Situation: Hostile action against your territory Goal: Minimize losses, protect critical assets, survive to fight another day Principle: Act in priority order. Panic loses more than the attacker takes.
Immediate Response Protocol
When you detect an attack—raid, struct assault, or fleet engagement—execute this sequence. Do not skip steps. Do not reverse the order.
1. Check Power Status
If you go offline, you cannot act. Before anything else:
Verify capacity exceeds load
If marginal, do not activate new structs
If overloaded, deactivate non-critical structs to stay online
A dead base cannot refine, cannot defend, cannot respond. Power first.
2. Protect Unrefined Ore — Refine NOW
Ore is stealable. Alpha Matter is not. The moment you know you’re under attack:
Refine every gram of unrefined ore on threatened planets
Prioritize planets under direct assault
Even partial refinement reduces the raider’s take
This is the single highest-impact action. Raiders come for ore. Deny them.
3. Activate Defenses
If you have Planetary Defense Cannons or other defensive structs:
Activate them on the threatened planet
Ensure they have power (check load)
Position matters—defenses at the point of attack
If you have no defenses, accept it. Do not build mid-attack. Focus on steps 1 and 2.
4. Assess Attacker Strength
Gather intelligence:
How many ships? What type?
Is this a raid (steal ore) or an attack (destroy structs)?
Solo or guild-coordinated?
Are they hitting one planet or multiple?
Raid = economic loss. Attack = structural loss. Different responses.
5. Decide: Defend or Evacuate
Defend when:
You have defenses and they can hold
The planet is critical (main production, choke point)
Evacuation would cost more than standing firm
Allies are inbound
Evacuate when:
Defenses are insufficient
The planet is expendable
You can save more by moving resources than by fighting
You’re outmatched and reinforcement is impossible
Evacuation means: refine what you can, abandon the rest. Live to rebuild.
6. Counter-Attack Timing
Do not counter-attack in the heat of the moment. Counter when:
Your position is secure
You have intelligence on their vulnerabilities
Your fleet is ready and fueled
You have a clear objective (cripple economy, punish, deter)
Reactive counter-attacks often fail. Planned ones succeed. See Tempo.
Behavioral Notes by Attacker Type
Killer: Expect sustained pressure. They want the fight. Deny them value; fortify for the long game.
Entrepreneur: Likely raiding for resources to fund their build. Hit their economy in response.
Achiever: May be chasing a goal. Identify it; make it costly.
Explorer: Rare attacker. If they’re hitting you, you’re in their way. Clear and decisive defense usually deters.
See Also
Early Game — Why power and refinement matter from the start
Resource Rich — Rich targets get attacked; prepare accordingly