STELLARIS: New Paradox Game in SPAAAACE

[Crazy_Ivan80]

what's up with the Cardassian?

[The Brain]

what's up with the Cardassian?

The one that got robbed?

[garbon]

[Zanza]

Where we stand
As anyone who regularly reads the Stellaris dev diaries should know, the intent for Heinlein changed quite a bit back at the end of the summer. While we had originally planned Heinelin to be an update accompanying a major expansion, we decided instead to scale back the scope of the paid content by making a Story Pack, Leviathans, and focusing most of our resources on the actual free update. Now that Heinlein and Leviathans are out, my conclusion is that this was the right decision on our part. By doing this, we gave ourselves time to iterate on some of our weaker features and add a great deal of UI and quality of life functionality. Heinlein ended up as a *huge* update that we feel moved the game forward in a lot of ways, and judging from the huge amount of positive feedback we have gotten, you guys seem to generally agree with this assessment.

So where *do* we stand? My view is that we now have a very solid base game to build on, and that going forward it's time to scale up our ambitions. To make space even greater, so to speak.

Where we're going
So what's next for Stellaris? I have talked a bit about the planned 'Banks' update, which will be a major update accompanied by a full-sized expansion. This is still the plan, but before we release Banks we have another update, dubbed 'Kennedy', which we aim to release before the end of the year. This will be a small update targeting a few specific key issues, such as precursor event chains and endgame crises, that we did not have time for in Heinlein. After that will be Banks, and while we will not be providing any details about the Banks update or accompanying expansion at this time, I will say that the author name chosen for this update may offer some clues.

What we want
Finally, I just wanted to offer some insight into what we believe are the key areas of the game that we should focus on at this time. We have received, and continue to receive, an amazing amount of good feedback and ideas, and of course we have our own ambitions and ideas for where we want to take Stellaris, but at the moment there are three key areas that we aim to continually target with future updates and content, namely:
Fleshing out the mid- and lategame through the addition of more interesting narratives and 'galactic events' akin to Awakened Fallen Empires that shake up the galactic scene.
Improving the internal workings of empires, making pops and leaders more interesting, and making empires feel more alive.
Expanding on the ethics system, creating more unique playstyles and enhancing roleplaying.

This is of course not the *only* things we aim to focus on, but they are what we consider to be the most important areas going forward right now. Just to give you an idea of what else you can expect in the future, here is a list of some features (in no particular order of priority) that we are looking into adding in the future.

NOTE: THIS IS NOT AN EXHAUSTIVE OR FINAL LIST, AND NOTHING BELOW IS CERTAIN TO HAPPEN!
-Ship appearance that differs for each empire, so no two empires' ships look exactly the same.
-More story events and reactive narratives that give a sense of an unfolding story as you play.
-More potential for empire customization, ability to build competitive 'tall' empires.
-Deeper Federations that start out as loose alliances and can eventually be turned into single states through diplomatic manuevering.
-Ability to set rights and obligations for particular species in your empire.
-Global food that can be shared between planets.
-Superweapons and planet killers.
-Ability to construct space habitats and ringworlds.
-More interesting mechanics for pre-FTL civilizations.
-Factions that are proper interest groups with specific likes and dislikes and the potential to be a benefit to an empire instead of just being rebels.
-A 'galactic community' with interstellar politics and a 'space UN'.
-Buildable Dreadnoughts and Titans.

Again, remember that the above is not a list of promises, that I can't answer any specific questions about future content, and that plans can and will change, but I hope I've at least given you some idea of where Stellaris will be going from here, and that you look forward to the journey ahead of us as much as we do here in the development team.

Sounds good, although it lacks trade in my opinion.

[Berkut]

I am still annyed that that there isn't a centralized means of producing ships.

I end up building everything at one starbase on my home planet because the alternative is just too much of a pain in the ass.

It is slightly less PITA now that they have rally points though...

Some other things I would like to see:

Not just trade, my an economy based on the need for trade, and all the things that can impact that, like piracy and privateering and such. Trade should be a huge deal, I think. I would love to see special resources, for example, that are very region specific, and hence hard to find outside particular areas, forcing trade.

A much more sophisticated military system. Not combat per se, but just more around your navies and armies. Right now your military is just a blob of ships and a leader. I would like to see fleets, squadrons, and limits on them such that there is a reason to break you navy up into pieces, rather than having all 500 ships in one giant blob.

Of course, that would allow for a lot of interesting differentiation - some races better at big blob tactics, others better at multiple smaller groupings, etc., etc.

[Grey Fox]

In 1 game, I renamed 4 Planets to the type of ships I would be building there & then only use those Shipyards to build my fleets.

That was before Rally points tho.

[Tonitrus]

I am enjoying it so far (well, mostly the same as I had before the patch).

Perhaps my primary peeve (and not a new one)...systems with several planets/moons/asteroids, but a system survey comes up with absolutely zilch.  While I know that is realistically possible, as you cannot terraform dead/barren worlds, those systems are essentially just a complete waste of space, that can never really be used for anything ever...so what is the point of allowing them to happen?

[Razgovory]

It does seem odd to have a planet or an asteroid doesn't have any "minerals" or a star that lacks "energy".

[Crazy_Ivan80]

I am enjoying it so far (well, mostly the same as I had before the patch).

Perhaps my primary peeve (and not a new one)...systems with several planets/moons/asteroids, but a system survey comes up with absolutely zilch.  While I know that is realistically possible, as you cannot terraform dead/barren worlds, those systems are essentially just a complete waste of space, that can never really be used for anything ever...so what is the point of allowing them to happen?

they'd make sense if they were strategic places in the spacelanes-web.

[Syt]

Has something changed about the naming of random Empires? I've re-rolled a few times, and it seems every game has a "Shark" something (home system Predatorus or some such), "Shadow" something, "Scaveng" something, "Sosa" something etc. I feel there was more variety before.

Or perhaps it's due to a names mod I'm using. 

[PDH]

I am enjoying it so far (well, mostly the same as I had before the patch).

Perhaps my primary peeve (and not a new one)...systems with several planets/moons/asteroids, but a system survey comes up with absolutely zilch.  While I know that is realistically possible, as you cannot terraform dead/barren worlds, those systems are essentially just a complete waste of space, that can never really be used for anything ever...so what is the point of allowing them to happen?

I have always (and it is not unique to Stellaris) seen the minimal value systems as not devoid of resources, but rather of minimal positive gain to extract - i.e. the surplus is not more than the value to gain the objective.  Perhaps just a made up justification, but for me it helps.

[Caliga]

Is this game good.

I'm a little bored with CK2 and EU4.

[PRC]

Is this game good.

I'm a little bored with CK2 and EU4.

I find it to be a lot of fun and well worth the price.  Very good game with the potential to be great as they continue to work on it.

[Syt]

More stuff.

https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?threads/stellaris-horizon-signal-available-now.986624/

Horizon Signal Update For Stellaris Adds New Mysteries
Paradox SciFi Sim Gets Free Boost From Renowned Game Writer

STOCKHOLM - 05 December 2016 - A new and rich storyline has been added to the already deep well of events and occurrences in Stellaris, the hit grand strategy space epic from Paradox Development Studios. A signal in distant space is calling out to your empire. What does this entity want, and how does it know who you are?

Horizon Signal is written by Alexis Kennedy, a British writer best known for his work at Failbetter Games, which he co-founded. His writing for Sunless Sea and Fallen London has been widely acclaimed, and now he is scribing new stories for Stellaris.

This story update is free for all Stellaris owners and highlights one of the great strengths of the game – its ability to tell stories that entertain and entrance without distracting you from the core strategic gameplay.

Horizon Signal is available now.

FAQ
How do I get this new content?
- Just make sure that you are online on Steam and it should be automatically added. You can check the DLC tab in the launcher to make sure.

Will the Horizon Signal content be available in already started games, or do I need to start a new game to access it?
- Even if you are playing a save that was started before the release of Horizon Signal, the event chain can still occur in your game.

What exactly is the new content?
- It's a somewhat rare event chain that can potentially be triggered at any time in your game.

I can't see Horizon Signal in my DLC list, neither in the launcher or Steam
- Restart Steam by exiting properly and starting it again.

And:

https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?threads/update-1-4-released-checksum-54ed-not-for-problem-reports.986612/

##############################################################
####################### VERSION 1.4.0 ########################
##############################################################

###################
# Leviathans Story Pack
###################
* Added new introduction event for the Artisan Troupe
* Added encounter event for the Enigmatic Fortress

###################
# Features
###################
* Added 33 new achievements
* No longer possible to build robots on planets belonging to sectors
* Added victory event after defeating the Prethoryn Scourge
* Added new events for discovering additional Precursor anomalies, so that the quest chains can always be completed
* Changed the way the Extradimensionals work: Instead of spawning reinforcements as soon as a fleet is lost, the Extradimensional portal will create new fleets at a fixed rate depending on the number of dimensional anchors the Extradimensionals have placed in the galaxy. Dimensional anchors are a type of station that the Extradimensionals construct, and their main portal is invincible while any dimensional anchors exist in the galaxy. This should make the war against the Extradimensionals more of a long-term fight and less of a surgical strike against the portal.

###################
# Balance
###################

#General
* Evasion is now capped at 90%
* Ship mineral maintenance reduced from 0.5% to 0.4% of ship cost
* Ship energy maintenance reduced from 0.5% to 0.4% of ship cost
* Afterburners now use the auxiliary slot
* Regular empires now start with 8 pops
* Primitive farms and factories can now be upgraded directly to hydroponics farms/mining networks
* Pirate ships have been reworked slightly and buffed in most cases
* Primitives are now consistent in how many pops, farms and factories they get on each age of development, and get new pops, armies and buildings when advancing through the ages
* Stone age primitives now generate fewer tile blockers
* Space Torpedoes technology now requires Fusion Missiles instead of Nuclear Missiles
* Venerable trait cost reduced from 5 to 4
* Mineral Silos are now restricted to 1 per planet
* Increased max minerals from Mineral Silos from +1000/+1500/+2000 to +2000/+3000/+4000
* Level 3 mineral silo now only provides +1 mineral per adjacent tile
* Increased protectorate tech discount to 95%
* Protectorates can no longer conduct independent diplomacy
* Repeatable technologies have their base cost increased from 1500 to 3000 and their increasing cost increased from 480 to 1000
* Slave Processing Plant now gives +10% slave food/mineral production instead of +5%
* Reduced spawn odds of tomb worlds
* Increased frequency of alien pet deposits
* Reduced warscore costs for planetary and vassalisation wargoals
* Doubled Pre-Sentient Anomaly spawn chances
* Fixed CTD when generating a certain tooltip while the player has no planets
* Pops are no longer upset if an occupier purges Pops on one of your planets

# Components
* Space Torpedo mineral cost reduced from 20 to 10
* Space Torpedo power usage reduced from 20 to 10
* Space Torpedo maximum damage reduced from 260 to 215
* Space Torpedo armor penetration set to 50%
* Armored Torpedo mineral cost reduced from 40 to 15
* Armored Torpedo power usage reduced from 40 to 15
* Armored Torpedo damage reduced from 150-300 to 140-280
* Armored Torpedo armor penetration set to 50%
* Devastator Torpedo mineral cost reduced from 60 to 20
* Devastator Torpedo power usage reduced from 60 to 20
* Devastator Torpedo armor penetration set to 50%
* Devastator Torpedo missile HP reduced from 8 to 6

###################
# AI
###################

#War
* Federation AI is now better at picking wargoals for non-conqueror federations, will focus on retaking planets and liberating larger countries

#Sector
* Major work done to sector AI to make it better at budgeting and utilizing resources

#Diplomacy
* AI will now sometimes gift countries that are at war with their rivals and threats
* AI will no longer ask you to become their vassal multiple times in a row
* AI is now less keen to accept a lot of defensive pacts
* Slowed down AI requests for federation membership/association status to prevent message spam

#Misc
* Fixed a bug where AI would send fleets to deal with pirates, only to retreat due to pirates being stronger
* Fixed a bug where AI was trying to build buildings on tiles that had presentients on them

###################
# User Interface
###################
* Added a setting to disable all auto-unpausing from popups
* Clicking on some resource icons in top bar no longer opens tabs due to being inconsistent
* Construction Ship now sends notification 'fleet order finished' only when the last construction in the queue is finished
* Planet view colonize button opens same surface view window as when planet is clicked from expansion planner
* 'Closed Borders' and 'Truce' are shown as diplomatic statuses

###################
# Bugfixes
###################
* Garrisons are now properly shown and spawned on occupied worlds.
* Fleets will now prioritize spaceports and military stations over other stations (such as mining stations) in combat.
* Close borders wargoal now forces borders open for the duration of the truce regardless of rivalry status, etc.
* Ships and weapon components targeting logic now correctly accounts for evasion, so large weapons are much less likely to target corvettes etc
* Fixed armor absorbing too much damage if the ship also had shields left
* Fixed very high armor values negating the effects of armor penetration
* Fixed auto generated ship designs getting wrong combat computers
* Swarm units have had their sound volume adjusted
* Spaceport no longer provide Naval Capacity while under construction
* Fleet view shows current fleet activity instead of order description
* Vassals and overlords no longer gives sensor to each other while at war
* Sector AI will spend own resources instead of players resources when upgrading spaceports
* Uplift species button is locked if no species can be found on any owned planet
* Fixed a bug where some leaders could live forever
* Planets with Stone Age Primitives will no longer generate Anomalies
* Tzynn Empire now starts with the proper number of trait points
* Fixed Nomads getting wrong opinion modifier and habitability trait when allowed to settle on a planet
* Launcher MOD tab scrollbar appears with correct position and size when content overflows container
* Fixed a rare case of portrait duplication caused by prescripted species templates
* Fixed so that NPC ship designs now correctly have PD slots for their PD weapons
* Situation Log entry list of counters grows up instead of down
* Savannah and Alpine worlds now have proper localization in the start screen
* Fixed typo in Frontier Hospital technology description
* Fixed a bug where upgrade fleet progress could display numbers above 100%
* Fixed some outdated hotkey references in tutorial texts
* Fixed frantic twitching animation in diplomacy window for main species
* Fixed reversed fanatic/militarist bonus to rivalry influence
* Fixed some potential event spam when running on high speeds during War in Heaven
* Planet edict modifiers are applied to pops again. Use planet modifier categories when applying planet edict modifiers
* Fixed Continental, Savanna and Alpine worlds not being used for primitive civs
* Enclave governments now get a new ruler when the first one dies
* Primitives that nuke themselves will no longer leave pops on a tomb world where they have no habitability
* Fixed some ships getting stuck in a looping death animation
* Fixed CTD when looking at a ship that fired a shot during the same frame as it died
* Fixed CTD that could happen if ground combat was started on a planet without owner
* Garrison from Pops will no longer spawn on planets that have already been occupied
* Fixed CTD that could happen when assigning a new mission to an observation station
* Fixed various issues with Swarm behaviour


###################
# Graphics
###################
* Tweaked humanoid 02 and 05 portraits
* Added updated clothes textures
* Added fixed clothes for humanoid 05
* Arthropoid battleships sections now all line up
* Galaxy view textures have been updated.
* Extradimensionals' death effects have been updated.


###################
# Modding
###################
* Event chain counter max = -1 means max is ignored. Default value is -1
* Added count_countries trigger
* Script trigger pop_percentage = { percentage > 0.1 limit = { is_robot_pop = yes } }
* new trigger won_with_condition = domination_victory
* Added trigger num_strategic_resources


###################
# Performance
###################
* Misc performance improvements

[Syt]

* Added a setting to disable all auto-unpausing from popups

Finally! That was driving my mildly nuts.