Combat

Who Fights

Side 0 — the attacker: the ATTACK fleet you dispatched, composed of whatever ships you chose.

Side 1 — the defender: any ships stationed on the target planet, plus the planet's entire DROID workforce (idle and assigned DROIDs both fight). If the planet has no ships and no DROIDs, the attacker auto-wins with no combat.

Ships and the Combat Engine

Ships have different combat roles that interact with each other through a counter system. How those roles match up, and exactly how the engine resolves damage, is something you discover by running battles and reading your combat reports closely. What you bring to a fight matters — composition is as important as raw numbers.

DROIDs as Defenders

Every DROID on the defending planet fights — idle and assigned alike. A large DROID garrison represents a substantial defensive wall before any stationed ships are even considered.

The 50% loss cap: Regardless of how lopsided the battle is, a defending planet always retains at least half of its DROIDs. Even after a devastating loss, the attacker can strip at most half the workforce. This protects the planet's economic recovery.

Loot

When the attacker wins against an occupied planet, they loot a fraction of each resource stockpile on the planet, capped by the fleet's total cargo capacity. Available cargo is divided across metal, carbon, and hydrogen. Bring adequate hauling capacity alongside your combat ships, or you leave wealth behind.

Reading a Combat Report

After a battle resolves, both sides receive a combat report. The report shows:

• Winner (attacker, defender, or mutual annihilation)
• Losses per side — how many of each ship type were destroyed
• DROID losses — droids lost on the defending planet
• Loot — resources transferred to the attacker's cargo bays
• Ended reason — natural attrition, annihilation, tie, or auto-win against an empty planet

Study your combat reports carefully — they are the best teacher for how the combat engine actually works.