What Are Sentinels?
No Man’s Sky’s universe is quite expansive, stretching almost endlessly in all directions. You would think that the universe would be your oyster, allowing you to get away with anything, including the murder of innocent lifeforms, but you’d be wrong. The dark, cold expanse of space is policed by wandering bots known as Sentinels.
Sentinels tirelessly patrol planets and space in search of any crimes being committed against any planet, its inhabitants, or the surrounding space. In essence, they are No Man’s Sky’s police and they will not hesitate to deliver justice swiftly and mercilessly.
In order to ensure that you have a chance at surviving throughout your adventure, you will definitely want to learn how to not piss these guys off (even the little ones) and how to deal with them if you happen to cross that line.
What Upsets Sentinels?
Now that you know that they serve as a sort of police force, knowing how to keep Sentinels from shifting their attention towards you is of the utmost importance. Thankfully, they happen to have a fairly simple set of rules that can follow (or not, it’s your adventure):
- Attacking random ships is an easy way to grab unwanted attention. You may notice several ships just like yours flitting about in space, and there’s a good chance they have some goodies on board. Attacking them is awfully tempting, but keep in mind that it may lead to a bunch of bots and Sentinel ships trying to shoot you out of the sky.
- Attacking convoys is just as bad as attacking other pilots.
- Don’t go overboard with the mining. Every single planet in No Man’s Sky has a finite number of resources. If you destroy part of the planet in order to collect Plutonium, you can expect that part to still be destroyed if you ever decide to come back. The law doesn’t take to kindly to adventurers siphoning resources all willy nilly, so be mindful.
- Killing wildlife is definitely frowned upon. If you happen to be exploring and a predator attacks you first, you should be fine. But, if you start attacking animals randomly and a Sentinel catches you, then the hunt is on.
- There will be times when you need to break into a building. If that happens, be prepared for a rush of Sentinels. They don’t appreciate your random acts of burglary.
- Killing a member of the law even if they attack you first for some odd reason.
As long as you avoid doing any of the above you should be fine and out of reach from the long arm of the law.
Combat
Unfortunately, there will be times when your hand is forced in No Man’s Sky and you’ll have to combat the Sentinels either on a planet or in space. When this happens, don’t panic, they actually aren’t too difficult to defeat although they can take a bit of effort (especially when you start to encounter the larger ones).
In the beginning, the first weapon mode you unlock for your Multi-tool should be more than sufficient. It will take a full magazine of ammunition, but if you make sure to take your time and aim you should be fine. Larger Sentinels tend to have much sturdier armor, so don’t be afraid to use some of your excavating grenades as a direct shot can deal a massive amount of damage.
When it comes to fighting in space, just make sure to lead your shots. When engaged with a target, you’ll see a circle that is always a bit ahead of the ship you’re fighting against. Aim for that circle, not the ship. It’s part of your ships targeting program which allows you to perfectly land every shot so that you can take them out no matter how slippery they may seem.
If all else fails, there is absolutely no shame in running.
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