Beating the Impossible AI in PvP Maps – TEC Enclave Strategy

I finally managed to beat the AI on Impossible difficulty in 1v1 PvP-style maps.
I’m not sure how hard this is for the broader community, but for me, it was extremely challenging. I had already attempted it several times, and only after mastering Nightmare difficulty did it feel doable. I always play as the TEC Enclave and let the enemy faction be chosen randomly.
On Map 1, I faced the Vasari Exodus. On Map 2, the Advent Reborn. In both cases, I used the same strategy. Here’s the full priority list I followed.

🔧 Early Game Setup (Always do this):
Build 3 Light Frigate Factories at the very start to speed up ship production.

Start with a Sova Capital Ship, upgrading the Mass Production ability first. This boosts all construction on the current planet—including shipbuilding—by up to +45% at max level, and the Sova's strike craft are great for clearing planets early.

Early fleet: 25 Cobalts, 1 Colonizer, and the rest Gardas.

📍 Step-by-step Strategy:
1. Border Control & Early Planning
Scout the galaxy and decide which planets will serve as defensive borders—those are where you’ll build your strongest defenses.

Map out all exotic resources, and prioritize planets with endurium.

Aim to build 4 Military Labs ASAP and research Garrison Recruitment—this is crucial since the AI often attacks from multiple fronts. Garrison will help stall them.

2. Research Priorities
Military Tech (early priorities):

Basic Provisioning

Military Grade Rounds

Hull Reinforcement

Advanced Metallurgy

Hardened Defense

After 4 Military Labs:

Provisioning Doctrine

Fuel-Efficient Deployment

Unlock Hoshiro, Kalev Gauss, and Percheron frigates

Continue with: Repair Systems, Reserve Squadron Hangars (if using Sova), Frigate Shield Refit

Civilian Tech (prioritize):

Standard Metal & Crystal Upgrades

Fortification Specialist

Counter-Deployment

Modular Architecture

Foreign Sabotage

Regional Government (to maximize build slots on few planets)

Once your economy stabilizes, upgrade Orbital Commerce for income.

3. Mid-Game Expansion
Use exotic resources to build more capital ships, especially Kol (damage + tank) and Akkan (for trade boost).

If metal and crystal are cheap, buy them and trade for credits; if they’re expensive, do the opposite.

4. Economic & Military Scaling
Increase to 8 Civilian + Military Labs. Build 2 Light Frigate Factories + 1 Heavy Factory on every border planet.

With Negotiation + Counter-Deployment, ship production gets +60% faster—with Sova nearby, that’s +105% speed.

Once you hit 8 Military Labs, replace your Cobalts with Hackas and Javelis.

Prioritize building refineries, cargo hold upgrades, and labor/permit negotiations for maximum growth.

5. Full Build-Up & Titan Race
Aim for 15 total labs and start Titan construction ASAP.

⚔️ Combat Preparation
Around the 25–30 minute mark, fortify border asteroids:

Build: Light Frigate Factory, Garrison Upgrade, 10 Autocannons

Position 5 Cannons in front line, 5 behind for max firepower.

AI usually doesn’t flank, so this setup buys you valuable time.

Add Starbases on borders once refineries are running. Upgrade gradually.

Maintain 25–30 Kalev Gauss frigates in fleet. Keep them protected—together with Kol ships, they’ll shred enemy capital ships before they retreat, often granting free exotics.

Ideal Capital Ship Composition:

3 Kol

2 Dunov

1 Akkan

1 Marza

1 Sova

Keep 25–30 Gardas close to protect against missiles. Have Hoshiros for continuous repairs.

Every time the enemy attacks and fails, expand your fleet using the bonus speed. Keep the pressure constant.

If the AI retreats or sacrifices its labs to keep producing ships, you delay their Titan significantly—sometimes yours is finished before theirs even starts.
(Not sure if it's a bug, but it works!)

Install Titan attack modules and finish your final tech upgrades, focusing on damage, sustainability, and ship-specific item bonuses.

💡 Final Tips
Upgrade your Prestige Points to win more auctions—many minor faction items are extremely useful.

Example: United Planast's "Unassailable Fortress" (+10 military slots and +5000 HP). Always use this on border planets.

⚠️ Facing TEC Primacy?
Good luck—they’re by far the hardest enemy, mainly due to the Novalith Cannon. Three hits can destroy your homeworld or a key planet.

Always research Planetary Shields if you’re fighting Primacy. /

I managed to beat both Map 3 and Map 4. I'm still playing as TEC Enclave and sticking to roughly the same strategy. However, for Map 3, I chose to start with the Kol battleship, since the first enemy push came around the 20–25 minute mark — I needed more initial firepower.

Another important point: the AI tends to keep its fleet in the central galaxy. You should launch some raids in your home galaxy, destroying structures and planets to force the AI to retreat. When it does, retreat your fleet to nearby planets. The central galaxy is usually too difficult to conquer and defend, so you should aim to build your Titan using only the five planets in your own galaxy. Everything else remains the same.

Tip: This might be obvious, but always keep your fleet stationed at the planet with the weakest static defenses. The AI almost always attacks the planet without ships, but that should be the one with your best turrets and static defenses. Once the enemy fleet arrives, quickly move your ships there.



In Map 3 I faced the Advent, and in Map 4 I faced the Vasari. I'm still using random factions and the default settings.

Map 4 Tip:
Conquer the side planet before the AI does — this will give you an early resource advantage. But be careful: the AI tends to attack early, around the 15-minute mark.



In this match, I started with the Sova carrier to focus on ship production.

Beating the Impossible AI in PvP Maps – TEC Enclave StrategyShare

I finally managed to beat the AI on Impossible difficulty in 1v1 PvP-style maps.
I’m not sure how hard this is for the broader community, but for me, it was extremely challenging. I had already attempted it several times, and only after mastering Nightmare difficulty did it feel doable. I always play as the TEC Enclave and let the enemy faction be chosen randomly.
On Map 1, I faced the Vasari Exodus. On Map 2, the Advent Reborn. In both cases, I used the same strategy. Here’s the full priority list I followed.

🔧 Early Game Setup (Always do this):
Build 3 Light Frigate Factories at the very start to speed up ship production.

Start with a Sova Capital Ship, upgrading the Mass Production ability first. This boosts all construction on the current planet—including shipbuilding—by up to +45% at max level, and the Sova's strike craft are great for clearing planets early.

Early fleet: 25 Cobalts, 1 Colonizer, and the rest Gardas.

📍 Step-by-step Strategy:
1. Border Control & Early Planning
Scout the galaxy and decide which planets will serve as defensive borders—those are where you’ll build your strongest defenses.

Map out all exotic resources, and prioritize planets with endurium.

Aim to build 4 Military Labs ASAP and research Garrison Recruitment—this is crucial since the AI often attacks from multiple fronts. Garrison will help stall them.

2. Research Priorities
Military Tech (early priorities):

Basic Provisioning

Military Grade Rounds

Hull Reinforcement

Advanced Metallurgy

Hardened Defense

After 4 Military Labs:

Provisioning Doctrine

Fuel-Efficient Deployment

Unlock Hoshiro, Kalev Gauss, and Percheron frigates

Continue with: Repair Systems, Reserve Squadron Hangars (if using Sova), Frigate Shield Refit

Civilian Tech (prioritize):

Standard Metal & Crystal Upgrades

Fortification Specialist

Counter-Deployment

Modular Architecture

Foreign Sabotage

Regional Government (to maximize build slots on few planets)

Once your economy stabilizes, upgrade Orbital Commerce for income.

3. Mid-Game Expansion
Use exotic resources to build more capital ships, especially Kol (damage + tank) and Akkan (for trade boost).

If metal and crystal are cheap, buy them and trade for credits; if they’re expensive, do the opposite.

4. Economic & Military Scaling
Increase to 8 Civilian + Military Labs. Build 2 Light Frigate Factories + 1 Heavy Factory on every border planet.

With Negotiation + Counter-Deployment, ship production gets +60% faster—with Sova nearby, that’s +105% speed.

Once you hit 8 Military Labs, replace your Cobalts with Hackas and Javelis.

Prioritize building refineries, cargo hold upgrades, and labor/permit negotiations for maximum growth.

5. Full Build-Up & Titan Race
Aim for 15 total labs and start Titan construction ASAP.

⚔️ Combat Preparation
Around the 25–30 minute mark, fortify border asteroids:

Build: Light Frigate Factory, Garrison Upgrade, 10 Autocannons

Position 5 Cannons in front line, 5 behind for max firepower.

AI usually doesn’t flank, so this setup buys you valuable time.

Add Starbases on borders once refineries are running. Upgrade gradually.

Maintain 25–30 Kalev Gauss frigates in fleet. Keep them protected—together with Kol ships, they’ll shred enemy capital ships before they retreat, often granting free exotics.

Ideal Capital Ship Composition:

3 Kol

2 Dunov

1 Akkan

1 Marza

1 Sova

Keep 25–30 Gardas close to protect against missiles. Have Hoshiros for continuous repairs.

Every time the enemy attacks and fails, expand your fleet using the bonus speed. Keep the pressure constant.

If the AI retreats or sacrifices its labs to keep producing ships, you delay their Titan significantly—sometimes yours is finished before theirs even starts.
(Not sure if it's a bug, but it works!)

Install Titan attack modules and finish your final tech upgrades, focusing on damage, sustainability, and ship-specific item bonuses.

💡 Final Tips
Upgrade your Prestige Points to win more auctions—many minor faction items are extremely useful.

Example: United Planast's "Unassailable Fortress" (+10 military slots and +5000 HP). Always use this on border planets.

⚠️ Facing TEC Primacy?
Good luck—they’re by far the hardest enemy, mainly due to the Novalith Cannon. Three hits can destroy your homeworld or a key planet.

Always research Planetary Shields if you’re fighting Primacy.