Cosmic Starship has six difficulties, picked in the mission briefing and changeable at any time. Harder difficulties bring bigger, tougher fleets and pay more. All six are open from the first battle, so pick the one that suits you.
| Difficulty | Enemy level | Reward |
|---|---|---|
| Explorer | 3 | ×0.8 |
| Standard | 7 | ×1 |
| Commander | 11 | ×1.1 |
| Veteran | 15 | ×1.3 |
| Nightmare | 19 | ×1.5 |
| Cataclysm | 24 | ×1.65 |
Threat: ten levels above Cataclysm
When Cataclysm feels easy, Threat adds one new rule per level, on top of the ones before it, and each level pays 10% more salvage. A win at a Threat level opens the next one.
- Ironclad
Hostile hulls and shields +15%. - Overcharged
Hostile damage +12%. - Elite tide
More elites, each with three affixes. - Thin margins
Repair drops are rarer and your shields are 10% weaker. - Ironclad II
Hostile hulls and shields +15% more. - Blitz casters
Hostile capitals use their skills more often; ambush packs every 25 s. - Overcharged II
Hostile damage +12% more. - Relic hunters
A hostile relic warship joins almost every battle. - Ironclad III
Hostile hulls and shields +20% more and damage +10% more. - Apex
Your hull is 15% weaker and elites lead every wing.
What each difficulty is for
- Explorer: room to learn. Gentler guns and smaller wings, 20% less salvage. Good for the story, or for trying a new ship.
- Standard: the campaign as designed, every mission at its own level.
- Commander: a real fight. Fleets of at least level 11 and bigger wings; a starter ship will feel it. 10% more salvage.
- Veteran: fleets of at least level 15, reinforcements every 70 seconds, hunters that go for your flagship, ambush packs and capital barrages. 30% more salvage.
- Nightmare: for fully upgraded capitals. Fleets of at least level 19 that grow with every mission, reinforcements every 55 seconds and two in five of every wing hunting you. 50% more salvage.
- Cataclysm: built to beat you. Fleets of at least level 24, reinforcements every 40 seconds and everything Nightmare does, harder. 65% more salvage, and the door to Threat.
When to step up
A good rule: move up one difficulty when you win three missions in a row without your flagship dropping below half hull. Move down when a mission takes more than three tries; the lost time costs more than the salvage bonus earns. The Deep Space Atlas and the civilization sagas can each keep their own difficulty, so you can farm one at a comfortable level while pushing another.
Harder difficulties are not only about upgrades. Before you grind, try a different doctrine (free to switch), give your squads better duties (see squad command), and build Meridian’s defense grid so your outpost holds the line with you (see the station guide).
Choosing well
A mission you win easily teaches you little and pays little; a mission you lose pays half. The sweet spot is a difficulty where you win most battles but have to use your abilities and squads to do it.