This document specifies the Pilot Rank system — the account-wide progression track that spans Ranks 1 through 50. It defines XP earn rates, XP thresholds per rank, the unlock payload at each rank, and the design philosophy governing what is gated vs. freely available.
Pilot Rank is the spine of the meta loop. Every other progression system (ship builds, weapon upgrades, codex discovery, achievements) feeds into or branches from it.
Pilot Rank is a pacing mechanism and unlock schedule, not a power gate. It answers the question: "What is the player working toward right now?" At any rank, the player should be able to name at least two things they are close to unlocking.
Pilot Rank does not make the player more powerful directly. It gates access to systems, ships, and weapons that the player then builds and upgrades through the economy (credits, blueprint shards, Veiled Tokens). A Rank 20 pilot with a fully upgraded H-Series loadout is stronger than a Rank 30 pilot who hasn't invested in upgrades. Rank is the door; the player still has to walk through it.
| Campaign phase | Rank range | Time to complete |
|---|---|---|
| Tutorial / Sector 1 | 1–8 | 2–4 hours |
| Sector 2 | 8–14 | 4–8 hours |
| Sector 3 | 14–22 | 8–15 hours |
| Sector 4 | 22–32 | 15–28 hours |
| Sector 5 | 32–45 | 28–50 hours |
| Post-campaign (endless) | 45–50 | 50–80+ hours |
These are estimates for players who focus on the campaign and spend credits/shards efficiently. Grinders will hit these faster; casuals will take longer. The system must feel rewarding to both.
| Source | XP Awarded |
|---|---|
| Stage cleared (first clear) | 200 + (stage_difficulty × 15) |
| Stage cleared (repeat) | 40 + (stage_difficulty × 3) — diminishes at Rank +5 over recommended |
| Boss defeated (first kill) | 600 |
| Boss defeated (repeat) | 120 |
| Enemy killed | 1 XP base, scaled by enemy tier (elite = 8 XP) |
| No-damage stage clear bonus | 150 |
| Daily login bonus | 100 |
| Achievement unlocked | 50–500 (varies by achievement tier) |
| Codex entry discovered | 10 |
| Endless depth milestone | 50–300 (see 15_endless_mode.md) |
Note: Endless mode grants no Pilot XP from wave clears — only from depth milestones. This is the hard rule that prevents endless from being an XP farm.
Anti-farming floor: Stage repeat XP is halved again when the player's Pilot Rank exceeds the stage recommended rank by more than 5. At +10 ranks over, repeat XP approaches zero. Players cannot infinitely farm Stage 1 for Pilot XP.
The XP required to advance from Rank N to Rank N+1. The curve is:
threshold(n) = base(n) + ramp_component(n)
base(n) = 500 × n
ramp_component(n) = max(0, (n - 15) × 200) + max(0, (n - 30) × 500)| Rank | XP to next rank | Cumulative XP |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 500 | 0 |
| 2 | 1,000 | 500 |
| 3 | 1,500 | 1,500 |
| 4 | 2,000 | 3,000 |
| 5 | 2,500 | 5,000 |
| 6 | 3,000 | 7,500 |
| 7 | 3,500 | 10,500 |
| 8 | 4,000 | 14,000 |
| 9 | 4,500 | 18,000 |
| 10 | 5,000 | 22,500 |
| 11 | 5,500 | 27,500 |
| 12 | 6,000 | 33,000 |
| 13 | 6,500 | 39,000 |
| 14 | 7,000 | 45,500 |
| 15 | 7,500 | 52,500 |
| 16 | 8,200 | 60,000 |
| 17 | 9,100 | 68,200 |
| 18 | 10,000 | 77,300 |
| 19 | 10,900 | 87,300 |
| 20 | 11,800 | 98,200 |
| 21 | 12,700 | 110,000 |
| 22 | 13,600 | 122,700 |
| 23 | 14,500 | 136,300 |
| 24 | 15,400 | 150,800 |
| 25 | 16,300 | 166,200 |
| 26 | 17,200 | 182,500 |
| 27 | 18,100 | 199,700 |
| 28 | 19,000 | 217,800 |
| 29 | 19,900 | 236,800 |
| 30 | 20,800 | 256,700 |
| 31 | 22,300 | 277,500 |
| 32 | 23,800 | 299,800 |
| 33 | 25,300 | 323,600 |
| 34 | 26,800 | 348,900 |
| 35 | 28,300 | 375,700 |
| 36 | 30,300 | 404,000 |
| 37 | 32,300 | 434,300 |
| 38 | 34,300 | 466,600 |
| 39 | 36,300 | 500,900 |
| 40 | 38,300 | 537,200 |
| 41 | 40,800 | 575,500 |
| 42 | 43,300 | 616,300 |
| 43 | 45,800 | 659,600 |
| 44 | 48,300 | 705,400 |
| 45 | 50,800 | 753,700 |
| 46 | 54,300 | 804,500 |
| 47 | 57,800 | 858,800 |
| 48 | 61,300 | 916,600 |
| 49 | 64,800 | 977,900 |
| 50 | — (max) | 1,042,700 cumulative |
Total XP for Rank 50: ~1,042,700 XP. At the average earn rate of a focused campaign player (~2,000 XP/hour in early game, ~4,000 XP/hour in mid-game, ~6,000 XP/hour in late game), reaching Rank 50 represents roughly 200–350 hours of play across the full lifecycle. This is a long-term goal, not a speedrun target.
Each rank delivers one or more unlocks. Unlocks fall into five categories:
| Category | Symbol | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ship access | 🚀 | Enables building a specific ship |
| Weapon access | ⚡ | Enables building a specific weapon |
| Module access | 🔧 | Enables equipping a specific module tier |
| System access | ⚙️ | Unlocks a game system or feature |
| Cosmetic | 🎨 | Engine trail, title, banner, hull accent |
| Rank | Unlock | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🚀 H-1 Vanguard (free, instant) · ⚡ W1 Pulse Cannon (free) · ⚙️ Codex tab unlocked | Game start |
| 2 | ⚡ W2 Inertial Lance buildable · 🎨 Engine trail: "Static Blue" | First alternate weapon |
| 3 | 🔧 Offense module slot unlocked (first slot) | First module slot |
| 4 | ⚙️ Achievement system visible · ⚡ W2 Inertial Lance builds available | |
| 5 | 🚀 H-2 Interceptor buildable · 🚀 H-3 Bulwark buildable | Post-Sector 1 gate |
| 6 | 🔧 Defense module slot unlocked (second slot) | |
| 7 | 🎨 Title: "Frontier Pilot" · ⚙️ Ship Mastery system visible | |
| 8 | 🔧 Utility module slot unlocked (third slot) · ⚙️ Daily login bonus activates | Full module loadout |
| Rank | Unlock | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | 🎨 Engine trail: "Deep Blue" · ⚙️ Endless mode visible (locked, teased) | Visible but locked |
| 10 | ⚡ W3 Coherence Beam buildable · ⚡ W8 Boltzmann Cascade buildable | First V-tier weapons |
| 11 | 🔧 Module M1 upgrades unlocked (H-Series modules) | |
| 12 | 🎨 Title: "Long-Reach Veteran" · ⚙️ Leaderboard tab unlocked | |
| 13 | ⚡ Ship M1 upgrades unlocked (H-Series ships) | First ship upgrades |
| 14 | 🎨 Engine trail: "Amber Surge" | |
| 15 | ⚙️ Veiled Token economy unlocked · 🎨 Hull accent: "Coalition Sigil" | Token economy begins |
| Rank | Unlock | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 16 | 🔧 Module M2 upgrades unlocked (H-Series) | |
| 17 | 🎨 Title: "Veil Operative" | |
| 18 | ⚡ Ship M2 upgrades unlocked (H-Series) · ⚙️ Build queue time reduction (-10%) | |
| 19 | 🔧 Module M1 upgrades unlocked (V-Series modules) | V-tier module upgrades |
| 20 | 🚀 V-1 Marksman buildable · 🚀 V-2 Phantom buildable · 🚀 V-3 Striker buildable | V-Series gate |
| 21 | 🎨 Engine trail: "Red Neon" · 🎨 Title: "Veiled Liaison" | |
| 22 | ⚡ W4 Hawking Bolt buildable · ⚡ Ship M1 upgrades unlocked (V-Series) |
| Rank | Unlock | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 23 | 🔧 Module M2 upgrades unlocked (V-Series) | |
| 24 | 🎨 Title: "Ergosphere Walker" · ⚙️ Build queue time reduction (-20% total) | |
| 25 | ⚡ W5 Penrose Lance buildable · ⚡ W6 Anomaly Field buildable | C-tier weapons begin |
| 26 | ⚡ Ship M2 upgrades unlocked (V-Series) | |
| 27 | 🎨 Engine trail: "Lime Pulse" (#c8f542 themed) |
Signature CDL trail |
| 28 | 🚀 C-1 Apex buildable · 🚀 C-2 Resonator buildable | C-Series gate |
| 29 | 🔧 Module M1 upgrades unlocked (C-Series modules) | |
| 30 | ⚡ Ship M1 upgrades unlocked (C-Series) · 🚀 C-3 Singularity access gated on S27 + Rank 32 | |
| 31 | 🔧 Module M3 upgrades unlocked (H-Series) | |
| 32 | 🚀 C-3 Singularity buildable (requires S27 cleared) · ⚡ W7 Cosmic String Spear buildable | Late-game access |
| Rank | Unlock | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 33 | ⚡ Ship M3 upgrades unlocked (H-Series) · 🎨 Title: "Apparatus Breaker" | |
| 34 | 🔧 Module M2 upgrades unlocked (C-Series) | |
| 35 | ⚡ Ship M2 upgrades unlocked (C-Series) · 🎨 Hull accent: "Veiled Liturgical Mark" | |
| 36 | 🔧 Module M3 upgrades unlocked (V-Series) | |
| 37 | ⚡ Ship M3 upgrades unlocked (V-Series) · 🎨 Engine trail: "Halen-Gold" | Honors the Architect |
| 38 | ⚙️ Endless mode depth milestone bonus +10% | Endless reward boost |
| 39 | 🎨 Title: "Tao Adherent" · ⚙️ Build queue time reduction (-30% total) | |
| 40 | 🔧 Module M3 upgrades unlocked (C-Series) · 🎨 Hull accent: "Coalition Command" | |
| 41 | ⚡ Ship M3 upgrades unlocked (C-Series — requires Sector 5 cleared) | Final ship tier |
| 42 | 🎨 Engine trail: "String Scar" (cosmic string visual) | |
| 43 | ⚙️ Endless mode Boltzmann rare drop rate +15% | |
| 44 | 🎨 Title: "Choir of One" | Veiled honorific |
| 45 | ⚙️ Endless mode fully unlocked (all depth events active) · 🎨 Banner: "Beyond the Veil" | Prestige gate |
These ranks exist entirely in endless mode. No new content is gated behind them — they are pure expression of mastery, delivering only cosmetics and minor quality-of-life improvements.
| Rank | Unlock | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 46 | 🎨 Title: "The Weight of Matter" · ⚙️ Endless Boltzmann rare drop rate +25% total | |
| 47 | 🎨 Engine trail: "Bleed-Through" (reality-tear visual) | |
| 48 | 🎨 Hull accent: "The Last Calculation" (Halen's final transmission sigil) | |
| 49 | 🎨 Title: "Witness" (Veiled highest honorific) | |
| 50 | 🎨 Full cosmetic set: "Architect's Recognition" — unique ship skin overlay, engine trail, title, banner · ⚙️ Profile badge: Rank 50 | Max rank, permanent |
Rank 50 cosmetic set "Architect's Recognition": The ship is subtly overlaid with Telos liturgical prayer-script geometry — not garish, but visible on close inspection. The lore: Architect-Veth, after the Apparatus fell, asked the Choir of Names to honor the pilots who went furthest. The Choir's response was a prayer written in light. "They did not cross. And because they did not, we may choose."
When a rank-up occurs (at hub screen or stage clear screen):
Example major unlock ceremony text (Rank 20 — V-Series gate):
"The Veiled designs are now available to you. These ships were not built in any human shipyard — they were translated from Veiled schematics by engineers who had never seen the source materials in person. The results are extraordinary. The Choir of Names blessed each hull before it left the fabricator. You may not believe in their prayers. The ships fly better for them anyway."
Ship Mastery is a per-ship progression track separate from Pilot Rank. It is driven by flight time and damage dealt in a specific ship, not XP. It is defined here because it is often confused with Pilot Rank.
Each ship has 5 mastery levels: Unranked → Trained → Seasoned → Expert → Legendary
| Mastery tier | Requirement | Bonus |
|---|---|---|
| Unranked | No requirement | No bonus |
| Trained | 30 min flight time OR 500 kills | +3% damage with this ship |
| Seasoned | 120 min OR 2,000 kills | +6% damage + passive ability enhancement (minor) |
| Expert | 300 min OR 5,000 kills | +10% damage + enhanced passive ability |
| Legendary | 600 min OR 12,000 kills | +15% damage + passive ability qualitative upgrade + cosmetic badge on ship card |
Mastery XP rule: Endless mode grants full mastery XP. Campaign stages grant full mastery XP. Repeating the same stage below Pilot Rank does not reduce mastery XP (unlike Pilot XP). This ensures dedicated endless runners can master their ships even without farming campaign stages.
Legendary passive upgrade example — H-1 Vanguard:
The Legendary upgrade is qualitative — it adds a new mechanic, not just a number increase.
At Legendary mastery, a small badge appears on the ship card in the hangar:
#c8f542 ring)All 30 campaign stages are accessible based on stage unlock gates (previous stage cleared), not Pilot Rank. Pilot Rank recommends — it does not prohibit. A player may attempt Stage 18 at Rank 10 if they choose to under-level.
The story belongs to the player. Rank gates only equipment and systems.
Ranks 1–15 are designed to advance through normal play with no grinding. A player who plays through the campaign and completes each stage the first time should reach Rank 15 by the time they encounter the Sector 3 story content. Grinding must be a choice, not a requirement.
The rank-up screen always previews the next 2 ranks of unlocks (grayed out). The player must always know what they're working toward.
The maximum rank and the Rank 50 cosmetic are visible in the profile screen from the first session (grayed out, with "Architect's Recognition — Rank 50" label). Long-term goals are more motivating when they are visible, even when distant.
threshold(n) = 500n + max(0,(n-15)×200) + max(0,(n-30)×500)Document version: 1.0 (locked) Part of: Tao Baryon GDD — Tier 3 Meta Systems