Starfield: Should You Kill or Spare Maya Cruz?

Maya Cruz is one of the instrumental leaders of The First, the former military unit turned mercenary band in Starfield. After tracking her down during the mission Surgical Strike, you’re given the difficult choice of sparing her or ending her life. Here’s what happens if you kill or spare Maya Cruz in Starfield.

Should You Skill or Spare Maya Cruz in Starfield?

When you finish fighting your way through the abandoned mining facility, you’ll almost come face to face with the mercenary herself. Separated by a window, you’ll have a tense confrontation with Maya. It seems she only has a couple more weeks to live. She was at the Clinic to receive treatment for a disease, but left to avoid being caught. As the dialogue progresses to an impasse, you’ll be given a choice: either kill her or spare her.

What Happens If You Kill Maya Cruz?

If you choose to kill Maya Cruz in Starfield, it doesn’t result in any negative consequences to the storyline or with your companion. When dealt with, you’ll earn 25 XP, and be able to loot her body to get:

• Encrypted Slate
• 3KV LZR Cartridge ammo x46
• Arc Welder
• Trauma Pack

What Happens If You Spare Maya Cruz?

If you spare Maya Cruz, she’ll spend the rest of her days at the mining facility. She hands over the Encrypted Slate you need and tells you to return if, or when, you finally decode it. You need three slates to achieve that:

• Grace Early’s slate
• Maya Cruz’s slate
• Marco Graziani’s slate

Depending on which quest you pursue first, On the Run or Surgical Strike, this could be the last piece of the decoding puzzle. Bring it to Alex at The Rock in Akila City so he can do his hacking magic.

Grav jump to the mining facility when encryption is cracked to find that Maya has passed on. You can loot her body, but next to her is the real gem of the story. You’ll find a slate with a message to you on it, stating how her life didn’t end in violence and she’s thankful.

That answers whether you should kill or spare Maya Cruz in Starfield. While the final outcome of the quest is the same, you’ll get more loot and XP if you outright kill Maya. If you had sympathy on the sick woman like I did, you’ll find loot later on and read a touching goodbye. You just have to remember to return to the facility when the decryption is complete. For other quest walkthroughs, items locations, or how tos, head to our guide vault.