FTL: Faster Than Light
FTL: Faster Than Light

Cloaking Strategies

Master FTL's Cloaking system to evade enemy fire and enhance your offensive capabilities. Learn timing and strategic activation for maximum impact.

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Cloaking Strategies

The Cloaking system is arguably one of the most powerful defensive and offensive tools at your disposal in FTL. When activated, your ship becomes temporarily invisible to enemy targeting systems, causing all incoming projectiles to miss and beam weapons to deal no damage. Mastering its use can turn the tide of even the most desperate battles.

Acquiring Cloaking

Cloaking is not a starting system on most ships. You'll typically need to purchase it from a store for around 150-200 Scraps. It requires 1 power to function at Level 1, increasing with each upgrade. Prioritize acquiring this system early if your ship lacks strong defensive capabilities or if you're struggling with high-damage enemy setups.

Defensive Cloaking: Evading Damage

The primary use of Cloaking is to avoid damage. The key is timing. Activating Cloaking just as enemy projectiles are about to hit your ship will cause them to miss entirely. This is particularly effective against:

  • High-Damage Alpha Strikes: If an enemy ship has multiple powerful lasers or missiles that fire simultaneously, cloaking through their volley can save you significant hull damage.
  • Missile Barrages: Missiles are notoriously difficult to shoot down. Cloaking is a guaranteed way to evade them, especially early in a fight before your Shields are fully charged or your Defense Drones are online.
  • Beam Weapons: Beams deal continuous damage. Cloaking negates all damage from a beam weapon for its duration, making it invaluable against ships equipped with weapons like the Pike Beam or Glaive Beam.

Actionable Steps for Defensive Cloaking:

  1. Observe Enemy Weapon Charge: Pay close attention to the enemy's weapon charging bars.
  2. Anticipate Fire: As their weapons are about to fire, or just as the projectiles leave their ship, activate Cloaking.
  3. Power Management: If you're short on power, consider temporarily de-powering less critical systems (like Oxygen or Medbay if not immediately needed) to power Cloaking, then re-power them once the threat has passed.

Offensive Cloaking: Weapon Cooldown Manipulation

Beyond defense, Cloaking offers a unique offensive advantage: it allows your weapons to charge while the enemy cannot target you. This is crucial for ships with long weapon cooldowns or those relying on a powerful, synchronized alpha strike.

  • Glaive Beam Strategy: The Glaive Beam has a notoriously long charge time. Activate Cloaking immediately after firing your first volley. While cloaked, your Glaive Beam will continue to charge, allowing you to fire a second, devastating volley before the enemy can significantly damage you. This is a staple strategy for ships like the Lanius B (The Shrike).
  • Synchronized Volleys: If you have multiple weapons with different charge times, you can cloak to allow your slower weapons to catch up. For example, fire your faster weapons, cloak, let your slower weapons charge, then decloak and unleash a combined, powerful volley.

Actionable Steps for Offensive Cloaking:

  1. Fire Primary Weapons: Unleash your initial weapon volley.
  2. Activate Cloaking: Immediately activate Cloaking.
  3. Monitor Weapon Cooldowns: Watch your weapon charge bars. Your weapons will continue to charge while cloaked.
  4. Decloak and Fire: Once your weapons are ready, or just before Cloaking expires, decloak and fire your next volley.

Cloaking Levels and Upgrades

  • Level 1 Cloaking: Provides 5 seconds of invisibility. Good for dodging a single volley or buying a little time.
  • Level 2 Cloaking: Provides 10 seconds of invisibility. This is the sweet spot for many strategies, allowing ample time for weapon charging or dodging multiple enemy attacks.
  • Level 3 Cloaking: Provides 15 seconds of invisibility. While powerful, the increased power cost (3 power) and scrap investment might be better spent elsewhere unless you have a specific, long-cooldown weapon strategy in mind (e.g., multiple Glaive Beams).

Upgrading Cloaking is often a wise investment, especially to Level 2, as it significantly increases its utility for both defense and offense.

Cloaking Against the Flagship

Cloaking is indispensable in the final boss fight against the Rebel Flagship. Each phase presents unique challenges where Cloaking shines:

  • Phase 1 (Missile Salvo): The Flagship's triple missile launcher is a major threat. Cloak through its missile volleys to preserve your hull.
  • Phase 2 (Drone Swarm): The Flagship deploys a drone swarm, including a powerful Combat Drone and a Boarding Drone. Cloaking can buy you time to deal with boarders or destroy the Combat Drone before it shreds your shields.
  • Phase 3 (Power Surge): The Flagship's Power Surge ability unleashes a devastating volley of lasers and missiles. Cloaking is your best defense against this, allowing you to completely negate the surge's damage. Time it carefully as the surge charges.

Remember that Cloaking has a cooldown. Plan your activations carefully to ensure it's ready for critical moments, especially during the Flagship's power surges.