In Starfield, you’ll encounter interesting missions and activities, usually in places where the population density is the greatest. That tendency extends to Mars, which has the easily overlooked city of Cydonia. There’s a lot of stuff happening there, especially when you pay close attention to the people in charge. They’re up to some shady dealings. To help you get to the bottom of the matter, here’s our guide telling you how to complete the Red Tape Runaround mission inStarfield.
Starfield – How to complete the Red Tape Runaround mission
Cydoniais a mining colony that produces precious resources used throughout the galaxy. There are a lot of competing interests, which you’ll find when youcomplete the Red Tape Blues mission. TheRed Tape Runaroundmission automatically follows it.To complete the Red Tape Runaround mission, accept a task from Governor Hurst and deal with some space pirates who know too much.
As the mission begins, your first task is toreport to work for Peter Brennan.From the lower level, where you dealt with the miners in the previous mission, follow the mission beacon upstairs to findPeter Brennanin his office. He reveals he is expecting a personal shipment, but thatGovernor Hurstis somehow involved in retrieving it. Clearly, you need tospeak with Governor Hurst. Before you do, I suggest that you consider joining theCrimson Fleet(if you haven’t already). Doing so will give you additional options as the mission unfolds.
Related:How to join the Crimson Fleet in Starfield
Follow the mission beacon to Governor Hurst’s office.He keeps a room not far from the main entrance to Cydonia itself. Tell him you have come on behalf of Peter Brennan. After a tense exchange, tell him you need the package. Governor Hurst asks you to do him a favor in exchange for the package.
Governor Hurst’s Ship
Governor Hurst relates a story about a stolen ship.He wants you to find his vessel and destroy it. He doesn’t want you to ask questions, either, or let details about your assignment leave the room. Suspicious yet?
Open up the menu and review your mission objectives.you’re able to select one of them tofast-travel to Umbriel. The coordinates the governor provided take you right to your destination near the vessel. When you appear within range, the crew on board the ship willHailyou. Accept their message to learn they need your help.
You have a few options.If you are a member ofCrimson Fleet, you’ll have the option to indicate you are ‘on the account’ and aware of the situation. Otherwise, you’re able to say you have orders to destroy the ship. By this stage in the game, you hopefully are a Crimson Fleet member, as I was. In that case, I suggest that youboard Governor Hurst’s ship. If you prefer, you can optionally destroy the ship instead.
When you board Governor Hurst’s ship, talk to the crew members.Your goal here is todeal with the pirates. Since you are a member of Crimson Fleet, they will let you explore. Your options when you talk to their leader will depend on your circumstances and current inventory. If you have ship parts, you canGive 1 ship partto help them repair the ship, orLieand say you don’t have the parts. You can alsoAttackthem at this point, in cramped quarters instead of from space. I recommend talking a bit more before you make any decision.
Ask about the blackmail the pirates mention.You will learn more of the story behind the scenes. At the end, I handed over ship parts. The game then gives some additional options about how to proceed. You candestroy Hurst’s shiporsearch for more clues. Thanks to your satisfactory conversation with thePirate Leader, you should also have the option toshow Hurst’s note to Commander Woodard.
Before leaving the ship, look for clues.There are around4000 creditsin a safe in the cockpit, along with some gear.Check a side cabin on the ship’s lowest levelto find the reason Governor Hurst probably wanted you to destroy his ship: adead body on the floor. The victim isSylvija Schloss. Finding the body will complete thesearch for more cluesoptional task. You receiveThis Is It, an apparent suicide confession that you can read fromNotesin your inventory.
Another exchange with Governor Hurst
With the evidence you need now collected, it is time to return to Governor Hurst.Fast-travel to Cydonia and meet with him in his office once again. you may destroy the ship first, if you wish, but I left it intact.
When you meet with Governor Hurst in his office, he wants to know how things went.This conversation can progress in a number of ways. I started off by telling him I found the ship, but the pirates got away. In that case, Hurst understands but wants10,000 creditsbefore he will hand over the package. Not liking that option, I then admitted to finding the ship and mentioned that things looked bad for him. This revelation causes him to offer compensation, beyond just the package.
If you wish, you can still choose to pay 10,000 credits.I wound up taking that approach. Leverage seemed like a good idea.
Approving the request
Once you retrieve the package, through whatever means you settle on,deliver the package to Peter.
After you deliver the package, head past Peter to approach his desk. You will have the option toUnlockhis computer using Peter Brennan’s password. Once you gain access, viewRequestsand approve theReplacement Mining Equipmentitem. Doing so will complete the Red Tape Runaround mission and activate the next mission in the series:Red Tape Reclamation.
Starfieldis available to purchase on Steam and the Microsoft Store.
Jason Venter
Jason Venter is a contributing writer for PC Invasion since 2022 who can trace his love for video games back to the Apple IIe port of Mario Bros. in the late 80s. He remains a diehard Nintendo fan to this day and loves JRPGs, adventure games, and platformers in particular, but he still plays games in most genres and on most hardware. After founding indie gaming site HonestGamers in 1998, he served as an editor at Hardcore Gamer Magazine during its entire print run. He has since freelanced for a variety of leading sites including IGN, GameSpot, and Polygon. These days, he spends most of his time writing game guides and entertaining readers with his fantasy novels.
