Hi everyone!

Could we have some precise answers about how hacking works. If one wants to precisely calculate the route of their hacking we have to know:

-How is calculated hacking speed (on space lines/at a neutral node/at an enemy node/at a friendly node)? What are all the parameters involved?

-Can we have more precise information on the malus our traced system suffer?

-Can we know what the enemy precisely see as pieces of information when they get hacked?

-Is there any benefit of hiding ourselves from others (for hacking purposes) in the diplomatic menu?

-Is there any benefit of playing normal speed/fast speed/Slow speed game mode in terms of hacking?

I apologies if it is easily findable in the game but I struggle getting access to that information...

bobdavis wrote:

Hi everyone!

Could we have some precise answers about how hacking works. If one wants to precisely calculate the route of their hacking we have to know:

-How is calculated hacking speed (on space lines/at a neutral node/at an enemy node/at a friendly node)? What are all the parameters involved?

-Can we have more precise information on the malus our traced system suffer?

-Can we know what the enemy precisely see as pieces of information when they get hacked?

-Is there any benefit of hiding ourselves from others (for hacking purposes) in the diplomatic menu?

-Is there any benefit of playing normal speed/fast speed/Slow speed game mode in terms of hacking?

I apologies if it is easily findable in the game but I struggle getting access to that information...

1. On Hacking Speed

1.1 Hacking Speed on space lines

Various Empire Improvements (Infiltration Engine in SE3, Algorithm Optimization in SE4)

Population Collection bonus of UC

Law given by UC main quest reward

UC Hero Senator Skill

1.2. Hacking speed on node

Various Empire Improvements (Infiltration Engine in SE3, Algorithm Optimization in SE4) +

Population Collection bonus of UC +

Law given by UC main quest reward +

UC Hero Senator Skill +

Colonized +

Accelerator(Offensive Program) +

Encrypt(Defensive Program) -

Singularity +/- (it depends)

Backdoor in neighboring system +

UC unique system improvement -

2. Traced Penalty

2.1. Traced (Colony)

Blackout: your system will go blackout & disabled for a few turns

Blackmail: you will be forced to accept next contextual diplomatic terms. it is 'I promise not to hack you for n turns' in most cases.

2.2. Traced (Backdoor)

Backdoor will be revealed

2.3. Traced (Sanctuary)

Sanctuary will be revealed

3. 

Your system, {0}, has been hacked. The effects may be immediately visible, or may require you to investigate further. Try checking the System resource production details, looking in the Scan View, and checking your populations.

(Hacking by Major Factions)

Your System, {0}, has been hacked. The effects may be immediately visible, or may require you to investigate further. Try checking your Technology Tree, Resource Production, as well as your Active Laws.

(Hacking by Minor Factions or Pirates)

4. If you gets traced, they can protest you about the hacking, initiating contextual diplomatic terms.

5. Gamespeed will affect the Hacking speed but I don't know how it will affect the game balance.

Just because a sanctuary is revealed doesn't mean it will be destroyed. Also, if you increase the stealth level of the Sanctuary after it is revealed, it will be hidden again. 

Ok those explanations are great thanks!

Do you have just a little more info on hacking speed. I would like to see something like:

Imagine we count in hpfor hacking points

-Hacking this space line takes 90 hp + the system you try to hack has 100 hp

-You starting system generates 45 hp/turn

-You activated a hacking program : +30% hacking -> the total hack becomes 90 + 70 = 160 hp

-Then it takes 160/45 -> 4 turns to get hacked...

I see no such precise info on the hacking screen...

Valadeus wrote:

Just because a sanctuary is revealed doesn't mean it will be destroyed. Also, if you increase the stealth level of the Sanctuary after it is revealed, it will be hidden again. 

What are other requirements for destroying a sanctuary?

@Sotnik

You can destroy a Sanctuary with hacking. You can attack a revealed Sanctuary like any other colony. Those are the two ways to remove Sanctuaries that I've found. 

@Nuyu

A destroyed Sanctuary loses all population.

@Thomas2018

It does what it is intended to, the best way to see the effects of an Accelerator program are to hack to a node that you know will have a defense on it (like a Pirate lair) that is at least three to four nodes away from you starting point. As soon as you "reach" the Pirate Lair (you'll see a hacking event notification that tells you you reached the system) it will trigger the defensive program. Activate your Accelerator on that node at that time and what should take you three turns to complete will now take you two turns to complete (assuming nothing else is affecting your hacking speed). 

You can also tell if it is doing its job by the color of the bandwidth on your bandwidth bar. If you place it and the color is white then the program is inactive and doing nothing. If you place it and the color is red then you have placed it correctly and the program is active. 

It's also important to note that most defensive programs you run into are Encrypt programs which make your hack take 50% longer on that node, thus the Accelerator reduces that penalty to 20% (50% slower and 30% faster). 

Happy to help! One thing I should add is that the (your operation will take "x" turns to complete) that you see next to your hacking operations will not update until the next turn when you place an Accelerator. So in the example above, when you hit the Pirate Lair node it will say, for example, "Qorum -> Syrma (3 turns)" You put the Accelerator on and that will not change until the next turn. When you look at your hacking operations next turn, you'll see "Qorum -> Syrma (1 turn)" instead of 2 turns, that's how you know it's working. 

Alright, in the example you've provided you've put the Accelerator down too early. The Accelerator will not do anything until your hacking operation has reached the colony and begun hacking that node specifically. 

I am sorry the information isn't apparent but that's why I try to help where I can. I hope I've been helpful in this situation. Good luck out there!

Thomas2018 wrote:

Ok. See, almost everyone I talked too, or read posts of, does not understand this. 

Even youtuber GUD, who makes good movies, is using it incorrectly, or too soon at least, and even the Penumbra tutorial video does not explain this. There is exactly one small part in that video devoted to offensive hacking, without showing anything happening. "You can place an offensive program on any colonized node you dont own, on the path of one of your hacks. This may help bypass your opponent's defenses." That's it.

I am flattered to be mentioned in such context. It was my understanding that you can pre-emptively place offensive programs so that when your hack reaches that system it will take effect. I believe that is how it works, you just won't see the turn decrease until your hack reaches the system. That being said there is a lot of useful information in this post and I've been striving to clarify as well as I can :)

Thanks for watching and I hope you enjoy the content even if we're all figuring this stuff out together still.

You cannot destroy a Sanctuary from tracing (as far as I know), only from hacking it directly. 

Valadeus wrote:

You cannot destroy a Sanctuary from tracing (as far as I know), only from hacking it directly. 

That's nice, so enemy need to hack the nodes to destroy it even it is their own systems. So how about the Sleepers, in what way enemy could kill/remove them?