Corebound
Pilots
Every ship needs a pilot, and every pilot is a person: a face, a call sign, one or two traits, a rank and experience. Pilots never die – a pilot whose ship is shot down goes to the infirmary and comes back.
Traits
Every trait has a strength and (almost always) a weakness, so the best pilot depends on the ship. The values come from simulations: no trait wins more than a few points more often than any other.
| Trait | Strength | Weakness |
|---|---|---|
| Daredevil | +16 % damage | −5 evasion |
| Nimble | +8 evasion | −5 % hull |
| Trigger-happy | fires 20 % more often | −8 % damage |
| Tough | +18 % hull | fires 5 % less often |
| Shield master | +40 % shield | none – but only frigates, cruisers and capital ships have shields |
| Fighter ace | +15 % damage in a fighter | −10 % damage in any other ship |
| Bomber pilot | +8 % damage in a bomber | −10 % damage in any other ship |
| Capital commander | +10 % damage in a cruiser or capital ship | −10 % damage in smaller ships |
| Veteran (earned) | +10 % damage | – |
Synergies: put a fighter ace into a fighter and a tough pilot at the front. The game assigns free pilots to the ships they fit best; in the Hangar, tap the face on a ship to choose someone else – the list shows exactly what each pilot would do in that ship. In the Academy, tap a face for the pilot's profile: age, home world, current duty, experience to the next rank and what every trait does.
Ranks and experience
Cadet → Ensign → Lieutenant → Commander → Captain, from 0 / 30 / 80 / 160 / 300 experience. Everyone who flies in a battle gains experience: 10 for a win, 5 for a defeat – even pilots who were shot down. Every rank above cadet adds 4 % damage and hull. Ranks come with abilities: a Lieutenant earns the trait Veteran (+10 % damage), a Commander becomes a Tactician (+5 evasion, fires 5 % more often) and a Captain an Ace (+10 % damage and hull). Promotions show up in your report.
Training
Once the academy module on the research station reaches level 2, a pilot's profile offers training: pick a trait the pilot doesn't have yet, pay 150 credits and wait about two hours (faster with academies and the academy module). A pilot can have up to three traits of their own; the rank abilities come on top. Because every trait is about equally strong in our simulations, there is no single right choice – train what fits the ship.
The Academy lists your whole crew with their traits, their rank and how close they are to the next one.
Into the next season
When a season ends, your pilots follow you to the new galaxy. They keep every trait – also Veteran, Tactician and Ace – but their experience starts again at zero, so the rank bonus has to be earned again. The highest rank a pilot ever held stays in their profile. More in Seasons & ranking.