Planet Sizes, Traits, and the Light That Reaches Them

Planet Sizes, Traits, and the Light That Reaches Them

Habitable worlds used to feel interchangeable: same footprint on the map, same blank slate once you landed. That is no longer true. Size shows up from orbit. Surface and traits stay hidden until you send a Scout. Atmosphere density now decides how much sunlight your solar parks actually catch.

After: Planet sizes on the map, then and now
Before: Planet sizes on the map, then and now
Before After
Planet sizes on the map, then and now

Planet sizes

Habitable planets come in small, normal, and large. You can see the difference on the galaxy map: larger worlds read as bigger bodies, smaller worlds as tighter ones.

Size is more than cosmetics. A large planet gives you more surface to work with and costs a little more to build on. A small planet is cheaper to develop but leaves less room.

Scout surveys

Kind and size are visible before you commit. Surface layout and traits are not.

A Scout or FTL Scout can survey a habitable planet: 2 hours and 2,000 energy. When the survey finishes, your activity feed gets an entry with a link to that world.

More on sensor work and surveys: Scanners.

Planet traits

After a survey, many worlds carry one or two traits. They shape the terrain you get and how the colony plays.

Examples:

  • Hydrocarbon Seeps push more fuel-rich tiles onto the surface
  • Clear Skies or Abundant Solar Window thin the air and favor surface solar
  • Difficult Terrain makes building slower and more expensive
  • Ring System adds orbital room for stations and satellites

The full catalog lives on Sectors.

Atmosphere and solar

Star kind and orbit distance set how bright space is around a world. That orbit light feeds satellites.

On the ground, atmosphere gets in the way. Planet type sets a base density. Traits can thicken or thin it further. Thicker air cuts solar park output. Thin air lets more light through.

See Solar park and Satellite.

What to scout for

Bigger is not always better. Distance to the star still matters for how much light you get. Traits can make even a smaller or farther world a strong pick.

Feel free to use the in-game feedback button '💬' if something about a world surprises you.

Clear skies, commanders.
Ion Space HQ 👋