Introduction
This walkthrough will allow you to solve the game and find most of the artifacts, though it does not cover every secret. Notably, a cloaking device is reportedly located somewhere in Ur-Quan space, shielded against Energy scans — its exact location was never confirmed by the authors.
Alien Home Worlds
- Arilou — QuasiSpace
- Chenjesu & Mmrnmhrm — Procyon II
- Druuge Trading World — Zeta Persei I
- Ilwrath — Alpha Tauri I
- Mycon — Epsilon Scorpii I
- Orz — Vulpeculae system
- Pkunk — Gamma Kreugar I
- Shofixti — Delta Gorno system
- Slylandro — Beta Corvi IV
- Spathi — Epsilon Gruis Ia
- Supox — Beta Librae I
- Syreen — Betelgeuse I
- Thraddash — Delta Draconis I
- Umgah — Beta Orionis I
- Utwig — Beta Aquarii I
- VUX — Beta Luyten I
- Yehat — Gamma Serpantis I
- Zot-Fot-Pik — Alpha Tucanae I
The Melnorme are located in systems with supergiant stars. If you have a caster, you can call them directly. They are useful as in-flight refueling stops.
The Ur-Quan is the collective title for both the Kohr-Ah (black ships that want to kill everyone) and the Kzer-Za (green ships that want to enslave everyone).
Tasks to Complete
Essential tasks are listed first. Optional tasks add enjoyment but are not required to finish the game.
Repairing the Ultron
Crystal Spindle
The Pkunk have this item and will give it to you willingly if you visit their homeworld at Gamma Kreugar I.
Aqua Helix
The Thraddash have this item. Gain their respect by killing approximately 20 of them in combat before visiting their homeworld. Do not go to the homeworld first, as kills made there do not count. The Aqua Helix itself is located on Zeta Draconis I. After stealing it, immediately bug out of the system to save time and trouble.
Rosy Sphere
The Druuge have this item on their trade planet at Zeta Persei I. The Druuge only trade in slaves — the price for the Rosy Sphere is 100 crew members, so be sure to have more than that available across your fleet. Alternatively, you can trade a Mycon Egg Case for it (there is a spare on Gamma Brahe I).
Assembling and Delivering the Ultron
The Supox have the Ultron on Beta Librae. Use all the other components on the Ultron from the Device Manifest. Take the completed Ultron to the Utwig at their homeworld (Beta Aquarii I). They will provide you with the bomb to destroy the Sa-Matra. The bomb is on Zeta Hyades VI (2nd moon), guarded by 5 Druuge ships — the Earthling Cruiser with nukes is recommended for fighting them. If done in time, the Utwig and Supox will attack the Kohr-Ah, buying you an extra 9–12 months.
Syreen Tasks
Go to the former Syreen homeworld at Beta Copernicus I and retrieve an egg husk of the Mycon Deep Child as proof that the Mycons destroyed Syra. Get the Syreen ships out of the vault at Epsilon Camelopardalis Ia. Travel to the Mycon homeworld and tell them of a new planet — this draws the bulk of their fleet away. Travel to Beta Brahe I while the fleet is gone (you will still have to fight 5 Mycon ships) and retrieve the Sun Device from the planet surface.
To inform the Syreen about Syra, either buy the information from the Melnorme, or visit a shattered world and ask the Mycon why shattered worlds exist only in their systems (Gamma Brahe has a shattered world).
Spathi Tasks
Clear the Spathi homeworld (Epsilon Gruis Ia) of the biological life forms that prey on them. Tell them of your deed by traveling to the moon of their homeworld. Force them to send their ships to Earth. Eventually they will build their own slave shield, but on their moon they leave behind the Umgah Mind Caster — be sure to pick it up. The Caster lets you: (1) call the Melnorme in HyperSpace, (2) communicate with the Chenjesu and Mmrnmhrm, and (3) fool the Ilwrath into thinking that Dogar and Kazon are speaking to them.
If you do not want to wait for the Umgah Caster, the Burvixese Caster is located at Arcturus Ia — though this is only recommended if you already have the Portal Spawner due to travel time.
Arilou Tasks
On a blue planet in the Alpha Pavonis system, salvage the wreck of an Ur-Quan Dreadnought and retrieve the Ur-Quan warp pod. In the Columbae system, a portal to QuasiSpace opens on the 17th of every month for a few days. Visit the Arilou homeworld in the far upper-right corner of QuasiSpace. If you have the warp pod, they will outfit your ship with a Quasi-Space Portal Spawner, saving considerable time and fuel.
Shofixti Tasks
Go to Delta Gorno and converse with the last Shofixti — insult him rather than fight him. He thinks you are Ur-Quan and will attack; continue conversing using your emergency warp until he recognizes you.
To repopulate the Shofixti race, you need females. VUX Admiral ZEX on Alpha Cerekov I has Shofixti women, but demands a rare creature in exchange. The creature is on Delta Lyncis I — large and aggressive. Return the creature to ZEX; it will escape and kill him, letting you reach the planet surface and retrieve the Shofixti women. Return them to Tanaka at Delta Gorno. Two months later, you can obtain a Shofixti ship, and crew cost drops from 5 to 3. Bring a Shofixti ship to Yehat space to trigger a civil war that eventually frees the Yehat from their queen.
Zot-Fot-Pik Tasks
Visit the Zot-Fot-Pik homeworld at Alpha Tucanae I. They will eagerly join your alliance and share their ship designs. They also provide important reconnaissance, including the location of the Sa-Matra and information about who is winning the Ur-Quan vs. Kohr-Ah war.
Slylandro Tasks
Visit the Slylandro homeworld at Beta Corvi IV. They will give you the self-destruct sequence code for their exploration probes (which are a considerable annoyance). Later, the Slylandro reprogram a returning probe to broadcast the destruct sequence, dramatically reducing probe numbers. The Slylandro also provide information about the Precursors and the Rainbow Worlds.
The ten Rainbow Worlds align into an arrow pointing toward the galactic core:
- Beta Pegasi I
- Epsilon Draconis I
- Epsilon Lipi I
- Beta Leporis I
- Gamma Aquarii I
- Groombridge I
- Alpha Andromedae I
- Gamma Reticuli I
- Gamma Kepler I
- Zeta Sextantis I
Each is worth 500 credits from the Melnorme.
Umgah Tasks
The Umgah have an Ur-Quan "talking pet" which is actually a Dnyarri (often called Dryanni). First, obtain the Taalo Psychic Shield device on Delta Vulpeculae IIc (be friendly to the Orz!). Travel to the Umgah homeworld and ask about secrets — they will tell you something is undergoing surgery. Leave and return, and you will find the creature has taken over the Umgah's minds. It will attempt to send you to your death by making you attack an Ur-Quan armada; the Taalo shield protects you. After surviving 10 Umgah commander ships, the Dnyarri will surrender. Return to the planet — the Umgah will give you important information about the Mycon, 500 units of biological data to sell to the Melnorme, and four ships. Then warp out quickly, as they will try to attack you.
Ilwrath Tasks
When you enter the Ilwrath home system, use the Caster to trick the Ilwrath into choosing a new target: the Thraddash. Make sure you have already obtained the Aqua Helix from the Thraddash before doing this. The Ilwrath will vacate Pkunk space.
Chmmr Tasks
The Chenjesu and Mmrnmhrm voluntarily enclosed themselves together on one planet. Use the Sun Device to accelerate their combination process, creating the Chmmr. In return, the Chmmr will: provide you with unlimited RUs; supply designs for the powerful Chmmr Avatar ship; and enhance the bomb with their crystal technology.
Assault on the Sa-Matra
The Chmmr transport you back to Earth — two weeks later, the bomb is loaded into your flagship. Recommended flagship configuration (six open slots remain due to the bomb mechanism):
- Hi-Efficiency Fuel System
- 5 Crew Pods
Recommended fleet: 10 Chmmr Avatars and 2 Pkunk Fury ships. Note: the Utwig Jugger is arguably a stronger fighter than the Chmmr Avatar against Ur-Quan and Kohr-Ah ships.
Use the Portal Spawner to reach the Crateris constellation, then proceed to Delta Crateris V. The Sa-Matra is surrounded by a massive defending fleet. Use the Dnyarri to distract the orbiting fleet. Once you reach the planet screen, save your game. Proceed to the Sa-Matra — you will be attacked by 3 Kzer-Za and 3 Kohr-Ah ships. After defeating them, the Dnyarri will reveal the Sa-Matra's configuration. Use Pkunk ships against the shield generators (their speed and broadside fire work well). Once the shield is down, destroy the green blotches and fireballs. Then fly your flagship into the opening to win the game.
