Space combat

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Objectives

Primary Objective

Each space mission has a primary objective, indicated in the objective tracker in the upper-right corner of the space combat screen. You must achieve this objective to successfully complete the mission.

Bonus Objectives

Each space mission also has a set of three bonus quests, which will not show up on the objectives tracker until you make progress on one of them (destroying the first turret, for example). Each bonus quest will reward some XP and credits.

The first usually involves shooting down a large number of enemy ships, it is generally available immediately.
The second usually has to do with the capital ships, destroying their turrets, shield generators, engines, etc. This quest usually has a level restriction. As a general rule, it will unlock when you gain access to new missions. For example, a level 40 mission will unlock this bonus quest at level 44.
The third generally involves destroying a large target, such as the bridge of a capital ship. It will be available immediately, but may be difficult if not impossible without higher level ship equipment, such as torpedoes. This quest will only be available once per day per mission. However, the target objective will still give destruction xp every mission, which is usually a significant amount compared to other targets. (e.g. 500xp vs 7xp)

For more information on each space mission's bonus objectives, including what level each becomes available at, see the page for that particular mission. Also, see the spreadsheet linked in the External Links section below for an overview.

Space Combat Basics

Combat

Left mouse button: Fire guns. Holding down the left mouse button allows for continuous fire.
Right mouse button: Fire missiles. Hold down, mouse over a maximum of 4 targets. A blue lock will appear. Release right mouse button to fire.
Space Bar: Do a barrel roll! Possibly evades incoming fire.
At Level 50, you get access to Proton Torpedoes. They are fired same way as missiles, except you have to maintain your mouse over the target until you get a lock.

Movement

WASD keys and your mouse move your ship. Using your WASD keys to move your ship (to avoid obstacles) and keeping the mouse used for targeting/firing is effective. Your ship will follow a predetermined course around the combat area, giving you plenty of time to target all your objectives.

You have Shields and Armor. Shields regenerate while guns are not firing. Firing missiles doesn't affect regeneration. When you get the Power Conversion Module at level 25, get used to switching between power to guns and power to shields depending on the situation. Keep your shields up!

Space Combat Tips and Tricks

You have smart guns. No need to lead the target. Just put the cursor smack on top of the target and fire.
Fighters are easy to dispatch with 2-3 shots depending on upgrades. They usually come from behind, turn and fire at you giving you plenty of time to shoot them down. Damage is usually low.
Turrets deal a lot of damage and take several hits to destroy. Make those your priority over fighters.
You can ignore fighters and recharge your shields. You CANNOT ignore turrets, as long as you see any, keep firing regardless of shield status.
When fighters are coming from ahead, you can see their red dots/trail depending on distance. Fire 4 shots from max range and switch to another target. It will take a couple of seconds for weapon fire to hit, but it will hit and kill it if you aimed right.
In your first battle you have a limited amount of missiles. If they are needed for objectives, be sure to save some for that. You can buy a starship upgrade with more missiles.

Upgrading your ship

Your ship can be equipped with new items just as you are able to equip your companion. Ship upgrades can be purchased from vendors, as well as obtained from characters with the Cybertech crew skill.

There are 10 equipment slots:

Ship Armor
Energy Shield
Shield Generator
Beam Charger
Beam Generator
Missile Magazine

Power Conversion Module [1] - lvl 25, 30 Fleet Commendation
Electronic Warfare Pod [2] - lvl 35, 90 Fleet Commendation
EMP Generator [3] - lvl 45, 150 Fleet Commendation
Proton Torpedo Tube [4] - lvl 50, 50 Fleet Commendation

Missions

Once you get your ship, you will be able to undertake space missions. They are available from your ship's galaxy map. There are also daily space missions available from the communications terminal on your ship's bridge, which reward Fleet Commendations (can be redeemed for some ship upgrades), along with extra XP and credits.