NPC Factions
The NPC Faction System
The universe is alive and hostile. Two distinct Non-Player Character (NPC) factions roam the cosmos, scanning systems and launching attacks. Unlike mindless bots, these factions utilize an Adaptive Intelligence System.
Adaptive Intelligence & Threat Scaling
NPCs remember their observations. Every time an NPC fleet patrols your system or scans your planet, they log your stationed defenses and fleets. If a system is repeatedly targeted within 72 hours, the NPC Threat Multiplier skyrockets up to 400% (4x fleet size!). If you notice heavy NPC scouting, it might be wise to relocate or fortify.
Faction: The Pirates
Pirates are opportunistic scavengers operating from the edges of civilized space. They favor Raid missions.
- Target Selection: Pirates actively hunt for highly profitable planets with massive resource stockpiles, but they are cowards. They prefer inactive players and heavily penalize/avoid targets with strong defensive grids (-80% interest score).
- Consequence of Defeat: If a Pirate attack succeeds, they will loot up to millions of your stored Metal, Crystal, and Deuterium and flee.
- Fleet Structure: Pirate fleets consist of massive, cheap swarms (up to 25,000 light ships).
Faction: The Aliens (Sentinels)
The Aliens are an aggressive, hyper-advanced ancient race that view expanding empires as a threat. They favor Assault missions.
- Target Selection: Unlike Pirates, Aliens are drawn to power. They actively seek out the strongest players and explicitly target planets with massive defensive grids and high activity.
- Consequence of Defeat: Aliens do not care about your resources; they want to cripple your infrastructure. A successful Alien assault applies an Alien Disruption Penalty to your planet, devastating your resource production rates for an hour.
- Fleet Structure: Alien fleets are smaller but comprised of immense capital ships, including the dreaded Titans. Do not underestimate them.