Spying

Spying is the system for gathering information about another port. A spy report can reveal buildings, ships, resources, and other details that affect raids, sieges, conquest, and defense planning.

Spy Ships are not cargo ships and they are not mainline warships. Their value is information. Hidden defenders, valuable resources, strong Port Defenses, and Armada objectives all change the value of that information.

When to spy

Spying can happen before other fleet actions. Unknown ports, full-looking Warehouses, border ports, conquest targets, and Armada objectives are examples where hidden information can affect the result.

Spying affects four common action types:

A raid, where resources, defenders, and travel time affect the result.
A siege, where Fire Ships need the attack to win before they can pressure Port Defenses.
A conquest push, where Flagbearers are too valuable to send blind.
A defense call, where the enemy setup affects reinforcement, rebuilding, and resource movement.

Spy reports are information snapshots. A target can be poor, heavily defended, far away, or diplomatically complicated even after a report succeeds.

How Spy Ships behave

A spy-only attack is a spying mission. If the Spy Ships survive, the report can reveal details about the target port, including buildings, ships, and resources.

Mixed fleets behave differently. If Spy Ships travel with normal attackers, they are pulled into the battle instead of acting like a clean spying mission. They have low combat value, no cargo capacity, and can be lost like other ships.

Spy Ships unlock through Docks progress and currently become available at Docks level 5. They cost wood, cloth, metal, and population, so replacing them still matters even though they are not heavy warships.

Port weaknesses

A successful spy-only attack with surviving Spy Ships can discover a temporary weakness on the target port. The weakness is specific to the attacker and target port, so one player’s discovery does not reveal the same opening for everyone.

Weakness discovery starts from a 35% chance. Defender Spy Ships can reduce that chance, Port Defenses level 10 and above reduce it further, and offensive spy bonuses can improve it. The final discovery chance is limited between 5% and 45%.

Discovered weaknesses last 24 hours. While active, they can help a matching follow-up action:

Breached Wall: +10% Ship Attack.
Open Channel: +10% Influence Gain.
Exposed Powder Store: +15% Fire Ship Damage.
Watch Pattern Logged: +10% Spy Ship Scout Power.
Mapped Supply Yard: +10% Loot Capacity.

The attacker’s report can show a weakness when one is discovered. Later attacker reports can show when an active weakness was applied. Defender reports do not show the attacker’s weakness data.

Reading the report

After a spying attempt, the report connects to possible outcomes. Weak defenders and visible stored resources affect raid value. Strong Port Defenses affect Fire Ship and escort requirements. Strategic position can affect conquest or territory pressure.

A report is not a promise that the target will stay the same. Players can move ships, spend resources, receive support, or change plans while your fleet is travelling. Older reports are clues, not certainty.

Repeated reports can show whether information has changed. The value of fresh information rises when the target, fleet cost, or Armada objective is important.

Defending against spies

If you can spy, enemies can spy too. Port Defenses, Spy Ship protection, stored resources, and visible activity all affect how other players read a port. A port that looks easy to read can invite raids, Fire Ships, or conquest pressure.

Spy Ship protection and strong Port Defenses can make spying harder. This matters most on ports that hold resources, anchor Trade Routes, guard borders, or sit inside a territory your Armada wants to keep.

Information control is only one part of defense. Repeated spying or coordinated spying can reveal more over time, while port strength affects the cost of acting on that information.

Armada spying

Armada spying can involve multiple roles. One player can check a target, another can prepare Fire Ships, another can hold Flagbearers, and others can cover defense or trade support. A spy report becomes more useful when the group knows what question it answers.

Armada forum threads can preserve spying context: the target, timing, report contents, and possible next action. A thread can mark whether the group is considering a raid, siege, conquest, watch, or no action.

For territory play, spying helps identify which ports change regional control. A weak port may matter more than a rich port if capturing it changes who leads the territory.

Consequences to know

Attacking without current information can mean the fleet meets unexpected defenders, Port Defenses, or low-value loot.
Spy Ships in normal attacks fight as weak ships and can be lost.
Spy-only attacks can discover 24-hour weaknesses, but only the attacker sees and uses them.
Old reports can be outdated because players move ships, spend resources, and receive support.
Spying can reveal interest in a port.
Diplomacy can affect whether spying or attacking near Armada borders escalates conflict.