Aphotic Planets (AKA 'Shadow' planets) are gained in the "Into the Expanse" mission which requires 1300 scanners (from what I remember).

The mission description:
So why are these given only +200 passive cloak? If you haven't opened that mission, you shouldn't be in the expanse and you shouldn't be able to scan someone else's Aphotic planet. If you've opened it, your odds of finding it should be much lower.

I propose that the passive be bumped up to at least 1.5x of whatever the scanning requirement for doing the mission is.

I believe the same should hold for the Ecumenopolis planets.

Short version:
Aphotic Planets: shouldn't be able to be scanned by someone under Rank 210, passive cloaked bumped to greater than +1300

Ecumenopolis Planets: shouldn't be able to be scanned by someone under Rank 230, passive cloaked bumped to greater than +500 (that seems really low but that's what the wiki says!)

Yeah, I'd been wondering the same thing too. This seems like a good idea, or perhaps even a small percent bonus for cloaking or other passive stats?

EDIT: As in, Aphotic planets could get a good boost to cloak (maybe 15%), Ecumenopolis planets could get a smaller bonus to cloak, attack, and defense (maybe 10% each), and Sentients could get a good boost to attack and defense (maybe 15%). This would also help more set them apart from other planets that have passive bonuses; right now an Aphotic is no different from any other planet with 200 passive cloak, and a lot of planets have more.

+1 to this. it dosnt really make any sense that it took me several hundred energy searching with 1300 scanners and all i found was one planets with 200 passive cloak...

I do think that they should have cloak at least to what it takes to do the mission with scanning.

Or at least stats that total that amount.

That is the problem with all of the planets right now. They are essentially all the same, just look different but that's a topic for a different thread.

This makes sense. We'll come up with a better number that matches both types. I think Sentient planets would deserve an upgrade in that sense, too.

You're the best Dan, thanks for always listening!

hurray for the cloak upgradeS....thx Webguy!

We have already committed to an 'invincibility' upgrade to mission Exotics and Dysons - we will combine this with that update (soon after Legion Combat)

Nice dan think it is fair to do that and good.

Just a note - this is still coming (tomorrow) - we didn't have time to add it to our release tonight.