All empires start somewhere and in Novus Æterno it all starts from your home planet.
To start the expansion of your empire, more planets need to be colonized and integrated into your civilization.
Taking over colonized planets is simple but unfortunately you are not the only one fighting for dominion over an area of space. In the event you come across an enemy controlled planet, you will be required to attack the planet to gain control over it.
Each player controlled planet has a population that grows over time. A percentage of your population are automatically trained into militia which defend your planet from enemy attack. Militia are not the most effective defence but will give enemies a run for their money.
Due to the lack of combat training militia receive; they are unable to meet the requirements needed to take over an enemy controlled planet. However, militia can be trained in the art of war at any player controlled academy. These trained soldiers can be deployed on enemy planets to slowly but surely take control of the planet and surrounding space.
Player’s home planets cannot be captured as they are protected by fortress shields, preventing any enemy from making a tactical landing on the surface. Each player is also given the ability to protect a second planet with a fortress shield. These shields are permanent but will dissipate if a player is offline for extended periods of time, preventing non active players from holding on to valuable resources active players are in need of.