Stellaris - Paradox new sci-fi grand strategy game

[Morgoth]

Why doesn't Paradox just make an inofficial Alpha Centauri? It would be the most suitable company to make this. What is it with this gay 4X strategy nonsense?

 

[Grotesque]

Is that a 220km size alien? What the hell

Hvalurs live in open space. Born in the vacuum of space, they are naturally at home in asteroid belts. Adult hvalur are typically 20km in length, feeding on the minerals they find in the asteroids on which they attach themselves

 

[MadMaxHellfire]

alright, m.o.r.e. has very cool aliens.
what about the game? what? no game yet? as far as we know, it could be total shit. stop dissing stellaris, i want it to be good :'(

 

[ArchAngel]

Funny thing is, I wanted a Paradox Space Game... but what I wanted was a more hard-sci fi solar system thing, with nations, corporations and other groups colonizing the solar system and duking it out on Earth and elsewhere. Start at 2050 or 2100. Realistic (TM) space travel with rockets, ion engines and solar sails, no FTL, etc. Building habitats or colonizing planets, mining asteroids with robots, extracting solar power from orbit and fusion hydrogen from gas planets, waging great power politics on Earth, possibly even causing nuclear war and surviving in its aftermath. Maybe with aliens as the optional end-game "mongols" coming from beyond.

This is just space opera. Hard to innovate.

You get that with Firaxis games.

 

[Grotesque]

no game yet?

in 2019

 

[Space Satan]

Today’s topic will further explore the subjects of fleet movement, FTL-travel and the general wonders one might happen upon when ripping holes through subspace. As the writing of this is a bit sudden the dev diary came out late today, our apologies!
The galaxy is a pretty huge place and to get anywhere in a timely manner you’ll want to travel faster than the speed of light, or use FTL-travel for short. Stellaris will have three methods of FTL that players can use; Warp, Hyperlanes and Wormholes. They all have distinct advantages and disadvantages when it comes to the strategic movement of ships and fleets causing expansion paths, diplomacy and wars to be quite different depending on the method used.

Warp
Warp requires each ship in the fleet to be equipped with a Warp Drive. These are quite costly to build and cause a major drain on each ship’s available power, but allows unconstrained travel to any system within range. When travelling to a system outside the range of a single warp-jump, the fleet has to make a sequence of jumps through a number of systems. Any jump puts a considerable strain on a ship’s Warp Drive, causing the fleet to not be able to jump again for a short while after arrival. While this can be reduced by more advanced technology, it does remain a weak point throughout the game for any species using this method.
Fleets using Warp Drives to travel will need to do so at the edge of a system to lessen the gravitational pull of the local star. This in combination with the fact that warp-jumps have the slowest FTL-speed of the three methods means that the arrival point of an incoming warp-fleet can be identified, and possibly ambushed. The cost of freedom is potentially high!

Wormhole
Some species have decided to sidestep this whole business of blasting through the void at ludicrous speed. They prefer to open up a temporary wormhole that a fleet may use to instantly travel to a distant system. These wormholes can only be generated by a Wormhole Station, a type of space station that can only be constructed on the outer edge of a system. Any fleet wanting to travel will have to use the Wormhole Station as a connecting point, passing through it whenever they leave the system. The station may only generate a single wormhole at a time, forcing all ships and fleets to wait while one is being prepared. The larger the fleet, the longer it takes for the Wormhole Station to be ready. The wormhole generated does allow two-way travel, but will collapse almost instantly after sending a fleet through.
Constructing and maintaining an efficient network of Wormhole Stations is vital to any species using wormholes, as it will allow sending huge fleets from one part of the galaxy to another in very short time. It also allows striking deep inside enemy territory with little warning. This great strength can also be a great weakness, as fleets are left with no means of further offense or retreat should the network be disabled through covert attacks by enemy strike-fleets.

Hyperdrive
The galaxy in Stellaris has a hidden network of hyperlanes connecting the systems, only visible for those who know where to look. Ships that are equipped with a Hyperdrive can access these lanes and use them to traverse the galaxy at incredible speed. They are however bound by the preexisting network, and has to path through each system connecting their current location and target. Galactic voids lacking systems are in effect huge movement-blockers for any species using hyperlanes, having few systems allowing possible crossings. An enemy could potentially fortify these vital systems should they become aware of their existence, creating strategic choke-points. As the hyperlanes exist in subspace, fleets may access them from anywhere within a system and does not have to travel from the gravitational edge as Warp Drives and Wormhole Stations do. As such, catching a fleet using hyperlanes can be tricky. Correctly identifying the paths to intercept and interrupt their somewhat long charge-up is probably your best bet.

All methods of FTL-travel can be improved by researching more advanced technologies. While their exact effects differ some they all improve the speed, range, efficiency or cooldown of FTL-travel. However, being able to casually bend time and space with increased power does not necessarily mean using it with more responsibility. As additional species bend the laws of physics to send larger and larger fleets through the galaxy, there is always the risk of something, or someone, noticing...

Next week we’ll talk more about the different species in the galaxy. Look forward to it!

 

[Space Satan]

• You do choose a single type of FTL at game-start and stick with it for the majority of the game. Ships can not mix or use several FTL-types at the same time. That said, what ancient fleets may lie buried and forgotten amongst the stars, sleeping and ready to be found?
• A fleet in range of a system with a functional Wormhole Station may request a wormhole to be opened to their system, allowing them to get home. It still takes time and occupies the Wormhole Station of course.
• We have 4 classes of warships, and the last one is battleships. They are 3 sections as well.Though as a modder there is nothing stopping you from having 20 sections, or as many classes as you like. All fully scriptable.
• A system can have several Wormhole Stations, creating a hub. Wormhole Stations in neighboring systems can independently send fleets to each others systems.
• The origin of the hyperlane-network is unknown, and can't be manipulated at will (for now at least...). Ships can be built without an FTL-drive to act as a local defense-force, but with no means of FLT-travel they can't leave the system. There is no sub-FTL travel between systems.

 

[ArchAngel]

Sword of the Stars also had all 3 types of movement but they were specific to different races.

 

[KoolNoodles]

I don't even care if this sucks. I'll play it. I might be sad and disappointed afterwards, but such is the fate of the 4x space strategy game fan. ACCEPT IT.

 

[Lagole Gon]

New alien pictures

Spoiler

it seems vast majority will be antrophomorphic.

I think would actually prefer star trek "different forehead" aliens.

 

[Spectacle]

I think would actually prefer star trek "different forehead" aliens.

Yeah. Furries and scalies as aliens are equally implausible as star trek aliens with strange foreheads, but at least the trekkies are more relateable.

Since they're going for humanoid aliens I hope there's a chance of meeting Space Babes.

 

[tyrannosaurus rex]

New alien pictures

Spoiler

it seems vast majority will be antrophomorphic.

Aaand aliens are just humanoids with weird faces. Even less inspired than mass effect.

 

[Space Satan]

Hopefully, alien pictures will be shown only on diplomacy screen and commander\governor screens, thus be easily modded as grand strategy have no need for pictures.

 

[Lagole Gon]

Yeah. Furries and scalies as aliens are equally implausible as star trek aliens with strange foreheads, but at least the trekkies are more relateable.

Since they're going for humanoid aliens I hope there's a chance of meeting Space Babes.

To hell with plausibility. The problem is - this is just bland as fuck.
Which is somewhat justifiable because of random nature of the game. Aliens should be just templates, rather than distinct interesting creatures. Also, you can't have crazy space jellyfish race etc. when all races adhere to a similar ruleset. Still, there's no excuse for uninspired art style.

Come to think of it, with silly "star trek forehead human aliens" you can create a fun random portrait generator. And put a 60s-70s corny sci-fi spin on it.

 

[Renegen]

This is starting to look like Sins of a Solar Empire (I loved it but many complain about it), also will Paradox use this game to reach the mainstream? Next thing you know they will release an RTS then a MOBA.

 

[Silva]

Aliens are looking silly. But then, that's the norm with most space 4X.

Coming from a play through of Endless Space, I think other games could learn how to create awesome aliens from it.

 

[RhodokMasterRaceOfficial]

Coming from a play through of Endless Space, I think other games could learn how to create awesome aliens from it.

So... samurai birds, not-necrons, robots, clones, and various flavours of humanity that all appear to be trying (and failing) to copy things from Dune

The only interesting races in that game were the samurai birds and the amoeba. Disharmony (if that was what they were called) were pretty cool too.

 

[Azrael the cat]

Hvalurs live in open space. Born in the vacuum of space, they are naturally at home in asteroid belts. Adult hvalur are typically 20km in length, feeding on the minerals they find in the asteroids on which they attach themselves

Alright, so they can't be carbon-based then Otherwise they'd have no means of converting matter into energy (without oxygen or a decent substitute).

Which means that they'd have no direct interest in the same resources as carbon-based life-forms - no point eating carbon food, and therefore massively unlikely to have tech that utilises carbon-based energy (though given that we're carbon-based and are moving on from carbon fuels, maybe I'm being too quick to rule out going in the other direction). Reminds me of a neat short story I read once (might have been Asimov, I forget), where early space-faring humanity gets invaded by a silicon-based species. On first contact, the humans get taken by surprise because (a) they didn't recognise the floating metallic objects as sentient and (b) the silicon species completely ignores the humans (and everything else carbon) and starts eating the metal along their ships and equipment.

There could be some really cool opportunities for asymmetrical gameplay if you follow that rabbit-hole. Different races having utterly different uses for different materials - a base food for one being an end-game resource for another. Or a critical resource for one being completely useless to another, but it might need other resources that require it to go through your territory.

Would allow much more interesting diplomacy without needing an absurdly complex AI, as each race is still just pursuing a set of goals to maximise its prosperity. Early in the game, peace is easy enough, as there might only be one other race that needs the same early-game resources as you. You can cut deals with other races easily, because there's shit you need far more than them and vice versa. But eventually, they're going to have an interest in those resources - might not be as important to them as to you, but they're better off with it than without it. At that stage, the races have to pick their deals carefully - the asymmetry means that you'd have to make some alliances and trade deals, as 2-3 races trading together will pwn any individual due to their capacity to peacefully arrange that each ally gets what they most need. But like real life, the temptation will be there, and more importantly, allegiances will shift as technology changes mean that you might no longer have 'common interest' with your ally, or you might suddenly have a really good use for their (previously irrelevant to you) base food resource.

 

[Beowulf]

[...]

There could be some really cool opportunities for asymmetrical gameplay if you follow that rabbit-hole. Different races having utterly different uses for different materials - a base food for one being an end-game resource for another. Or a critical resource for one being completely useless to another, but it might need other resources that require it to go through your territory.

Would allow much more interesting diplomacy without needing an absurdly complex AI, as each race is still just pursuing a set of goals to maximise its prosperity. Early in the game, peace is easy enough, as there might only be one other race that needs the same early-game resources as you. You can cut deals with other races easily, because there's shit you need far more than them and vice versa. But eventually, they're going to have an interest in those resources - might not be as important to them as to you, but they're better off with it than without it. At that stage, the races have to pick their deals carefully - the asymmetry means that you'd have to make some alliances and trade deals, as 2-3 races trading together will pwn any individual due to their capacity to peacefully arrange that each ally gets what they most need. But like real life, the temptation will be there, and more importantly, allegiances will shift as technology changes mean that you might no longer have 'common interest' with your ally, or you might suddenly have a really good use for their (previously irrelevant to you) base food resource.

That is a very good idea. But it could be executed mostly in tightly scripted single player campaigns. And we're unlikely to see it in a game that's going to have multiplayer because of balance issues.
Unless they go for the easy and bland solution, like - Race A have an abundance of resource 2 in it's territory, but craves resource 1; race B have an abundance of resource 1 in it's territory, but craves resource 2 - repeated ad nauseam through every generated system/galaxy.

 

[sser]

Endless Legend did have a sort of civ-specific resource system.

 

[Beowulf]

Endless Legend did have a sort of civ-specific resource system.

Could you elaborate on that a little? I remember only one faction (Broken Lords) not using Food, but instead concentrating on Dust, which was available for everyone form the get go, and also using the rest of the resources just the same.
Unless you are talking about using resources as Wine, Glasssteel and whatnot, but I can't remember that their usage was different for different races/factions.

 

[Irenaeus II]

Aaand aliens are just humanoids with weird faces. Even less inspired than mass effect.

They look like Godlikes from PoE.

 

[Silva]

So... samurai birds, not-necrons, robots, clones, and various flavours of humanity that all appear to be trying (and failing) to copy things from Dune

The only interesting races in that game were the samurai birds and the amoeba. Disharmony (if that was what they were called) were pretty cool too.

One word: Horatio.

A narcissistic trillionaire who loves himself so much his idea of an galactical empire is populating the universe with clones of himself. If this isnt the most evocative idea for a transhumanist growth-based faction I dont know what it is (I would pay to see him against Chairman Yang in a what-if clash of the growth factions )

Also: Sophons, Harmony, Amoeba, Cravers and Sowers. All pretty original and evocative in its treatment. For eg, the insect-like Cravers cannot make peace with anyone because they EAT THEMSELVES if they stop EATING OTHERS. I love this.

I concede though, that the humans factions are the on the uninspired side. Except Horation, that is.

 

[Norfleet]

Endless Legend did have a sort of civ-specific resource system.

It didn't, really. All civs had the same resources, but one was uselessnium for one specific faction.

What would be interesting is if you had a situation where a race was really good at extracting a particular resource for some reason, such as, say, immunity to the nasty side effects of extracting it, but didn't actually have a use for it.

 

[Silva]

Actually, the Broken Lords in Endless Legend use energy in place of food (they "buy" pops with the game currency). I remember some faction in Endless Space having it the other way around. Was it Harmony ? Don't remember now.

The Endless series overall has some interesting asymmetrical parts. That 1 city-only Cultists faction in Legend come to mind. As the aforementioned insect-like Cravers who cannot establish peace-treaties with anyone and end up eating their own pops if they stop eating others.

I foresee ES2 going even further in this asymmetry.