Impulses and Movement

The heartbeat of a Solar Vengeance game is measured in Impulses. Impulses are units of action that progress at a rate of about one per second. Impulses are displayed in the lower left corner of the game interface.

The Impulses in which a StarShip can move, attack, and act are governed by its Engine rating. The higher a StarShip’s Engine rating, the more frequently it will act.

The maximum number of Engines a StarShip can have is 20. A StarShip with 20 Engines will act on each and every Impulse. StarShips with fewer Engines will have some Impulses in which they do not act. For instance, a StarShip with 10 Engines will act only every other Impulse.

The relationship between Engines, Impulses, and ship action is important to understand, and can enhance your planning and strategy. As an example, you can usually send a very fast (E20) WarShip with a few Weapons to clear out a mass of slower Drones. The WarShip will move and attack each Impulse, damaging and destroying Drones as it goes. The WarShip will actually be able to execute many attacks before the Drones even have a chance to attack. When the Drones are finally able to attack, the odds of them destroying the WarShip are slim, because a Drone’s success rate is determined by the ratio of it and its target’s Engines.

Of course, this strategy can easily be countered by defending the Drones with a faster WarShip (or a StarTillery, etc.).