How to Complete Failure to Communicate in Starfield

Some LIST families could use a little assistance.

Starfield ship landed on a rocky planet

As you make your way through Starfield’s massive universe, you’ll come across many missions that you can either complete or ignore. One such side mission, Starfield’s Failure to Communicate, has given some people trouble, though we’re here to help. Here is the complete walkthrough for Starfield’s Failure to Communicate.

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Starfield Failure to Communicate Walkthrough

The Failure to Communicate quest can be given to you when reaching many different systems for the first time. On our first playthrough, we found it in the Aranae system. But on our second playthrough, we found it in the Delta Pavonis system. Because of this, this guide won’t give exact locations for various steps. With that out of the way, let’s get started.

How to Complete Starfield’s Failure to Communicate Mission

As mentioned, starting Starfield’s Failure to Communicate mission will be a bit random. But after some time jumping between new systems, you should eventually receive a distress call from Alban Lopez. Once you have the distress call, you can head over to Lopez’s farm and start the mission. You’ll be tasked with quite a bit of space fighting in this mission, so be sure you have a decent ship that you’re comfortable taking into a few dogfights.

Tip:

These battles may pose a challenge, but they are manageable with the initial ship you get in Starfield. This makes Starfield’s Failure to Communicate suitable for Starfield newcomers to dive into early on. Ensure you have an ample supply of spare ship parts and some reserved skill points, since additional ship kills won’t contribute to progress until players upgrade their Piloting skill. The Star Eagle ship is also a great choice. However, no matter what ship you choose we suggest scrapping lasers and ballistic weapons. Instead, choose particle beam weapons for combined shield/hull damage, and stock EM weapons if you intend to board ships.

Talk to Alban Lopez

Starfield's Alban Lopez in a Spacesuit
Image via Prima Games.

Head to the planet that the mission lists and land at Lopez’s Farm. There you’ll meet Alban, who may be a tad defensive at first but quickly realizes you’re not here to kill him. He’ll tell you about four LIST families that staked their claim in the system, though Spacer raids have done a number on each settlement. They’ve also disabled the satellites, meaning communication between the families is gone. He needs you to repair them and re-establish contact.

Repair the Lopez Communication Satellite

Starfield screenshot of a player's ship heading toward the Lopez Satellite
Image via Prima Games.

There’s a possibility that the mission marker might bug here. If it does, head to orbit and head back down to the planet to fix it. Once it appears, fly your ship out to the marked communication satellite and eliminate all nearby Spacer enemies. Once they’re dead, fly within 500 meters of the Lopez satellite and press the listed key to repair it.

Repair the Other Communication Satellites

From here, you’ll be given three other satellites at the planets within your system that you’ll need to repair. Each of these satellites will work very similarly to the Lopez satellites, only with the families of Lemaire, Banda, and Wen. Head to the satellite, kill the surrounding Spacer vessels if there are any, and repair the satellite. Some of these fights can be tough, so be sure to save beforehand. Both Lemaire and Banda will respond, while Wen appears to have been lost to Spacer forces.

Talk With the Families on Lemaire’s Ship

Starfield screenshot of Alban Lopez
Image via Prima Games.

Head to Lemaire’s ship at the listed waypoint and dock with it. Once onboard, the three will be having a bit of an argument. Jacquelyn Lemaire doesn’t have the greatest thoughts on Alban and thus isn’t too interested in coming together. Meanwhile, Banda is fully behind the idea. Lopez will pay you, though he’ll ask you to help deal with the Spacers so they can have some time to build without their threat. Firstly though, you’ll need to convince the other families.

Get Chanda Banda and Jacquelyn Lemaire to Join the Defense Pact

Starfield screenshot of Jacquelyn Lemaire
Image via Prima Games.

Speaking with Chanda Banda is easy enough, as he and his family are immediately on board. It’s Jacquelyn that you need to worry about, due to her hostility toward the idea. She wants to keep her ships with her family since she has the most to contribute and lose with her fleet. From here you could either pay her, persuade her, or decide she’s not worth it. We suggest persuading her here since she’ll help you with the next mission step, though you could also pay her to do the same thing. Just keep in mind that if you fail the persuasion check and don’t reload a save, you will be unable to pay her off.

Talk to Alban again, and select “I could use your help. Send the ships you can.” to get some assistance for the next part of the mission.

Eliminate the Spacers Orbiting Different Planets

From here, you’ll be asked to deal with two different Spacer groups on different planets. Head to each one and kill whichever Spacer ships you can find. If you select that bit of dialogue in the last step, you’ll have some ships to assist you at each location.

Once they’re all taken care of, head back to Lopez’s Farm and speak with Alban, who will give you information on where the Spacers are based. It’s time for the final assault.

Clear Out the Spacer Ships and Kill All Enemies in the Station

Starfield screenshot of the Spacer Spacestation
Image via Prima Games.

Jump to the marked space station and you’ll find a ton of Spacer ships, though you’ll again have the help of the other families to draw some fire. Eliminate all of these ships, then dock with the space station. On board, you’ll find a ton more Spacers, who you’ll want to kill with the rest of the families. Be cautious, as the enemies you fight after going up the elevator are particularly difficult. Once they’re all dead, talk to Alban to complete the mission. You’ll then receive 100 XP and some credits for your efforts.

Starfield: How to Complete Failure to Communicate Mission, Summarized

In summary, here’s all the steps you’ll need to take in order to complete Starfield’s Failure to Communicate mission:

  • Jump between new systems until you receive a distress call.
  • Talk to Alban Lopez on his farm.
  • Repair Lopez’s communication satellite after eliminating some Spacers.
  • Repair three other satellites within the system.
  • Talk to the families on Lemaire’s ship.
  • Convince Chanda Banda and Jacquelyn Lemaire to join the defense pact.
  • Talk to Alban for some extra help.
  • Eliminate Spacer ships around two separate planets.
  • Go back to Lopez’s Farm and speak with Alban.
  • Jump to the marked space station.
  • Eliminate the ships around the station, then dock.
  • Kill the Spacers.
  • Talk to Alban.

And now that you’ve completed Starfield’s Failure to Communicate mission, get some help with another mission by checking out our guide on how to complete the Deep Cover mission in Starfield.

About the Author

Shawn Robinson

Shawn is a freelance gaming journalist who's been with Prima Games for a year and a half, writing mainly about FPS games and RPGs. He even brings several years of experience at other sites like The Nerd Stash to the table. While he doesn't bring a fancy degree to the table, he brings immense attention to detail with his guides, reviews, and news, leveraging his decade and a half of gaming knowledge. If he isn't writing about games, he's likely getting zero kills in his favorite FPS or yelling at the game when it was 100% his fault that he died.