Space Stations, Clinics, and Respawn

New Player Guide

Space Stations, Clinics, and Respawn

Cities are impressive, but space stations are where a lot of Star Citizen starts to feel practical.

Once you can take off, quantum travel, and land safely, orbital stations become some of the most useful places in the game.

They are easier to move around than major cities, quicker to access, and usually have the services you need to keep playing without taking a tram every time you want to do something.

A good station can become your temporary base of operations.

This guide will walk through how space stations work, what services they offer, why clinics matter, how to set your respawn location, and why new players should learn to operate from stations as soon as possible.

Because waking up at a nearby clinic after dying is much nicer than waking up back in your starting city, emotionally wounded and three tram rides away from your dignity.

Why Space Stations Matter

Space stations are some of the most useful locations in Star Citizen.

They usually give you access to:

  • Hangars
  • Fleet Manager terminals
  • Ship storage
  • Refuel, repair, and restock services
  • Medical clinics
  • Respawn transfer
  • Storage kiosks
  • Shops
  • Food and drink
  • Cargo services
  • Habs
  • Elevators to different station decks
  • Contracts and nearby mission access

For new players, stations are important because they reduce friction.

Instead of constantly returning to a large city, you can use a station as a quicker launch point for missions.

Cities are beautiful.

Stations are efficient.

Efficiency wins when you have just died to stairs and need to get back into the game.

Common Orbital Stations

Each major Stanton planet has an orbital station nearby.

Examples include:

  • Baijini Point above ArcCorp
  • Port Tressler above microTech
  • Everus Harbor above Hurston
  • Seraphim Station above Crusader

These stations are useful because they sit above major planets and give you a much faster place to land, refuel, repair, gear up, and respawn.

If you start at a city, one of your first goals should be learning how to reach that city’s orbital station.

Once you know that route, the game becomes much less painful.

You can still visit the city when you need shops or specific services, but you do not need to live your whole life on public transport.

Landing at a Station

Landing at a station works much like landing at a city or spaceport.

The basic process is:

  1. Quantum travel to the station
  2. Slow down after arrival
  3. Switch to SCM mode near the station
  4. Approach carefully
  5. Contact ATC
  6. Follow the landing marker
  7. Lower landing gear
  8. Enter the assigned hangar or pad
  9. Land slowly
  10. Turn off engines

A common shortcut for contacting ATC is:

Left Alt + N

If you are close enough and the station accepts the request, you should receive an assigned hangar or landing area.

Do not rush the approach.

Stations are large, awkward, and full of things that are very happy to remove your wings.

After Landing

Once you are safely landed, turn off your engines.

A common key is:

I

Then you can:

  • Exit your seat
  • Leave the ship
  • Use the hangar elevators
  • Access the station lobby
  • Use station services
  • Store your ship
  • Visit the clinic
  • Buy supplies
  • Accept new contracts

If you are staying at the station for a while, it is usually a good idea to store your ship through the Fleet Manager.

This helps keep it safe and makes it easier to retrieve later.

Usually.

This is still Star Citizen, so “safe” is a spectrum.

Refuel, Repair, and Restock

After landing at a station, you can usually refuel, repair, and restock your ship.

You normally do this through your MobiGlas.

Open your MobiGlas and look for the landing or vehicle services section.

Services may include:

  • Repair
  • Restock
  • Hydrogen fuel
  • Quantum fuel
  • Ammunition
  • Missiles
  • Other vehicle consumables

A simple habit:

Every time you land after a mission, check refuel, repair, and restock.

It only takes a moment and can save you from discovering halfway through the next job that your quantum fuel is low, your missiles are gone, and one side of your ship is technically a memory.

When Should You Repair?

Repair when:

  • You were shot
  • You hit something
  • You landed badly
  • Your ship displays damage
  • You lost parts
  • Your ship feels strange
  • You are about to take another mission

Sometimes damage is obvious.

Sometimes it is not.

A small scrape today can become a confusing problem later, so if you are already landed and services are available, check repair before heading out again.

No shame in fixing the ship.

The shame is pretending everything is fine while flying a triangle with one engine.

When Should You Refuel?

Refuel whenever you are low or planning to travel.

Ships usually care about two broad fuel types:

  • Hydrogen fuel for normal flight
  • Quantum fuel for quantum travel

Starter ships can travel around Stanton, but some have limited range or slower quantum drives.

If you are heading across the system, top up first.

Running out of fuel is not fun.

It is just sightseeing with consequences.

When Should You Restock?

Restock if you have used:

  • Missiles
  • Ballistic ammunition
  • Countermeasures
  • Other ship consumables

Not every loadout needs constant restocking, but it is worth checking after combat.

There are few things more tragic than lining up a missile shot and discovering your ship is making empty promises.

Storing Your Ship at a Station

Once you land and exit your ship, find the Fleet Manager terminal.

You can usually store your ship there.

To store your ship:

  1. Land properly
  2. Exit the ship
  3. Go to the Fleet Manager terminal
  4. Select your ship
  5. Choose Store, if available

Storing your ship is useful because it:

  • Registers the ship at that location
  • Clears the hangar
  • Reduces the chance of weirdness
  • Makes retrieval cleaner later
  • Helps avoid leaving your ship sitting exposed

If you are done flying for the moment, store the ship.

A stored ship is usually happier than a ship abandoned in a hangar with its ramp open and engines humming like a suspicious appliance.

Station Layout Basics

Most major stations have similar layouts, though the details vary.

You will usually find:

  • Hangar elevators
  • A lobby or main concourse
  • Fleet Manager terminals
  • Inner transit elevators
  • A medical clinic
  • Habs
  • Shops or a galleria
  • Cargo or refinery areas
  • Storage kiosks
  • Food and drink vendors

Once you learn one station, the others become easier.

They are not identical, but they often follow the same basic logic.

Land. Elevator. Lobby. Services. Clinic. Shops. Back to hangar. Try not to forget which hangar your ship is in.

A timeless struggle.

Fleet Manager Terminals

Stations usually have Fleet Manager terminals near the hangar or lobby area.

You can use them to:

  • Retrieve ships
  • Store ships
  • Claim ships
  • See ship status
  • Deliver ships to the station
  • Access ships stored at that location

If you die and respawn at a station, this is usually where you will go to claim or retrieve your ship.

If your ship is not available, check its status.

It may need to be claimed, delivered, or retrieved from another location.

If all else fails, claim it and blame the universe.

This is not always technically accurate, but it is emotionally useful.

Habs and Logging Out

Stations often have hab areas.

These are small rooms or apartments where your character may wake up if you log out at that station.

If you quit the game while located at a station, you may return to a hab at that station the next time you log in.

This can make stations convenient places to end a session.

Instead of logging out in a city and needing to ride transit again, you can log back in closer to your ship and mission areas.

Station life is not glamorous.

But it is efficient.

And efficiency is beautiful in its own grubby little way.

Storage Kiosks at Stations

Stations have local inventory, just like cities.

This means items stored at a station are stored at that station.

If your gear is at Area18, you will not automatically see it at Seraphim Station.

If you buy med pens at Seraphim, they live at Seraphim unless you carry them somewhere else.

This is extremely important.

Star Citizen inventory is location-based.

Before leaving a station, check what you are actually carrying.

Do not assume your home city inventory follows you.

It does not.

Your rifle is not loyal enough to teleport.

Station Local Inventory

A station can become a useful place to keep spare gear.

For example, you may want to store:

  • Backup armour
  • Extra helmets
  • Med pens
  • Food and drink
  • Spare weapons
  • Ammo
  • Multi-tools
  • Tractor beam attachments
  • Mission loot
  • Utility items

If you operate from a station regularly, it can be worth building a small backup kit there.

That way, if you die and respawn at the station, you are not stuck with nothing.

A backup kit can turn disaster into inconvenience.

That is a big upgrade.

Medical Clinics

Most major stations have medical clinics.

Clinics are extremely important because they let you:

  • Treat injuries
  • Buy medical supplies
  • Set or transfer your respawn location
  • Access medical beds
  • Use clinic rooms
  • Recover after death

As a new player, one of the first things you should do at a station is find the clinic.

Not because you are planning to die.

But because Star Citizen may have other plans.

Buying Medical Supplies

Station clinics often sell medical items such as:

  • Med pens
  • Medical guns
  • Medical attachments or supplies
  • Other healing items depending on the current patch

For new players, med pens are the simplest and most important.

Carry several.

A med gun can also be very useful, especially if you are doing FPS combat, bunkers, or group play.

Medical supplies are cheap compared to the time lost from dying.

Bring them.

Use them.

Forget them once and you will understand.

Med Pens

Med pens are quick-use healing items.

They can help you recover from basic damage and stay alive long enough to finish a mission or reach safety.

A common hotkey for med pens is:

4

Depending on your controls, you may use med pens on yourself or others.

Keep med pens equipped in your armour slots, not buried somewhere inconvenient if you expect combat.

The best med pen is the one you can actually use before falling over.

Med Guns

A med gun is a more capable medical tool.

It usually takes the pistol slot on your hip and can be used to heal yourself or others more effectively than simple med pens.

A med gun is especially useful for:

  • Bunker missions
  • Group play
  • FPS combat
  • Rescues
  • Longer outings
  • Players who keep getting shot in educational ways

You do not absolutely need a med gun for your first few steps, but it is a strong upgrade once you start doing regular FPS missions.

Just remember: if the med gun takes your pistol slot, you may be giving up your sidearm.

That is fine.

Just know what you are carrying.

Treating Injuries

If you have injuries, a clinic can help treat them.

The general process is:

  1. Go to the clinic
  2. Check in at the front desk or terminal
  3. Receive a room assignment
  4. Go to the assigned room
  5. Lie down on the medical bed
  6. Open the medical interface
  7. Select treatment options
  8. Treat injuries

The details may vary by patch, but the concept is straightforward.

If you are hurt and basic healing is not enough, use a clinic.

Do not wander around half-broken because you are too proud to lie down in the magic hospital bed.

This is not character building.

It is inefficient limping.

What Is Respawn?

Respawn, often referred to through regeneration or imprint systems, determines where you wake up after death.

By default, your respawn may be set to your primary residence.

That means if you die, you might wake up back at your starting city hospital.

This can be annoying if you were operating from a station far away.

Setting your respawn at a nearby station clinic can save a lot of time.

It means that if you die during nearby missions, you return to the station instead of all the way back home.

This is one of the most useful early quality-of-life habits in Star Citizen.

How to Set Your Respawn at a Station

To set your respawn at a station clinic:

  1. Land at the station
  2. Find the medical clinic
  3. Check in at the clinic terminal
  4. Go to your assigned room
  5. Lie down on the medical bed
  6. Open the medical care interface
  7. Find the regeneration or imprint option
  8. Transfer your imprint to that clinic
  9. Confirm the change
  10. Exit the bed

Once complete, dying should respawn you at that clinic instead of your previous location.

This is extremely useful before doing missions near that station.

Especially combat.

Especially bunkers.

Especially anything where your confidence is louder than your survival odds.

When Should You Change Respawn?

Change your respawn when:

  • You plan to operate from a station for a while
  • You are about to do combat missions nearby
  • You are running bunkers in that area
  • You are doing group activities from that station
  • You want a faster recovery point
  • You are tired of waking up in your home city

You do not need to change respawn every five minutes.

But if you are spending the evening around a station, set your imprint there.

This makes death less punishing.

Still annoying.

Just less “three public transport systems and a long sigh” annoying.

What Happens When You Die?

If you die after setting your respawn at a station clinic, you should wake up at that clinic.

From there, you may need to:

  • Re-equip gear
  • Buy replacement med pens
  • Claim your ship
  • Retrieve your ship
  • Return to your mission area
  • Recover your body or gear, if possible
  • Accept that some items are gone
  • Continue playing

Death is part of Star Citizen.

The important thing is not avoiding death forever.

The important thing is learning how to recover quickly.

A good respawn location makes recovery much easier.

Respawn Does Not Save Your Gear

Setting your respawn location does not mean you keep everything you were carrying.

If you die, you may lose:

  • Armour
  • Weapons
  • Ammo
  • Med pens
  • Food and drink
  • Tools
  • Loot
  • Other carried items

You may respawn safely, but your gear may remain on your body or be lost depending on what happened.

This is why station backup gear is useful.

If you respawn at a station and have spare armour, weapons, and med pens stored there, you can get back into action much faster.

If you respawn with nothing and no supplies nearby, you are now doing the walk of shame.

Again.

Building a Station Backup Kit

If you plan to use a station often, store a basic backup kit there.

A good station backup kit could include:

  • Spare undersuit
  • Spare helmet
  • Light or medium armour
  • Rifle
  • Ammo
  • Med pens
  • Food
  • Drink
  • Multi-tool
  • Tractor beam attachment
  • Backpack

You do not need expensive gear.

You just need enough to recover after death.

The goal is not fashion.

The goal is not standing in a clinic wondering if you can complete a bounty mission in your hospital gown.

You cannot.

Well, you can try.

But SCANZ does not recommend it.

Officially.

Cargo Centers and Refineries

Some stations have cargo centers, refinery decks, or related industrial services.

These are useful for:

  • Cargo missions
  • Commodity handling
  • Mining
  • Refining
  • Hauling
  • Industrial gameplay
  • Buying certain supplies

If you are doing cargo or mining, these station areas may become important.

For a brand-new player, you do not need to master them immediately.

Just know that stations often have different decks and services beyond the main lobby.

Use station elevators to explore.

Read signs.

Try not to end up in a refinery when you were looking for a sandwich.

Though honestly, that is very Star Citizen.

Shops and Galleria Areas

Many stations have shop areas or gallerias.

These may include:

  • Food vendors
  • Clothing shops
  • Armour shops
  • Weapon shops
  • Medical shops
  • General supplies
  • Component shops
  • Utility stores

Station shops are very useful for restocking without returning to a city.

Not every station sells everything, but many sell enough to keep you going.

A station with food, med pens, ammo, and basic supplies can support a lot of beginner gameplay.

Find the shops early.

Your future dehydrated self will thank you.

Food and Drink at Stations

Stations usually have places to buy food and drink.

Before heading out again, check your supplies.

Bring:

  • Water or drinks
  • Food
  • Combo items if available
  • A small reserve in your backpack

You do not need to carry a full pantry.

Just enough that you do not survive a dangerous mission and then nearly collapse because you forgot to buy a burrito.

This is a deeply avoidable way to suffer.

Using Stations as Mission Hubs

Once you understand stations, you can use them as mission hubs.

A simple station-based loop looks like this:

  1. Set your respawn at the station clinic
  2. Store backup gear at the station
  3. Retrieve your ship
  4. Accept nearby contracts
  5. Fly out and complete missions
  6. Return to the station
  7. Repair, refuel, and restock
  8. Store the ship
  9. Re-equip and repeat

This is often much smoother than operating directly from a city.

Cities are great for major shopping trips.

Stations are great for getting things done.

Common Station Mistakes

Not Setting Respawn

If you are doing missions near a station, set your respawn there.

Otherwise, dying may send you all the way back to your home city.

This is funny once.

After that, it is public transport punishment.

Forgetting Inventory Is Local

Your Area18 gear is not automatically available at Seraphim.

Your Seraphim gear is not automatically available at Baijini.

Check where your items are stored.

Not Buying Medical Supplies

If you are at a clinic, buy med pens.

Future you is probably going to need them.

Future you is not as careful as you think.

Forgetting to Store Your Ship

If you are done using the ship, store it.

This can prevent weirdness and makes retrieval cleaner later.

Leaving Without Refuelling

You landed at a station.

You had the chance.

You did not refuel.

Now you are stranded and learning about consequences.

Do not be that pilot.

Getting Lost in the Station

Stations have elevators, decks, shops, clinics, pads, hangars, and lobbies.

Read the signs.

If lost, return to the lobby or hangar elevator area and reset your brain.

Works in-game.

Sometimes works in life.

Simple Station Arrival Checklist

When you land at a station:

  • Turn off engines
  • Exit the ship
  • Store the ship if staying
  • Repair if damaged
  • Refuel
  • Restock
  • Find the clinic
  • Buy med pens
  • Set respawn if operating nearby
  • Check local inventory
  • Buy food and drink
  • Note where Fleet Manager terminals are
  • Learn the elevator layout

You do not need to do all of this every single time.

But for your first station visit, it is worth learning where everything is.

Simple Station Recovery Checklist

If you die and wake up at a station:

  • Check where you respawned
  • Open local inventory
  • Equip backup gear if available
  • Buy med pens if needed
  • Go to Fleet Manager
  • Claim or retrieve your ship
  • Restock supplies
  • Decide whether to recover your body or move on

The faster you can recover, the less painful death becomes.

That is a major milestone in learning Star Citizen.

Not never dying.

Recovering well.

That is the real skill.

SCANZ Recommendation

As soon as you can fly and land safely, learn your nearest orbital station.

Find:

  • Hangars
  • Fleet Manager terminals
  • Clinic
  • Respawn transfer
  • Storage kiosks
  • Food
  • Medical supplies
  • Shops
  • Cargo or refinery areas, if relevant

Then set your respawn there when doing nearby missions.

Store a cheap backup kit.

Repair, refuel, and restock after each outing.

This turns the station into your working base and makes the game much easier to enjoy.

You are no longer a confused tourist trapped in a city.

You are a semi-functional citizen with a station routine.

That is progress.

Final Advice

Space stations are where Star Citizen becomes more manageable.

They give you faster access to ships, missions, clinics, supplies, and recovery.

Learn to land at them.

Learn to refuel at them.

Learn where the clinic is.

Learn how to set your respawn.

Build a small backup kit.

Use stations as mission hubs.

The goal is simple:

Spend less time recovering from disaster, and more time creating new disasters on purpose.

Once you understand stations, death becomes less scary, missions become easier to chain together, and the ‘verse starts to feel less overwhelming.

Cities are where you begin.

Stations are where you start operating.

Welcome to the next step.

Next Guide

Next: Your First Bounty Contract