The shielded cargo hold is one of Starfield’s more useful items. In space, there is a lot of room to get up to criminal activities, and having a way to hide what you are doing from the authorities is definitely a good idea if you plan on getting up to no good.
How to get a shielded cargo hold
To get a shielded cargo hold, you can buy one at the Red Mile on Porrima III in the Porrima system. You will need to land at the Red Mile, head inside this den of iniquity, and then turn to the right. You’ll see a Ship Technician in an office and can interact with him to modify your ship. The good news is that, as a center of criminal activity, he is happy enough to fit you with a shielded cargo hold.
Ask him to modify your ship, then hit B on PC or X on controller to enter the ship builder option. Now, hit G on the keyboard or A on controller to add a section. A tab will appear that focuses on one area of the ship, so navigate through them until you get to the Cargo option. Your options for shielded cargo holds should be as follows:
- 100 CM Ballast
- 200 CM Ballast
- Caravel V101
- da Gamma 1000
Purchase the one you want, and then attach it to your ship. You won’t be able to have it interfere with any other modules placed on your ship, and you may even need to replace your existing cargo container with it if you are in desperate need of a means of moving contraband. Honestly, it’s a good idea to have ships that can perform different purposes, and one of the best ways to move contraband is with a dedicated ship to do it.
How to get a free ship that is great for moving contraband
To properly move contraband you need a ship that can fight, hide the contraband, and also jump a good distance. The Razorleaf fits all those requirements as it comes with shielded cargo and is also available for free as a quest reward. If you play through The Old Neighborhood main mission, you will arrive at the Nova Galactic Staryard. Take out all the spacers and search their bodies to find the “Secret Outpost” note. Read it, and you will get the Mantis quest, which will eventually bring you to the Razorleaf. We have a full Lair of the Mantis quest guide to help you get through it and grab the ship.
How to use a shielded cargo hold
The good news is that using a shielded cargo hold is pretty much automatic. When you place contraband in your cargo hold, it is automatically assigned to that section of the hold. Make sure you don’t forget to do this, as contraband in your inventory is not granted protection from scans. Anytime you enter a sector controlled by the Vanguard to the Freestar Collection, they will scan you and could detect your contraband.
It’s a good idea to try and make your way to the Wolf system near Alpha Centauri. There are no scans in this sector, and you can dock with The Den and easily sell your contraband at the Trade Authority store there.
