Difficulty
Five tiers. Each one changes a published list of numbers, nothing hidden. The middle tier, Commander, is the game as designed. Lower tiers help you; higher tiers help the AI.
| Setting | Applies to | Cadet | Lieutenant | Commander | Admiral | Grand Admiral |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Research cost | Player | 80% | 90% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Build + unit cost | Player | 85% | 92% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Pooled structure yield | Player | 115% | 107% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Starting stores | Player | 150% | 120% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Mutiny shortfall delay | Player | +3 turns | +1 turns | 0 turns | 0 turns | 0 turns |
| Research cost | AI | 100% | 100% | 100% | 90% | 80% |
| Build + unit cost | AI | 100% | 100% | 100% | 90% | 82% |
| Pooled structure yield | AI | 100% | 100% | 100% | 112% | 125% |
| Starting stores | AI | 100% | 100% | 100% | 130% | 160% |
| Free starting units | AI | None | None | None | +militia | +militia +engineer |
| Raider site cap | Player worlds | 60% | 80% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Raider first-spawn turn | Player worlds | +13 turns | +6 turns | 0 turns | 0 turns | 0 turns |
| War-declaration threshold | AI | +30 | +15 | 0 | -15 | -30 |
| Minimum human–AI home gap | Placement | 2 slots | 2 slots | 1 slots | 1 slots | 1 slots |