Keyboard and mouse controls
Contents
Main console
- F1: Change view.
- F2: Use the map system.
- F3: Look at your own information.
- F4: Select targets, operate autopilot and communicate.
- SHIFT-F1 to F5: Time compression
- PgUp / PgDwn: Increase / decrease time compression
- CTRL click on Time compression icons: Force time compression
- CTRL-Print Screen: Save screenshot
- CTRL-F8: Quick save
- CTRL-Q: Quit instantly
Menus
- Numbers or click to select
Map System
- F5: Galactic sector view
- F6: System orbit view
- F7: Star system information
- F8: Galactic view
Galactic sector view
- Arrows Up/Down: Scroll X
- Arrows Left/Right: Scroll Y
- Page Up/Down: Scroll Z
- W: Roll up
- S: Roll down
- A: Roll left
- D: Roll right
- C: Center to where I am
- H: Center to selected system
- Enter: Enable/Disable automatic system selection
- Space: Set Hyperspace Target to Lock or Follow Selection
Orbital view
- click / unclick (planet or ship) sets / unsets as navigation target
In flight
- F5: Turns off the autopilot, and changes between manual flight and set speed flight
- F6: Undercarriage
- F7: Hyperdrive
- F8: Set lower trust speed
- F9: Toggle missile / scanner panel on / off
- CTRL click on Autopilot icon: Cycle Heading control to forward, afterward and off (note: Ctrl+F5 doesn not work, must use mouse)
- R: Toggle rotation damping
- Tab: Cycle through full HUD/HUD without labels/No HUD and cockpit
- `: Lua console
- Clicking on an object (planet, star, station, ship), will select it as a target.
- CTRL click on a object, will select it as a target and as reference body.
Views
- KP 8: Front Camera / Rotate External/Sidereal Up
- KP 2: Rear Camera / Rotate External/Sidereal Down
- KP 4: Left Camera / Rotate External/Sidereal Left
- KP 6: Right Camera / Rotate External/Sidereal Right
- KP 9: Top Camera
- KP 3: Bottom Camera / Roll External/Sidereal Right
- +: Zoom in (external/sidereal view only)
- -: Zoom out (external/sidereal view only)
- Home: Reset zoom (sidereal view only)
- , and .: In fixed view, roll camera
In external views, third mouse button rotates the view.
(NOTE: If you do not have a numeric keypad, please rebind the view direction controls from the View tab in the Settings screen)
Scanner
- \: Toggle scanner mode
- ]: Increase scanner range
- [: Decrease scanner range
Weapons
- T: Target object in crosshair
- Space: Fire laser
- M: Launch missile
Manual control
- Q: Roll left
- W: Pitch forward
- E: Roll right
- A: Yaw left
- S: Pitch up
- D: Yaw right
- P: Kill rotation
- U: Ventral thruster (slide up)
- I: Aft thruster (go forwards)
- O: Dorsal thruster (slide down)
- J: Starboard thruster (slide left)
- K: Forward thruster (go backwards)
- L: Port thruster (slide right)
Use SHIFT + <key> to low power thrust and smooth turns.
"Set speed" control mode
- Q: Roll left
- W: Pitch forward
- E: Roll right
- A: Yaw left
- S: Pitch up
- D: Yaw right
- Enter: Set speed faster
- RightShift: Set speed slower
You can also steer the ship with your mouse while holding the right mouse button.
Use SHIFT + <key> to low power thrust and smooth turns.
Keyboard reference
A keyboard reference for Pioneer's default key bindings (PNG)
Joystick Controls
Cheats and debug
- CTRL-I: Debug informations
- CTRL-F10: Edit target planet properties
- CTRL-F12: Spawn a hostile ship
- Console: ~ or ´ depending on keyboard. Some useful commands for debugging/testing code/contributions are given here, but remember, cheating is for weaklings. However, it is allowed to restore borked saves.