To unlock “All That Money Can Buy” in Starfield, you must complete the previous campaign mission called Into the Unknown. Speak with Walter Stroud in the main Constellation headquarters to start the mission.
You can find your old acquaintance Walter Stroud back at The Lodge in New Atlantis on Planet Jemison in Alpha Centauri Star System, the same place where you first met the Constellation members.
He shares that he is planning a little gathering to catch the attention of a seller claiming to have the Artifact. The seller is a freelance operative, meaning he will be cautious, and with your help with negotiations, things can settle down smoothly.
He even goes as far as to pay for the drinks on the way there, which is uncharacteristically generous of Walter.
Visit the Stroud-Eklund Corporate HQ
After accepting his offer, return to your ship and make the grav jump to Neon City on Alpha Volii in the Volii Star System.
Walter will be waiting for you on your right after you land. Speak with him to learn more about your next step in completing All That Money Can Buy in Starfield.
There are certain authorizations you need to withdraw the money for the purchase, so you need to stop by the Stroud-Eklund office.
To get there, take the elevator in front of the city gate up to Spaceport Terminal, head right to the very end, and enter the elevator next to the Astral Lounge stairs.
You may remember visiting the area during many faction missions like Sowing Discord, One Step Ahead, and Absolute Power to name a few.
Take the elevator up to the Stroud-Eklund Corporate HQ floor and wait for Walter to talk to Oscar Trinidad, the receptionist, to get you inside.
You will meet Issa Eklund inside, Walter’s business partner, who will be helping with the authorizations and wants some time with her husband to discuss the details of the upcoming meeting.
Walter directs you to his broker, James Newill, to locate the seller in Starfield All That Money Can Buy. He provides you with some operational funds to navigate through Astral Lounge.
Ask the Astral Lounge bartender about security
Head down to the Lobby using the elevator and take the stairs on your right to enter the Astral Lounge. Go to the back, behind the dancers, to talk to Boone Morgan at the bar, who will initially try to get you to take some Aurora for a transcendent experience, as he likes to call it.
Ignore the drugs and ask him about the security. He shares that the security is good here, but if you are looking for a bit more, then the Astral Lounge VIP Package will fit the bill. The premium package, however, will cost you a pretty penny.
You can either pay Boone 4000 Credits to get the package or persuade him to lower the price. If you have Credits to spare, you can get it over with, but we suggest bargaining for a discount since the check is pretty easy to complete.
Persuade Boone (recommended)
We highly recommend persuading Boone to give you a discount if you are looking to complete All That Money Can Buy in Starfield with only the 1,000 Credits that Walter gave you at the start.
If you choose to persuade Boone, you must pass a 4-bar persuasion check. Start by selecting the dialogue with the [Persuade] prompt, and select all the green options to complete the check. He will lower the price to 1,000 Credits.
Check the door controls
After becoming a VIP member of the Astral Lounge, it is time to secure the area for the upcoming meeting with the Artifact seller.
From the bar, take the VIP elevator on your right and take a right after heading up to the VIP Balcony. Past the security guard, take a left from the end of the hallway, and the meeting room will be the first one on your left.
After making sure the security is not around, unlock the computer at the door using Digipick and override the Door Control files.
Investigate the seller
After securing the meeting location, it is time to know more about the seller in the All That Money Can Buy mission in Starfield.
Exit the Astral Lounge building and head straight past the Spaceport Terminal, next to the Freestar Rangers’ office, you will find Newill’s Goods on your left.
Talk to James Newill inside and ask about the meeting he set up with Walter Stroud recently. You must either pay him 2500 Credits or persuade him to reveal the details.
Persuade James Newill (recommended)
Similar to Boone, persuading James Newill will help you save the credits Walter gave you at the start of the mission. In this case, successfully persuading James will convince him to hand over the information for free.
You will have to pass a 4-bar persuasion here. Start by telling James that you knew that the seller came through him which is wrong but will open the dialogue you need to pass the check.
Go with the +2 green option and then complete the check with the +4 orange dialogue to pass the persuasion checks.
Search the seller’s sleepcrate
After getting James on board using your preferred method, he will tell you he had someone to track the seller back to his place at Sleepcrate One.
To find the seller’s place in the All That Money Can Buy quest in Starfield, leave James’s shop, cross the street, and enter Ebbside next to the Trade Authority Outpost.
Go up the stairs, take a right at the end of the street, enter the alleyway on your right, and the seller’s place will be the corner door of the green building.
Unlock the door using Digipick and access the computer in the back to read through the seller’s emails. You will find that someone threatened the seller, Musgrove. They told him to relocate the Artifact quickly as he was being watched. You now need to head back and speak with Walter Stroud. This will help you further advance in All That Money Can Buy in Starfield.
Locate the seller in Starfield
Report the situation back to Walter at Stroud-Ekland Corporate HQ and go down to Astral Lounge to start the meeting. Prior to the meeting, Walter informs that he has no clue about the seller’s identity. However, contextual clues like his big silver briefcase would be enough to find him.
To locate the seller in All That Money Can Buy, head behind the dancers, under the Astral Lounge sign, and you will find Musgrove waiting for you.
Tell him you are with Ramsay and Travers, the keyword Walter gave you, and he will hint at meeting with you up in the VIP lounges.
Inform Walter about the meet-up. Getting the Artifact and making it out alive is your main priority here. With this, head up to the VIP meeting room to commence the negotiations with the seller.
Negotiate with Musgrove, the seller
Just like Walter said, the seller will ask for double the price to sell the artifact. He will also threaten to walk out if he is not paid the amount.
There are multiple ways to negotiate with Musgrove to get the artifact and complete All That Money Can Buy in Starfield. You will get the Artifact regardless of the choice you make.
How to deal with Musgrove in Starfield
Aggressive Route – If you attack him from the get-go, Walter will stop you, insisting he won’t compromise his principles and spill blood over a business deal. Musgrove will quickly back down, sell you the Artifact at the original price, and leave.
Leverage Route – If you tell him that he desperately wants to get the deal off his hands and escape the people after him, Musgrove will no longer have the upper hand in the conversation.
Walter will give him a choice to either take the offer or leave empty-handed. Tell him to take the money, and the deal will close on the originally agreed amount.
Forceful Route – There will be an option to grab the artifact, making Musgrove angry that you are stealing from him.
You can either threaten to call Neon Security or activate the door controls and lock him in till he hands it over. Walter will do the rest and purchase it from him at the original cost.
Triggering the doors is also one way to ensure that Musgrove does not leave with the artifact. He will then have no choice but to hand it over to you.
Deal with Slayton Agent
As soon as you exit the room after purchasing the Artifact during All That Money Can Buy in Starfield, there will be a Slayton Agent waiting outside for you.
He will tell you to hand over what was originally Slayton Aerospace’s property, revealing that the Artifact was stolen from Slayton.
Should you kill or persuade the Slayton Agent?
You can either attack and kill him, persuade him to leave, or call security to make him back down, but as it does not affect the outcome of your main mission, you can deal with him however you want.
If you attack the Slayton Agent, he will pull out his gun and fight back. You can just kill him with no consequences from the security either, so it is an easy way out.
If you call Neon Security on him, he threatens to find you again outside the Astral Lounge and that Slayton will get to you guys eventually.
If you don’t want to take an aggressive approach, you can persuade the Slayton Agent during the All That Money Can Buy mission in Starfield to back down.
To persuade him, you need to pass the 6-bar persuasion check. Choose the +2 wrong green option to open the +1 green dialogue that will lead to Critical Success completing the check successfully.
Heading to Slayton Aerospace
After you are done with the Slayton Agent, go back down. Head down to the entrance of the Lounge to find Issa Ekland waiting for you.
She informs you that your ship has been trapping you in Neon while Slayton placed a bounty on your heads. She mentions that he has offices in the Trade Tower. Also, you can find Slayton there to resolve the matters.
Just head out of the Astral Lounge and take the elevator on the left to Slayton Aerospace Floor. Talk to the receptionist, Ryleigh, and you will be able to attack her or persuade her to get to Slayton.
Should you attack or persuade Ryleigh?
If you attack her, all security will be triggered, and you will have to fight your way through to get to the elevator leading up.
If you choose to persuade Ryleigh during the All That Money Can Buy mission, you must clear a 6-bar persuasion check in Starfield.
Start with the +2 green option and then end it with the +4 orange option to pass the check. She will direct you to the elevator leading up to the Executive floor.
Your choice will only affect your route to the elevator and not the outcome of the main mission. We suggest persuading her because it is quicker than wasting time killing some small enemies, especially since it will not have any consequences whatsoever.
Once you’re done here, the quest objective will update to ‘go to the next floor’. You now need to go after Slayton himself, to do so head into the elevator in the lobby.
Reach Slayton
Once you head inside the elevator, Walter points out that you are not on the Executive level, and on cue, Slayton talks to the elevator using its PA system, letting you know that he is aware of your plans, and traps you inside.
Fortunately, Issa paid off a security officer, allowing her access to the PA system, and she was here with a plan for her escape. The next section involves you having to stealth around the area to reach Slayton.
She will give you exact instructions on how to make it through and also warn you that guards are lurking around the area. While Issa’s instructions will allow you to cross this section through stealth, you do have the option to take the guards head-on to progress.
From the elevator, head into the room on your left, take care of the guards inside, and use the Gate Control switch mounted on the wall to open the gate outside the room.
Head down the hallway while defeating the enemies, head left, and enter the Research Laboratory on your left. Enter through the door at the end, take the first left, and use the door to exit out to Neon.
Head left and take the stairs up to the other side of the building. Once up, go to the back of the left side and enter Slayton Aerospace building again.
Head down, and Issa will open the route through the elevator for you, finally making it onto the Executive Floor of Slayton Aerospace during the All That Money Can Buy mission in Starfield.
Confront Nicolaus Slayton
After crossing through the elevator path, you will be confronted by Nicolaus Slayton himself. He enjoyed the battle of wits and equal exchange between you and is waiting for your next move.
You will have the option to either Attack and kill him or talk the matters through and come to a peaceful conclusion instead.
Should you kill Nicolaus or settle matters peacefully?
If you wish to fight Slayton during the All That Money Can Buy mission, select the dialogue with the [Attack] prompt in Starfield.
You will need to take out all the guards in the area. Also, there is some elite security to reach the end of the mission.
- If you kill Slayton, you can loot the executive penthouse. This will get you a lot of loot, and you will find the legendary heavy Microgun in there as well.
- If you talk with him, you will have the chance to play more of the story. You can then clear out the misunderstandings with Walter being happy with the peaceful route.
We suggest talking to him. This way, you will miss out on a great storyline. Additionally, the fact that you can loot the area anyway makes it a better option. The Microgun you find can be obtained through other missions as well. Also, fighting will take much longer since you will take on a long list of Slayton’s security guards.
Lastly, Walter and Issa will be disappointed in the outcome, so we favor the more peaceful route. Hence, we advise you to settle matters peacefully with Nicolaus Slayton to complete All That Money Can Buy in Starfield. Going the peaceful route also means that you’ll be able to purchase the SAL 6830 engine from Stroud later on in the game.
Go after Musgove
Walter offers a peace offering because he is a businessman to clear out any bad blood. Here, he shares that Musgrove was his employee before he stole the Artifact and sold it to you. So, as a gesture of good faith, he will let you decide his fate as you see fit.
Head into the room in front to find Musgrove on the floor, wounded. He explains he did this because he was laid off after spending more than ten years in the company. In a last attempt to display his frustration, he stole the Artifact to get back at Slayton.
You will be able to let him go, kill him, or hand him over to the authorities, and your choice will not affect the outcome of the quest but have its impact.
Should you kill or spare Musgrove?
- If you kill Musgrove, Walter will not be fond of your decision. You will have to take the final shot yourself.
- If you have active companions like Sarah Morgan, Sam Coe, or Andreja, they will dislike the decision. Thus lowering your affinity with them severely.
Freeing Musgrove is a more neutral choice. Walter will like the outcome, and your active companions will not react much to it.
If you send Musgrove to jail, Walter will be pleased to be brought to justice. Your active companions will like the decision and positively influence your affinity with them. After you have decided Musgrove’s fate, Slayton will take care of the rest and let you go free. You can loot the room for some chests and items.
Setting him free has no real effect. Therefore, we suggest handing him over to the authorities as it will yield a more positive outcome, especially if you try to romance the companions. It will also make Walter and Issa happy, so we believe it is worth more than others on the list.
Go back to your ship
After dealing with Slayton, you can finally return to your ship at the landing pad outside Neon. Walter will be happy that you secured the Artifact, and you’ll have to return to the Lodge.
Before you can do so, however, you’ll be hailed by a mysterious ship who’ll ask you to hand over the Artifact. There are two ways you can approach this situation. You can either stay back and fight them head-on, or you can perform a Grav jump straight to Jemison to avoid the fight altogether.
Alternatively, you can even give them the artifact, although we do not recommend doing this. This ship is quite powerful, so we recommend allocating power to your Grav drive and jumping out of the situation to save yourself the headache.
Completing All That Money Can Buy main mission will reward you with
All That Money Can Buy Quest Bug
In some cases, while you navigate this quest, you may come across a bug or two. These glitches can prevent you from completing the quest and soft-lock you in place. At present, there are two separate bugs in this particular quest, and both of them pop up towards the end of the game.
Stuck on Walter Bug
This glitch happens towards the end of the quest. When you talk to Walter following your conversation with Nicolaus Slayton, you’ll eventually become stuck in the conversation. Walter won’t say anything and you won’t be able to move or exit the conversation. This glitch soft locks you into place. To fix this you can try the following methods:
- On PC, this bug can be fixed using console commands. Open console commands using ‘`’ and type ‘KillAll’. This won’t kill Walter, but it will allow you to leave the conversation. Following the command, he assumes a downed position. You can then proceed with boarding your ship and playing out the final few minutes of the mission. If your game starts glitching out, reload a previous save file.
- On Xbox Series X | S, the only way to fix this quest is by reloading a previous save file. You can otherwise do it by restarting the mission. While you will lose progress, it will allow you to end the mission instead of being stuck.
Ship Not Moving bug
This glitch manifests also towards the end of the quest. After talking to Walter Straus, you’ll board your ship. Soon, you’ll be stopped by Helix, a hostile Starborn ship. They’ll ask you to hand over the Artifact.
As you go through the conversation, eventually, the transmission will be interrupted, and you’ll be stuck in place. Not only will you be unable to move, but fast travel does not work either. There is no clear explanation for why this bug happens, but it can be fixed. This bug can be fixed in several ways:
- You can try swapping your home ship before you go into orbit. This is a rather straightforward fix. When you talk to Walter Straus, make sure you finish the conversation in its entirety. For this, you’ll need to see a ship technician. You can easily find one in your immediate vicinity. Talk to him and cycle through your ships. Pick any other ship apart from the one you currently have equipped. Proceed with the quest as directed, and you should be able to finish the conversation with the Helix ship.
- On PC, you can use the console commands to fix it by manipulating the game. To do this, open the console command by pressing ‘`’ type ‘DumpInputEnableLayers’ into the command box. Hitting enter will disable Fast Travel. A notification will pop up informing you of this. Next, type ‘ResetInputEnableLayer (1-4)’ and experiment with the numerical values. It usually works when selecting 4. Following this, fast travel to a nearby system, back to Neon City, and board your ship. Proceed with the quest, and the problem should have been resolved.
- If the two methods above don’t work, consider reloading an earlier save file to fix this bug.
