Ostranauts Physical Combat Guide

Ship-to-ship gunnery is only half the violence in Ostranauts. Physical combat resolves fights on foot — pirates forcing a dock, bounty targets in a corridor, or a bar argument that turns sharp. Fire in the Hold and 1.0 made boarding threats real enough that locking the airlock and standing ready matters as much as fitting a PDC. This guide covers initiating fights, melee versus ranged choices, armor and fatigue, surrender, and why some guns are ship-safe.

For nav-station warfare read Ship Combat. For warrants that expect live captures see Bounty Hunting.

Starting a fight

Right-click an NPC and pick a Combat action from the Quick Action Bar (keys 1–4, red combat category). Your character closes range if needed. With Autopause enabled, the sim pauses between combat beats and dialogue so you can choose the next move without fumbling at 16x speed.

You fight better with a weapon in hand. Sharp weapons (knives, blades, bullets) shred armor faster; blunt weapons (bats, clubs, crowbars) hurt through armor with less armor destruction. Tools double as improvisation — grinders and welders appear as Burn/Grind style moves when equipped.

Pirate boarding pressure during a salvage run

Melee, ranged, and the hull problem

Style	Strength	Risk aboard ship
Unarmed / knuckles	Always available	Low env damage, slow
Blunt melee	Reliable, less armor shred	Moderate env risk
Sharp melee	Fast kills, armor break	Higher env damage
Guns	Range and power	Misses and shots can damage hull components

Firing aboard a pressurized ship is a deliberate risk. Community loadouts distinguish ship-safe sidearms that avoid punching holes from older guns that treat bulkheads like soft targets. If you care about the atmosphere you just balanced in Manage Atmosphere, prefer blunt control or safe ammo indoors.

Ranged attacks can miss and strike the environment. Fatigue and injuries unlock only “Tired” versions of moves — rest before you board a pirate corvette like the contest Babak heavy-hitter around Ceres.

Control moves, surrender, and finishing blows

Combat is not only damage ticks:

• Tackle and similar control moves force prone states.
• Stand from Prone recovers footing.
• Demand surrender when fear and injury stack — NPCs may accept, refuse, or ignore.
• Finishing blows on incapacitated or surrendering foes deal massive damage but inflict emotional harm on your captain.

Surrendered NPCs can be handled like temporary crew for looting — strip armor and weapons, then release or finish. Letting a pirate leave with an active ship can restart the boarding crisis. Bounty workflows that need live captures should avoid finishing blows; see Bounty Hunting.

Post-rebalance patches disallow NPCs from using tackle as a casual social move — combat tools stay in combat.

Boarding defense habits

When COMMS shows a hostile forcing a dock:

1. Pause. Confirm airlock state — lock what you can.
2. Stage a weapon and suit policy near the threatened ring.
3. Keep crew on Work with clear zones so they do not haul crates through the kill box.
4. Fight in a compartment you can afford to vent or repair.
5. Afterward, check hull breaches, fires, and morale — Fire and Smoke.

Prevention still wins: Polaris decoys and range control in Ship Combat reduce how often boarders reach your clamps.

Traits, skills, and loadout notes

Armed Melee and related traits expand available moves. Character creation choices from Character Creation matter more once Ceres traffic rises. Carry:

• One blunt option for ship-safe pacification
• One sharp option for armored targets
• A ranged option you understand the env-damage profile of
• Medical supplies for post-fight bleeding

Death pay still applies if hired crew die in the scrum — budget with Hire Crew.

Related pages

• Ship Combat — PDC, missiles, Ceres loadouts
• Bounty Hunting — dead-or-alive warrants
• Ceres Conflict Zone — where boarding heat concentrates
• Controls — QAB combat keys
• Updates — combat AI and encounter UI fixes