Combustion Drive
Combustion Drive improves movement across your fleet.
Quick stats
| Effect at level 1 | Bonus |
|---|---|
| All ship speed | +12% |
Bonuses from the researched drives add to the ship’s base speed; researching a different drive does not remove the earlier drive bonus. Actual journey time also depends on distance, selected speed and the slowest ship in the fleet. Combustion itself adds no drive fuel penalty.
Cost and access
Available from level 0 without a lab or research prerequisite. Level 1 costs 3 base RP; later levels grow exponentially before any other-domain tier surcharge. The Research screen shows the current quote and saved funding.
Purchase a completed level immediately with RP, or use automatic investment. Metal, crystal and deuterium are not research payments in 3.0. Physical Research Labs increase RP income, not purchase speed.
Each fifth level adds another initial amount before compounding the bonus itself by 1%. See tier progression.
When to invest
Compare the displayed flight time and fuel quote before launch. A fast escort cannot make a slow capital ship travel faster. Buy the first level for its initial bonus, then weigh each additional percentage point against its rising RP price.