: You design your own ships with specific weapon and defense modules. Combat uses a "battle card" system where you choose tactics to counter enemy fleet compositions.
: In Endless Space 1, AI fleets usually target your first three ships. A common strategy is to use three highly durable "tank" ships followed by several high-damage "glass cannons". Gold Edition Inclusion The Disharmony expansion included in this edition adds: A new faction: The Harmony , who do not use Dust. Complete rework of the ship design and combat mechanics. New invasion mechanics and planetary bombardments.
: Success relies on managing five core resources— F ood (population growth), I ndustry (building speed), D ust (currency), S cience (tech research), and I nfluence (diplomacy and borders).