Endless Space 2 Complete Guide (6 Sections) | AntMag

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Welcome to Endless Space 2, Amplitude Studios' grand strategy game where you'll master the galaxy. You'll expand your empire, optimize your economy, and manage fleets, all while navigating interstellar politics and overcoming galactic challenges. This is a game for players who love deep strategy, empire building, and conquest on PC and macOS.

This guide dives deep into the core mechanics, from initial expansion and economic growth to advanced fleet management and hero development. We'll help you conquer your rivals and achieve victory, covering everything you need to know to master the galaxy.

Index

Walkthrough

1
Forward: Moves your ship into weapon range. Weapons fire when the blue icons above your ship's HP are blue, not red. This command is essential for attacking and sometimes defending. You can also press the A button.
2
Backwards: Moves your ship away from the enemy, helping to maintain optimal firing range. Your opponent will also maneuver similarly. You can also press the Y button.
3
Standby: Keeps your ship stationary. This command is used to increase the Command Gauge fill rate, which is necessary for issuing orders. You can also press the B button.
4
The Command Gauge: This gauge dictates your ability to issue orders. Its fill rate is significantly influenced by the fatigue gauge.
5
Dodge: Allows you to evade Barrage attacks, but increases the frequency of normal attacks hitting you.
6
Normal Attack: All available weapons fire one attack. Even if a weapon has multiple shots per salvo (X2, X3 damage multipliers), it counts as a single attack. This attack is accurate and usually hits.
7
Barrage: All available weapons fire three times, delivering devastating damage. This command deals no damage if the enemy is Dodging. It is most effective immediately after the enemy attacks or barrages, as they are unable to dodge. The AI often activates dodge preemptively, making normal attacks effective. A good strategy is to activate dodge yourself, retreat until your Command Gauge is full, and then barrage the enemy. While normal attacks can damage you, barrages can sink ships, so keep dodge enabled.
8
Melee: Boards the enemy ship. This command is only available after your first encounter with Valantin and requires you to be adjacent to the enemy. It initiates a rock-paper-scissors battle with the commands leader < shoot < slash < leader. Success depends on equipping security modules, having more crew cabins, and characters with high combat stats. Timing your commands to avoid syncing with the enemy's is crucial. Issue orders when the opponent's Command Gauge is about half full to maximize damage. Some characters have upgraded melee attacks: Commander (leader), Deathblow (slash), Marksman (shoot).
9
Fighters: Launches fighters from ships equipped with them. Fighters start weak but become powerful later in the game. They are effective due to:
- D.P.S.: They act as a persistent damage-over-time element, continuing to damage the target until forced back by enemy fighters or Anti-Aircraft (AA) guns, or their flight time expires. They ignore fleet formation, so rear ships also take damage.
10
Fleet Control: They hold enemy fleets in place. Even when attacking a single ship, the entire enemy fleet maintains formation. The AI will activate their fighters or AA commands, making them predictable and easier to barrage.
11
Fighter Counter: They are the best way to repel enemy fighters. When two fighter squadrons engage, they fight each other, dislodging your fleet from enemy fighters and allowing for easier retreat.
12
Anti-Aircraft (AA): Ship-mounted AA guns can dislodge enemy fighters but have drawbacks:
- Weapon Slot Limitation: AA guns occupy a weapon slot (typically small or medium). They are only effective against fighters and remain red unless fighters are present, reducing your offensive weapon capacity against capital ships.
13
Slow Fighter Takedown: AA guns take time to destroy enemy fighters. You remain vulnerable to barrages while they are firing. The command would be more useful if movement were allowed while AA guns are active.
14
Final Roar: Special command 1 functions like a barrage but with a higher critical hit rate. It is only available after settling the dispute between Alatyr and Druitesk. Critical hits ignore armor and deal full weapon damage.
15
Special Command 2: Varies by character. Characters with a 'C' next to their skill can use this command when placed in the first officer position.
16
Special Command 3: This is the ship's ability. Certain ships have a 'C' command that functions like a barrage, hitting all ships with infinite range. However, after use, the Command Gauge freezes for a period, and the damage quickly becomes less effective.

Tips

Use the Forward command to ensure your weapons are in range.
Activate Dodge when facing Barrage attacks.
Save Barrage for when the enemy cannot dodge, ideally after they attack.
Equip security modules and have crew with high combat stats for Melee battles.
Time your Melee commands carefully to avoid syncing with the enemy's.
Fighters are excellent for sustained damage and controlling enemy fleets.
Anti-Aircraft guns are generally considered less effective due to their limitations.
Final Roar is a powerful command for dealing high damage, especially against armored targets.
Special Command 3 can be devastating but has significant drawbacks after use.

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Walkthrough

1
In the Tavern, talk to Palmo. His navigation skill will increase +2. Talk to him again to get Artillery +2.
2
At Allied HQ, you’ll be briefed on missions. Delis will join your crew. Glavanis will give you 5000G.
3
In the Tavern at Argos, a guy will hit on Soneto, increasing Yuri, Torlo, or Ian's Artillery +1.
4
In Irvest Sector, Lesvos HQ, Terzi is present as a mercenary captain and recruitable. Delis will task you to escort a transport ship to CL 617 and return.
5
To recruit Terzi, go to the ??? next to you first. If you finish your mission before investigating, you’ll be too late to save him from Pavlov.
6
If you save Terzi, you’ll set his recruitment flag. Choosing to “see what we can retrieve” will yield blueprints for a Thalia class battleship. Complete the mission for 3000G.
7
In Chalkis HQ, Verga will order you to retake CL 665. Unequip any weapons that can hit multiple targets, such as the MRV missiles.
8
On the way to CL 665, Delis will tell you to take down a transport ship. You must rely on fighters and single targeting weapons to capture Villo. Choosing to “Stop him” after Delis’s racism gets the better of him will grant Fame +20.
9
Upon reaching CL 665, you must fight a carrier and two cruisers.
10
After winning, check the tavern before collecting your reward of 5000G.
11
In the Tavern at CL 665, talk to the middle-aged man with Sceptro. Giving Delfeno 500G will increase your fame +50.
12
After completing those two missions, Verga will reveal information about project Stelalumo. You must take out Nova Nacio’s best ship, a Paradizo-class carrier, with two battleships. Use fighters to handle their fighters and Final Roar to take out the battleships quickly.
13
After defeating the enemy fleet, Verga wants you to evacuate so he can use his Thalia class ships to knock the moon out of orbit.
14
“Talk to Deacon Verga” for Yuri Leadership +10 EXP.
15
“Talk to Vlasis Delis” to get Fame +50.
16
Boss Battle Abato: Abato will attack with one ship armed with powerful long-range weapons and can use Final Roar. Use fighters and close the distance to force him to use his weakest weapon. Use normal attacks at close range.
17
After defeating Abato, you will aid in the evacuation, as will Terzi if he is alive.
18
At Najbaro Control Center, 600 troops will attack in two waves. Choosing to “Evacuate without Delis” grants Fame +30.
19
Leave the planet. Pappas stayed behind to help. Transport civilians to Byzantium.
20
At Byzantium Shelter, talk to Terzi. This may be a recruitment flag for him.
21
At Joint HQ, Pappas is alive and recruitable, but Delis is not. Glavanis will task you to patrol the area, which consists of three random battles.

Tips

Beleko is a good character for security or artillery.
When fighting the carrier and two cruisers at CL 665, it's nothing you haven't fought before.
When fighting the Paradizo-class carrier, it's best to have as many fighters as you can carry.
Verga won’t listen to reason regarding dropping the moon.

hope we don’t land in prison again for that.

Character Flags: Andreas, Basadre and Jimenez/Ochoa and Lozano, Mariana, Emiliano
Ship Flag: Castilla
Module Flag: Navigation Bridge 8, Lookout 2

Walkthrough

1
In Rentinen, if you have the funds, build an Agrell battleship, which is a strong choice for the first half of this act and a good support ship for the latter half.
2
Visit the Tavern and select “talk to friends” to prompt a conversation with Karlo, granting him +2 combat.
3
At Alpha Quadrant HQ, Regeinland requests assistance, making Yuri a special officer to combat Lugovalos. You are now free to travel without fear of spaceport attacks.
4
After some exploration, Scneizer will summon you back, but you can delay this to complete sidequests first.
5
Return to Rentinen 2 and go to Alpha Quadrant HQ, where Scneizer tasks you with resolving the Escondido Civil War.
6
You must choose between supporting the government forces or the rebels. For a first playthrough, supporting the government forces is recommended as the rebel forces are quicker to defeat.
7
Visit Canopus and Octans to gather information about the rebels.
8
Dietrich may accompany you but does not join your fleet like Cico or Celina.
9
Be aware that Escondido ships are powerful.

Tips

The Agrell battleship is a highly effective ship for a significant portion of this act.
Consider completing sidequests before returning to Scneizer.
Supporting the government forces in the Escondido Civil War may lead to a faster resolution on your first playthrough.

of armor and will be able to shrug off just about every non-critical hit.

Alright, so you're running into these shield ships, huh? They're a real pain because they're almost immune to regular ship weapons. If a non-critical hit lands, it'll only do about 1 damage. Don't worry though, there are ways to deal with them!

Fighters are your friend here. While regular weapons tickle them, fighters seem to do normal damage. Your best bet is to use a 'formation foe' tactic. This lets you target ships *behind* the shield ship without any penalty, which is super useful for clearing out the support ships first. You'll be seeing a lot of these shield ships, so getting a handle on them now will save you a ton of headaches later in the campaign.

When you're facing a fleet with these shield ships, like the ones defending Dorado, the strategy is to focus on taking out the support ships quickly. This way, you can use your fighters indefinitely against the main threats. It might take a while, but it's a solid approach.

Later on, you might even run into a boss like Basadre where the main ship, the Navarra, is surrounded by four shield ships. The key here is that these shield ships don't have anti-fighter capabilities. So, if you haven't brought Gen along (who has a 'formation foe' ability that makes things much easier, though it costs fame), your best bet is to rely solely on fighters for damage. It's a slow process, but it's effective. The Eberlin carrier, with its capacity for 60 fighters, is a great choice for this kind of battle.

Remember, even though these ships are tough, with the right tactics and a bit of patience, you can overcome them!