Powerplay rewards the activity you already do — there is no extra grind to opt into, only a rewards track laid over your normal play. The choice that matters is which Power you pledge to: each grants the same twelve exclusive modules eventually, so you're really choosing for the permanent perk (the income or cost bonus you keep while pledged) and the ethos (which activity earns +50% bonus merits). Match those to your primary loop and the whole system pays you for playing as you already would. Pick your Power by your main activity in Section 8.
12
Powers to choose
12
Exclusive modules
+50%
Ethos merit bonus
97
Rank for every module
01
What Powerplay Actually Is
The meta-layer
Powerplay is a galaxy-wide territorial war running in parallel with the normal game. You pledge to one of twelve influential leaders ("Powers") and then earn a loyalty currency called merits by doing ordinary activities — combat, trade, mining, exploration, on-foot ops — inside the right systems. Merits rank you up inside your Power, and ranks pay out credits, engineering materials, permanent perks, and exclusive modules.
Powers ≠ Superpowers
This trips up most newcomers. The three superpowers (Federation, Empire, Alliance) are the political backdrop tied to your Navy rank and permits. The twelve Powers are individual leaders who each command their own faction within or across those superpowers. Pledging to a Power is a separate choice from your superpower reputation — pledging to a Federation Power does not raise your Federal Navy rank, and it does not stop you grinding Imperial rank for the Achenar permit. They are independent systems.
The galaxy runs on a weekly cycle that ticks over every Thursday at the server reset. Control of systems shifts at each tick based on the aggregate effort of every pledged commander that week. You don't have to care about the macro-war to benefit — you can treat Powerplay purely as a rewards track and let the merits accumulate while you play normally. But understanding the three system states (below) is what lets you earn merits efficiently rather than accidentally.
12
Powers to pledge to
100
Loyalty ranks per Power
12
Exclusive modules
Weekly
Cycle reset (Thursday tick)
The single most important change from PP1.0
In the old Powerplay, merits decayed weekly and forced a constant grind. In Powerplay 2.0 your rank merits are cumulative and never decay — every merit you earn is permanent, and the only way to reset to zero is to defect to another Power. (What does decay weekly is the system control score — the macro-war territory state — which is a completely separate number from your personal rank progress. Don't confuse the two; some older guides still do.)
02
The Twelve Powers
Roster & perks
Every Power eventually grants every module and the standard rewards — the differences that matter when you pledge are the permanent perks (the income/cost bonuses you keep while pledged) and the ethos (which activities pay +50% bonus merits). Perks below are shown at their maximum (rank 100+) value, active only inside that Power's controlled systems.
Regular demonstrations of Federal military authority keep law and order in systems under his control.
Acquisition · Combat
A patriot convinced every colony thrives under Federal rule, he sanctions force under the pretence of bolstering security in Federation-aligned systems.
Undermining · Covert
A champion of heavy surveillance and well-funded intelligence services, used to steer Federal security policy where he holds sway.
Description
"A true patriot, Shadow President Archer believes that all human colonies would thrive under the auspices of Federal rule; he is a strong advocate of heavy surveillance and well-funded intelligence services."
Community-building initiatives and local-governance work swing public opinion toward Liberal-party values.
Acquisition · Social
Her media teams educate populations on how liberal values foster greater equality and opportunity.
Undermining · Finance
An extensive welfare-and-health aid campaign wins systems over while securing respect for Federal values.
Description
"Politics has always been a breeding ground for lies, but one lie outshines all the others… It is the insinuation that to seek a diplomatic solution is weak."
He bolsters local security with vessels and personnel; his contractors enforce his will reliably.
Acquisition · Finance
He offers an extensive line of credit to anyone ordering bulk shipments of Imperial armaments.
Undermining · Combat
Commanding one of the Empire's largest private fleets, he musters squadrons that overpower most naval forces.
Description
"It is jealousy that most disgusts me. It's such a petty, self-defeating emotion… Most men are not like that. They have the desire, but not the initiative."
Stronger governmental links and trade protectionism limit competing interests from gaining ground.
Acquisition · Finance
A broad range of trade agreements and benefits, increasingly appealing even to systems weighing a change of allegiance.
Undermining · Combat
Diplomatic links and bespoke fast-membership legislation steadily grow the number of Alliance-loyal systems.
Description
"The Alliance is rigorous, you see. You can't join a voluntary association of free systems unless you can offer demonstrable proof of your freedom to choose…"
Preferring debate to violence, she outsmarts adversaries with statecraft, political leverage and focused media narratives.
Acquisition · Social
Her promise of a voice for individual systems is championed eagerly across social networks and ICE-casts.
Undermining · Social
Public speaking on social causes and interstellar partnerships fosters community among those who heed her.
Description
"Councillor Kaine's commitment to providing a voice to individual systems is appealing in an age where interstellar powers dominate; she fosters harmony and community through public engagement."
He cements control by oiling the wheels of industry, distributing technology and resources from Lembava.
Acquisition · Social
He leverages his Sirius Corp connections to flood systems with discounts and media presence, spurring spending and investment.
Undermining · Finance
Access to vast funds lets him buy up huge swathes of private and government sectors for absolute economic control.
Description
"The fortune teller rattling bones in her simple hut, the smiling insurance salesman with his snakeskin briefcase and the data analyst with his interactive holographic model are all selling the same thing: certainty."
+30% black market · no bounty for crimes in his space
Best for
Piracy / criminal play
Headquarters
Harma
Ethos
Reinforcement · Combat
He has no patience for weakness, ruling through intimidation and dividing those resistant to the Kumo Crew.
Acquisition · Combat
He nurtures and exploits a system's criminal element, using blackmail and bribery until everyone owes the Kumo Crew.
Undermining · Combat
After cultivating crime, he instigates infighting and violent insurrection to overwhelm any who would resist.
Description
"There is no time for weakness. We rule through fear and will divide and conquer those that are resistant to our presence."
03
Pledging, Defecting & the One Real Drawback
Commitment
Pledge from the Powerplay tab in the right-hand cockpit panel. It's free and immediate. Once pledged you get the internal rank ladder and start banking merits. There is no waiting period before you can do Powerplay activities — that's a PP1.0 myth.
The drawback: you become enemy to all other Powers
Pledging makes you a declared enemy of the other eleven Powers — including the second Federation Power. In practice this means hostile Power Security Force NPCs can attack you without penalty if they scan you in enemy-controlled territory. In Solo or Private Group this is a non-issue: those NPCs are rare and easily avoided. In Open, expect occasional interdictions from enemy commanders — softened by the universal free-rebuy perk and by the informal non-aggression pacts that same-allegiance players tend to keep.
Defecting wipes your merits
Leaving a Power resets your merit total to zero and revokes the perks. Modules you've already unlocked stay yours forever (they're tied to your account, available at any outfitter), but your rank and progress are gone. Choose once and commit. Because every Power eventually grants every module anyway, there's no longer any reason to Power-hop — pick the one whose perks and unlock order suit you and stay.
Does this hurt my superpower-rank grind?
No. Pledging to any Power does not change your Federal or Imperial reputation or block a permit grind — Navy ranks come from minor-faction missions, a different system entirely. The only minor friction: as a pledged agent you're an enemy of every other Power, so in deep enemy-aligned stronghold systems a Power Security Force scan could turn hostile. That's an Open-play edge case; in Solo it's irrelevant. You can run both tracks at once.
04
Merits, Ranks & Rewards
The ladder
Merits are loyalty points. They rank you up; they are never spent and never decay. Each rank pays a care package, and certain ranks unlock a permanent perk tier or a module. There are 100 ranks; the climb is long and deliberately so.
Gate: the first five assignments
When you first pledge you're Rank 0. You must complete the initial set of five weekly assignments (identical for every Power) before any merits count toward rank. Until then you'll bank merits but stay stuck at 0. Knock these out first — after Rank 1, weekly assignments become optional and can be ignored with no penalty.
Rank
Cumulative merits
Notes
1
0
+ complete the five initial assignments
2
2,000
3
5,000
4
9,000
5
15,000
First perk tier typically lands around here
6 – 99
previous + 8,000 each
Linear climb (R6 = 23k, R7 = 31k …)
34
247,000
First module unlock
100
775,000
Everything maxed
Care packages — claim them at any Power Contact
Every rank up to 100 grants a mini care package: 250,000 credits plus five random stacks of five ship engineering materials and five random stacks of five on-foot materials. Above rank 100 these become full care packages (double everything: 500k credits and stacks of ten). Across a full climb to 100 that's a meaningful pile of free materials and ~25M credits in package cash alone — useful whatever you fly, and welcome top-up even on a material-complete account.
Weekly salary — a community-goal-style payout
Each cycle you earn at least one merit, you draw a salary scaled to how your week's merit total ranks against the other agents of your Power. It is non-cumulative (paid once per cycle) and can be large at the top:
Your standing this cycle
Salary
Top 100% (any participation)
500,000 CR
Top 75%
2,500,000 CR
Top 50%
5,000,000 CR
Top 25%
10,000,000 CR
Top 10%
50,000,000 CR
Top 10 agents
100,000,000 CR
Top agent
1,000,000,000 CR
Few commanders chase the billion-credit top spot, but even modest weekly activity reliably banks the 2.5M–5M tier, which adds up fast over a long campaign.
05
System States & Control Points
Where merits land
Merits only count when an activity is done in the right kind of system. There are three that matter for earning, each tied to a different relationship with your Power's territory. Get this wrong and you'll do an hour of bounty hunting for zero merits.
The three earning states
Reinforcement — systems your Power already controls. You strengthen them. This is your bread-and-butter state for combat and most activities. Caveat: reinforcement carries a standing −35% merit penalty (applied since the April 2025 rebalance) — you still earn, just less per action than acquisition.
Acquisition — unoccupied-but-inhabited systems your Power is trying to claim, within 20 Ly of one of your fortified systems (or 30 Ly of an allied stronghold). Carries a small +5% bonus. Powerplay combat zones only spawn here, in contested acquisition systems.
Undermining — enemy-controlled systems you weaken. Also +5% merit, but heavily distance/strength-penalised and the territory work is offensive rather than defensive.
Behind the scenes, your merits convert into control points that move systems between states at the weekly tick. Control points are roughly your merits ÷ 4 for most activities (÷ 6 for exploration/exobiology). Approximate thresholds:
~36k
CP to trigger an acquisition conflict
120k
CP to claim (acquire) a system
350k
CP Exploited → Fortified
650k
CP Fortified → Stronghold
Why you care about Fortified & Stronghold systems
A system can only advance one state per cycle. Fortified and Stronghold systems extend your Power's acquisition reach and resist undermining — and Stronghold systems host Stronghold Carriers, which sell almost the full ship-and-module catalogue like a mini-Jameson Memorial. Whichever Power you pledge to, its Stronghold Carriers give you a forward outfitting base near the front line. Since the July 2025 rebalance, controlled systems also suffer a weekly control-score decay above 25% progress, which is why active Powers need constant reinforcement.
06
How You Actually Earn Merits
Activity matrix
Nearly every loop in the game feeds Powerplay now — but each activity only counts in specific states. Here's the full matrix; find the rows for your main activity and note which states reward it.
Activity
Reinforce
Acquire (contested)
Undermine
Bounty hunting (merits on kill, not cash-in)
✓
✓
—
Powerplay combat zones (on kill)
—
✓
—
Enemy Powerplay-ship hunting
✓
✓
✓
Large-profit trading (≥40% margin)
✓
✓
—
Low-cost market flooding (<500 CR/t)
—
✓
✓
Selling mined commodities
✓
✓
✓
Powerplay commodity hauling
✓
✓
✓
Rare-goods trading
✓
✓
—
Selling exploration data (cartographics)
✓
—
—
Selling exobiology data
✓
—
—
Odyssey data retrieval / upload
✓
✓
✓
Scanning ships & wakes
✓
✓
—
Handing in escape pods & salvage
✓
✓
✓
Holoscreen hacking
✓
✓
✓
Donation / humanitarian missions
✓
✓
—
Megaship uplink scanning
✓
✓
✓
Committing crimes
—
—
✓
Passenger missions earn ZERO merits — note this carefully
Passenger running is not on the merit list. A loop like Robigo stays an excellent credit earner, but it contributes nothing to Powerplay rank. That's not a reason to stop — it's a reason to keep passenger work and Powerplay work mentally separate. Almost everything else (combat, cargo trade, mining, exploration, on-foot ops) feeds the ladder; passenger is the one major outlier.
The ethos multiplier — match your activity to a Power
Each Power awards roughly +50% bonus merits on activities that match its ethos. There are four ethos types — Combat, Finance, Social, Covert — and a Power carries a (possibly different) one for each of reinforcement, acquisition, and undermining. The lever that matters when you pledge is matching your main activity to a Power whose ethos rewards it: pick one whose reinforcement and acquisition ethos cover the loop you fly most, and the +50% bonus lands on the merits you'd already be earning. Use the per-role picks in Section 8 to find the right match.
Selling mined commodities — the single fastest method at 25,000–35,000 merits/hr with a well-tuned mining ship in a system where you mine and sell the same high-value commodity. Merits scale with profit margin.
Powerplay combat zones (contested acquisition systems) — 15,000–25,000 merits/hr in a proper combat ship, and it stacks with a Combat-ethos Power's +50% bonus.
Bounty hunting — merits awarded on each kill (roughly proportional to the bounty, on the order of ~1 merit per 1,000 CR), not at cash-in. Slower than the above two, but under a Combat-ethos Power it stacks with both the ethos bonus and a bounty perk.
07
The Exclusive Modules
The prizes
Twelve Powerplay-only modules exist. Every Power grants all twelve — the same modules for everyone — by rank 97; only the order in which they unlock differs from Power to Power. The sequence below is one Power's example order (Jerome Archer's, which front-loads the combat weapons); pledge to a different Power and the same twelve arrive in a different order, so check your own Power's list for what comes first. The earliest module lands at rank 34 (≈247,000 merits) whichever Power you fly.
34247k
Pacifier Frag-Cannon
Must-have
Class-3 fixed frag-cannon with more range and tighter spread than stock. The benchmark short-range shred weapon and a staple of meta combat builds — and it's Archer's first unlock. This alone justifies the pledge.
39287k
Pulse Disruptor
Niche
Fixed pulse laser that reliably disrupts the targeted module (unlike random scramble spectrum). Low damage and only works once shields are down — a specialist's tool.
44327k
Containment Missile
Situational
Fixed dumbfire that reboots the target's FSD on hit — a longer-lasting FSD-interrupt. Excellent for pinning runners in PvE pirate hunts and ganking-defence.
50375k
Enforcer Cannon
Good
Class-1 fixed multicannon hitting like a class-3, at the cost of ammo and reload. Brilliant on small-hardpoint ships — turns your Viper's or Cobra's tiny mounts into real damage. Fixed-only, so best on agile hulls.
57431k
Pack-Hound Missiles
Fun / good
Fires a four-missile volley per shot — overwhelms point-defence and looks spectacular. Limited by seeker ammo and poor armour penetration against big hulls.
63479k
Concord Cannon
Good
Gimballed cannon firing three rapid projectiles for more total damage. Newest module (Nakato Kaine's signature); early tests rate it a solid gimballed-cannon sidegrade.
70535k
Advanced Plasma Accelerator
Good
Class-3 fixed PA firing three projectiles for higher total damage. A near-equivalent sidegrade to the standard APA with extra distributor/heat draw.
76583k
Cytoscrambler
Sleeper
Class-1 fixed burst laser doing class-3 damage to shields, at the cost of range and zero armour pen. A "sleeper" anti-shield pick for fast small ships; pairs with long-range engineering.
83639k
Prismatic Shield Generator
Must-have*
Strongest shields in the game (one class above a normal generator's strength) at the cost of mass, power and recharge. The community-favourite module — but Archer unlocks it late. See the trade-off note below.
88679k
Imperial Hammer
Good
Fixed railgun firing three projectiles per shot for more total damage — at a steep heat cost. A sidegrade to the standard rail for heat-managed builds.
91703k
Retributor
Skip
Heat-inducing beam laser, widely regarded as the weakest PP module — tiny damage and a marginal heat effect. Unlocked almost last for Archer, which is fitting.
97751k
Mining Lance
Skip
Beam laser that doubles as a mining tool — poor at both. Last on Archer's list and safe to ignore.
The one real trade-off: unlock order, not module access
Because every Power eventually grants all twelve modules, the only thing the order changes is how soon a given module arrives. If a specific module is your priority, pledge to the Power that unlocks it early. The clearest example is the Prismatic Shield Generator: Aisling Duval (Empire) unlocks it at rank 34, where most Powers — Archer among them — put it around rank 83. If you'd rather have combat weapons early than shields, a combat Power's weapons-first order serves you better, and you'll still get Prismatics later. Either way the module list is identical, so there's no reason to Power-hop chasing modules.
08
Power Selection
Pick by your role
Powerplay rewards your primary activity, so the right pledge is the one whose permanent perk and ethos match the loop you already fly. Pick your role below: each entry makes the case for a Power, names the pledge, then lays out a general playbook for banking merits in that Power's space. Every Power grants every module eventually — you're choosing for the perk and the ethos bonus, not the module list.
Archer is the bounty-hunter's Power: his signature perk is +100% bounty payouts and −30% weapon costs, and his ethos is Combat on both reinforcement and acquisition — so bounty hunting, ship hunting and Powerplay combat zones in his territory all draw the +50% ethos bonus. That puts the merit multiplier on exactly the loop a combat commander already flies, while the cheaper re-arm keeps a gun-heavy fleet running. If your allegiance leans Imperial, Arissa Lavigny-Duval is the mirror pick (identical +100% bounty / −30% weapons); Denton Patreus trades a little bounty for −90% rearm, and Yuri Grom is the independent generalist (+60% bounty plus minor explo/trade bonuses).
Verdict
Pledge Jerome Archer for the cleanest combat fit — doubled bounties, cheaper weapons, and a Combat ethos that boosts your kills every time. Swap in Arissa Lavigny-Duval if you'd rather fly the same loop under the Empire.
Your Operational Playbook
Pledge
From the cockpit Powerplay panel, clear the five initial assignments so your merits start counting toward rank.
Find the front line
Pull up your Power's live territory and mark a cluster of reinforcement systems plus any contested acquisition systems near the bubble — that's where combat merits land.
Run the combat loop in that space
Bounty hunting at RES / nav beacons in reinforcement systems and Powerplay combat zones in contested acquisition systems both award merits on kill, both with the +50% Combat ethos bonus.
Fold in a secondary source
When you want a merit sprint, sell mined commodities or run ≥40%-margin cargo into the same systems — these stack on top of your combat haul.
Bank before you stop
Cash in vouchers and confirm the merits registered (they post on kill, but verify with a tracker), then log off — your rank total never decays.
No Power has a stronger explorer perk: Li Yong-Rui grants +100% exploration earnings plus free refuel, repair and rearm across his territory. Doubled cartographic payouts reward the long-range trips you already fly, and free services at his stations matter on multi-thousand-light-year runs where fuel and hull wear add up. His +25% trade rounds out the package for the buy-and-sell legs of a trip.
Verdict
Pledge Li Yong-Rui. The exploration perk is unmatched and the free services pay for themselves on any deep-space campaign.
Your Operational Playbook
Pledge
Clear the five initial assignments before you head out.
Identify his reinforcement systems
With Universal Cartographics, since selling exploration and exobiology data only counts toward merits in reinforcement space.
Run your trip
Then bring the data home and sell it inside his territory. Hand in per-system rather than via the bulk screen, prioritising the high-value bodies (Water Worlds, Earth-Likes, Ammonia Worlds).
Fold in a secondary source
Use the free refuel/repair/rearm on the way out and back, and run a profitable cargo leg through his systems for extra merits.
Bank before you stop
Confirm the data sale registered the merits, then log off.
For general bulk trade, Li Yong-Rui's +25% trade plus free refuel/repair/rearm keeps a hauler cheap to run and pays a margin on every profitable load. For a rare-goods specialist, Edmund Mahon is the sharper pick: +50% rare goods and +25% trade (plus +100% minor-faction rep) directly rewards the long rare-commodity circuits. Choose by what you actually carry — broad commodity runs favour Li Yong-Rui's services, dedicated rare-goods loops favour Mahon's bonus.
Verdict
Pledge Li Yong-Rui for general trading with free services, or Edmund Mahon if rare goods are your bread and butter.
Your Operational Playbook
Pledge
Clear the five initial assignments.
Map your Power's systems
Map your Power's reinforcement and acquisition systems and look for profitable routes that terminate in them.
Run the trade loop into that space
Sell ≥40%-margin loads in reinforcement or acquisition systems for merits on top of your normal profit; low-cost market flooding counts in acquisition.
Fold in a secondary source
Powerplay commodity hauling and, for rare-goods runs under Mahon, the rare-goods bonus stacking with the merit award.
Nakato Kaine's +50% mined commodities is the strongest mining perk, and selling mined commodities is the single fastest merit method in the game — so the perk lands right on the top merit source. Her +120% S&R and +150% minor-faction rep give useful side income. The Empire alternative is Zemina Torval at +45% mined commodities and +20% trade, a hair behind on the mining bonus but stronger if you also haul refined goods.
In your Power's space with both a rich mining body and a market that buys the same high-value commodity.
Mine and sell in-system
Selling mined commodities counts in reinforcement, acquisition and undermining, and merits scale with profit margin — the highest rates in the game come from selling where you mined.
Fold in a secondary source
Hand in S&R and salvage for extra merits while you're there.
Bank before you stop
Confirm the sale registered the merits, then log off.
Passenger
The honest answer
Passenger missions earn no Powerplay merits — they are simply not on the activity list, so no Power directly rewards passenger work. Pledge instead for your secondary loop or for travel perks. Li Yong-Rui's free refuel/repair/rearm is the practical pick for long sightseeing and tourist runs, where you'll bank merits on any cargo or exploration legs you mix in. If your passenger work includes rescue runs, Aisling Duval's +200% search & rescue turns those rescues into a real merit source.
Verdict
Powerplay doesn't reward passenger hauling directly. Pledge Li Yong-Rui for travel-perk value on long runs, or Aisling Duval if you fold in search-and-rescue.
Your Operational Playbook
Pledge
For your secondary loop, then clear the five initial assignments.
Treat passenger work as credit-only
It banks no merits, so don't route it for Powerplay.
Find your Power's reinforcement systems
Run your merit-earning secondary activity (cargo, S&R, mining) inside them.
Fold the passenger runs around it
Use travel perks (free services, or S&R bonus on rescue legs) to offset the cost of the long hauls.
Bank before you stop
Confirm any merit-earning legs registered, then log off.
AX / Thargoid combat
The honest answer
There is no Powerplay AX perk — anti-Xeno combat bonds aren't merits, so AX kills don't feed the ladder. Pledge for your non-AX combat instead: a combat Power like Jerome Archer or Arissa Lavigny-Duval gives you the +100% bounty and −30% weapon-cost perks on the human-target bounty hunting and combat zones you run between Thargoid sorties. If your AX work is rescue-heavy, Aisling Duval's +200% search & rescue rewards pulling escape pods from attacked installations.
Verdict
No Power rewards AX combat itself. Pledge Jerome Archer (or Arissa Lavigny-Duval) for the weapon-cost and bounty perks on your conventional combat, or Aisling Duval for rescue-heavy AX play.
Your Operational Playbook
Pledge
For a combat (or rescue) Power, then clear the five initial assignments.
Keep AX and Powerplay separate
Fly Thargoid combat for bonds and engineering, not merits.
Find your Power's reinforcement and acquisition systems
For the conventional combat that does count.
Run that loop for merits
Human bounty hunting and Powerplay combat zones with the Combat ethos bonus, or S&R rescues under Aisling Duval.
Fold in a secondary source
Mining or cargo into the same systems, when you want a merit sprint.
Bank before you stop
Confirm merits posted, then log off.
09
Pitfalls & Fine Print
Don't get caught out
Wrong-state grinding. Working a system that isn't one of your Power's reinforcement or acquisition systems earns zero merits. Always check the system's Powerplay state before settling in to farm.
Reinforcement penalty is permanent. The −35% merit hit on reinforcement is baked in — acquisition work is more merit-efficient per action, when contested systems are available near you.
Merits on kill, not cash-in. For both bounties and combat bonds, merits register the instant the target dies. You don't need to cash in for the merit (you do still cash in for the credits).
Don't defect. Switching Powers zeroes your merits. Modules you've unlocked are kept, but the rank climb restarts. Commit to your Power.
Solo/PG is the low-stress option. If enemy-CMDR interdictions aren't your thing, run Powerplay in Solo or a Private Group — the macro-war contribution still counts and the hostile-CMDR risk vanishes.
Galaxy-map info can lag. In-game Powerplay panels have historically been unreliable about what counts where. Cross-check current territory with a live external tracker (below) before committing a session.
Exploration data: hand in per-system. Don't use the bulk "sell all" screen for merit purposes — sell the systems containing the high-value bodies individually.
10
Sources
Figures on this page are verified against the sources below.
Note: Powerplay is live-service and rebalanced regularly — cross-check current territory and thresholds against a live tracker (EDPowerPlay / Inara) before committing a session.
Inara — PP2.0 guideThe comprehensive mechanics reference (ranks, modules, ethos, activities) this dossier's data is cross-checked against.inara.cz/elite/logbook/84502
Inara — PowerplayThe live Powerplay galaxy state — every Power’s territory, cycle and control points.inara.cz/elite/powers
EliteMeritTrackerEDMC plugin that tracks merits per system live from the journal — session and all-time totals, system state.github.com/Fumlop/EliteMeritTracker
BGS-TallyEDMC plugin logging BGS, colonisation, Powerplay and Thargoid activity per session.github.com/aussig/BGS-Tally
Elite Dangerous Fandom WikiCommunity Powerplay reference — merit system, modifier changes across rebalance patches, and the Power-leader portrait images used on this page.elite-dangerous.fandom.com/wiki/Powerplay
Steam Guide — Superpowers & Major FactionsCommunity new-player overview of the three superpowers, the powers, and Powerplay/BGS basics.steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/…id=3489843602
YouTube — Mile 13 GamingFull Powerplay 2.0 walkthrough from the Ascendancy update: pledging to a Power, the merit system, and unlocking exclusive modules.youtube.com/watch?v=abBoxLkwu2Q
YouTube — Mile 13 GamingGuide to earning Powerplay 2.0 merits efficiently by folding them into your existing activity loops rather than grinding separately.youtube.com/watch?v=py-uFRHMv8w
YouTube — Mile 13 GamingTutorial on completing the Power Commodities task, one of the merit-generating Powerplay 2.0 activities.youtube.com/watch?v=HaKuZ4tnQdU
