I still remember the first time I walked into the Trackers Alliance HQ in Starfield. The room felt like a cargo hold with a false floor: on the surface it was just a bounty-hunter clubhouse, but every conversation hinted at rules, reputations, and small secrets I had not been told. After finishing Agent No. 1's probationary mission, I became a full member and got a faction home full of call-sign hunters. That was when I learned that the most interesting choice in the room was also one of the easiest to miss.

The June 2024 update gave the faction new missions, items, and mechanics, and by 2026 those additions still shape how I think about the Trackers Alliance. The HQ is not just a spawn point for bounty boards. It is a small society of hunters, each with a role and a personal philosophy, and each identified by a call sign instead of a name. Once I became a full member, I was expected to take one too.

The call-sign menu is a hidden compartment

My first surprise was the menu itself. When the dialogue box for choosing a call sign appeared, I saw four or five options and assumed that was the whole list. The call-sign menu was a magician's sleeve: the trick was real, but the pocket was hidden. Starfield's dialogue interface usually shows a downward arrow when more options are available, but in this specific conversation the arrow was absent. I later learned that there are nine options by default, plus a hidden tenth. That missing arrow is a tiny UI decision with a big effect: many players never see the best names or the best reactions.

What I expected	What I found
A short list of four or five call signs	Nine default options plus a hidden tenth
A visible arrow for extra choices	No downward arrow in this dialogue
A purely cosmetic name	A few characters actually react to it

For most of my playthrough, the call sign did not matter in conversation. I could not use it with most Trackers Alliance members, which made it feel like a badge pinned to a jacket nobody read. There are three exceptions, though, and they are worth knowing. Yuma, the bounty hunter who kills every target, gets an introduction option, but his response is always the same flat line: 'Indeed. A strong name.' Two-Shot, the bartender, and Bloodhound, one of the oldest members, have unique dialogue for each call sign. That small difference made the HQ feel alive to me.

Mantis is the call sign with a shadow

Mantis is the one call sign that requires another mission to unlock. The quest is aptly named 'Mantis,' and players who locate and loot the secret Mantis base walk out with a new set of equipment and a ship that tends to terrify opponents. With the Trackers Alliance additions, they also walk out with the option to be called Mantis by the rest of the organization.

Mantis was essentially the Batman of the Starfield universe, and her reputation often preceded her. Even now, people react to her name with awe. Spacers may run away in fear, but if I choose Mantis as my call sign, I learn how more reputable members of society view the name. Two-Shot entertains the idea that the Spacefarer truly is the Mantis, but ultimately wants it to remain a mystery. Mantis's reputation hung over the room like a decommissioned warship in orbit: silent, huge, and impossible to ignore.

That is why I chose Mantis on my second run. I liked the idea that my call sign was not just a label but a rumor with a history. It also made the HQ feel less like a clubhouse and more like a stage where old legends can still walk in.

What I want from future bounty missions

Bethesda has said it plans to release more bounty missions for the Trackers Alliance using its new Creations feature. In 2026, I still see the call-sign system as a foundation rather than a finished building. I hope future missions introduce new call signs that, like Mantis, unlock after another quest. A player who finished the Freestar Collective questline could choose Ranger, for example. That would turn the call sign into a record of what my character has done, not just a flavor choice at a terminal.

For now, my advice to another ordinary player is simple: when the call-sign dialogue appears, scroll down. Do not trust the missing arrow. The best choice may be hiding below the fold, and the best reaction may come from a bartender or an old hunter who has seen too many names come and go. 🚀