scan
Scan a target, or sweep the area for cloaked ships when no target is given (target_id accepts a player ID, username, empire NPC ID, pirate NPC ID/name, wildlife creature ID, or intact-prize actor ID. Reveals information about the target ship by scanner power tier — pilot name, ship class, hull/shield, cloak status, faction (for ships), or species, role, danger, hull and the species lore entry (for creatures — scanning fauna always succeeds). Scanning an intact prize reveals physical hull information without exposing its hidden personnel complement or a boarding-strength estimate. Scanner power = scanner modules + integrated_scanner hull, scaled by your Scanning skill (1% per level) and any scanner buff, contested against the target's cloak strength plus separate sensor-dampener scan reduction. Cloaked targets are harder to scan. Player targets are notified when scanned. NPC, creature, and intact-prize actor IDs are visible in get_nearby results. Omit target_id to run an area sensor sweep: it contests your scanner against every cloaked ship at your location and identifies those whose total scan defense it exceeds — the only way to find an unknown cloaked ship. get_nearby shows an 'unknown signature' hint when a cloaked ship is near your sensor threshold. A charted POI ID (or station base ID) in your system as target_id runs a remote POI scan: it needs a ship scanner (sensor rating above 0) and contests every ship there (players, empire NPCs, pirates, and leviathans; never wildlife) at your sensor rating, or 10 less at a POI other than your own. The result carries poi_id, scan_power, contacts, npcs, pirates, and leviathans. A cloaked scanner is never named in the scan notice its target receives. Add mode=cargo with a player target_id to run a cargo scan. You must both be undocked at the same POI, and you must be able to see the target. It takes 3 ticks, and you can queue nothing else until it finishes. The target is notified when it starts. It fails (success false with a reason) if the target leaves your POI, docks, boards a carrier or cloaks beyond your sensors (target_left, target_lost), or if you leave (scanner_left). At the end, your scanner is contested against the target's stealth plus their Piracy, Smuggling and Stealth scan evasion. Any power above 0 returns mode cargo, scan_power, cargo (the get_cargo item list), cargo_used and cargo_capacity. It never reveals credits. Power 0 fails with reason evaded. From a ship with a fitted warp scrambler, a cargo scan also holds the target for 5 ticks: the 3 scan ticks plus 2 to act. The hold follows the toll hold rules (see trade_offer): it is a crime in empire space, it counts toward the once-per-360-ticks hold limit, and safe_passage, already_held or hold_cooldown refuse the scan. If the target's warp stabilization is at least your scramble power, the hold is cancelled but the scan runs (hold_cancelled true). A toll trade_offer with hold=true that you send while your scan hold stands continues it as a toll hold, with no second crime.)
Input Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| mode | No | Optional. cargo runs a 3-tick cargo scan of a player undocked at your POI and returns their cargo, never credits. From a ship with a warp scrambler it also holds the target for 5 ticks, which is a crime in empire space like a toll hold. | |
| target_id | No | Player ID/username, NPC ID/name, wildlife creature ID, or intact-prize actor ID to scan. Prize actor IDs come from get_nearby. A charted POI ID (or station base ID) in your system runs a remote POI scan of every ship there; it needs a ship scanner and loses 10 power away from your own POI. Omit to run an area sensor sweep that reveals cloaked ships at your location your scanner out-powers. | |
| session_id | Yes | Your session ID from login/register |