The “Arbitrary Measures” side quest in The Outer Worlds 2 gives you the chance to meet Tristan, an arbiter from the Protectorate, and help him get in contact with the shady Information Broker. The arbiter has his own reasons to talk to the Broker, but it’s important enough to make him want to work with third parties — a.k.a. you.
Together, you’ll need to search for clues at a refugee camp in Golden Ridge and learn why the residents haven’t contacted the Broker for some time.
This mission can be a little tricky as the clues will reveal more information if your skills are at certain levels, which will in turn improve your relationship with Tristan. However, completing the quest can lead to you earning another party member.
There’s much to do, so here’s how to complete the “Arbitrary Measures” quest in The Outer Worlds 2.
‘Arbitrary Measures’ quest location in The Outer Worlds 2
To start the “Arbitrary Measures” quest in The Outer Worlds 2, interact with Barney “Bruiser” Bass, who is the bartender at the 2nd Choice bar at Free Market Station, and select one of the following dialogue options:
- “What seems to be the problem here?”
- “Why not let him have an audience with the Broker? Least he wouldn’t bother you any more.”
- “Meeting the Broker sounds like it could be useful… somehow. Maybe we can work together.”
- “Seems like a plan. I’m in.”
‘Arbitrary Measures’ quest walkthrough in The Outer Worlds 2
After having accepted the job to investigate the camp alongside Tristan, go back to your ship and travel to Dorado. The refugee camp is on the southwestern side of Golden Ridge, left of the “Guardian Estates” fast travel point.
You’ll find Tristan waiting for you at the entrance of the refugee camp, and, following a brief conversation, you’ll learn that the refugees are all dead.
To find out what happened, you’ll need to investigate the area and find five clues around the camp. As you find the clues, you can uncover more information if you have specific skills at level five.
The quest will progress even if you don’t meet the level requirement of the skills, so you don’t need to worry too much about that. Acquiring all the info will improve your relationship with Tristan, who will be impressed by your keen eyes. However, if you don’t care about your relationship with Tristan, you can just find one piece of evidence and select the “I’m done with my investigations, and I think I’ve discussed everything I wanted to” dialogue option to speed up the quest.
Clue #1
On the south side of the camp, there’s a building with blue walls where you’ll find the camp terminal. Read the two entries to learn about an automech defense force.
Clue #2
West of the entrance to the southern building, you’ll find a corpse beside a bin on fire. Examine it to identify its wounds. You can obtain more information about how this person died if you have the Medical skill at level five.
Clue #3
To the west of the corpse, you’ll find a transmission tower. It’s completely destroyed, but if you have level five Engineering, it’s possible to learn more information about the tower.
Clue #4
Go to the north side of the camp and look for the automechanical wreckage close to the entrance of one of the buildings in this region. The surroundings have marks of a fierce fight, and the automechanical’s weapon barrel has warped from heat damage. To really know what happened to it, you must be at level five with the Hack skill.
Clue #5
At the northern end of the camp, a bit ahead of where you found the destroyed automechanical, you’ll find a ramp that allows you to climb on top of the northwestern building. There, you’ll find a radio tower. Whether its signal was tempered or not is a mystery — unless you have a level 5 Science skill.
As soon as you finish checking all five points of interest, return to Tristan, and discuss your findings with him. You don’t have to find all the clues to complete the quest, having the chance to choose a dialogue option when talking to him, saying you’re done (
Discussing your findings
After you’ve collected your evidence, interact with Tristan and select the “Found something I think might be important” to discuss your findings with him.
While there are no “wrong” answers when talking about the clues, you have the chance to impress Tristan by giving specialized responses. Always choose them if they are available to you, but you can only pick these unique answers if you have the required skill level or background. In our experience, one dialogue option appeared because we had the “Professor” background.
Here are the skills you need to give Tristan the best answers when discussing each clue:
- Terminal: Engineering (Level 3)
- Corpse: Medical (Level 3) or Guns (level 5)
- Transmission tower: Engineering (Level 5)
- Badly damaged automechanical: Melee (Level 5) or Hack (Level 5)
- Radio tower: Science (Level 5)
Completing the investigation with one or more clues will trigger a fight against two automechanicals. Defeat them, and you will be ready to go back to the 2nd Choice bar in the Free Market Station.
After meeting the Broker and learning why Tristan needed help, you can complete the quest by talking to Tristan outside the bar. This is also the moment when you can officially recruit him as a companion, so don’t waste your shot.
For more help on your Arcadia adventure, check out our Outer Worlds 2 beginner guide and recommendations for the best skills and best perks. Don’t forget to grab your double jump while you’re still on Paradise Island, between helping Milverstreet or Kaur and getting into the Fairfield armory. And speaking of Eden, our guide for how to handle the final Vox Relay Station choice explains the outcomes of your actions and how to get around harming anyone.
