Espionage

Espionage is the basis of every good attack. You send a fleet made up only of probes (Spy probe) on the Spy mission to a foreign planet. On arrival you get a spy report, and then the probes fly home – unless they are discovered. You cannot take resources along on a spy flight.

What the report shows

You always see the target's resources and energy. How much more is revealed depends on how your Spy technology compares with the target's spy technology: buildings are the easiest to see, fleet and defenses need a lead, and research needs an even bigger one. The report also tells you whether the target's Teleporter is currently activated.

If you are behind on technology, you can make up for it with more probes. But be careful: every extra probe raises the risk of being discovered – and if the probes are discovered, all of them are lost. The exposure chance is shown in your report.

Counter-espionage

When someone spies on you, you get a message with the planet they came from. How easily enemy probes are discovered depends on your own Spy technology and on the size of the fleet and defenses on the planet. Discovered probes are destroyed and leave a debris field.

The higher your Spy technology, the more precisely you can also see incoming fleets: with little technology you only see that something is coming, with more you see the ship types and finally their exact numbers. Stealth bombers stay invisible during the first half of their flight regardless.

Spying on aliens

You cannot spy on alien planets with spy probes. Send a fleet made up only of Jammer probe units instead. Among other things, the report shows you how strong the alien shield still is (Alien planets).

• Spy assistant: Lists all members of an alliance and shows all of a player's planets that are older than 24 hours on their profile (Assistants).