STELLARIS: New Paradox Game in SPAAAACE

[Syt]

Feels a bit like Elemental War of Magic's way of doing this - basically it would spawn in more event sites when you researched certain techs. I assume rifts will become available once you reach certain tech thresholds. I still feel Stellaris would benefit from "hidden star systems" that become visible/visitable once you have certain sensors, or such.

[Zanza]

Feels a bit like Elemental War of Magic's way of doing this - basically it would spawn in more event sites when you researched certain techs. I assume rifts will become available once you reach certain tech thresholds. I still feel Stellaris would benefit from "hidden star systems" that become visible/visitable once you have certain sensors, or such.

Yes. Also maybe slowly evolving star lanes.

[chipwich]

I'm going to emphasize that Paragons is the best and most impactful DLC in the game.

[Zanza]

The latest DLC "Machine Age" is really good. Adds a lot for playing with machines, synths, cyborgs and also some general stuff like kilo-structures and new crises. Definitely a must buy if you play Stellaris.

[Tonitrus]

Weren't machines/synths/etc. added as a DLC before?

So it's a DLC to the DLC? 

[Syt]

Previously, machines had to have gestalt consciousness (like Borg) only. Now you can retain individuality and can have e.g. a megacorp run by machines.

[Zanza]

Weren't machines/synths/etc. added as a DLC before?

So it's a DLC to the DLC? 

As Syt said, it's adding variety to the existing mechanics, not completely new things like Galactic Paragons.

[Tonitrus]

Right...so how is not just an additional expansion upon Synthetic Dawn?

[Tonitrus]

I should add...I don't mean to imply that it is anything nefrious.  They're adding features/content that they didn't have to, and asking for more money to pay for that staff that develops said content.  Perfectly fine.  But it is still and add-on to an add-on. 

If anything, some props...Stellaris has been around for quite some time.  They could have easily shut down development on it and hit the "start over" button to fire up Stellaris II already.

[Syt]

The feature list: https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/developer-diary/the-machine-age-is-available-now.1674919/

[crazy canuck]

Did space combat ever get better, or is it still blobs of ships chasing other  blobs of ships?

[Solmyr]

I mean, EU4 already established the "DLC to the DLC" model. Some major countries have like three different mission trees, depending on which DLCs you own.

[Tonitrus]

Did space combat ever get better, or is it still blobs of ships chasing other  blobs of ships?

The "Doomstack solution" is something that has always interestingly evaded strategy computer gaming AI.  Either from a structural/design flaw, lack of care about the AI, etc.

You'd have thought our recent evolutions in AI would have solved it...but it may just be a structural problem (e.g. the rules applied to large fleets, use of the hyperlane system) that ties down the alternatives. 

The AI would need a reason to NOT use a doomstack...and none seem apparent. And that the AI uses a doomstack seems to essentially force the human player to respond in kind.

[Tonitrus]

One of the things I've also noticed in my Stellaris playthroughs, is that even a massive military tech advantage (in weapons/shields) will never seem to scale well to overcome a significant numerical advantage.

This may be by design, but hits hard against tech-heavy, "tall" playthroughs.

[Jacob]

The doomstack solution speaks to shallowness in the strategic simulation, I think. If doomstacks are the most viable way to win then the AI should use doomstacks. If you don't want doomstacks, you'd need to build your warfare model such that doomstacks aren't the best way to win (though of course that's much more complicated).