GETTING STARTED / VISUAL FIELD GUIDE
Join friends and end a session
Choose a region, reach the right party, log out deliberately and recover a failed connection.
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STEP 1 OF 8
Choose the region before entering
Region selection and joining a friend are separate decisions. A selected region does not guarantee a named shard or a faster session.
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Read the region dropdown
Persistent Universe entry: region dropdown
Before Enter Universe, choose Best or the region agreed with your group from the options actually shown. Read the selection back before entering.
What you should seeThe intended region is selected.
CIG Error Code 30003: region selection, updated 28 Aug 2026That did not happen
For a connection issue, try one other offered region and record the result. CIG lists EU, US and AUS examples; do not look for an option absent from your menu.
Read the complete guide as text
The same published instructions in one readable view. Use the steps above for controls and practice panels.
Choose the region before entering
Region selection and joining a friend are separate decisions. A selected region does not guarantee a named shard or a faster session.
Read the region dropdown
Persistent Universe entry: region dropdown
Before Enter Universe, choose Best or the region agreed with your group from the options actually shown. Read the selection back before entering.
Expected result: The intended region is selected.
If it did not work: For a connection issue, try one other offered region and record the result. CIG lists EU, US and AUS examples; do not look for an option absent from your menu.
Add the exact RSI handle
CIG notes that the main-menu Friends bar becomes available after entering the Persistent Universe once.
Send and accept the contact request
Main menu: Friends bar on the right
Use your friend’s exact RSI handle to send the request. Have them accept, then use the friend’s menu entry to join or form your party before entering together.
Expected result: Both players see the accepted contact.
If it did not work: Check the handle and pending request first. A similar display name or an invitation does not override a full or unavailable session.
Confirm the party and meeting point
A party roster is not a physical meeting. Agree the city or station and the specific pickup point.
Invite the contact in game
Commlink, official support default
Open Commlink, select the accepted contact and send a party invitation. Ask them to accept, then read the party roster.
Expected result: Both players can identify the party members.
If it did not work: Recheck contact and invitation states before repeatedly leaving the session.
Confirm a place both players can reach
SC Nomads crew check
Name a city or station, then a terminal, hangar or other visible landmark. Confirm everyone’s location before the pilot departs.
Expected result: Each player can describe where to go next.
If it did not work: If the marker alone is unclear, ask for the written location name and entrance. Do not assume two matching menus mean the players are standing together.
Field note: Different input? Open Options > Keybindings, choose your device, then Advanced Controls Customization. Read the named action before changing it. Submit corrections through this guide’s normal edit proposal.
Match the fix to the entry problem
Record the exact error before changing anything. Different loading failures have different recovery paths.
Handle 41070 with one documented attempt
Only when the displayed code is 41070
Wait 10 to 15 minutes and try again. Another documented option is joining a friend’s party and letting its leader enter.
Expected result: You reach entry or have a clear recorded result for the next troubleshooting step.
If it did not work: Follow the linked article for this code. Do not use character repair as a universal connection fix.
Enter Universe is missing.: Fully close game and launcher, including a launcher instance in the system tray, then restart. Use the dedicated No Enter Universe article in Sources.
Infinite loading started after a party or bed logout.: Use CIG’s Infinite Loading Screen procedure. If bed logout repeatedly causes it, avoid that logout method while investigating.
Finish the handoff, then leave through the menu
This is a shutdown checklist, not a promise of a saved location, preserved cargo or persistent unfinished contracts.
Confirm the last intended transfer
Storage Access or the relevant freight interface
Tell your crew you are leaving. Finish the intended mission or item handoff and confirm its state. Put valuables in the intended storage and inspect the receipt.
Expected result: You can name what finished and where the stored items are.
If it did not work: A disappearing object is not proof of a completed transfer. Inspect the selected container before ending the session.
Return to the main menu
Pause menu: latest inspected ui_toggle_pause default, CIG 4.9 LIVE data
Open the pause menu, select return to the main menu, then exit the client if finished. On your next visit inspect location, equipment, ship state and contracts.
Expected result: The main menu appears.
If it did not work: If the menu is unresponsive, use the disconnect/client-close steps below. A blank mission history is not proof that completed mission credit was removed.
Use the bed’s logout action when offered
Entering a bed and selecting its Log Out action are separate operations.
Read the bed’s available actions
Contextual bed interaction; exact menus vary
Tell the crew you intend to leave, enter the usable bed and inspect its contextual actions. Select Log Out when offered. If absent or disabled, read the reason and use normal menu exit.
Expected result: The chosen action leaves the session; on return you can inspect the actual ship and contents.
If it did not work: The retrieved primary guidance does not establish every current bed permission or location restriction. Use the displayed state rather than an old universal shortcut. Avoid bed logout if it repeatedly leads to infinite loading.
I am using a carrier with docked fighters.: The 4.10.2 advisory names Idris, Polaris and Tyilui bedlogging cases that despawn docked fighters, with no listed workaround. Check the current advisory before relying on that storage arrangement.
Reconnect, then inspect before claiming anything
Error 30000 is a server-connection timeout. It does not by itself establish that your character died.
Record the error and make one fresh connection
Connection recovery
Record the code and time. Restart the client or launcher as needed, reconnect and inspect your location, carried equipment, ship and cargo state.
Expected result: You can distinguish a successful return, a different location, continued loading or another error.
If it did not work: Use the matching article if it repeats. Check recoverable ship contents before choosing Claim; crash recovery does not guarantee every item or unfinished contract.
The menu is stuck after a server crash.: The 4.10.2 advisory documents restarting the client for a stuck menu or infinite loading after a server crash.
A held item is missing after logging out away from home.: The 4.10.2 advisory says it may be equipped or beside the hab bed. Check both; moving it into inventory can restore interaction.
Know what closing the client confirms
Use normal menu exit when it responds. A closed window does not confirm bed logout, mission completion or item recovery.
Close an unresponsive client, then inspect the return
Windows client-close command, not a Star Citizen save action
If the client is unresponsive, record the symptom before closing it. Reopen and follow the reconnect checks above.
Expected result: The client closes; a later login establishes the actual game state.
If it did not work: The 4.10.2 advisory warns that force-quitting a tutorial can cause repeated 30k errors. Do not use forced closure as a way to avoid gameplay consequences.
Sources & guide information
Sources checked 14 Oct 2026; dated latest-known controls. Submit build-specific corrections through peer review.. Reference information, not a claim of current-patch playtesting.
CIG Playing with Friends, updated 24 Jul 2026; checked 14 Oct 2026CIG Error Code 30003: region selection, updated 28 Aug 2026CIG No Enter Universe Option, updated 25 Jun 2026CIG Infinite Loading Screen, updated 8 Jun 2026CIG Alpha 4.10.2 Known Issues, updated 9 Oct 2026; checked 14 Oct 2026CIG Error Code 41070, updated 22 Sep 2026CIG Error Code 30000, updated 29 Jul 2026CIG input data via Subliminal: 4.9 LIVE cl12248363; 4.10 PTU comparison dated 22 Aug 2026CIG Set up keybindings, updated 17 Feb 2026CIG Personal Inventory, updated 10 Jun 2026; checked 14 Oct 2026