OGame combat isn't a simple bigger-fleet-wins calculation — shields absorb damage before hull takes any, weaker shots under 1% of a target's shield bounce off doing nothing, ships below 70% hull get a real chance to explode on every remaining hit, and certain ship/defense pairs fire multiple times per round through Rapid Fire. This simulator runs the actual round-by-round algorithm the game uses (verified shot-for-shot against the OGame Wiki's own worked combat example) so you can test a fleet composition or a defense setup before committing real ships to it.
For the full mechanics behind these numbers, see our battle simulator guide and fleet vs. defenses strategy guide.
How OGame combat is actually resolved
Shield first, then hull — but only if the shot is strong enough
Every shot checks the target's current shield before touching its hull. If the shooter's weapon power is under 1% of the target's shield strength, the shot bounces off completely — no damage of any kind. If the weapon power is at least 1% but still less than the shield, the shield simply absorbs it and regenerates fully at the start of the next round. Only once weapon power exceeds the target's remaining shield does the excess spill over and reduce hull.
Explosions are rolled per shot, not per ship
Once a unit's hull drops below 70% of its starting value, every further hit it takes rolls a fresh explosion chance equal to (100% − current hull%). A ship sitting at 40% hull has a 60% chance of exploding on its very next hit — and if it survives that roll, the next hit rolls again. This is why heavily damaged ships tend to die fast once they cross the 70% threshold, even against relatively weak follow-up fire.
Rapid Fire means some matchups are far more lopsided than raw stats suggest
Certain ship-and-target pairs let the attacker fire again with a chance of (RF−1)/RF after the first shot — a Cruiser with Rapid Fire 10 against a Rocket Launcher has a 90% chance to keep firing at new random targets after every shot, chaining into several extra shots on average. This is why cheap defenses like Rocket Launchers and Light Lasers fold quickly against Cruisers and Bombers despite reasonable raw stats, and why Battlecruisers punch well above their weapon power against smaller warships.
Frequently Asked Questions
How accurate is this OGame battle simulator?
The shot-resolution math, explosion probability, and rapid fire chain logic were tested directly against the OGame Wiki's own worked combat example and reproduce its numbers exactly. Combat itself is genuinely randomized in the real game (random targeting, random explosion rolls), so this simulator runs one real random instance of the algorithm — re-running the same fleets can give a different result, exactly like the actual game.
Why did I lose a battle even though my fleet had more total firepower?
Raw firepower totals don't account for shield absorption, the 1% bounce rule, or Rapid Fire — a fleet with less total weapon power but the right Rapid Fire matchups against your specific defenses (like Bombers against Rocket Launchers) can outperform a nominally stronger fleet that lacks those matchups.
Why does my defense keep losing to a fleet with less total attack power?
Defense stacks of cheap units (Rocket Launchers especially) are extremely vulnerable to Rapid Fire — a Cruiser's 90% chance to keep firing after each shot against Rocket Launchers means a relatively small Cruiser fleet can chew through a much larger Rocket Launcher stack. Mixing in Gauss Cannons and Plasma Turrets, which most ships don't have Rapid Fire against, closes this gap.
Why didn't my fleet destroy the defender in 6 rounds even though it was much stronger?
Combat always ends in a draw after 6 rounds if neither side is fully destroyed, regardless of how lopsided the remaining forces are — this reflects the real game's own 6-round cap. A draw with the defender's forces nearly wiped out still leaves them able to rebuild, unlike an actual win.
Does this simulator account for officers, Lifeform bonuses, or class bonuses?
No — it uses standard-ruleset ship and defense stats plus the three core combat technologies (Weapons, Shielding, Armour). Officers, Lifeform technology bonuses, and player class bonuses can meaningfully shift real combat outcomes and aren't modeled here; treat results as a baseline rather than an exact prediction if you have those active.
Why is the debris field smaller than I expected?
Only destroyed ships generate debris — defensive units never do, no matter how many are destroyed. Debris is 30% of the combined metal and crystal cost of destroyed ships on the standard ruleset (some servers use 70% instead, selectable above), and deuterium cost never enters the debris field at all.
Ready to put a fleet to the test for real? ogame.life is a free-to-play OGame server with an active PvP scene.
