Probably Stolen Specializations: All 10 Starts Compared

You spent training running the whole operation rather than specialising, so the shop cost less to set up. You start with a Storage Bay, Food and Household neon signs, and household goods plus food already in stock.

• Open on Day 1; nothing to grow, brew or build first.
• Food is the station's most traded commodity, so it turns over fastest.
• 550 credits is the best buffer, and pivoting to water or ingots later is just added equipment.

A bet on the station's clean-water shortage. You start ready to bottle and purify: Bottle Printer, HydraTech Micro Water Purifier, bottles in three sizes, a Jug of Water, Water Pitcher, Water Neon Sign and the Water Trading Manual.

• Day 1 loop: buy dirty water cheap, purify, sell high.
• A water crisis lifts prices for days; stocking early is stocking profit.
• 400 credits is tight — don't touch non-water business for two weeks.

An established black marketeer with a hidden compartment built into the shop. You start with a Smuggler's Bay, contraband stock, better Black Market standing, worse Security standing, and direct access to the Janitor Underground Exchange — at the cost of higher rent from Day 1.

• Fastest route to contraband margins.
• Three disposable keycards (Engineering, Medical, Security) open useful shortcuts.
• You start in negative standing, so inspections look at you sooner.

Grow crops in the station's cramped decks to feed the lower levels. Start with an Eco Module, Fillerweed and Nutrifruit seeds, water and the Hydroponic Farming Manual, plus higher rent.

• Crops are raw material and product at once: fish feed, wine, or direct sales.
• Cash only leaves until the first harvest, so patience is mandatory.

A licensed weapons modder taking custom orders. Only 150 credits, but the kit is expensive: Liberator 3D Printed Pistol, Nestfire Compact, .22 SR lethal and non-lethal ammunition, magazines, sights, suppressors, Gun Parts, 3D Printing Filament, a Gunsmith Storage Bay and a Class I Weapon Permit.

• Richest opening assets, tightest cash — week one is basically selling parts.
• The Class I permit defines what you can legally hold. Stay inside it.

Controlled substances, with a lab to cook when supply dries up. Start with a Chem Finisher, Composition Spectrometer, Heating Plate, Blender, droppers and cylinders, a Mini Smuggler's Bay and the Chemistry Manual.

• The spectrometer is one of the strongest appraisal tools for chemicals.
• Contraband draws inspections; keep it out of the display.

Raise rats for meat, to the Mentor's disgust. The START WITH list is three items: an Animal Cage, Rats, Food. Credits aren't listed in game, and the start plays very tight.

• Short breeding cycle, low cost, low unit price.
• For players who want to build a line from nothing.

Tilapia in tanks. Start with a small recirculating system, a batch of Tilapia, Industrial Fish Feed, a Jug of Water, plus a Kitchen Knife, Scrap Metal and Electronic Parts. 150 credits, higher rent.

• Fish need time; week-one cash is the tightest in the game.
• The knife and scrap hint at a later processing chain.

A broke but well-regarded scavenger. 400 credits, better Scavengers standing, a Furnace, Flashlight, Scav Scanner, Small Satchel, Scavenger's Token, Topical Medication Bandage, Metallurgy Manual and a Materials neon sign.

• The Furnace turns scrap into ingots — the most reliable early processing line.
• Tagged WIP, so expect changes in patches.

The Mentor only negotiated your lease. You have a shop, no stock, no tools, and zero credits.

• First income must come from appraisal work, scrap flipping, or tiny margins.
• Learn inspections and Aug behaviour on another specialization first.