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

Starfield is full of different characters and factions to meet. One of the core factions you can join in the game is the Crimson Fleet, the organized and problematic space pirates in the galaxy. But that Starfield faction storyline has two main players in it: the Crimson Fleet and UC SysDef. Who should you side with?

What’s the Difference Between the Crimson Fleet and UC SysDef in Starfield?

The Crimson Fleet storyline in Starfield begins with helping out the United Colonies military branch known as SysDef. You join the space pirate fleet as an undercover agent from the start. But the entire premise of this faction is you get to choose who to serve in the end.

While I won’t spoil how this faction storyline ends, you know from the start where this is going and the final quest in the faction leaves you with a final choice: meet up on the UC Vanguard ship to side with SysDef in the end or go to The Key and pick the Crimson Fleet.

Fortunately, you don’t have to make a choice until this moment and the game warns you as well. You can play both sides up until this point if you want.

I honestly think you can’t go wrong with either choice. Both options will end up giving you a ton of credits, so don’t let money be a factor in this case. But choosing one side locks you out of certain features from the other side.

For one, if you side with UC SysDef, you’ll miss out on all remaining quests and characters from The Key. You won’t be able to use their services anymore there. On the other hand, the same is the case for the Vanguard ship.

That said, there are some concessions made, such as being able to take missions from the UC military if you lose out on the Crimson Fleet side quests. As such, I would say there is no wrong answer here.

Base your decision solely on your character and preferences. Do you want to be good? Go with the UC SysDef. Want to be bad? Side with the Crimson Fleet. Don’t care? Go with whichever side impressed you the most over the faction quests.

Starfield is available for the Xbox Series X and PC.