Game Manual & Wiki

Every newly created planet — player or bot — is protected for a grace period (default: 100 ticks). During this time, offensive fleet deployments to that planet are blocked and the Attack button on the planet page is disabled, showing the ticks of protection remaining. The grace period is unconditional: it does not end early if the protected planet attacks someone else. Players who migrate to a new planet via the restart flow do not receive a grace period.

Before combat begins, each Carrier on either side deploys 10 Interceptors directly into battle. Attacker Carriers deploy into the attacking force; defender Carriers deploy into the defending force. These Interceptors are included in the Carrier's purchase cost — no separate build needed. They fight as normal units and can be lost. A log entry confirms deployment before Round 1.

All planetary defenses fire first, before any ships exchange fire. A well-defended planet can eliminate part of the incoming fleet before the main battle begins.

Remaining ships and defenses fire in Shooting Order (lower number = fires first). Within each tier, shots interleave: one attacker fires, then one defender, alternating until all ships in that tier have fired. Combat runs for up to two-thirds of the combined ship count rounds (minimum 10), or until one side is eliminated or has all its ships disabled.

Each weapon has preferred target sizes (Small, Medium or Large). If any targets of the preferred size are alive, the weapon fires exclusively at those; only when none remain does it fire on other sizes. Within that size pool, armed ships are targeted before unarmed ones — so a Laser will shoot down an Interceptor before a Tether Ship, even though both are Small. Only if no armed targets remain in the pool will unarmed ships be hit. Check the Weapons table for each weapon's preferred targets.

When multiple attacking fleets arrive simultaneously, defenders distribute their fire across all incoming fleets in round-robin order — no single fleet absorbs all damage. Allied defenders stationed at the target planet apply the same round-robin logic when returning fire at attackers.

Some weapons (e.g. Phase-Detonation Bomb) only target planetary defenses, not ships. The Bomber carries this weapon, making it a specialist at destroying fortified planets.

Each weapon has a damage multiplier against each shield type. Check the Weapons & Shields table to see which weapons are effective against which shields.

Hull damage is absorbed by shields first — only the overflow reaches the hull. Each ship also has an Energy reserve that powers its systems. EMP weapons drain shields first; once shields are depleted, EMP overflow drains Energy. A ship whose Energy reaches zero is Disabled: it cannot fire for the rest of the battle and is no longer a valid target for subsequent shots. Disabled ships can only be captured by Tether Ships or destroyed when the battle ends if their side loses. If all ships on one side are disabled, the battle ends immediately and those ships are counted as destroyed. The Tachyon Beam deals both EMP and hull damage in a single shot — if it disables a ship, the hull damage component of that same shot still applies before the ship is removed from the target pool.

After combat, surviving Tether Ships on both sides act. Attacker Tether Ships capture assets from the target planet: first priority is towing an Asteroid; if none are available they capture a Disabled defender ship instead. Defender Tether Ships (including allied ones stationed at the planet) can capture Disabled attacker ships in the same phase. Loot is distributed in round-robin order across multiple Tether Ships.

Players who have stationed ships at an allied planet receive a battle report notification whenever those ships participate in combat — even if the battle happens at a planet they don't own.