Starfield Lockpicking Guide (& Where To Find Digipicks)

Digipicks in Starfield are special consumable items that are akin to conventional lockpicks of other RPGs. While picking locks to collect loot and rewards is a pretty straightforward process in Bethesda’s newest space adventure game, it can still take players some time to get the hang of it.

Picking locks in Starfield is one of the core skills players need to master early on to progress in the game.

The First Digital Lock In Starfield

The first time you will encounter Digipicks and the lock-picking mechanism is in the first main story mission itself. Titled ‘One Small Step’, the first quest will have you investigate a pirate base on the planet Kreet. During the mission, you will encounter your first digital lock and the game will offer a quick tutorial on picking the locks. However, it’s entirely possible that many might accidentally skip over this short tutorial in a rush to progress in the game’s main story.

There are two main things you need to be mindful of when it comes to picking locks in the game. First, you will need to have a Digipick in order to interact with any lock. Secondly, once you have the Digipick, the game will trigger a mini-game, which is essentially a unique puzzle that needs to be solved in order to open the lock.

Where To Find Digipicks?

Digipicks can be found in a variety of different locations spread throughout the game. As lockpicking in Starfield is one of the core mechanisms in the game, Bethesda seems to have made sure that if you try hard enough, you will get your hands on this essential consumable. There are several ways you can get your hands on Starfield Digipicks:

Loot Corpses

In Starfield, once you defeat and kill an enemy (or a stranger, depending on your character and playstyle), they will drop several items as loot. Make a habit of always investigating the fallen enemies to get a variety of materials, including Digipicks.

Steal From NPCs

If you have the Theft skill unlocked, you can also pickpocket certain items from unsuspecting NPCs roaming around the game’s massive world. Digipicks are one of the common items you can find on many unsavory characters that you might decide to steal from.

Purchase From Vendors

Digipicks can be easily bought from most of the general-purpose merchants on almost all planets, such as Jemison Merchantile in the New Atlantis. You can find them in the miscellaneous section of the merchant’s inventory.

The standard price for a Digipick in Starfield is 35 Credits. However, if you unlock the Commerce skill, the price will be lowered and when you upgrade the Commerce skill, the price of Digipicks, along with all items in any merchants’ shop, will start decreasing for you.

Explore The World

Apart from these three methods, you can also find Digipicks lying around in several in-game locations, such as outposts, enemy camps, and various ships. Make sure you keep an eye out when traveling to objectives or exploring new locations. Chances are, you will find a Digipick or two lying around on a desk or in ship storage.

Tip: Digipicks are unique items in Starfield that feature no mass. So, be sure to collect as many of these items as you can. If you are making a trip to a merchant or even stumble upon one when you are exploring a new planet, make it a point to stock up on Digipicks.

How To Lockpick In Starfield

Locks in Starfield are composed of a varying number of circular security rings. The more complex the lock, the greater the number of these security layers. Once you have Digipicks and interact with a lock, the security level of that particular lock will be displayed on the top right corner of your screen.

There are four distinct lock security levels in Starfield: Novice, Advanced, Expert, and Master. The Novice will be the easiest lock to pick, while the locks featuring a Master security level will be the hardest to crack.

Once you link the Digipicks to a lock, you will see security layers. These will be circles with certain gaps in them. You will have to use the keys provided by the Digipick to fill the gaps in these security layers. Once you fill all the gaps in all the security layers, the lock will open.

You will have to work outwards to inwards, meaning you have to pick the outermost layer first and then move on to the next layer and so on. You need to treat each lockpicking mini-game as a puzzle, trying to figure out which key will fit which security layer.

The quickest way to lockpick in Starfield is by cycling through all the available keys to see which one fits the security layer you are trying to unlock. Here’s a step-by-step guide:

1. Use the shoulder keys (LB/RB on Xbox consoles) to quickly cycle through available keys.
2. Once you find the key you think will fit the particular security layer, you can use the analog stick or the D-pad to rotate the key until it fits all the gaps in that security layer.
3. Once every gap is filled with the key, slot the key and move on to the next one.
4. Some security layers will have a perfect key that will fill all the gaps, while others, especially advanced ones, will require you to use two or more keys per layer.
5. As you move on to more difficult locks, it’s wise to line up all the keys for each and every layer before you actually slot them. This will ensure that you have properly used all the keys in the right place. Certain keys, although meant for other layers can fit in outer layers, can render your efforts worthless when you reach the inner layers.
6. It is also important to note that there is a limit to the number of Digipicks in every lockpicking scenario. So, using these keys in exact order will make sure you don’t surpass the limit, which will lock you out.

Note: When you unlock and upgrade the Security skill, the game will highlight the keys needed will fit each security layer, making your lockpicking experience smoother and easier.