Scanning & Intelligence
Scanning is how you see the rest of the universe. Without it, every other planet is a black box — you don't know who they are, what they have, or whether you can beat them.
This page covers the three scan types, the two distinct success-rate formulas, the boost-level system that drives mid-to-late-game scan duels, and how to defend against incoming scans.
For details on scanning to discover orbitals (the economic side of scanning), see Orbitals. This page focuses on intel gathering and defense.
The three scan types
| Scan type | Research required | Target | What it reveals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orbital scan | Basic Sweep Sensors | Your own planet | Discovers 1 new uninitiated orbital |
| Planet scan | Deep Space Scanners | Another player's planet | Orbitals, stockpiles, research count, PDS composition, race |
| Military scan | Deep Space Scanners | Another player's planet | Home fleet, fleets in transit, total fleet power |
Orbital scans are economic — they grow your planet. Planet and military scans are intelligence — they target other players. These two categories use different success-rate formulas in v2 (more on this below).
Orbital scan
Targets your own planet. Costs Silicon. Adds 1 uninitiated orbital on success. Triggers no alert anywhere — purely internal.
See Orbitals for the economic-side mechanics including batching, the pity bonus system, and the per-tick baseline locking.
Planet scan
Targets another player's planet. Failed scans alert the target. Successful scans appear silently in your news feed.
Success reveals:
- Total initiated orbitals (Ti/Si/Ur breakdown)
- Total uninitiated orbitals
- Approximate resource stockpiles (rounded to thousands)
- Research count completed
- Full PDS composition (each defense type and approximate quantity)
- Race (visible after the first successful scan; persists for the season)
- Commander archetype
- If Quantum Scanners researched: target's last 10 news events (ships completed, fleet arrived, fleet returned, battles)
Failed scans tell you nothing useful about the target.
Military scan
Targets another player's planet. Same alert behavior as planet scans.
Success reveals:
- Every ship in their home defense (by type and quantity)
- Every fleet currently in transit (target, mission, ETA, composition)
- Total fleet power
- If Quantum Scanners researched: per-fleet ship breakdown — you see exactly which ships are in which fleet, separated from planet storage. Cloaked ships and Spymaster T4 cloaked fleets are excluded from the reveal.
The Quantum Scanners boost on military scans is significant. Without it, fleet power is a single aggregate number — you know the target has 200 000 fleet value but not whether it's 50 Battleships or 5 000 Fighters. With Quantum Scanners + military scan, you see exact composition, fleet by fleet.
This is the scan you want before launching an attack. It tells you exactly what you're hitting.
Two success-rate formulas
Orbitarion v2 uses two distinct formulas depending on scan type:
| Scan type | Formula |
|---|---|
| Orbital scan | Legacy linear formula (base 80% − orbital penalty + bonuses) |
| Planet + Military scans | New logistic sigmoid based on scanner-level vs blocker-level |
The orbital formula is the gentle "you scan your own backyard" math. The intel formula is the arms race: invest in scan-boost levels to penetrate, invest in jam-boost levels to defend.
Orbital scan formula (legacy)
chance = 80 − (total_orbitals × 0.5) + scan_bonus + race_bonus + spymaster_bonus + pity_bonus
Clamped between 5% and 95%.
| Factor | Effect on chance |
|---|---|
| Base | 80% |
| Each total orbital (initiated + uninitiated) | −0.5% |
| Scanning research (4 tiers of +10%) | Up to +40% |
| STC race | +10% |
| Spymaster T1 (Sharp Intel) | +5% |
| Pity bonus (4+ consecutive fails) | up to +30% |
This formula does not use the scan-boost / jam-boost level system. Orbital scans target your own planet — there's no defender to roll a blocker against. See Orbitals for the deeper breakdown, batching mechanics, and pity bonus.
Intel scan formula (v2 logistic sigmoid)
For planet scans and military scans, the engine computes a scanner-level for you and a blocker-level for the target, then runs a logistic sigmoid:
scanner_level = your.scan_boost_level
+ FLOOR(scan_research / 5)
+ FLOOR(spymaster_scan_bonus × 100 / 5)
blocker_level = target.jam_boost_level
+ FLOOR(target.scan_block_research / 10)
+ FLOOR(target.spymaster_block_chance × 100 / 5)
chance = clamp(2%, 98%, 100 / (1 + 10^(-(scanner_level − blocker_level) / 10)))
The sigmoid creates a smooth gradient where small advantages compound:
| Diff (scanner − blocker) | Success chance |
|---|---|
| −20 | 2% (floor) |
| −10 | 9% |
| −5 | 24% |
| 0 (parity) | 50% |
| +5 | 76% |
| +10 | 91% |
| +20 | 98% (cap) |
Each ~5 levels of separation roughly doubles or halves your effective chance. The arms race is real: keep scanner_level above your typical targets' blocker_level, or scan reliability craters.
How research converts to levels
Research effects don't directly add chance percentages anymore — they convert into scanner-levels or blocker-levels:
| Research | Effect | Converts to |
|---|---|---|
| Each Scanning research tier (+10 effect_value, 4 tiers) | Sum: +40 | +8 scanner-levels (÷5) |
| Counter-Intel chain (max effect_value = 85) | MAX (not sum) | +8 blocker-levels (÷10) |
| Spymaster T1 (scan_success_bonus +5%) | 0.05 | +1 scanner-level (×100÷5) |
| Spymaster T3 (scan_block_chance +30%) | 0.30 | +6 blocker-levels (×100÷5) |
Key subtlety: Counter-Intel research uses MAX of all researched tiers, not SUM. Once you have Signal Jammers (effect_value 85), researching the lower tiers no longer adds anything — they're prerequisites only. This is different from scan research where each tier sums.
Block research is also "heavier" per level: it divides by 10 to convert, while scan research divides by 5. So full block research gives the same +8 levels as full scan research, but with half the absolute % value (85 vs 40). The system is intentionally balanced so that defenders need more research investment per blocker-level than scanners need per scanner-level.
Pity bonus (orbital scans only)
If you keep failing orbital scans, the game guarantees you'll eventually succeed. After 4 consecutive failed orbital scans, the next scan gets +10% bonus. After 5, +20%. After 6+ consecutive fails, the bonus caps at +30%.
A successful scan resets the streak to 0. The pity counter is per-planet, not per-target. Intel scans do not have a pity bonus — the sigmoid is the only mechanic.
Scan & Jam boost levels
Beyond research, every planet can invest directly in raising its scanner_level or blocker_level by purchasing boost levels with resources.
Scan boost (penetration)
Purchased via the Intel screen.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Prerequisite research | Deep Space Scanners |
| Stored on | planets.scan_boost_level (integer 0-999) |
| Hard cap | 999 levels |
| Each level adds | +1 scanner_level (direct) |
| Cost for next level | 2 000 × 1.12^current_level Si + 500 × 1.12^current_level Ur |
Jam boost (block)
Purchased via the Intel screen.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Prerequisite research | Any Counter-Intel research (Scan Blockers tier minimum) |
| Stored on | planets.jam_boost_level (integer 0-999) |
| Hard cap | 999 levels |
| Each level adds | +1 blocker_level (direct) |
| Cost for next level | 2 000 × 1.12^current_level Si + 500 × 1.12^current_level Ur |
Geometric cost progression
Both boost types share the same geometric cost curve. Each level costs 12% more Silicon and 12% more Uranium than the previous one:
| Level | Cost for next |
|---|---|
| 0 → 1 | 2 000 Si + 500 Ur |
| 5 → 6 | ~3 500 Si + 880 Ur |
| 10 → 11 | ~6 200 Si + 1 550 Ur |
| 20 → 21 | ~19 300 Si + 4 800 Ur |
| 30 → 31 | ~60 000 Si + 15 000 Ur |
| 50 → 51 | ~580 000 Si + 145 000 Ur |
| 80 → 81 | ~18 000 000 Si + 4 500 000 Ur |
The first 30 levels are routine investments through mid-game. Past level 50 you're paying mega-quantities per level, and past 80 it's hyper-investment territory most players never reach.
Practical ceiling: most active players sit at 20-40 levels in late-game; whales and Spymaster-archetype players push 60+. The 999 cap exists to prevent overflow, not as a target.
Practical scanner_level / blocker_level totals
In a typical mid-game competitive engagement:
| Profile | Approximate level |
|---|---|
| New player, no boost, no research | 0 |
| Mid-game with full scan research (no boost) | +8 |
| Mid-game scanner with 20 boost levels | +28 |
| Late-game Spymaster with full research + 50 boost | +60 |
| Endgame whale, 90 boost + research + Spymaster | +100 |
The same applies on the defender side for blocker_level. Effective penetration is the difference between scanner_level and blocker_level — your absolute number matters less than how it compares to your target's.
Investment pacing
Most players follow:
| Tick range | Investment |
|---|---|
| Early game (tick 1–200) | Skip boost levels entirely. Research is enough |
| Mid game (tick 200–800) | Buy first 15–25 boost levels in either scan or jam, depending on role |
| Late game (tick 800+) | Push to 30–50 levels in your priority direction |
You don't typically maintain both scan and jam at high levels simultaneously — it's expensive. Most players specialize: aggressive players push scan_boost, defensive players push jam_boost, and alliance Spymasters mix based on their role.
Cost
Scans cost Silicon. The formula:
scan_cost = 1000 + (initiated_orbitals × 50) silicon
Uninitiated orbitals do not count — only the active ones. A starting planet (6 initiated) pays 1 300 Si per scan. A planet with 50 initiated pays 3 500 Si.
STC race no longer gets a scan cost discount in v2 — that was a v1 perk.
Cost reductions
| Source | Reduction |
|---|---|
| Spymaster T1 — Sharp Intel | −10% scan cost |
A Spymaster T1 player with 50 initiated orbitals pays 3 150 Si per scan (3 500 × 0.9). Modest but compounds across hundreds of scans per season.
Free scans
Three sources of free scans (no Silicon cost):
| Source | Frequency | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Rewarded ad — orbital choice | 1 per 4-hour cooldown (real time) | Choose "orbital" from the 4 rewarded-ad options. Premium skips the ad but shares cooldown. See Orbitals. |
| Alliance Gold tier | 1 per 24 ticks | Requires alliance Gold tier or higher |
| Alliance Platinum tier | 2 per 24 ticks | Requires Platinum |
| Alliance Diamond tier | 3 per 24 ticks | Requires Diamond |
Alliance-tier free scans reset every 24 ticks. The rewarded-ad scan has a hard real-time cooldown.
Important note: the rewarded-ad "orbital" reward is the ONLY free orbital-scan source. The other three rewarded-ad rewards (resource boost, production token, research token) do not include a free scan — choosing those locks you out of the orbital reward via the shared cooldown.
Scanning research
Six technologies in the Scanning branch. Each tier requires the previous one.
| # | Research | Ticks | Cost (Ti / Si) | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Basic Sweep Sensors | 6 | 500 / 1 500 | Unlocks orbital scanning |
| 2 | Advanced Orbital Sensors | 18 | 3 000 / 4 000 | +10 scan_bonus (+2 scanner_level for intel scans) |
| 3 | Deep Space Scanners | 30 | 8 000 / 12 000 | Unlocks planet + military scans, unlocks scan_boost purchases |
| 4 | Scan Enhancement | 24 | 5 000 / 7 000 | +10 scan_bonus (cumulative +20) |
| 5 | Signal Amplifiers | 34 | 6 000 / 9 000 | +10 scan_bonus (cumulative +30) |
| 6 | Quantum Scanners | 46 | 10 000 / 15 000 | +10 scan_bonus (cumulative +40 = +8 scanner_level total). Plus: planet scans reveal target's last 10 news events; military scans reveal exact per-fleet ship composition |
How research interacts with the sigmoid
For intel scans, the four +10 research tiers sum to +40 scan_bonus, which converts to +8 scanner_level for the sigmoid (40 ÷ 5).
For orbital scans, the same +40 adds directly to the linear formula as a +40% bonus to your roll chance.
A full scanning chain therefore has two effects depending on context: substantial penetration uplift for intel scans, and a flat +40% to orbital scan success.
Quantum Scanners is the most valuable end-tier
In v1, Quantum Scanners was a slow +10% with little extra punch. In v2, it adds two new intel reveals on top of the +10:
- On planet scans: target's last 10 news events surface in your scan result. You see ships completed, fleets arrived/returned, attacks survived, etc. This is essentially a free Discord-feed look at the target's recent activity.
- On military scans: per-fleet ship composition. You don't just see "target has 200k fleet value" — you see "Fleet #1: 50 Falcons + 20 Vanguards + 5 Pegasus" and "Fleet #3: 200 Stingers, en route to galaxy 4:7".
Most aggressive players consider Quantum Scanners the difference between guessing and knowing. It's worth the 46 ticks.
Alert mechanics
When a planet scan or military scan fails, the target gets an alert. Orbital scans never alert anyone.
What the target sees
By default, a failed scan alert tells the target only:
"An unknown observer attempted to scan your planet. The scan was blocked."
No identity, no fleet power, no class. The target knows they're being watched, but not by whom.
Counter-Intelligence — see the scanner
If the target has researched Counter-Intelligence, the alert is upgraded:
"PlanetName ([Tag]) attempted to scan your planet. Their fleet power: 1 234 567."
The target now knows exactly who scanned them and how strong they are. They can immediately:
- Scan you back
- Send fleets to deter you
- Tag you in their alliance's intel channel
- Pre-emptively recall their own fleets in case you attack
This makes Counter-Intelligence one of the strongest defensive research nodes — knowledge of attacker identity is often more valuable than blocking the scan itself.
Spymaster T1 — see scanner randomly
Even without Counter-Intelligence, a Spymaster T1 player has a 15% chance to see who scanned them on every failed scan. Stack T1 with Counter-Intelligence and every failed scan attempt reveals the scanner.
Scan blocking — make scans fail
If you don't want to be scanned, raise your blocker_level. Three sources combine:
1. Counter-Intel research (MAX, not sum)
| Research | scan_block effect_value | blocker_level contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Scan Blockers | 50 | +5 blocker_level |
| Advanced Scan Blockers | 70 | +7 blocker_level |
| Signal Jammers | 85 | +8 blocker_level |
Important: the engine uses MAX of researched Counter-Intel tiers, not the sum. Once you have Signal Jammers, the lower tiers contribute nothing additional — they're prerequisites only. This is unlike scanning research, which sums tiers.
So researching the full Counter-Intel chain (50 → 70 → 85) gives you a final +8 blocker_level, not +20. The 50 and 70 values are stepping stones during research progression.
2. Jam boost levels
Each jam_boost_level purchased adds +1 blocker_level directly. See the Boost Levels section above.
A defender with full Counter-Intel research (+8) and 30 jam_boost levels has blocker_level = 38.
3. Spymaster T3 — Counter Intelligence
Spymaster T3 adds scan_block_chance 0.30, which converts to +6 blocker_level (×100÷5).
Stacking
A maxed defender combines all three:
| Source | blocker_level |
|---|---|
| Signal Jammers research | +8 |
| Jam boost (50 levels) | +50 |
| Spymaster T3 | +6 |
| Total | 64 |
Against an attacker with scanner_level 30 (mid-game intel-focused player), the sigmoid math:
diff = 30 − 64 = −34
chance = 100 / (1 + 10^(-(-34)/10)) = 100 / (1 + 10^3.4) ≈ 0.04% → clamped to 2%
That's the practical effect: a 30-level scanner attacking a 64-level blocker hits the floor (2%) and basically can't scan you. The arms race favors big investments on both sides — small advantages aren't enough.
Spymaster T3 — decoy fleets
T3 also unlocks 1 decoy fleet per 48 hours. Send a decoy and it appears in scanners as a real fleet (with composition) but contains zero ships. Use it to bait an attacker's defense fleet out of position before sending your real attack.
Spymaster T4 — cloaked fleet
T4 — Shadow Network — unlocks 1 cloaked fleet per season that ignores all enemy scanners regardless of their research or boost levels. It's the strongest single-use intel weapon in the game. See Commanders for the full mechanic.
Spymaster T2 — Deep Recon (fleet scan)
Spymaster T2 unlocks something no scanning research can give: automatic incoming fleet composition reveal.
When another player attacks you with Deep Recon active on your Commander, the incoming fleet's exact ship types and quantities appear in your news feed when the attack is launched. You can:
- Build a precise counter-fleet
- Recall your home fleet if you're outmatched
- Coordinate alliance defenses with exact intel
- Identify whether ATH EMP escorts are coming, STC steal-ships, etc.
There is no roll. There is no block. Once you have Spymaster T2, you see all incoming fleets in full detail. It's an automatic ability, not a per-scan investment.
Fleet Interception research
The defensive Counter-Intel research Fleet Interception gives a similar (but not identical) effect: failed scans on you reveal the attacker's fleet composition. The combination — Spymaster T2 + Fleet Interception — gives you incoming intel from both directions.
Race differences
Scanning behavior varies by race:
| Race | Scanning identity |
|---|---|
| UEC | Standard scanning. No bonuses |
| ODO | Standard scanning. No bonuses, but +15% research speed shortens chain time |
| ATH | +20% research speed makes Quantum Scanners faster to reach, but no scan-success bonus |
| STC | +10% scan_success bonus (orbital scans only — converts to +2 scanner_level for intel scans) |
The STC scan-cost discount and initiation discount from v1 are removed in v2. STC's only scanning advantage now is the +10% success bonus (orbital scans) / +2 scanner_level (intel scans).
Player profiles
How different player styles approach the scanning + boost system:
- Aggressor: Stop at Signal Amplifiers (+30 scan_bonus / +6 scanner_level). Skip Quantum Scanners initially. Pour resources into scan_boost levels (20-30) for fast penetration on neighbors. Add Spymaster T1 for the cost discount and pity boost.
- Defender: Research Signal Jammers (+8 blocker_level) and Counter-Intelligence (for scanner-identity reveal). Pour resources into jam_boost levels (30-50). Spymaster T3 adds +6 blocker_level and decoy fleets.
- Intel-focused alliance member: Push to Quantum Scanners (+8 scanner_level via research, plus the news/fleet reveals). Pair with Spymaster T2 (incoming intel) and 40+ scan_boost levels. Your role is to know everything; the resources are worth it.
- Hybrid: Some Spymaster archetype players run both scan and jam at moderate levels (15-25 each). It's expensive but lets them switch between offense and defense within the same season.
When to scan what
| Situation | Scan to use |
|---|---|
| Growing your economy | Orbital (your own planet) |
| Looking at a neighbor's planet | Planet scan |
| Before launching an attack | Military scan + planet scan (both, ideally with Quantum Scanners for full fleet breakdown) |
| Checking if a rival is vulnerable (their fleet is away) | Military scan |
| Quick rich-target check (do they have a lot of orbitals?) | Planet scan |
| Confirming Defender's PDS investment before attack | Planet scan |
| Tracking what a rival has done recently | Planet scan + Quantum Scanners (news events reveal) |
| Identifying exact fleet compositions per fleet | Military scan + Quantum Scanners (per-fleet breakdown) |
Combine planet + military scans for full intel on a target. The cost is small relative to a planned attack — never attack blind.
Quick reference
| Concept | Detail |
|---|---|
| Scan types | Orbital · Planet · Military |
| Orbital scan formula | Linear: 80 − orbital × 0.5 + bonuses (clamp 5–95%) |
| Intel scan formula | Logistic sigmoid: 100 / (1 + 10^(-(scanner − blocker)/10)) (clamp 2–98%) |
| Scanner level = | scan_boost_level + research/5 + spymaster×100/5 |
| Blocker level = | jam_boost_level + max(scan_block_research)/10 + spymaster×100/5 |
| Sigmoid: parity (diff 0) | 50% success |
| Sigmoid: +10 levels | 91% success |
| Sigmoid: −10 levels | 9% success |
| Sigmoid: floor / cap | 2% / 98% |
| Scan boost: max level | 999 |
| Scan boost: cost per level | 2 000 × 1.12^lvl Si + 500 × 1.12^lvl Ur |
| Jam boost: max level | 999 |
| Jam boost: cost per level | 2 000 × 1.12^lvl Si + 500 × 1.12^lvl Ur |
| Scanning research total | +40 effect = +8 scanner_level |
| Counter-Intel research max | 85 effect = +8 blocker_level (MAX not sum) |
| Spymaster T1 scan bonus | +0.05 = +1 scanner_level |
| Spymaster T3 block chance | +0.30 = +6 blocker_level |
| Pity bonus (orbital scans only) | +10/20/30% after 4+ consecutive fails |
| Scan cost formula | 1000 + initiated × 50 Si |
| Spymaster T1 cost reduction | −10% |
| Rewarded ad cooldown | 4h (orbital choice) — shared with other 3 rewards |
| Free scans per 24 ticks (alliance) | Gold 1 / Platinum 2 / Diamond 3 |
| Max queued orbital scans | 25 |
| Quantum Scanners on planet scan | Reveals target's last 10 news events |
| Quantum Scanners on military scan | Reveals per-fleet ship composition (non-cloaked only) |
| Failure alert (planet/military) | Yes — Counter-Intel research upgrades alert to scanner identity |
| Spymaster T2 effect | Auto-reveal incoming fleet composition (no roll) |
| Spymaster T3 effect | +6 blocker_level + 1 decoy fleet per 48h |
| Spymaster T4 effect | 1 cloaked fleet per season (ignores all scanners) |
Documentation reflects Orbitarion v2.0. Last updated: 2026-05-29.