Starfield Overdesigned Walkthrough: How to get the best ship

How do you secure yourself a free ship in the Starfield Overdesigned side mission? After finishing the No Sudden Moves mission in Starfield, Walter Stroud will say he has more to discuss with you. You'll want to pursue this as the Overdesigned mission that comes from it will reward you with a brand-new, sparkly, and entirely free ship.

It's not as simple as that though. You'll be entrusted to lead the project making the new ship and so, you'll face some big decisions. Follow our Overdesigned mission guide below to make sure you get the top pick on offer. There's always the best ships to look into though, plus renaming your ship if you want to make it your own.

Overdesigned walkthrough

To complete the Overdesigned mission, you'll want to complete the following objectives:

1. Talk to Walter Stroud
2. Go to the Stroud-Eklund Staryard
3. Talk to Jules
4. (Optional) Give feedback on the team's proposals
5. Talk to Jules about market research
6. Complete a passenger and/or bounty mission
7. Talk to Jules
8. Talk to Walter

We'll delve more into each step of the Overdesigned side mission below. If you're stuck on a certain bit or want the rundown on all of it, keep reading!

1. Talk to Walter Stroud

Firstly, you'll want to return to The Lodge - if you're not already there - to speak to Walter Stroud. Approach him and select the option, "I was wondering if you had any more work for me."

Walter will express the problems he's having with his research and development team who can't decide on the next new ship from Stroud-Eklund. With his growing trust in you, he asks you to take lead on the project and make the decisions.

2. Go to the Stroud-Eklund Staryard

Fast travel from your system menu to the planet Deepala in the Nairon System. Here you will come across the Stroud-Eklund Staryard floating in orbit around it. Travel towards the Staryard, dock when prompted, and board when fully docked.

3. Talk to Jules

Upon arrival at the Stroud-Eklund Staryard, travel down the corridor and enter the double doors to the left which leads to the meeting room where you'll find Jules and the rest of the R&D team.

Interact with Jules to begin the decision-making process of the new ship. First up, budget. Jules will ask you if you want to go for a sensible budget, which will lead to the Kepler S ship or the ‘kitchen sink' budget which is the bigger one leading to the Kepler R ship.

You'll want to get the Kepler R ship, but asking for the bigger budget isn't enough. You'll need to use your Persuasion skill to convince Jules to secure the bigger budget. It's worth taking something that will up your Persuasion because if you fail, you'll end up with the Kepler R.

4. (Optional) Give feedback on the team's proposals

Another way to have input into the new ship is by talking to the rest of the team about their ideas. This part is optional, but if you critique their hopes and dreams then you'll influence the Kepler S and if you give positive feedback, you'll influence the Kepler R.

5. Talk to Jules about market research

Whether you decide to do the optional task or not, you'll need to talk to Jules about the next step, market research. Jules will ask you to go out and gather market data by completing one or two missions. You don't have to do both missions in order to secure a ship though, one is enough.

6. Complete a passenger and/or bounty mission

You'll need to head to the mission board located in the Stroud-Eklund Staryard lobby. Here, pick up one or two missions to complete.

One will require you to carry cargo on your ship and the other will be a combat-based mission. So, depending on what you feel your ship is able to survive, either carry out both or just one of the missions and return to the Staryard when you're finished.

7. Talk to Jules

Return to Jules and she'll ask you to answer one last question for the R&D team. If you want to influence the Kepler S ship, ask that everyone makes one compromise from their big idea. For the Kepler R ship, encourage some team building with a group meditation session.

8. Talk to Walter

Return to The Lodge in New Atlantis and tell Walter Stroud about how the project has gone. He will thank you for your hard work and reward you with the new ship from the Stroud-Eklund fleet. This will appear in the bottom right of the main menu under the ship category.

The Kepler S is a class B ship, meaning you'll need to have upgraded up your Piloting skill to level 3 to fly it. The Kepler R is a class C ship, meaning you'll need to be level 4 in Piloting to fly it.

Congratulations on completing the Starfield Overdesigned side mission and securing a brand new, and entirely free, ship to your inventory. For more valuable advice, check out our guides to the best Starfield traits, best skills, and best powers.