Retrieve the red technology pennants from three orbiting planets. Carry one at a time and land back home to bank each delivery.
↑ / W thrust · ← → / A D rotate↓ / S brake · Space fireM system chart · T targetP / Escape pause
You inherit your planet's orbital velocity at launch. The sun and planets pull on your ship. Aim ahead of moving planets. The dashed red minimap line predicts up to 60 seconds or one orbit of coasting using moving planets and the actual gravity, stopping at the first surface encounter, marked with a red cross. Thrust, braking, and collisions change it. Gravity decreases as 1/r¹·⁶, more gently than reality, so paths are not necessarily ellipses.
Near a planet, braking matches its motion. Easy applies stronger approach braking. Touch its surface at or below 105 relative speed on Easy, or 65 on Medium and Hard to land safely. Hold still briefly to secure its technology. Release thrust, then press it again to launch.
A hard impact costs hull. Losing your ship returns unbanked technology to its planet; banked deliveries are safe.
Each defended planet has 1 alien on Easy, 2 on Medium, or 3 on Hard. Replacement patrols use the same limit.
Find Vesper by its wrench on the system chart and minimap. Land gently and remain docked for 2 seconds to restore all hull. The station also awards 750 salvage points once per mission; repairs remain available on later visits. Cargo stays aboard. Vesper is an optional stop, not a fourth delivery.
1,000 points for first securing each technology, 4,000 for delivering it, and 100 per enemy ship destroyed. Finish without destroying any enemy ships for a 6,000-point pacifist bonus. Each rescue adds 30 seconds to the scoring clock. Final score = (points + bonus) × difficulty multiplier ÷ (1 + scoring seconds / 600). Easy ×1, Medium ×1.5, Hard ×2.5. Difficulty is chosen before launch; changing it starts a new mission. Scoring time includes flight time and rescue penalties; paused time does not count. High scores stay on this browser.
Saucers guard their own planets and break off pursuit outside their patrol zone. Home is a safe harbor and repairs your hull. Red marks active threats, technology, and your selected route. There is no fuel limit. Launching gives a brief protection window. Colliding with a saucer damages your hull and destroys it, awarding 100 points and ending eligibility for the pacifist bonus. Launch and damage protection still briefly shield your hull.
✳ Pacifist · New scoring · Saved on this browser