The Cabal's Secret Hideout

Our TradeWars 2002 Homepage

Web Master: traitor@tw-cabal.com

CONTENTS

FORMULAS: (Almost current as of v.55 :-)

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Strategy Glossary of TW terms Tips Formulas

Last Updated 4/12/05. New items are marked with an "*"-Traitor

Alignment Gains and Losses
* Alignment Gains for killing a trader on a planet
* Alignment Gains for killing a trader on a port
Creating & Upgrading Ports: Alignment and Experience Gains
Density Scan Values
* Destroying a port, Defensive Rating vs Figs Needed
Entering A Hostile Sector: Order of Events
Evil Rob/Steal Settings
* Experience Gains for killing a trader on a planet
* Experience Gains for killing a trader on a port
Experience Loss for Mixed-Corps at Extern
GOLD or Classic Player vs Figs Experience and Alignment Info
GOLD or Classic Q-Cannon Formulas
Hold Costs
Landing On A Hostile Planet: Order of Events
MBBS Fighter and Shield Odds
MBBS GOLD or MBBS Player vs Player Experience and Alignment info
MBBS GOLD or MBBS Q-Cannon Formulas
Planet Information: Optimal Population and Production
Planet Information: Supplies needed for construction and upgrades of Citadels
Red Experience and Align Gains for SST and SDT, per turn
Red Profit Breakdown for SST, SDT, Team SDT, and Megga Rob.
* Trader Flee formula

Planet Information: Optimal Population and Production

Optimal Pop Days to construct

Class Ore Org. Eq. Lv 1 Lv 2 Lv 3 Lv 4 Lv 5 Lv 6 total days Fig Factor Max Fuel

M, Earth 15000 15000 15000 4 4 5 10 5 15 43 30, 70, 130 100000

K, Desert 20000 20000 20000 6 5 8 5 4 8 36 30, 1500, 7500 200000

O, Oceanic 100000 100000 100000 6 5 8 5 4 8 36 300, 30, 1500 100000

L, Mountain 20000 20000 20000 2 5 5 8 5 12 37 24, 60, 240 200000

C, Glacial 50000 50000 50000 5 5 7 5 4 8 34 1250, 2500, 12500 20000

H, Volcanic 50000 N/A 50000 4 5 8 12 5 18 52 50, 0, 25000 1000000

U, Vap/Gas 1500 1500 1500 8 4 5 5 4 8 34 0, 0, 0 10000

Key:
Optimal Pop: This represents the optimal population. More than optimal reduces production. A planet can hold 2* the optimal population max.
Fig Factor: This represents the number of collies it takes to make one fig, for each of the three types of production. i.e. Class M planets make 1 fig for each 30 in ore, 1 for each 70 in org, and 1 fig for each 130 in eq.

Back to top.

Planet Information: Supplies needed for construction and upgrades of Citadels.

M, Earth Lv 1 Lv 2 Lv 3 Lv 4 Lv 5 Lv 6 K, Desert Lv 1 Lv 2 Lv 3 Lv 4 Lv 5 Lv 6

Fuel Ore 300 200 500 1000 300 1000 Fuel Ore 400 300 600 700 300 700

Organics 200 50 250 1200 400 1200 Organics 300 80 400 900 400 900

Equipment 250 250 500 1000 1000 2000 Equipment 600 400 650 800 1000 1600

Colonists 1000 2000 4000 6000 6000 6000 Colonists 1000 2400 4400 7000 8000 7000

Days 4 4 5 10 5 15 Days 6 5 8 5 4 8

O, Oceanic Lv 1 Lv 2 Lv 3 Lv 4 Lv 5 Lv 6 L, Mountain Lv 1 Lv 2 Lv 3 Lv 4 Lv 5 Lv 6

Fuel Ore 500 200 600 700 300 700 Fuel Ore 150 200 600 1000 300 1000

Organics 200 50 400 900 400 900 Organics 100 50 250 1200 400 1200

Equipment 400 300 650 800 1000 1600 Equipment 150 250 700 1000 1000 2000

Colonists 1400 2400 4400 7000 8000 7000 Colonists 400 1400 3600 5600 7000 5600

Days 6 5 8 5 4 8 Days 2 5 5 8 5 12

C, Glacial Lv 1 Lv 2 Lv 3 Lv 4 Lv 5 Lv 6 H, Volcanic Lv 1 Lv 2 Lv 3 Lv 4 Lv 5 Lv 6

Fuel Ore 400 300 600 700 300 700 Fuel Ore 500 300 1200 2000 3000 2000

Organics 300 80 400 900 400 900 Organics 300 100 400 2000 1200 2000

Equipment 600 400 650 700 1000 1400 Equipment 600 400 1500 2500 2000 5000

Colonists 1000 2400 4400 6600 9000 6600 Colonists 800 1600 4400 7000 10000 7000

Days 5 5 7 5 4 8 Days 4 5 8 12 5 18

U, Vap/Gas Lv 1 Lv 2 Lv 3 Lv 4 Lv 5 Lv 6

Fuel Ore 1200 300 500 500 200 500

Organics 400 100 500 200 200 200

Equipment 2500 400 2000 600 600 1200

Colonists 3000 3000 5000 6000 8000 6000

Days 8 4 5 5 4 8

Entering A Hostile Sector: Order of Events (What happens when you go in with no Photon)
1. Check for Nav Hazz. Apply damage if necessary.
2. One Limpet Mine, if any are present, will attach to your hull. Any previously attached Limpet will fall off.
3. Armid Mines, if any are present, will check for detonation. If detonation occurs, then 50% of the mines will detonate, rounding down. Apply damage if necessary.
4. Sector Q-Cannon will fire. If there are multiple planets in the sector, the lowest planet number will fire first, and then check to see if the ship still exits. If it does, then the next planet will fire, until all cannons fire, or the ship is destroyed. (i.e. if planet #2's cannon kills your ship, then planet #3 through whatever won't fire their cannons.)
5a. Sector Offensive Fighters attack. They will attack at 1:1 odds, but will send 1.25 times the number of combined shields and figs that your ship can carry. (i.e. if your ship has a max of 10,000 figs, and 1,000 shields, then you will be attacked by 13,750 figs at 1:1 odds) Any remaining figs will stay in the sector to be dealt with in 5b.
- OR -
5b. Sector Defensive Fighters challenge. You will be placed at the attack prompt and be forced to either attack, retreat or surrender your ship. Sector Defensive Figs have 1:1 odds.
- OR -
5c. Tolled figs challenge. You will be placed at the tolled fig prompt and forced to either pay (5 credits per tolled fig), attack, retreat or surrender your ship. Tolled figs have 1:1 odds.
6. If there were any mines in the sector, you will be asked whether you want to avoid the sector. At this point, you are returned to the command prompt. There may still be Mines and Offensive figs left in the sector.

Landing On A Hostile Planet: Order of Events (What happens when you land with no Photon, or if you land on a shielded planet)
1. Atmospheric Q-Cannon will fire (assuming there is one)
2. Attack Planet Shields (if any)
3. If there were shields, and after you destroy the last one, then the Atmospheric Q-Cannon will fire again.
4. Planetary Offensive Figs attack. They ONLY attack when there are no shields. As long as there is at least one shield left, they will not attack. They attack at 2:1 odds, but will send 1.25 times the number of combined shields and figs your that your ship can carry. (i.e. if your ship has a max of 10,000 figs, and 1,000 shields, then you will be attacked by 13,750 figs at 2:1 odds) Any remaining figs will stay in the Planet to be dealt with in step 5.
5. Attack Planet Figs. Any remaining figs on the planet will defend at 3:1 odds (even if there was a Military Reaction set). After killing the figs, you are put at the Planet Prompt. First thing you should do is press "O" to take ownership of the planet!

MBBS GOLD or MBBS Player vs Player Experience and Alignment info:
If you are podded, you loose 10% of your exp.
If you are #SD#, then you loose 50% of your exp, and 50% of your alignment.

Blue vs Red or Red vs Blue
Amount of Alignment lost/gained = (# of YOUR figs lost/1000) * (Enemy Align * .2)
Amount of Exp gained = # of YOUR figs lost/15
If you pod them, then you also get 10% of their experience, and 50% of their Alignment.
If you #SD# them, then you get 10% of their exp, and 50% of their Alignment.
(i.e. A blue attacks a red. The blue has 30k figs, the red has a mere 20k. The Blue has 0 exp, and 1100 align, while the Red has 12,000 exp, and -100,000 align. If the blue launches a wave of 10k figs at the red, then the blue will gain 666 exp, and +200,000 align. Assuming that the red has only 8000 figs left, and the blue launches another 10k wave, then the blue would loose, say, 7000 figs, and the red would be in a pod. But the blue gains 533 exp and +160,000 align for the figs, and an additional 1200 exp and +50000 alignment for the podding. If the blue were to finish off the pod, then he'd get another 1 exp and +600 align for the figs/shields on the pod, and another 1080 exp and +50000 alignment. After the conflict, the Red would be at 5400 exp, and -50000 align, while the blue would be at 3480 exp, and +460,600 align.)

Blue vs Blue or Red vs Red
Amount of Alignment lost/gained = (# of YOUR figs lost/1000) * (Enemy Align * .2)
Amount of Exp gained = # of YOUR figs lost/35
If you pod them, then you also get 10% of their experience, and 50% of their Alignment.
If you #SD# them, then you get 10% of their exp, and 50% of their Alignment.

Neutral vs Any (people with 0 alignment)
Amount of Alignment lost/gained = (# of YOUR figs lost/1000) * (Enemy Align * .2)
Amount of Exp gained = # of YOUR figs lost/25
If you pod them, then you also get 10% of their experience, and 50% of their Alignment.
If you #SD# them, then you get 10% of their exp, and 50% of their Alignment.

GOLD or Classic Player vs Figs Experience and Alignment Info (Corp or Personal)
Blue vs Red or Red vs Blue
Amount of Exp gained: (# of figs you LOST / 15)
Amount of Alignment Lost/gained: (Player or Corp alignment / 5000) * number of figs you LOST
i.e. your enemy has 1000 tolled figs, and you attack them. If the enemy has a personal alignment of -10,000, and a corp alignment of -5000, then if you attack them (assume 1 to 1 odds) and loose 1000 figs in the process, then you will gain 67 exp, and gain 2000 align for hitting his personal figs, or 1000 align for hitting corp figs. It's the figs YOU loose that matter, not how many they have.

Blue vs Blue or Red vs Red
Amount of Exp gained: (# of figs you LOST / 35)
Amount of Alignment Lost/gained: (Player or Corp alignment / 10000) * number of figs you LOST
Note that the Experience is the same as MBBS, but the alignment penalties are different. Go figure.

MBBS Fighter and Shield Odds:

Tolled Fig Odds 1:1

Defensive Fig Odds 1:1

Offensive Fig Odds * 1:1

Planet Defensive Fig Odds 3:1

Planet Offensive Fig Odds ** 2:1

Planet Shield Odds 20:1

* NOTE: As of version .55, Offensive figs will calculate the number of figs required to destroy your ship (your max total shields and figs, not your current shields and figs as in previous versions) based on 1:1 odds, and then send 1.25 times that amount (or the remaining figs if it's less than that). If you are in a ship with 1:1.3 odds or better, your ship will survive the attack. Any figs that survive the attack or aren't used remain in the sector..
** NOTE: Planet Offensive figs also send 1.25 times the number of figs required to destroy your ship as above, but the odds are 2:1, so you either need more figs than the planet has, use a modified ship, or come in with a photon, otherwise the figs will pod your ship, even a scout! Any figs that survive the attack or aren't used remain on the planet.

MBBS GOLD or MBBS Q-Cannon Formulas
Sector:
Damage = (Fuel * SectLvl %) / 3
Atmospheric:
Damage = (Fuel * AtmosLvl %) * 2
Example:
A typical L with 200,000 units of fuel ore, and 20% AtmosLvl, and 10% SectLvl will do 6666 points of damage to your ship when you enter the sector, and 72,000 damage if you immediately try to land on it after the sector fire.

GOLD or Classic Q-Cannon Formulas
Sector:
Damage = (Fuel * SectLvl %) / 3
Atmospheric:
Damage = (Fuel * AtmosLvl %) * .5
Example:
A typical L with 200,000 units of fuel ore, and 20% AtmosLvl, and 10% SectLvl will do 6666 points of damage to your ship when you enter the sector, and 18,000 damage if you immediately try to land on it after the sector fire.

Evil Rob/Steal Settings
The Math:
There are two settings that affect how much you can rob or steal. The RobFactor, and the StealFactor. These settings are determined by the Sysop. (Although in MBBS mode, they are fixed.) They are measured as a percentage, i.e. 50%.

Here is the formula you need to use to figure out how much you can rob from a port with minimal chance of a bust.
(3 / %RobFactor) * EXP
Example: (Rob Factor is 50%. Your experience is 10,000.)
3 / .5 = 6, 6 * 10,000 = 60,000
You can rob 60,000 credits.

Here is the formula for stealing holds:
EXP / (30 * %StealFactor)
Example: (StealFactor is 70%. Your experience is 3,500.)
30 * .7 = 21, 3500 / 21 = 166.6 holds. (166 holds, drop fractions!)

For your convince, I have put the default values for a MBBS and a Classic game.
MBBS:
EXP * 6 = Maximum Credits you can rob at once.
EXP / 21 = Maximum holds you can steal at once.

Classic:
EXP * 3 = Maximum Credits you can rob at once.
EXP / 30 = Maximum holds you can steal at once.

Be sure to check the settings the sysop is using in a classic game by pressing * at the Game Menu. (The first menu after you choose which game you want to play.) And remember, even if you follow these settings, your chance of busting is around 1 in 50. You WILL bust!

Density Scan Values

Value What

0 Empty Sector *

1 Beacon

2 Limpet Mine *

5 One Fighter

10 One Armid Mine

21 Nav Haz ( per 1 percent )

38 Unmanned Ship

40 Manned Ship - Trader or Alien

100 Startport, Ferrengi Battle Cruiser or Ferrengi Dreadnaught

462 Federation Starship: Admiral Nelson

489 Federation Starship: Captain Zyrain

500 Planet

512 Federation Starship: Admiral Clausewitz

* If there is a 'yes' in the anomaly column, then there is likely a cloaked ship there. Cloaked ships have a zero dens scan, but trigger the anomaly flag. Limpets always trigger the anomaly flag.
These values are cumulative, so if there is a planet with 2 empty ships, a limpet and 150 mines and 10,000 figs over it, your density scan will report 52078. Anything over 100, or any anomaly should be holoscanned. Some players will deliberately try to mislead you by dropping figs/mines in combination that add up to either 40 or 100 or 500. When in doubt, Photon it! :-)

Alignment Gains and Losses:

Action Align Gain/Loss Exp change?

Login in first time each day +1 +1

Swearing at Grimy Trader in tavern -1 -1

Destroying a port -50 +50

Destroying a Planet (Any Alignment) -1 +50

Good Creating a Planet +10 +25

Neutral Creating a Planet 0 +25

Evil Creating a Planet -10 +25

Jettisoning collies -1 per collie, one time per extern, only if good 0

Breaking into another corp -1, one time per extern 0

Posting a reward on an Evil +1 per 1000 credits 0

Posting a bounty on a Good -1 per 250 credits 0

Attacking a Fed -10, but you get podded Loose 10%

Attacking a player or alien Varies, see Formulas Varies, see Formulas

Attacking figs Varies, see Formulas Varies, see Formulas

Creating a Port Varies, see Formulas Varies, see Formulas

Upgrading a Port Varies, see Formulas Varies, see Formulas

Experience Loss for Mixed-Corps at Extern:
This is not a straight-forward formula, since there has to be a comparison first, then the formula is applied. And phrasing the comparison is difficult. But, you take two players in your corp, the one with the lowest (negative, or red) alignment, and the one with the highest positive alignment (blue). You then treat the negative alignment number as a positive, and compare the two numbers. Whichever number is LOWER, is the one that is kept. You then take that number and divide it by four, and that's how much experience is lost. Experience cannot go below zero. An example follows:
Player 1, corp 1, 1000 exp, +1000 alignment
Player 2, corp 1, 1000 exp, 0 alignment
Player 3, corp 1, 20,000 exp, -50,000 alignment
Player 4, corp 1, 10,000 exp, -25,000 alignment
Player 5, corp 1, 0 exp, +800 alignment
At extern, the alignments of Player 1 and Player 3 are compared. (The high red, and the high blue.) Player 1's is the lower of the two values, so the total experience loss for the corp is 250. (1000 / 4) Note that Player 5's experience will stay at zero, since it can't go any lower. Player 1 and Player 2 are now also Fedsafe, since their experience dropped below 1000 (to 750).

Creating & Upgrading Ports:
Port Creation Experience and Alignment Gain (regardless of current alignment)

Port Class Type Exp Align Build Time

1 BBS +25 +12 6

2 BSB +29 +14 7

3 SBB +34 +16 8

4 SSB +20 +10 5

5 SBS +16 +8 4

6 BSS +12 +6 3

7 SSS +7 +4 2

8 BBB +45 +20 10

9 Special N/A N/A N/A

0 Special N/A N/A N/A

Port Upgrade Experience and Alignment Gain (regardless of current alignment)

Type: Exp per unit Align per unit Cost per unit

Fuel Ore 0.1 0.05 250

Organics 0.2 0.1 500

Equipment 0.3 0.15 900

HOLD COSTS:
The cost of holds are:
Cost = (B*H)+((I*H)*(H-1))/2
B is the base cost of the hold. B is a random number generated each day by TWGS. I've tracked it over 30 days, and seen it range between 151 and 249. Extern and the hour change don't seem to change this number, only the day change. It appears to be an 18 day cycle. It starts at 151, then over 9 days works up to 249, then back down to 151 over another 9 day period.
H is the number of holds you want to end up with.
I is the increment number, which is always 20. (Each hold costs 20 more than the last one.
Example, the cost for 100 holds (from zero holds) when B is equal to 200 is: (200*100)+((20*100)*(100-1))/2 or 20000 + (2000 * 99)/2 or 20000 + 99000 = 119,000 credits.

To find out what B is, use the following formula:
B = C-((H)*I)
C is the cost for the NEXT hold. (When you look at the purchase screen, it will show the cost for the next hold to be one less credit than it actually costs to install. If you try to buy just one hold, you will see the correct price.)
H is the number of holds you ALREADY have.
I is the increment number, which is always 20. (Each hold costs 20 more than the last one.
Example, you have 50 holds, and to get to 51 holds, it costs 1164, then B = 1164-(50*20) = 164.

To find out how much it costs to purchase large quantities of holds, figure out how many holds you have and how many you want to end up with. For example, if you have 50 holds, and you want 250, you first figure out what it costs to get 250 holds from 0. Then you figure out what 50 holds cost and subtract that from the 250 hold figure. Using the above value for B (164), the cost for 50 holds is :32,700, and for 250 holds is: 663,500, so it's costs 620,800 credits to go from 50 to 250 holds.

I know this is kind of trivial, since most of the time you just buy what you need, but now you know how it works. Also, take a look at my essay, The Economy of Tradewars, since I had to figure this out in the process of writing that guide.

Red Experience and Align Gains for SST and SDT, per turn
This can be useful to know, since you can tell how well your competition is doing. Keep in mind that there are a lot of things a red can do to throw off your calculations, and tracking exp is folly, since busts always screw up your numbers. But you can get a general idea if your enemies are SST'ing or SDT'ing, besides counting planets, and you can get a rough idea at how much money they are making.
Assuming 250 holds per rob:
Alignment shift per turn SST: -15
Exp gain per turn SST: 7.33
Alignment shift per turn SDT (assuming 2000 units between selloff): -21.18
Exp gain per turn SDT: 10.35

Red Profit Breakdown for SST, SDT, Team SDT, and Megga Rob.
NOTE: ALL calculations assume you are using -65 MCIC ports. This tries to show the MAX potential profit per turn. These calculations were done using Elder Prophet's Haggle routines, and the SST is an average, since the actual income from ship trades has many variables, that can't all be easily factored in. The SDT math assumes that you were doing sell offs every 2000 units of EQ and the planet trade is set to 100% . Busts calculated at 1 in 50. By team, I mean your reds are clearing each other's busts.
SST per Turn Solo, assuming you are furbed: 14,035
          Blue turns needed per red turn (Using ISS): 0.22
Team SST per Turn, assuming you are furbed: 14,139
          Blue turns needed per red per turn (Using ISS): 0.113
SDT per Turn Solo, assuming you are furbed: 15,921
          Blue turns needed per red turn (Using ISS): 0.31
Team SDT per Turn, assuming you are furbed: 17,271
          Blue turns needed per red per turn (Using ISS): 0.16
Megga-Rob profit per turn, assuming you totally drain the EQ on the sell port: 39,728
What may surprise some people is how much you can make SST'ing. That's because you can make more profit from a ship haggle than you can from a planet haggle. Now, assuming there are 1000 turns, and you have 2 reds, your blue will be spending 620 turns furbing 2 solo reds SDT'ing, or 320 turns furbing 2 reds Team SDT'ing, or 440 turns furbing 2 solo reds SST'ing, or 226 turns furbing 2 reds Team SST'ing. So, from the blue's side, SST is more turn efficient, saving 180 turns running solos, or 94 turns running teams. This is because the red is only running the risk of busting once every 3 turns SST'ing vs every 2 turns SDT'ing, so odds are good your reds will bust less with SST. While I always recommend that your reds SDT whenever possible, it's something to keep in mind if you are pressed for blue turns. Certainly, you always want to run with 2 reds, clearing each other's busts.

THE MATH:
SST:
SST for 1000 turns
3 turns per cycle, 333 max cycles
179.59 ave sell price per unit at -65 port
44897.5 sell price for 250 holds
14950867 gross profit for 333 cycles
333 # of steal attempts, 6.66 Expected number of busts (based on 1 bust in 50)
83250 total units traded, 81585 total units traded factoring in busts
81.67 adjusted eq sold per turn
14666 adjusted profit per turn
69,040 furb cost, 459806 total ave furb cost
14666 sst profit per 1 turn
14206 after furb costs per turn
upgrading port costs
solo: 7.6 ports need upgrading, 1900 units needed, cost = 171,000
team 3 ports need upgrading, 750 units needed, cost = 67500
14035 profit after port upgrades for solo per turn
14139 profit after port upgrades for team per turn

SDT, Solo and Team:
2000 units of eq sells for 320254 on a -65 port
so, 2 colts, 4000 units, 640508 creds, that's 2000/250 = 8 cycles between sell off
2 turns per cycle = 16 turns
1 turn for selloff = 1 turn
total: 17 turns, or 34 turns for the 2 colts.
34 turns, 640508 creds, or 18838 creds per turn
18,838,471 credits per 1000 turns
bust 1 in 50. so, every 106.25 turns you will bust, so 9.4 busts per 1000 turns so
117.65 units of eq per turn
12470.59 units per 106 turns
12220.59 total units traded factoring in busts
115.29 adjusted eq sold per turn
18460.81 adjusted profit per turn
69,040 furb cost
649788.2353 total ave furb cost
18460812.57 sdt profit per 1000 turns
17811024.33 after furb costs
solo: 10.5 ports needed, 21000 units needed, cost = 1890000
team: 3 ports needed, 6000 units needed, cost = 540000
15,921 profit after port upgrades for solo per turn.
17,271 profit after port upgrades for team per turn.

Megga-Rob:
32750 total holds from an upped port
131 turns to buydown
1 turn to sell
132 turn cycle
5244159.25 creds from selloff
39728.48 profit per turn (132 turn cycle)
924 turns you can spend doing buydown (if 1000 turns)
36709114.75 max profit from Megga Rob

Experience Gains for killing a trader on a planet
I have tested this for both Classic Gold and MBBS. The numbers are the same in both cases.
The amount of experience gained for killing another trader sitting on a planet, by ZDY'ing it:
(enemy experience * .1666) + 50 (the + 50 is for blowing the planet. it will be more if the planet has a citadel)
example: your exp: 1000, enemy exp 10,000, L0 cit.
(10,000 * .1666) = 1666, (1666 + 50) = 1716 = exp you gain. New exp = 2716
Note: The experience gain is the same for killing them at a port! These gains happen regardless of whether you pod them or #SD# them. It's all the same for you! The enemies losses are the usual, -10% exp and -0% align if podded, -50% exp and -50% align if #SD#

Alignment Gains for killing a trader on a planet
I have tested this for both Classic Gold and MBBS. The numbers are the same in both cases.
The amount of alignment gained for killing another trader sitting on a planet, by ZDY'ing it:
(enemy alignment * -.3333) -1 (the -1 is for blowing the planet)
example: your align: 1000, enemy align -10,000
(-10,000 * -.3333) = 3,333, (3,333 - 1) = 3,332 = alignment you gain. New Align = 4,332
example2: your align 1000, enemy align 1000
(1000 * -.3333) = -333, (-333 - 1) = -334 = alignment you gain (or loose in this case) New Align = 666
These gains happen regardless of whether you pod them or #SD# them. It's all the same for you! The enemies losses are the usual, -10% exp and -0% align if podded, -50% exp and -50% align if #SD#

Experience Gains for killing a trader on a port
I have tested this for both Classic Gold and MBBS. The numbers are the same in both cases.
The amount of experience gained for killing another trader sitting on a port, by blowing it:
(enemy experience * .1666) + 50 (the + 50 is for blowing the port)
example: your exp: 1000, enemy exp 10,000
(10,000 * .1666) = 1666, (1666 + 50) = 1716 = exp you gain. New exp = 2716
Note: The experience gain is the same for killing them at a planet! These gains happen regardless of whether you pod them or #SD# them. It's all the same for you! The enemies losses are the usual, -10% exp and -0% align if podded, -50% exp and -50% align if #SD#

Alignment Gains for killing a trader on a port
I have tested this for both Classic Gold and MBBS. The numbers are the same in both cases.
The amount of alignment gained for killing another trader sitting on a port, by blowing it:
(enemy alignment * -1) -55 (the -55 is for blowing the port)
example: your align: 1000, enemy align -10,000
(-10,000 * -1) = 10,000, (10,000 - 55) = 9945 = alignment you gain. New align = 10,945
example2: your align 1000, enemy align 1000
(1000 * -1) = -1000, (-1000 - 55) = -1001 = alignment you gain (or loose in this case). New align = -55
This means if you kill a trader at a port, you will get just about 100% of their alignment! These gains happen regardless of whether you pod them or #SD# them. It's all the same for you! The enemies losses are the usual, -10% exp and -0% align if podded, -50% exp and -50% align if #SD#

Destroying a port, Defensive Rating vs Figs Needed
I have tested this for both Classic Gold and MBBS. The numbers are the same in both cases.
Defensive Value of the port * (~22 / ship odds) = Safe Minimum Number of figs needed to blow the port.
A stock ISS has 1.5:1 odds, for example. The 22 is approximate, because while I've seen the number of figs needed to blow a port as low as 19.5, I've never seen it go higher than 22. It's sorta random, just like all combat in TW.
example: Def Rating = 551 (a typical MBBS SBB that's been fully upped on EQ) vs a Stock ISS with 1.5 odds
551 * (22 / 1.5) = 551 * 14.666 = 8081 figs needed.
NOTE: If you need more figs than you can launch in one wave, the port will shoot back! How much it shoots back has so many variables, that I'm not including that here. (i.e. I haven't found a consistent pattern yet.) That's a project for another time.
NOTE2: STARDOCK and the CLASS 0 ports work differently! Do not use this formula for those port types! I have done a lot of research on blowing dock and the class 0's and combat with them varies a lot. As a rule of thumb, the first time you blow up Dock or a Class 0, using a stock Interdictor Cruiser, you need about 248,000 figs and 32,000 shields. If shields are cheaper than figs, use them, otherwise, just use figs. (280,000 figs with no shields). These are just approximations, you may need 10,000 more or less, depending on luck. Oh, and you'll need a corpie feeding you figs and shields too. Takes about 11 waves of 15,000 figs. After you have killed a Class 0 or Dock, all the remaining special ports get their defensive ratings increased, including the port you killed after it regens! (they go from 2500, to 5000, etc...) The figs needed goes way up too, to about 890,000.

Trader Flee formula
If attacker fighters > (defender fighters + defender shields) * 1.25, then they will flee.
Notice this is NOT greater than or equal to, so if it’s close, pack a few extra fighters. There is also a very small amount of wiggle room here due to the inherent randomness of TW combat. To be on the safe side, have 1.3x their fighters plus shields if you want to force a flee, or 1.2x if you don’t. The odds of the ships and the maximum capacities of fighters or shields have no bearing on the formula; it only factors in the amounts currently on hand. See the following for more info:
Trader Flee
Thanks to Psion for working this all out!