The Easiest Ways to Find Sentinels in No Man’s Sky: A Comprehensive Guide

The easiest way to find Sentinels in No Man’s Sky depends on what type of Sentinel you’re looking for. For basic Sentinel Drones, you’ll find them on almost any planet. They’re a fundamental part of the game’s procedural ecosystem and are deployed to respond to player actions. However, if you’re looking for Corrupted Sentinels, the process is more specific. To encounter these, you need to locate Dissonant Systems via the Galaxy Map using a Conflict Scanner. Once in a Dissonant System, scan planets to find those described as having “Corrupted Sentinels“. Look for a distinct purple glow in the environment; this will indicate the presence of these more challenging foes. Let’s explore the different types and how to find them more effectively.

Finding Basic Sentinels

The Ubiquitous Patrol

Basic Sentinel drones are the most common type you will encounter. They are essentially omnipresent and will appear almost anywhere, especially if you engage in resource gathering or otherwise aggravate them. Here’s a breakdown of how they interact with players:

• Triggering Encounters: Basic sentinels are easily triggered by mining resources, attacking wildlife, or generally causing chaos on a planet.
• Frequency: You’ll find them on nearly every planet within the game, making them the most accessible.
• Weak Spots: While basic drones are easy to defeat, other types have weak spots that can be exploited for efficiency.

Intensifying the Encounter

If you’re looking for a slightly more challenging experience with Sentinels, escalating their aggression is the key:

• Attacking More: Continually engaging sentinels will cause their numbers to increase and the types to get more dangerous.
• Escalation: With continued aggression, the sentinel forces escalate to include armored drones, quadrupeds, and eventually, the imposing Walker unit.

Locating Corrupted Sentinels

Finding Corrupted Sentinels is a more involved process. Here’s how to specifically track them down:

The Dissonant System Hunt

1. Acquire a Conflict Scanner: First, you need a Conflict Scanner for your starship. This allows you to see the type of conflict found in different systems on the Galaxy Map.
2. Find Dissonant Systems: On the Galaxy Map, look for systems labeled “Dissonant“. These systems are distinguished by a red icon and are your key to encountering Corrupted Sentinels.
3. Warp to the System: Once you have located a Dissonant System, warp there using your starship.

Planet Scanning

1. Scan Planets: Once you’ve entered a Dissonant system, use your starship’s scanner to identify each planet and check its description.
2. Look for “Corrupted Sentinels”: Seek out planets with a description that mentions “Corrupted Sentinels“. Not every planet in a dissonant system will have them.
3. Purple Glow: When on the surface of these planets, look for a distinct purple glow to identify the exact locations of Corrupted Sentinels.

Corrupted Sentinel Behavior

• Different Units: Corrupted Sentinels are more aggressive and dangerous than their standard counterparts, often appearing in greater numbers. They may also come in more advanced forms including corrupted walkers and even corrupted sentinels on ships.
• Resource Gathering: While on the planet, watch out for dissonance resonators, and if mined, corrupted drones will come to engage you.
• Rewards: Defeating these Sentinels and collecting their resources can lead to valuable loot and new crafting options.

Other Sentinel Encounters

Sentinel Space Combat

Besides planetary encounters, you can also engage Sentinels in space. Here’s how:

• Attacking a Space Station: Shooting at a space station will almost immediately summon Sentinel Interceptors.
• Sentinel Capital Ship: Defeating five waves of sentinels in space will bring a Sentinel Capital Ship or Freighter. These encounters will result in the reward of an echo locator.
• Sentinel Dreadnought: For an even greater space challenge, raising your wanted level to the highest will cause a Sentinel Dreadnought to warp into the system. Destroying this dreadnought is a major achievement.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Can I destroy Sentinel Freighters?

Yes, the player can damage the hull of a Sentinel freighter and destroy it. This will force nearby interceptors to retreat and reward you with valuable loot, such as the Carrier AI Fragment.

2. How do I get a Sentinel Ship?

To get a Sentinel ship, you must provoke a space battle by attacking a space station. Defeating multiple waves will reward you with an echo locator. This echo locator leads you to a crashed sentinel interceptor location.

3. What is the best weapon for fighting Sentinels?

The Scatter Blaster, when fully upgraded, is often considered the most effective weapon for dealing with Sentinels due to its high damage output and shotgun-like spread.

4. Are Sentinels on every planet?

Sentinels are seemingly deployed on every known planet to maintain balance within the procedural ecosystem, although they are inactive on some planets.

5. Where can I find Gravitino Balls?

Gravitino Balls are more common on planets with hostile Sentinels, particularly on barren, dead, and lifeless worlds.

6. Can Sentinels go underwater?

No, Sentinels cannot go underwater. They are replaced by Abyssal Horrors (blue jellyfish) when mining underwater.

7. What’s the best way to escape Sentinel freighters?

You can escape a Sentinel freighter by pulsing to a Space Station, Anomaly, or Red Eye station. You can also land on a freighter you did not attack, or land on any planet.

8. How do I destroy a Sentinel Dreadnought?

To destroy a Sentinel Dreadnought, you must deal significant damage to it. Disabling its warp engines will prevent it from escaping, allowing you to deliver the final blow.

9. Do my Frigates transfer when I get a new Freighter?

Yes, your Frigates automatically transfer to your new Freighter.

10. Is there a living freighter in No Man’s Sky?

Yes, there are Living Frigates that are organic. These are medium-sized and can be found through random encounters after building the Dream Aerial.

11. What is the largest Freighter in NMS?

The Oculus-class is the largest known regular freighter in the game.

12. What are Sentinel Nests?

Sentinel Nests are locations where sentinel spawning is more frequent and the challenge is greater. They are often found on planets with Corrupted Sentinels.

13. How do I find a Corrupted Sentinel planet?

As previously discussed, you need to find a Dissonant System on the Galaxy Map with a Conflict Scanner and then scan each planet for the “Corrupted Sentinels” description.

14. Can you beat Sentinels?

Yes, while challenging, you can beat Sentinels using various strategies like exploiting their weak points. Weapons and upgrades are a key factor in your success.

15. What do I get from destroying Sentinels?

Destroying Sentinels can reward you with resources, rare materials, and specialized components needed for various crafting recipes. Defeating capital class ships can provide higher tier rewards and ships.

By following this guide and answering these FAQs, you should be well-equipped to find and engage with all types of Sentinels within No Man’s Sky. Good luck, explorer!