We are just days away from Starfield’s release and Bethesda has set the stage for players with a massive lore drop. If you want to head into the game with a little bit of context about what is happening all around you, Bethesda has laid out a timeline revealing the arrival of humans on Mars and the events that lead up to Starfield’s timeline.
Note: The following content is based solely on Bethesda’s pre-release lore drop. We have not included any information from leaks or the review copy of the game.
The Origins of Starfield’s Timeline (2050-2156)
In Starfield’s universe, Humans first arrived on Mars in 2050 and started living in space by the year 2100. The reasons behind humans choosing to leave Earth are currently unknown and it could be due to the planet becoming uninhabitable.
Humans first arrived on Alpha Centauri in the year 2156. Alpha Centauri a.k.a Proxima Centauri is a triple star system. The oldest historical records we have of Alpha Centauri are from Ptolemy’s 2nd century star catalog and it’s exciting to see that Starfield will turn it into an explorable area. It has two confirmed planets and while other planets have been claimed to exist, we do not have proof of their existence just yet.
United Colonies and Freestar Collective (2159-2189)
The United Colonies (UC) were established in space in 2159 which is a fictional country with New Atlantis as its official capital. New Atlantis was founded in 2160 and it became the official capital of the United Colonies in 2161.
Solomon Coe is one of the first NPCs we are introduced to in the lore. He found Cheyenne and established Akila City as Cheyenne’s first establishment. He invites Volii to form an alliance in Cheyenne and creates The Freestar Collective in 2189.
Conflicts Arise in Space (2194-2221)
The United Colonies positioned the star nation called the Clinic in orbit around Deepala in the Narion system. The Narion system housed unaffiliated people and they saw the UC as a threat. With the UC refusing to halt its border expansion plans, the people of Narion joined The Freestar Collective and tensions began to rise. With Freestar mobilizing, UC takes the first step and moves a fleet into the Narion system.
The conflict in space led to The Narion War and it eventually led to the Treatyu of Narion being signed by the UC and Freestar Collective to end the conflict. The political conflict between the nations led to the birth of the Freestar Rangers, an elite protective and investigative force meant to serve the citizens of The Freestar Collective.
The Rise of Constellation (2275-2310)
Yet another faction is created. Sebastian Banks created the Constellation with the following founders:
- Chloe Bao - Physicist
- Aja Mamasa - Sebastian’s protege
- Darius ANdris - Botanist and xeno-flora specialist
- Bernadette Laurent - Adventurer
- Evrado Gil - Former Smuggler
- Kadri Toma - Biologist and physician
The Lodge was built by New Atlantis to serve the needs of the Constellation and its members. Barrett becomes the newest member to join Constellation in 2305 and just five years later, the faction comes into possession of their first Artifact, which was moved to the Constellation archives. Not much is known about the Artifact and we can expect to find out more when we interact with the faction in Starfield.
The Colony War (2307-2311)
The Freestart Collective started farming on the planet Vesta, located in the Lunara system. Just a year after its operations on Vesta, the United Colonies claimed that by establishing a colony in a fourth star system, the Freestar Collective violated the Treaty of Narion.
Unfortunately, diplomatic agreements did not last for long and UC laid siege to Vesta and killed anyone that stayed behind. The Colony War had officially begun and after years of conflict, the war came to an end thanks to a flotilla of civilian and military Freestar Collective ships taking down the major ships of the UC navy.
Formation of the UC Vanguard (2315)
The UC Vanguard was founded in 2315 as part of the UC’s response to the Freestar Collective’s use of civilian ships during the war. The Vanguard serves as the UC’s own civilian navy that relies on civilian ships that pledged to protect the UC’s interests. All civilians who serve the Vanguard are promised citizenship in the UC.
The Constellation Returns (2319-2328)
In 2319, Sarah Morgan became the youngest head of the UC Navigator Corpsk, which was shut down just a year later. She was cast adrift but she wanted to put her skills to use and joined the Constellation.
The Constellation started recruiting members around this time which included:
- Walter Stroud - Co-owner of Stroud-Ecklund (starship manufacturer)
- Vladimir Sall - Former Crimson Fleet pirate
- Sarah Morgan - Scientist
- Sam Coe and Cora Coe - Former Freestar members
- Andreja - Unknown origin
Barrett finds out about the Artifact but it is unknown what the Constellation are trying to do with it. He convinces the Constellation to purchase Starstation L-868, and wants to modify it to become a deep space scanner known as “The Eye”.
Current Timeline (2330)
Starfield’s events take place in 2330 and we are likely to be dragged into the politics of the UC, the Freestar Collective, and the Constellation. We don’t know for certain what the Constellation is up to but it looks like it will leverage the power of the Artifacts.
You will take up the role of a miner whose job is to come across materials on a moon and you end up coming across an Artifact similar to one that Constellation has in its possession. With Constellation looking to seize control of all the artifacts and using The Eye to monitor human settlements in space, it is inevitable that you will be chased by the organization.
The lore drop we received is definitely interesting and only time will tell if Bethesda can deliver a solid narrative experience that fans are hoping for. 2023 is a banger year for gaming and Starfield could raise the standards for the year even higher. Starfield releases on August 31 for Premium Edition owners and September 5 for Standard Edition owners/Game Pass subscribers.
