Munitions & Missiles

Missiles & Munitions

Missiles and Munitions comprise the physical weapons fired and thrown around from both factions. From dedicated anti-ship missiles and Anti-Missile Missiles, to capital-grade shells and energy projectiles. Each faction has their own specific ammo types, but a lot of ammo types and calibres are shared between both.

Munitions

Munitions comprise mainly of unguided shells with a specific calibre attributed to them. Unlike their missile counterparts, these weapons are unable to be decoyed or shot down, and have hardset statistics like speed and range.

Some, but not all, craft can share munitions with ships, although this is limited to only a few calibres.

Ballistic

Ballistic munitions make up the bulk of all ammo types found in the game, from 100mm grapeshot shells to 600mm HESH rounds, all of these shells serve to destroy and harm ships in some capacity.

Many of the ability sections are summaries of how the shell preforms in-game, for more detailed descriptions reference the component damage page.

Guidelines

Ammo selection for a given targets can be accomplished visually in several steps

• Start by shooting with AP
• If you’re shooting AP, and your shells punch out the back of the target, switch to HE.
• If you’re shooting HE, and you see showers of sparks for ricochets, switch to AP.
• If you’re firing at a small target, fire RPF/Bombshell/Grape until it stops evading, then HE to destroy

Key: X -> Y = “shoot X to damage, then finish with Y”
X or Y = “use X, but Y has situational uses”. Lack of bolding indicates either works
X :-( = “your best option, but alas, it won’t do much”

Ammo Selection Chart

OSP firing at...	100mm	250mm	450mm	600mm
FFL Sprinter	Grape -> HE	Bomb -> HE	HE	Bomb or HESH
FF Raines	HE	Bomb -> HE	HE	Bomb or HESH
DD Keystone	HE or AP	HE	HE	Bomb -> HESH
CL Vauxhall (bow)	AP	AP	HE	Bomb -> HESH
CL Vauxhall (side)	AP	HE	HE	Bomb -> HESH
CVE Levy	HE	Bomb -> HE	HE	Bomb or HESH
CH Axford (bow)	AP	AP	AP	HESH
CH Axford (side)	AP	AP or HE	HE	HESH
BB Solomon (bow)	AP :-(	AP	AP	HESH
BB Solomon (side)	AP :-(	AP	HE	HESH
Any plasma'd target	HE-HC	Bomb -> HE	HE	Bomb or HESH

Ammo Selection Chart

ANS firing at...	120mm	250mm	450mm
Shuttle/Ferryman	RPF-> HE	RPF -> HE	HE
Tug/Draugr	RPF -> HE	RPF -> HE	HE
MN Flathead (angle)	AP	HE	AP
MN Flathead (flat)	AP	AP	HE -> AP
CVL Journeyman	HE	HE	HE
CC Ocello (bow)	AP	AP	AP
CC Ocello (flat)	AP	HE	HE
LN Marauder (bow)	AP or HE	HE or AP	HE or AP
LN Marauder (flat)	HE or AP	HE	HE
CLN Moorline	HE or AP	HE	HE

100mm

Shell classification	Shell type	Role	Damage (Hp)	Range (m)	Speed (m/s)	Penetration (cm)	Armor strip radius (m)	Cost (pts per X amount)	Ability
100mm AP Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	25	7200	900	45	0.4	1/250	None
100mm Grape	Ballistic/Canister	Dual-Purpose	25	7997	1100	16	0.4	1/250	12.5m Pellet Spread Radius; Increased normal-debuff chance and crew damage (500%); cannot cause rare/critical debuffs
100mm HE-HC Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	70	7200	900	8	0.4	1/250	None
100mm HE Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	45	7200	900	30	0.4	1/250	None

120mm

Shell classification	Shell type	Role	Damage (Hp)	Range (m)	Speed (m/s)	Penetration (cm)	Armor strip radius (m)	Cost (pts per X amount)	Ability
120mm AP Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	30	7200	800	45	0.4	1/100	None
120mm HE-RPF Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Dual-Purpose	64/8	7200	800	10	0.2	1/100	Once a target has been detected within a 37.5 meter zone infront of the shell (???), 8 fragments with 8 Hp worth of damage is sent towards the direction of the ship.
120mm HE Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	50	7200	800	30	0.4	1/100	None

250mm

Shell classification	Shell type	Role	Damage (Hp)	Range (m)	Speed (m/s)	Penetration (cm)	Armor strip radius (m)	Cost (pts per X amount)	Ability
250mm AP Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	70	8000	800	60	0.8	1/50	None
250mm HE-RPF Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Dual-Purpose	128/8	8000	800	20	0.3	1/50	Once a target has been detected within a 45 meter zone infront of the shell (???), 8 fragments with 16 Hp worth of damage is sent towards the direction of the ship.
250mm HE Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	80	8000	800	40	0.8	1/50	None
250mm Bombshell	Ballistic/Chemical/Timed	Dual-Purpose	96 per target/6	8000	800	22	0.5	1/50	For every eligible ship target in a 500 meter bubble around the shell's activation point, 6 fragments will be launched at each target, each with 16 HP of damage (fragments are not thrown at missiles, small craft, or lifeboats).

450mm

Shell classification	Shell type	Role	Damage (Hp)	Range (m)	Speed (m/s)	Penetration (cm)	Armor strip radius (m)	Cost ( pts per X amount)	Ability
450mm AP Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	100	11240	800	120	1.25	1/25	None
450mm HE Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	150	11240	800	65	1.25	1/25	None

600mm

Shell classification	Shell type	Role	Damage (Hp)	Range (m)	Speed (m/s)	Penetration (cm)	Armor strip radius (m)	Cost (pts per X amount)	Ability
600mm Bomb Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	480 per target/12	9800	700	40	0.5	1/25	For every ship in a 500 meter bubble around the shell's activation point, 12 fragments of 40 HP are launched. Missiles, small craft and lifeboats in that bubble are excluded.
600mm HE-SH Shell	Ballistic/Chemical	Offensive	420/7	9800	700	85	1.75	1/25	Damage model similar to HEI missile warheads with 7× 60 HP damage rays, but unlike those warheads it is affected by armor angling (effective thickness, can ricochet). Does not overpenetrate.

Energy Weapons (300mm / 400mm / 500mm)

Shell classification	Shell type	Role	Damage (Hp)	Range (m)	Speed (m/s)	Penetration (cm)	Armor strip radius (m)	Cost (pts per X amount)	Ability
300mm AP Rail Sabot	Ballistic/Magnetic	Offensive	80	21000	2000	200	1	1/25	Normal-debuff Crit chance of 10000%, which forces an ordinary debuff on a component that survives the hit; can apply fires and other normal debuffs, and cannot roll rare/critical debuffs.
400mm Plasma Ampoule	Ballistic/Magnetic	Offensive	60	7800	600	60	10	1/25	Armor strip falls off with range.
500mm Fracturing Block	Ballistic/Magnetic	Offensive	300/20	21000	2000	120	1.5	1/25	Damage model similar to HEI missile warheads with 20x 15hp damage rays.

Point Defense

These munitions are specifically made for defensive work, to destroy targets such as craft, missiles, and some light ships.

Shell classification	Shell type	Damage (Hp)	Range (m)	Speed (m/s)	Penetration (cm)	Cost (pts per X amount)	Ability
15mm Sandshot	Ballistic/Magnetic	75	8000	2500	0.275	1/50	Pellet Spread Radius: 7.5m
20mm Slug	Ballistic/Chemical	15	1750	700	0.3	1/2000	None
35mm Slug	Ballistic/Chemical	15	1750	700	4	1/1000	Duel-Purpose craft shell.
35mm Flechette	Ballistic/Chemical	15	1750	700	0.1	1/250	Pellet Spread Radius of 3.3m.
50mm Flak Shell	Ballistic/Chemical/Timed	15	2002	650	0.176	1/75	None

Missiles

The missile designer

Missiles are the most powerful weapons a ship can carry but they have limited ammunition, can be shot down and fire slower than other weapons. The number of missiles that can be prepared to fire at the same time depends on the ship's missile programming channels.

Missile Mechanics

Targeting

Target Selection Cycle

Most seekers choose targets with a lottery. Every 0.5 seconds, the seeker sweeps its cone for targets and adds them to a list. Note that this list is not stored between search cycles, the only thing the missile remembers is the "current target".

• Each target is given an initial score based on its power, how strong the signal is. All powers fall off with distance, so closer targets are usually scored higher initially.
  • ACT and SAH power is based on the radar return power density. Also, targets further from the center of the missile's view are scored lower, down to 50% at the edge. ACT power is based on the distance from the missile to the target. SARH power uses both the illuminator-to-target distance, including where the target sits in the illuminator cone, and the target-to-missile distance.
  • For the EO seeker, ship size does not matter; ships give off the same "optical" power, modified only by their distance to the seeker.
• If the missile has an active validator, the validator checks each target and marks it as valid or invalid (this is not saved between seeker cycles for validators other than [ARAD], which has a 30 second memory)
  • If the missile has multiple validators, every validator will check each target.
  • If the seeker is set to accept unvalidated, and at least one target is valid, then every invalid is removed from the list. If no targets are valid, then the validator is ignored.
  • If the seeker is set to reject unvalidated, invalid targets are always ignored.
• The scores of the targets are then modified based on a few factors
  • If the missile has a current target, and that target appears in the list again, then:
    • If the time to impact is less than the seeker's lock Target TTGI stat (3.0 seconds for most vanilla seekers, 2.5s for ACT seekers, 2.0s for WAKE variants), the seeker is guaranteed to choose this target again.
    • Otherwise, its score is multiplied by the Target Affinity stat of the seeker (10x for most seekers, 3x for WAKE variants).
  • If the seeker is EO, and it was fired at a track with intel, all targets matching the same ship class have their scores multiplied by 250.
• Select a random target weighted by the scores of the targets remaining in the list.

CMD seekers do not undergo this process as their only target is the track they were fired on.

If the seeker is under jamming, the target's return power has to exceed the combined jamming power felt by the seeker to detect the target and add it to the lottery. Note that this is slightly different from the search radar calculations, as the combined jamming power is compared directly without converting it to noise first. As a result, missile seekers are not affected by ambient noise at all.

If the seeker is jammed and cannot see any targets, it will follow a fake target, therefore causing the missile to veer off target. This fake target is placed 1km away from the missile, at a random point up to 4 degrees off the nose with a velocity of 10m/s in a random direction, and changes once every second. Equipping the missile with any validator and setting the seeker to reject unvalidated will push the fake target out to 50km, preventing premature staging if the seeker can detect range.

Validation

Comparison of dual-seeker and seeker-validator behavior. Diagram by smolcake.

All seekers can be set to validation mode. When a seeker is operating in Validation mode, it does NOT provide its original function. Instead, it validates target tracks spotted by the targeting seekers, and tags them valid or invalid.

The validator checks every track spotted by the targeting seekers, ignoring the validator's default range and seeker cone. These targets are tagged valid if the validator can also see it, and tagged invalid otherwise. Validators otherwise spot targets in the same way as if it was a targeting seeker. SAH Validation is broken and behaves like ACT validation. Multiple Validators on the same missile are also broken; only one will work at a time and appear to inconsistently alternate which functions.

Validator reliability is the chance that the validator will provide accurate info. The seeker rolls its validator chance once on launch. If the check fails, the validator will always be wrong (eg, an invalid target will be tagged valid, and a valid target will be tagged invalid).

Validators can negate some secondary effects of jamming when paired with a targeting seeker set to reject unvalidated (assuming the validator itself is not jammed). The seeker will not follow the fake targets produced by jamming (unless the validator is also affected or attracted to the jamming source), and seekers will not stage early due to jamming (unless the seeker cannot detect distance, as the staging prevention comes from pushing the fake target from 1km to 50km). Both of these effects are not affected by validator reliability. Note that validators otherwise do not improve the seeker's ability to acquire targets through jamming; the targeting seeker will spot targets at the same range regardless if it has a validator or not.

Validators will apply to all targeting seekers in the missile, even if the targeting seeker is placed behind the validator.

Backup Seeker

Seekers in targeting mode placed in slots behind other seekers will function as backup seekers. They will only activate if the seekers ahead of them do not see a target. If a seeker has an active backup behind it, it can automatically turn itself off in the event of jamming, preventing early staging and following fake targets, and allowing the backup seeker to take over. However, note that the backup itself will not turn itself off when jammed, even if the primary has a clear view; the backup will only turn off if the primary finds a target or the backup also has another backup.

Backups will also utilize any existing validators, regardless of position.

Launching Missiles

Missiles may be launched in one of two modes which behave differently based on the avionics/guidance package of the missile

Track mode (TRK)

Firing missiles in track mode is accomplished by right clicking an enemy track and selecting the weapon from the list. This will create a red firing vector and the volley confirmation window. When moused over a track you will see the number of missiles to be fired, the volley count, the distance to target, and the estimated intercept time. ALT will add missiles to the volley one at a time while SHIFT+ALT will add one volley worth of missiles (based on the firing ships missile programming channel count). Right click will remove missiles one at a time and escape cancels the firing selector entirely. Note that while Track mode automatically assigns one missile to the original track, subsequent missiles can be assigned to other tracks. Track mode is useful for quickly getting missiles launched but care should be used both to confirm the correct target and to ensure that the target will not move beyond the seeker cones range by the time the missiles near the target.

Missiles fired in track mode will try to plot an intercept using the reported position and velocity from the sensor network. An automatically fired defensive missile using Direct guidance flies straight at the target instead, and only when the target's velocity is within about 32 degrees of pointing at the launching ship (dot product at least 0.85). Player-ordered track shots, and cruise-guided shots, always lead.

Cruise missiles fired in track mode can also make use of TRP waypoints while in the mode. TRP waypoints are selected with CTRL while in track fire mode and can be used to route cruise missiles around obstacles or to put them on advantageous strike angles.

Position mode (POS)

To position fire a missile right click on open space and select the weapon from the list. This will pull up the sphere widget and and show a red cone representing the missiles primary seeker detection cone. Unlike track fire mode every missile fired in position mode must be individually vectored (Volley size and time to the position are also available in the tooltip). Although more cumbersome than track firing there are number of advantages to position firing even for direct guidance missiles. It's possible to create a "spread fire" pattern with volleys of missiles if the whereabouts of the target are not certain. Also, if the target is moving quickly position fire can be used to lead the target based on its predicted path. Keep in mind unlike track fire mode the final left click confirmation while in position fire mode will add one additional missile to the volley fired.

• Direct missiles fired in position mode will proceed straight on course with seeker active. Care should be used in the sphere tool because if a small sphere is used (adjustable with CTRL), even a few pixels distance between each missile vector will result in a large spread at distance. Note that the seeker will be active as soon as the missiles launch.
• Cruise missiles fired in position mode receive a unique ability. While in position fire mode holding SHIFT and left clicking will create a waypoint for the missiles and move the sphere tool to the location selected. From there a further waypoints can be created. Using this method it is possible to create incredibly complex flight paths for cruise missiles which dodge or even curve behind obstacles. Once the final waypoint is chosen, individual or multiple missiles can be fired using the sphere tool. If multiple missiles are fired in a volley they will travel together to the final waypoint, then follow their individual vectors from there. Care should be used when creating cruise waypoints as the missile seekers are only activated upon reaching the final position from the final waypoint. It is possible to fly inactive cruise missiles directly past enemy fleets exposing them to PD fire.

If the target is too close to the launcher, a "too close" warning will be shown. This warning does not prevent firing or otherwise affect the missile. The specific range where the warning is shown depends on the seeker, (1000m for most seekers, 500m for Wake). A missile with multiple seekers will use the longest "too close distance" for the warning.

Programming

Missile launches out of VLS tubes are affected by Programming Time and Programming Channels.

Each ship has a default number of programming channels available, which can be increased with Bus/Bus Array modules. No matter how many missile launchers are on the ship, only a set number of missiles up to the number of channels can be programmed at one time. If you queue more missiles to launch than there are channels available the remaining missiles are queued to program after the first salvo fires.

Programming time is the amount of time it takes to program the channels. Programming time can be reduced by the strike planning center, the missile parallel interface module, or by the Fast Startup missile support module.

Mixed Salvos

Ships with VLS can create and fire mixed salvos of missiles by pressing the "+" icon next to the missile in the weapon menu. Mixed salvos will remain in the weapon menu for reuse until a new mixed salvo is created. When creating mixed salvos for formations, the missile has to be present on every ship in the formation in order to add it into the mixed salvo.

MLS Launcher

MLS launchers use an autoloader system, enabling each launcher to fire a certain amount of missiles on demand without using channels or programming time. However, MLS launchers require a lengthy reload once it runs out of missiles or when changing missile type.

MLS launchers are not affected by programming channels or programming time, but ammunition elevators will speed up its reload time.

MLS will not fire defensive missiles automatically.

Defensive Missiles

Also known as anti-missile missiles, or AMMs. Missiles set to "defensive" in their avionics and placed in VLS tubes will be fired by the ship for point defense.

When fired automatically, AMMs have no programming time (only limited by the time it takes to open the tubes), and their seekers are automatically set to only detect small targets and will not lock onto ships.

Multiple ships with AMMs and comms on will communicate with each other to "deconflict" AMM launches, which means only one of them will fire a salvo against incoming missiles rather than all of them firing individual salvos. Note that this will only work if the ship has full communication with the rest of the team, if comms are cut (by combat damage, comms jamming, or intentional emcon), then the ship will not participate in deconfliction and will fire AMMs at all applicable targets

Defensive Targeting Doctrine

Doctrine decides how defensive missiles are fired against incoming missiles. These settings can be overridden by the Point Defense Missile Setting if Fire Mode is switched away from DCTRN/D.

Threat Size

Threat size controls which missile threats the AMM will automatically launch against. Size 1, 2, and/or 3 can be toggled on or off. There is an additional switch which allows the missile to target all missiles (ALL), conventional missiles only (CONV),hybrid missiles only (HYBRID), and spacecraft (CRAFT). The threat types of some special missiles are listed below.

• SDM-1: Size 1 conventional
• SDM-2: Size 2 Conventional
• SGM-H-2: Size 2 Hybrid
• SGM-H-3: Size 3 Hybrid
• SGM-3: Size 3 Hybrid
• Containers: Size 3 conventional
• R-2 Rockets: Size 1 conventional (size-2 body with its point-defense threat size overridden to 1)
• Mines: Size 3 conventional
• Fighters: Size 2 spacecraft
• Bombers: Size 3 spacecraft
• SEWAC / Skiff / Scout: Size 1 spacecraft

Alternatively, a more in-depth matrix targeting system can be used. This presents all of the same information above but allows for more defined behavior; for instance a missile can be targeted towards specific types of craft and missiles. Missiles using this matrix system, even if the information in it is otherwise identical to the above system, is easier for the game to read and allows for more reliable use of multiple types of defensive missiles on the same ship.

Size Ordering

The size ordering setting has three modes.

• DESCEND: The missile will be fired at the largest valid threat size first before firing against smaller threats.
• ASCEND: The missile will be fired at the smallest valid threat size first before firing against larger threats.
• EQUAL: The missile launch sequence will be unaffected by threat size so long as it is the correct size.

Salvo Size

The salvo size setting controls whether 1, 2 or 3 AMMs will be fired at a threat.

Distance Priority

• NEAR-TO-FAR: The missile will be fired at the closest threats first before firing against further threats.
• FAR-TO-NEAR: The missile will be fired at the furthest threats first before firing against closer threats.

Point Defense Missile Setting

The Point Defense Missile Settings (PDMSL) are settings which control the behaviour of ships' and formations' AMMs and can override the AMMs' defensive targeting doctrines. The default values for these settings can be changed in the Settings screen off the Main Menu. These settings are abbreviated when displayed in the ship's control console (e.g. Fire Mode DCTRN / Fire Policy 1 Salvo / Salvo Size 1 / Last Salvo Yes will be displayed as D 1 1 Y).

Firing Mode

The fire mode controls the logic that governs automatic launching of AMMs.

• DCTRN (D): The AMMs will launch automatically according to their defensive targeting doctrine.
• ALL (A): The AMMs will be indiscriminately launched against all nearby threats.
• MAN (M): AMMs will only launch against prioritized threats (ones the player has 'Z'+clicked on).

Fire Policy

The fire policy controls the number of salvoes launched against a threat (not including last salvo).

• 1 Salvo (1): One salvo will be launched.
• 2 Salvo (2): Two salvoes will be launched.
• MAX DOF (M): Follow-up salvoes will be launched after the previous salvo's India time (time to intercept) has elapsed until the threat is destroyed.

Salvo Size

Salvo size controls the number of AMMs launched in a single salvo against a threat.

• 1 (1): One AMM will be fired pre salvo.
• 2 (2): Two AMMs will be fired per salvo.
• 3 (3): Three AMMs will be fired per salvo.
• DCTRN (D): The AMMs' salvo size setting will be followed.

Last Salvo

Last salvo controls whether or not a final salvo of missiles will be fired at the last possible moment regardless of fire policy or if other AMMs are in flight.

• YES (Y): A last salvo will be fired.
• NO (N): A last salvo will not be fired.

This setting appears to have been removed in favor of the NEZ setting in the carriers update

Missile Construction

Missiles can be designed and colored in the fleet editor. If a design is deleted it will be removed from all missile launchers in the fleet.

Selecting a missile's engine will show the engine configuration triangle, allowing the engine to be focused on Top Speed, Burn Duration or Maneuverability.

Note that some of the missile body stats are exaggerated, specifically engine tunings like max speed. While it is possible to make a 15km range sdm-1, you will most likely be on the lower end or middle of the spectrum of range. These statistics where made with EXTREME values. The missile body cost has engine cost considered as well, as while the SGM-H-200 Cyclone has a missile body cost of 3, the actual minimum cost is closer to 5 with no components added.

Missile Body	Size	Integrity	Wall Thickness	Socket Weight	Programming Time (s)	Components	Main Speed (m/s)	Thruster Speed (m/s)	Range (m)	Acceleration (G)	Top Speed (s)	Turn Rate (G)	Radar Cross Section (Front / Side)	Body Cost	Faction
SGM-100 Balestra Missile	1	10 HP	0.05 cm	0.33x	6 sec	3	250-400 m/s	40-50 m/s	1458-11911 m	35.7-76.5 G	0.3-1.1 sec	3.9-13.3 G	156 m2/400m 2	0 pt
SDM-100 Lunge Missile	1	10 HP	0.05 cm	0.33x	6 sec	3	650-850 m/s Boost 250-400 m/s Main	30-40 m/s Boost 40-50 m/s Main	1844-3759 m Boost 958-11911 m Main	153.1-204.1 G Boost 35.7-76.5 G Main	0.3-0.6 sec Boost 0.3-1.1 sec Main	6.5-17.5 G Boost 3.9-13.3 G Main	625 m2/950 m2	0 pt
SSM-100 Remise Missile	1	10 HP	0.05 cm	0.33x	6 sec	4	250-400 m/s	40-50 m/s	1458-11911 m	35.7-76.5 G	0.3-1.1 sec	3.9-13.3 G	156 m2/400 m2	0 pt
SGM-200 Tempest Missile	2	30 HP	0.05 cm	1x	8 sec	4	180-350 m/s	30-40 m/s	2826-32284 m	14.3-30.6 G	0.6-2.5 sec	1.7-6.0 G	625 m2/950 m2	2 pt
SDM-200 Typhoon Missile	2	25 HP	0.05 cm	1.25x	10 sec	4	650-850 m/s Boost 225-150 m/s Main	30-40 m/s Boost 150-225 m/s Main	4936-8098 m Boost 1165-7130 m Main	61.2-81.6 G Boost 16.3-32.7 G Main	1.4-0.8 sec Boost 1.4-0.5 sec Main	4.4-12.8 G Boost 2.8-8.2 G Main	625 m2/950 m2	2 pt
SGM-300 Flail Hybrid Missile	3	60 HP	0.05 cm	1.5x	16 sec	5	150-250 m/s Cruise 250-450 m/s Terminal	20-40 m/s Cruise 250-450 m/s Terminal	7425-26888 m Cruise 448-11125 m Terminal	10.2-15.3 G Cruise 25.5-61.2 G Terminal	1.0-2.5 sec Cruise 0.4-1.8 sec Terminal	0.9-4 G Cruise 6.7-18.9 G Terminal	1600 m2/3600 m2	4 pt
SGT-300 Pilum Torpedo	3	160 HP	0.25 cm	3x	3 sec	4	175-300 m/s	20-35 m/s	814-10135 m	15.3-25.5 G	0.7-2.0 sec	1.2-5.5 G	900 m2/2400 m2	1 (+0-3 engine) pt
SGM-H-200 Cyclone Hybrid Missile	2	25 HP	0.05 cm	0.8x	10 sec	4	200-350 m/s Cruise 500-1000 m/s Sprint	7875-25750 m Cruise 438-10375 m Sprint	8.2-16.3 G Cruise 102.0-204.1 G Sprint	1.3-4.4 sec Cruise 0.3-1.0 sec Sprint	0.8-3.2 G Cruise 14.8-31.9 G Sprint	625 m2/950 m2	3+2 pt
SGM-H-300 Atlatl Hybrid Missile	3	60 HP	0.05 cm	1.8x	16 sec	5	100-200 m/s Cruise 550-1000 m/s Sprint	20-40 m/s Cruise 550-1000 m/s Sprint	7944-24917 m Cruise 271-13411 m Sprint	6.1-9.2 G Cruise 76.5-127.6 G Sprint	1.1-3.3 sec Cruise 0.4-1.3 sec Sprint	0.5-2.5 G Cruise 16.9-40.8 G Sprint	1600 m2/3600 m2	5+3 pt
CM-400 Container	4	150 HP	0.2 cm	2x	20 sec	5	125-275 m/s	20-35 m/s	1083-65943 m	19.1-6.4 G	4-12.8 sec	1.1-4.0 G	1600 m2/4000 m2	0 pt
CM-S-400 Container	4	150 HP	0.2 cm	4x	20 sec	5	125-275 m/s	20-35 m/s	1083-65943 m	19.1-6.4 G	1.1-4.0 sec	0.1-3.3 G	1600 m2/4000 m2	0 pt

Wall Thickness

Missile wall thickness is armor for the missile, though unlike ship armor, missiles use a far simpler system. If the AP of the incoming attack is less than the wall thickness, it will only deal half damage to the missile. It is measured in centimeters, i.e. 0.2 wall thickness is 0.2cm or 2mm.

Missile radar cross-section

Missile radar cross-section by angle (m², before modifiers)

Missile (and others with the same box)	Radar box, m (width × height × length)	Side-on	Nose-on	45° off nose, level	Peak, banked 45° (angle off nose)
SGM-100 Balestra, SSM-100 Remise, R-1, R-2, KBU-15, and FBU-15	12.5 × 12.5 × 32	400	156	393	587 (75°)
SDM-100 Lunge, SDM-200 Typhoon, SGM-200 Tempest, and SGM-H-200 Cyclone	25 × 25 × 38	950	625	1,114	1,482 (65°)
SGM-300 Flail and SGM-H-300 Atlatl	40 × 40 × 90	3,600	1,600	3,677	5,337 (73°)
SGT-300 Pilum	30 × 30 × 80	2,400	900	2,333	3,511 (75°)
CM-400 and CM-S-400 Container	40 × 40 × 100	4,000	1,600	3,960	5,879 (74°)
KBU-22, CBU-40	15 × 15 × 40	600	225	583	878 (75°)
R-3 Spearfish	20 × 20 × 45	900	400	919	1,334 (73°)

A missile flying straight at the ship it is attacking presents close to its minimum return.

Payload

The payload determines how a missile inflicts damage. The exact damage type depends on the size of the missile.
SSM-1, SDM-1 and SDM-2 missiles can only equip Blast Fragmentation and Blast Fragmentation EL warheads.

Payload	Fuze	Area Damage Type	Base Cost (pts)	Notes
HE Impact	Contact	Shaped Angle 70 deg	0.25
HE Kinetic Penetrator	Delayed Contact	Internal sphere blasts every 6.6 m along the penetration path (up to 26), sharing the explosive damage, at least 40% of it	1.75	Armor penetration scales with speed above 250 m/s and with warhead size. The editor shows that value at the missile's top terminal speed; a slower impact penetrates less. Penetration distance is capped at 175 m.
Blast Fragmentation	Proximity	Blast Fragmentation Radius	0.25	Larger missiles increase the area damage radius as well
Blast Fragmentation EL	Proximity	Blast Fragmentation Radius	3.5	Larger missiles increase the area damage radius as well

Support Components in warhead sockets

Some missiles can equip support components in their resizable warhead sockets, allowing for support components to scale to larger sizes similar to warheads

A scalable support component in a length 1 warhead will act as if it was in a normal support socket. Longer lengths will linearly multiply the support component's power. e.g. a regular decoy put in a length 2 socket will increase the decoy count from 3 to 6, increasing the length to 4 will increase the decoy count to 12, etc. Costs will also increase at the same rate, the support components in the previous example will have

Only decoy launchers support socket scaling. All other support modules will not be boosted by larger sizes.

Socket weight does not have an effect on support components.

Avionics Package

The avionics package determines how the missile is controlled. It has the following configuration options:

• Weapon Role sets how the missile may be launched:
  • DEFENSIVE: Missiles can be launched manually and by the point defense system.
  • OFFENSIVE: Missiles can be launched manually.
• Launch Type sets the behavior immediately after launching:
  • HOT: The missile's engine will ignite immediately, good for getting the missile moving quickly when fired in range of enemy point defenses.
  • COLD: The missile will maneuver around the launching ship with thrusters until it has an unobstructed line to the target or first waypoint before igniting the main engines.
• Target Lost Behavior sets what the missile will do if it loses the target:
  • RESUME SEARCH: The missile will search for a new target.
  • SELF DESTRUCT: The missile will self destruct.
• Terminal Maneuvers sets what evasive maneuvers the missile will perform on its terminal approach to the target:
  • NONE: No evasive maneuvers.
  • WEAVE: Missile will weave from side to side.
  • CORKSCREW: Missile will spiral towards the target.
• Trajectory Preference sets the approach angle the guidance system will try to maintain.
  • FREE APPRAOCH: Missile will fly directly towards the target.
  • MINIMUM ANGLE: The missile stays on the line between the launching ship and the target, which usually produces a head-on approach. Only Direct Guidance has this option, and it is on by default.

Avionics Package	Description	Base Cost (pts)
Direct Guidance	The simplest form of missile guidance system. This avionics package guides the missile in a straight line towards the target that has been acquired by the missile's seeker.	0
Cruise guidance	A more advanced form of missile guidance that is capable of following a complex waypoint path to the target, enabling blind strikes around asteroids and more.	2

Seekers

The seeker determines the method the missile uses to track its target. Most seekers can choose whether to ignore small targets such as other missiles or not. If a missile has two seekers the secondary one (the one not placed at the nose of the missile) can be set to a Seeker Mode:

• TARGETING: Secondary seeker will be used to acquire a target if the primary seeker does not find any.
• VALIDATION: Secondary seeker will be used to validate targets. Missile will favor targets validated by both seekers, greatly reducing the effectiveness of enemy decoys.
• STUN: When dazzled, EO seekers are "Stunned", causing it to remain jammed for 1 second after leaving a dazzler's area of effect.

Seeker	Type	Range (M)	FOV (deg)	Validator Reliability (%)	Steerable	Position Trageting	Measures Position	Measures Velocity	Base Cost / Validator Cost
Command Receiver	COMMS	Fleet	Fleet	Fleet	Fleet	No	Yes	Yes	3.5 / 3
Fixed Active Radar Seeker	RADAR	2000	50	95	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	1 / 0.25
Steerable Active Radar Seeker	RADAR	2000	40	95	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	1.5 / 0.25
Steerable Extended Active Radar Seeker	RADAR	5000	40	95	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	3 / 0.25
Fixed Semi-Active Radar Seeker	RADAR	4000	50	95	No	Yes	Direction Only	Yes	0.5 / 0.5
Fixed Anti-Radiation Seeker	PSV RADAR	3000	50	93	No	Yes	Direction Only	No	2 / 2
Fixed Anti-Radiation Seeker (Home On Jam)	PSV JAM	∞	50	93	No	Yes	Direction Only	No	0.5 / 0.5
Fixed Anti-Radiation Seeker (Pulsed Radar)	PSV PULSED	3000	50	93	No	Yes	Direction Only	No	2.50 / 2.50
Electro-Optical Seeker	EO	3000	60	100	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	8 / 5
Wake-Homing Seeker	WAKE	1500	120	100	Yes	Yes	Direction Only	No	0.25 / 0.5
Wake-Homing Seeker (THERM)	THERM	1500	120	100	Yes	Yes	Direction Only	No	0.25 / 3

* Note: CMD Guided missiles technically don't have a seeker cone. Shown at 4000m for terminals range. Diagram by CapnFlint

Introduction to the Seeker Quick Look Up Tables

Below you will see quick reference tables of popular Missile Seeker Combinations courtesy of Kate. Note, there are other combinations of Seekers as this is not an exhaustive list of options.

Nomenclature

• A Seeker such as "ACT" is a Tracking Seeker. It will track the target.
• A Seeker in brackets such as "[ACT]" is a Validation Seeker. It will validate the tracking seeker's target and make the primary seeker reject targets it wouldn't have otherwise ignored. If the Track Seeker is disabled the missile will go wild (such as ACT if it is undergoing RADAR Jamming).
• A Track Seeker with a r or ! such as "ACTr" or "ACT!" are set to Reject targets that aren't validated.

Some Missile combinations are identified as making the missile a "StraightRunner" when they do not detect a target they will continue on the course it was last on which may impact the target. These are identified in the table below. For additional details please see Missile_Defense page.

To see further details on the purpose of different seekers and their combinations please see the Missile_Defense page.

ACT Seeker Family

The ACT Seeker family are popular cruise missile seeker combos that can also be used as direct missile seekers. They are characterized by an active radar primary with a validation seeker.

Note, many of the ACT seekers can be replaced with SACT or SEACT depending on the missile maneuverability and range to target for optimal missile strikes.

ACT Seeker Family

Base Cost	Primary Seeker	Secondary Seeker	StraightRunner	Pro	Con	Susceptibility Method	Notes
4	ACT	[CMD]r	Y	Cannot be decoyed Full target discrimination	Requires decent quality track Must use TRP for cruise	Command Jammer + Killjoy & Command Jammer + Shipboard Jamming	Avoid using Shipboard jamming because the CMD/HOJ or ARAD/ACT seeker combo may be mixed in. Against close-in launches, may require 2 Killjoys to defeat when defending large ships, otherwise the missile will not wiggle in time to miss.
6	ACT	[EO]r	Y	Cannot be decoyed Full cruise functionality	No target discrimination	Dazzler + Killjoy & Dazzler + Shipboard Jamming	Avoid using Shipboard jamming because ARAD/ACT seeker combo may be mixed in.
5	SEACT	[ARAD]	Y	Can resist basic decoys	Behavioral, can fail to acquire an AFK EMCONed ship Defeated automatically by Conure Active Decoys	Conure & EMCOM + Liner Container Decoy/Chaff & Killjoy + Chaff & Shipboard Jammer & EMCOM + Chaff	If you have been acquired by ARAD validator memory, you can use your jammer and then immediately EMCOM. This will wipe the validator memory and you no longer emit radar for this, then it is a matter of popping chaff. Use the above tangent method but don’t keep the jammer on because the ARAD/ACT combo is often mixed in with this. Against SEACT, you have to do EMCOM + Chaff before the missile is 5 km away because ARAD has validator memory sufficient for that entire time of flight, this is also gambled with needing good chaff geometry and ship radar sig smaller than chaff. SEACT is selected such that if SEACT seeker is seduced and the target switches to EMCOM, the longer range will capitalize on the 30 second ARAD seeker validation and still hit the target.
1.5	ACT	[WAKE]	Y	Can resist basic decoys Requires rear arc and target to be burning main thrusters	Behavioral, can fail to acquire an AFK ship	Conure + All Stop/Move Backwards & Liner Decoy + All Stop/Move Backwards & Killjoy & Chaff + All Stop/Move Backwards & Shipboard Jamming + All Stop / Move Backwards
4	ACT	[THERM]	Y	Can resist basic decoys Works in forward arc	Behavioral, can fail to acquire an AFK ship Expensive	Conure + All Stop/Move Backwards & Liner Decoy + All Stop/Move Backwards & Killjoy & Chaff + All Stop/Move Backwards & Shipboard Jamming + All Stop / Move Backwards	This is the same Susceptibility as Wake, the performance improvement for the cost isn't optimal.
1	ACT		Y	Cheap	Relies entirely on gambling	Chaff & Shipboard Jammer & Conure & Liner Container Decoy

CMD Seeker Family

The CMD Seeker family are popular direct missile seeker combos. They use Command seeker as primary with a secondary seeker that enables them to straightrun when they are under Command Jamming. They are reliant on their launching ship's antenna, the more radiated power, the harder it is for Command jamming to affect them. They do require a fire control lock or high enough track quality for them to hit their target properly.

CMD Seeker Family

Base Cost	Primary Seeker	Secondary Seeker	StraightRunner	Pro	Con	Susceptibility Method	Notes
4	CMD	HOJ	Y	TBD	TBD	Command Jammer + Killjoy
4	CMD	SAH	Y	TBD	TBD	Command Jammer + Self-Illumination & Command Jammer + Killjoy & Command Jammer + Shipboard Jamming	Avoid using Shipboard jamming because the CMD/HOJ or ARAD/ACT seeker combo may be mixed in.
3.25	CMD	WAKE	Y	TBD	TBD	Command Jammer + Flare Decoy
5.5	CMD	ARAD	Y	TBD	TBD	Command Jammer + EMCOM + Killjoy & Command Jammer + Conure & Command Jammer + EMCOM + Liner Container Decoy	Premium seeker, normally reserved for already expensive missile tunings such as Ocello Killers. Try to use the Killjoy method because they can also be mixed with other CMD family seekers.
3.5	CMD		N	TBD	TBD	Command Jammer

EO Seeker Family

Premium Seeker family only seen in some rare specialized missile archetypes. Characterized by EO primary with a secondary seeker to enable it to straightrun under Dazzler jamming

EO Seeker Family

Base Cost	Primary Seeker	Secondary Seeker	StraightRunner	Pro	Con	Susceptibility Method	Notes
8.25	EO	WAKE	Y	TBD	TBD	Dazzler + Flare Decoy	Premium seeker, only seen on some premium anti-shuttle S3H.
8.5	EO	HOJ	Y	TBD	TBD	Dazzler + Killjoy
8.5	EO	SAH	Y	TBD	TBD	Dazzler + Self-Illumination & Dazzler + Killjoy

ARAD Seeker Family

Cheap and basic 'good enough' seeker family with an important role. It is often mixed with the ACT family to mitigate their common con of being vulnerable to radar jammers. Other times you may find them to be good enough against players who don't EMCOM.

ARAD Seeker Family

Base Cost	Primary Seeker	Secondary Seeker	StraightRunner	Pro	Con	Susceptibility Method	Notes
3	ARAD	ACT	Y	Defeats Jamming & Forces Emcon	Behavioral, can fail to acquire an AFK EMCONed ship Defeated automatically by Conure Active Decoys	Conure & EMCOM + Liner Container Decoy & EMCOM + Chaff Decoy & EMCOM + Killjoy
2	ARAD		Y	Defeats Jamming & Forces and can be Emcon Technically a straight-runner On S2 and S3 missiles frees up a second seeker hardpoint for Missile Salvo Penetration aides to improve overall Missile Salvo hit rate	Behavioral, will fail to acquire an AFK EMCONed ship Defeated automatically by Conure Active Decoys	EMCOM + Killjoy & EMCOM	If ARAD tracks you before you EMCOM it will straight run and you will need an emitting decoy such as Killjoy/Conure/Container Decoy to pull it away. However this straight-runner behavior is not very effective as it does not know range-to-target to properly lead

Wake/Therm Seeker Family

Wake/Therm Seeker Family

Base Cost	Primary Seeker	Secondary Seeker	StraightRunner	Pro	Con	Susceptibility Method	Notes
1.25	Wake/Therm	[ACT]	Y	Can resist basic decoys	Requires rear arc and target to be burning main thrusters Behavioral, can fail to acquire an AFK ship	All Stop/Move Backwards
0.25	Wake/Therm		Y	Sometimes people forget it exists	Yes Behavioral, can fail to acquire an AFK ship Defeated automatically by flares Softkills itself roughly 50% of the time by failing to follow a wake trail correctly	All Stop + Flare	Note, Wake and Therm primary seekers requires to be 120° of Rear engine cone.

SAH Seeker Family

This seeker family is similar to the ACT family with similar advantages and disadvantages. The SAH family requires external illumination to track the target, as the launch Ship/Spacecraft can often mount illuminators, this is a method to reduce Missile Cost. Similarly if the target isn't illuminated, the SAH seeker won't be seduced by Chaff and will operate as a StraightRunner.

SAH Seeker Family

Base Cost	Primary Seeker	Secondary Seeker	StraightRunner	Pro	Con	Susceptibility Method	Notes
1	SAH	HOJ	Y	TBD	TBD	Self-Illumination & Killjoy (preferably stack 2 of them) & Chaff Decoy, stay close to the chaff so they can’t micromanage the illuminator but not clip the ship itself into the chaff.
0.75	SAH	WAKE	Y	TBD	TBD	Self-Illumination & Killjoy (preferably stack 2 of them) + Flare Decoy & Conure & Chaff Decoy & Shipboard Jammer	Conure stay close to the conure so they can’t micromanage the illuminator but not clip the ship itself into the conure. Chaff Decoy, stay close to the chaff so they can’t micromanage the illuminator but not clip the ship itself into the chaff. Try not to use Shipbroad Jammer because the SAH/HOJ seeker combo is often mixed in.
2.5	SAH	[ARAD]	Y	TBD	TBD	Self-Illumination & Killjoy (preferably stack 2 of them) + Flare Decoy & Conure & Chaff Decoy & Shipboard Jammer	Conure stay close to the conure so they can’t micromanage the illuminator but not clip the ship itself into the conure. Chaff Decoy, stay close to the chaff so they can’t micromanage the illuminator but not clip the ship itself into the chaff. Try not to use Shipbroad Jammer because the SAH/HOJ seeker combo is often mixed in.
0.5	SAH		Y	Cheap	Cheap	Self-Illumination & Killjoy (preferably stack 2 of them) + & Conure & Chaff Decoy & Shipboard Jammer	As Spacecraft are able to mount illumination pods, this seeker type can be used to significantly reduce the cost of Spacecraft Ordinance for saturation attacks.

Bad/Mistaken Seeker Combinations

Wake/Therm Seeker Family

Primary Seeker	Secondary Seeker	Why is it bad?
ACT	ARAD	This seeker costs the same as ACT[ARAD] Seekers, and provides far less jamming resistance for the same seeker cost. For example if a target Chaff's but keeps its pulse Radar on, this missile will be seduced by the Chaff, while the ACT[ARAD] would reject the Chaff and hit the target.
ACT	[HOJ]	This seeker will track ships and reject Chaff as the Chaff won't emit a Jam signal. However on board Radar jamming is incredibly common in most fleets and if jammed would loose its ability to be a Straightrunner missile and fly off widely.
WAKE	[THERM]	... You know what you did.
ACT	CMD	As both are targeting seekers, the only way the CMD seeker will be given control of the missile direction is if the ACT is jammed. Effectively this seeker combination is easily defeated with a simple Chaff and serves to increase cost of the missile.

Auxiliary

Auxiliary components can be used to grant a bonus to the missile. They can only be used on missiles that include at least 4 components.

Auxiliary	Modifiers	Base Cost (pts)
Cold Gas Bottle	+150% Boost-Phase Strafe +100% Boost-Phase Turn Rate	1
Decoy Launcher	+3 Decoys Fired	12
Cluster Decoy Launcher	+6 Decoys Fired	30
Fast Startup Module	-66% Programming Time +20% Failure Rate	3
Hardened Skin	+20 Body Integrity	5
Radar Absorbent Coating	-40% Radar Signature Bonus	4
Self-Screening Jammer	RADAR - range: 2500m; radiated power: 5 kW; gain: 2 dB	5
Boosted Self-Screening Jammer	RADAR - range: 5000m; radiated power: 5 kW; gain: 4 dB; beam width: 10 deg	10

Warheads in support sockets

Some missiles (such as the CM-S-400) can equip warheads in the support sockets. This is effectively treated as a length 1 warhead, and is affected by slot scaling. e.g. an HEI warhead placed in the support socket in a CM-S-400 will deal 960 damage, exactly the same as a 1 length warhead on a CM-400, or a length 4 warhead on a SGM-2

Special Missiles

There are certain types of ammunition that could be loaded into launchers and operate just like missiles, but cannot be modified.

Mines

Mines are loitering traps that can be deployed to destroy passing ships and delay enemy movement

Upon deployment, mines will move up to 500m away. They take 90 seconds to arm, and are triggered by a magnetic detector with an activation range of 2000m. A non-friendly ship that comes within 2km will trigger the mine. Notably, the mine identifies friendly ships via Comms signal. If the comms signal is disrupted (e.g. manually turning off comms, antenna destroyed from battle damage, mine jammed by comms jammer) the mine will not be able to identify the friendly ship and will trigger on it. All mines have a wall thickness of 0.2, with a body integrity of 40, and are classified as size 3.

Unlike other missiles, the seeker on mines will not differentiate between friendly or hostile shops, even with comms on. A mine tripped by an enemy ship that then misses can then seek onto a friendly ship and hit it. In this case, friendly PD will not fire on the incoming mine.

Mines use an HEI payload, but with 100 damage fragments rather than 50 damage fragments, allowing it to destroy components much more easily on ships with a high damage resistance and damage threshold statistic.

Mine Body	Range (m)	Cruise Speed (m/s)	Cost (pts)	Networked
M-30 'Mattock' Mine	3750	250	5	No
M-30-N 'Mattock' Cooperative Mine	3750	250	6	Yes
M-50 'Auger' Sprint Mine	3850	700	10	No

Mines can be deployed from the ML-9 'Mine' Launcher.

Bombs

Bombs are an unguided dumb munition meant to either finish or disable ships. Mainly used by spacecraft such as fighters and bombers as finisher weapons, they utilize their high damage fragments similar to mines to break components with a high high damage resistance and damage threshold. Bombs have fratricide, meaning they detonate when destroyed, chain-reacting with other bombs in the radius. Despite being in the bomb category, FBU-15 behaves like a rocket.

Bomb Body	Size	Range (m)	Cruise Speed (m/s)	Wall Thickness (m/s)	Body Integrity (m/s)	Component Damage (Hp)	Damage per Ray (Hp)	Armor Penetration (cm)	Cost (pts)	Ability	Faction
FBU-15 Fragmentation Bomb	1	3999	300	0.075	25	700	20	15	1 per 3 units	Yes ; Boosted bomb with Fragmentation effect similar to HE-RPF
KBU-15 Bomb	1	2000	200	0.075	25	500	75	40	1	No
KBU-22 Bomb	2	2000	200	0.1	40	2500	100	60	2	No
CBU-40 Cluster Bomb	3	2250	200	0.5	100	500 per submunition	75 per subminition	40 per submunition	5	Yes; Releases 10 RBU-15 Boosted Bomblets

Rockets

Rockets are unguided missiles. They are not perfectly accurate and will slightly drift off course over time. Rockets are used exclusively by OSP.

Rocket Body	Size	Body Integrity	Wall Thickness	Range (m)	Speed (m/s)	Armor Penetration (cm)	Component Damage (Hp)	Cost (pts)
R-1 'Perch' Rocket	1	4	0.15	2975	350	15	300	1 per 6 units
R-2 'Piranha' Rocket	2	8	0.18	7000	350	38	850	2
R-3 'Spearfish' Rocket	3	120	0.25	6000	300	60	1500	3

Decoy Containers

Decoy Body	Range (m)	Speed (m/s)	Signatures	Cost (pts)
CM-4D1 Decoy Container (Clipper)	12528	54	RADAR; PSV RADAR	4
CM-4D1 Decoy Container (Line Ship)	10080	24	RADAR; PSV RADAR	6

Decoy containers appear as a ship, similar to the effects of a masquerade. These missiles are given a randomly generated name and take fleet prefixes friendly ships when being identified by enemy intelligence. These containers also emit radar signals that appear similar to a search radar which will show up on ELINT and attract ARAD seekers.

Decoy containers have 150hp, 2.0cm wall thickness, and unlike most other missiles, decoy containers can be hit and damaged by all weapons and projectiles.

Trivia

• Missile number codes do not need to be filled out, a tempest can have the code SGM-21 or SGM-2 and the game will allow it. The game will also allow multiple missiles to have the same number (though same name missiles will overwrite templates)

External Links

• Puppy's online missile engine tuner
• Marion's Neb Missile Range Isoline Calculator
• TTGI Calculator
• Salvo Leapfrog Calculator