has you choosing between the pirates or UC SysDef in the Legacy’s End quest. It’s a pretty significant choice with some serious consequences since you’re deciding which of these two factions will come out on top. In order to make sure you’re the one who comes out on top, learn the rewards and consequences of siding with each faction.

Siding with either the Crimson Fleet or the UC SysDef will reward you with 250,000 credits. It’s no small sum, and it’s more than enough to pay off your Dream House mortgage if you have the trait. Since money isn’t the caveat when making the choice to side with either the UC SysDef or the Crimson Fleet, it’s the benefits that both sides offer.

The UC SysDef only offers you the UC SysDef uniform aside from the credit reward. While it looks cool, it pales in comparison to what you get when siding with the Crimson Fleet. The Key is a great place to sell contraband since they don’t scan your ship, so maintaining access to it is great for players looking to get rich.

Side With UC SysDef

Siding with the UC SysDef has you fighting against the Crimson Fleet’s ships in a space battle. You’ll either have to convince Delgado to give himself up or eliminate him. However this path inevitably ends with the Crimson Fleet being hostile to you and you losing access to The Key.

After you’ve gotten the Kryx’s Legacy upon completing Eye of the Storm, fast travel to UC Vigilance and speak to Commander Ikande. He’ll compliment you on your work and tell you his plan to attack the Crimson Fleet and their mothership, The Key. You’ll then have to go to the Kryx system and fight all the pirates in a space battle.

The more evidence you’ve collected against the Crimson Fleet, the stronger your backup with the UC SysDef will be. This will make the space fight a lot easier. Eventually, you’ll have to dock at The Key to confront Delgado and decide what to do with him. You’ll get the quest rewards after.

Siding with the UC SysDef is definitely the morally correct choice. If you’re looking to romance your companions, this is going to be a significant choice since most of them approve of siding with UC SysDef over a bunch of pirates.

Siding With the Crimson Fleet

Siding with the Crimson Fleet has you fighting against the UC SysDef’s ships to defend The Key. This ultimately ends in a confrontation with Commander Ikande, where you’ll have to convince him to give up or eliminate him. Despite fighting against UC SysDef with this choice, you will not get a bounty for killing UC personnel.

After taking Kryx’s Legacy, you can fast travel to The Key and talk to Delgado. You’ll then have to defend The Key from an attack from the UC SysDef ships. This will result in you having to disable the UC Vigilance ship and board it to confront Commander Ikande. You can either kill him or persuade him to surrender to the pirates.

You can still keep working on the UC Vanguard faction missions even if you side with the Crimson Fleet. Since this is the choice that burns the least amount of bridges, you’re still on good terms with both the pirates and the UC Vanguard. You’re allowed to enter The Key any time after, and the pirates won’t be hostile to you.

Needless to say, siding with a bunch of pirates like the Crimson Fleet isn’t going to make your companions happy. However, the tradeoff is more than worth it to be able to keep access to The Key and the Crimson Fleet Mission Board.

That’s the rewards and consequences of each side. This guide should help you decide if you should side with UC SysDef or the Crimson Fleet.