Starfield: Do companions need ammo?

Did you equip your companion with a powerful weapon only for them to run up to an enemy and start punching them like they are Rocky Balboa? Don’t worry if this is the case because your game isn’t bugging out. Instead, you missed an important step when equipping your companion with a new weapon, but this is easily fixed. Here’s everything you need to know about whether or not companions need ammo in Starfield.

Do companions need ammo in Starfield?

Image: PC Invasion

Yes, companions need ammo in Starfield. If you only equip your companion with a weapon but don’t equip them with ammo, they will not be able to use it. Instead, you will see your companion run up to whatever you are fighting and punch them in the face. However, you only need to equip them with one round of ammo type for the specific weapon they have equipped.

Image: PC Invasion

If you want to divide a stack of ammo so you can only give your companion one round using the Trade menu, you can do so by holding down the left control button on your keyboard and then select the ammo with the left mouse button, to bring up the slider. This lets you use the remaining ammo yourself, sell it, or store it for later use.

In addition, if you are using your companion as a mule to hold your extra equipment, they may try to use one of those random weapons instead of the one you intended (even if you press the button to equip a specific one). So, either give them one round of every weapon they are holding or don’t give them multiple weapons to hold to prevent this from happening.

Image: PC Invasion

This makes a good point since each companion specializes in different weapon skills. For instance, Sarah Morgan has a Level 3 Laser skill, meaning you should only equip her with laser-based weapons to get the most out of her as your active companion during fights. For instance, I equipped Sarah with the Rapid Arc Welder laser weapon and gave her one round of 3KV LZR Cartridge.

Author’s Note: I wrote this guide while playing Starfield on Xbox Series S.