Hello everyone.

I would like to understand better how influence does work. As far as I understood, it is produced by your planets (because of buildings/heroes/whatever) and it gives you a total amount of influence produced on this planet. Then the sum of influence production from all your planet gives you the total amount of influence in your empire.

Also, the more influence is produced on a planet, the more its border expand (and if you produce more influence than one of your neighbor, your influence area can grow around its planet and with the appropriate tech you can buy its planet with influence).

But I don't understand some aspects.

For example, influence can be spent by laws or diplomatic actions. When I do it, does it changes the bordure expansion ? Or does the bordure expansion only depends on the influence produced on the planet and not the way I spend it.

I am not sure to really understand the diplomatic pressure system: how can I increase my diplomatic pressure toward someone ? I feel like it is related to influence but I'm not sure how. Also, does the diplomatic pressure plays a role in border expansion ?

When we make a new colony, we can boost it with influence. But I never saw any improvement in the time before I get the colony by doing this (whereas the dust expense really gives me a boost). What happens when you boost with influence an outpost ?

Thank you very much

Border expansion rate depends on system Influence production. Diplomatic pressure doesn't play role in border expansion, but vice versa is true.

Diplomatic pressure now is indirectly related to influence. It was affected by total raw influence production, but formulae changed in favor of score difference. Current mechanics are best described here. 

Most empires (notable exclusions are Vodyani, Riftborn, Vaulters and Umbral Choir) are growing their outposts by food. Outpost food is produced by system itself, usually just a small value from one pop, dependant on planet you've settled in. But also by food sent from your empire in logistic ships along starlanes. You can choose which system sends portion of its food production to outpost every few turns. Influence boost doubles exactly this amount of food sent.

The influence action increases the amount of food that is sent to the system. The number of turns doesn't increase, because it would probably be too hard to calculate when the ship with food would come to the system. It could also be destroyed while flying over there, so while the dust boost gives an easier calculable estimate as it boosts the food yield on system, the influence option doesn't.

Thank you for the answer.

Allright so let me try to summarize.

The dust boost increases the amount of production produced on the outpost.

The influence boost increases the amount of food that has been sent from the departure system containing the cargo ships.

The dust boost impact can directly be calculated because it doesn't depend on any external factor. The influence boost however can depend on wether or not there is a blocus on the system, if the cargo ship is destroyed etc.

Thus, in practice, the effect on influence will be seen only at the moment a cargo ship will reach the outpost. So like if at turn N the cargo has arrived on the outpost, and at turn N-1 it told me 10 turns before turning into colony. At this turn N this number will have "suddenly drop down" from 10 to for example 5 turns.

So in conclusion: the influence does provide a boost but the game cannot really calculate it. But effectively at the moment my cargo ship will have arrived my outpost will have received its boost.

Am I correct ?

But then the number of turn for groing the colony that is displayed only depends on the local production right ? Because even without influence boost I have some cargo ship arriving from abroad. So this same effect I am describing should occur without boosting with influence. 

Is that right ?

Yes.

The amount of Cargo is also changes with system food production. Large end game systems can send just enough food to complete colony in one delivery (300+). All influence action does is just doubles the amount sent. It's effective on outposts close to your well developed systems. If two empires are contesting same system, this action just might allow you to win the race.

Great, thank you !