Starfield has a rich history of adventure and war that explains the challenges humanity faced as it expanded its domain into space, and we’ve covered it in a comprehensive timeline below.

Bethesda have crafted a detailed backstory for the Starfield universe to help fans get immersed in the world even before they play it.

So, if you want to know absoultely everything about the world of Starfield, you can read about the timeline of events leading up to the start of the game below.

Complete Starfield Timeline

Below is a complete timeline of events leading up to the beginning of Starfield:

• 2050 – Humans land on Mars and spend the next 50 years building habitats. By 2100, humans have begun living in space.
• 2156 – Humans travel to Alpha Centauri (4.37 light years from Earth).
• 2159 – The United Colonies is established.
• 2160 – The city of New Atlantis is founded on the planet Jemison and becomes the capital of the United Colonies in 2161.
• 2167 – Solomon Coe settles the Cheyenne Star System and founds its first settlement, Akila City, on planet Akila.
• 2188 – Coe invites the Star System of Volii to ally with Cheyenne. Together they create the Freestar Collective in 2189.

• 2194 – The United Colonies move the Clinic Starstation in orbit of the planet Deepla in the Narion System. The peoples of the Narion system see this as a threat and request the UC remove their star station. When the UC refuses, the Narion join the Freestar Collective, who begin mobilizing a force to defend Narion.
• 2196 – Responding to the Freestar Collective threat, the UC brings a fleet into the Narion system. The Freestar Collective then move their fleet into Narion, starting the Narion War.
• 2216 – After 20 years of conflict, the Narion War comes to an end. The Treaty of Narion is signed by the UC and Freestar Collective, with the term “Settled Systems” being formalized.
• 2221 – The Freestar Rangers, essentially a police force, are founded to serve the citizens of the Freestar Collective.
• 2275 – Sebastian Banks founds the exploration group, Constellation, and The Lodge is constructed to house it. The original members are:
  • Chloe Bao – Accomplished Phyisist
  • Aja Mamasa – Sebastian’s Protege
  • Darius Andris – Botanist
  • Bernadette Laurent – Wealthy Heiress and Adventurer
  • Everado Gil – Former Smuggler
  • Kadri Toma – Botanist and Physician
• 2305 – Barrett joins Constellation.

• 2307 – The Freestar Collective begins farming on the planet Vesta in the Lunara system. In 2308, the United Colonies claims that the Freestar Collective broke the Treaty of Narion by colonizing Vesta and lays siege to the planet. This starts the Colony War.
• 2310 – Constellation uncovers its first artifact and puts it in the Constellation Archives.
• 2311 – After 3 years of fighting, the Freestar Collective successfully destroy the UC fleet during the Battle of Cheyenne. This ends the Colony War.
• 2315 – The UC found the UC Vanguard, a civilian navy, in response to the effective use of civilian ships by the Freestar Collective during the Colony War.
• 2319 – Sarah Morgan becomes the youngest head of the UC Navigator Corps. However, in 2320, it is shut down, leaving her jobless. Purposeless, she decides to join Constellation.
• 2321 – Walter Stroud joins Constellation and becomes its primary financier. He is a co-owner of Stroud-Ecklund, a starship manufacturer in the Settled Systems.
• 2322 – Vladimir Sall, a former Crimson Fleet member, joins Constellation.
• 2325 – Sarah Morgan becomes the acting Chair of Constellation, and Matteo Khatri, a theologian, joins the group.
• 2326 – Barrett uncovers the first artifact Constellation found in 2310 and begins researching it. Graduate student and scientist Noel is invited to join Constellation by Sarah Morgan.
• 2327 – Sam Coe, a Freestar Ranger, and his daughter Cora join Constellation.
• 2328 – Andreja joins Constellation. Barrett successfully convinces Constellation to purchase Starstation L-868. They begin modifying it to transform it into a deep space scanner called “The Eye”.
• 2330 – The events of Starfield begin.

You can check out the Starfield timeline for yourself over on the official Starfield homepage. Just make sure to scroll down until you reach it.

When Is Starfield Set?

Starfield is set in the year 2330, around 230 years after humans began colonizing space and 55 years after the founding of Constellation.

It is also set 19 years after the end of the Colony War, a bloody conflict between the United Colonies and the Freestar Collective.

When Starfield starts, the galaxy is still in a state of recovery after the end of the Colony War, and Constellation have begun their investigations into a mysterious artifact they uncovered 20 years prior.