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Stellaris Dev Diary #286 - Fear and Archaeotechs in First Contact

Hello everyone! I am PDS_Iggy, and I’m here to tell you all about Fear of the Dark!

This new narrative origin for First Contact focuses on a people divided. After a planet in your solar system blew up, fear and xenophobia spread to such a degree that a large portion of your population decided to flee your homeworld. Their goal? To hide from the rest of the galaxy.


Incoming Transmission:​

You mean, “The sane individuals of our species took the only prudent action possible when being attacked by an alien force capable of destroying planets!
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This split in your population is reflected in the effects of the origin. With a sizable section of your empire living on a neighboring world, your research alternatives and choices for leaders are reduced. Yet, even more inquisitive than a regular empire, you will have no difficulty discovering more anomalies as you explore the void.

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No doubt you’ll return from your galavantings the next time we reach a breakthrough! Our scientific research is one of the few way we can even hope to delay you from dooming us all. Once you lead the aliens back to our home, it will all be over.

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Additionally,Fear of the Dark starts with quite a unique system, one that will have you starting with binary planets - your ‘cousins’ are living just a rocket jump away. (a Sol start will have them placed on Mars).

It will be up to you to make the best of this situation. Your partner planet can be a powerful ally, yet they are also very skittish. Ensure that they don’t torpedo your entrance on the galactic stage.

Perhaps you will stop treating the alien threat so lightly when our upcoming study of ‘the Divider’ is finished. Just you wait. We won’t be hunted.



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Whatever happens, remember that you are one people and you are stronger together. Oh, and your partner planet has cloaked ships.


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Now off to MrCosmogone and his wondrous archaeo-technologies for this patch's custodian update!



Did you ever think, as you pass by an old laser cannon in a glass case, that not everything belongs in a museum? That perhaps, the Irassian tractor beam could be used for your cause instead of gathering dust?

Well, so do I. And if you own Ancient Relics, I have good news!

Excavated dig sites will now sometimes generate minor artifact deposits that can be exploited by orbital stations, or by colonizing the planet.

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There could always be more trinkets to find!

Your income in minor artifacts can then be put to good use with the new archaeo-technologies that will unlock buildings, starbase modules and ship components, all costing minor artifacts to build.
There are several ways to acquire these archaeo-technologies. Completing the Secrets of the [PRECURSOR] special projects will now give you a research option to unlock some unique archaeo-components:
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The power of a precursor in the palm of your hand.

Several of our dig sites can now grant you access to one of the new technologies. This is a very reliable way of acquiring them.

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Get to work, Oxygal, I want this research on my desk by the end of the week!

All these new technologies are found in the society field, in an all new “Archaeostudies” category which is all about fitting ancient tech into your machines and weapons. Discovering these archaeo-technologies by yourself is a long and hard process, but luckily, you can be assisted by dedicated researchers who share your interest in ancient things.

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They largely just make old things go boom.

Should you decide to pick the Remnants origin that starts you on a relic world, you will now start the game with the Faculty of Archaeostudies unlocked and replacing your starting research lab.

And if this still does not quench your thirst for specialization in archaeo-technologies, if you still want to dig deeper, we even have a new ascension perk for you!

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For all you history lovers!



With increased minor artifact generation, the scale of the existing economy needed to be increased, but we also took this opportunity to now display artifacts in the topbar alongside the other strategic resources.

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Bigger numbers mean better game, right?

And while you still can’t buy them on the market, you can trade them to other empires!

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It belongs in MY museum!

I don’t really have the space here to show you ALL the things, but here, have a tease.

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Archaeotitan go brrrrrrrr

Oh and one last thing before we wrap things up. I might have made a Devolving Beam for colossi, to return those pesky humans from the UNE back to their origins:

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Return to Monke!

8rA6Cq62fXkJkMccZdGfylOhAhq4l0nX32rI_9cwX0vKVEqAAOUdct0_K4LlI7f4PN_nh695KKAzuHd7n2ek6iGXswUu9Bl-dZWll9tSXAD-pFuiFRuf9u2AkYC-AJwJ6eoKyqjhO5ruMoSOQhRAuaI

They’ll make good pets.
 
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I love the changes to minor artifacts, it reminds me of Guilli's Planet Modifiers and Features - I hope more inspiration comes from that mod as the last time I used it it made habitats far more interesting with added planet features based on asteroids and other stuff.

Will the "Former Relic World" planet feature have any interaction with the Faculty of Archaostudies?
Or will restoring a relic world destroy your minor artifact income and research rate?
Will habitats built around a source of minor artifacts get any special buildings or features? (I hope they do)
 
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Will archeo techs get some tech that can be show up in research choices normally? otherwise scientists that specialize in that category will be utterly useless.
 
The stormcaster is interesting.
From a technical perspective does it actually spawn a nebula or is a new effect used for this?
  • I've found that in present/past versions, spawning a nebula mid-game doesn't update the galaxy map without restating the save. Would this add gal map graphics in real time?
  • And, if so, will we be seeing unique nebula colours for stormcaster nebulae (e.g. lurid pink)?
The archaeotech looks absolutely superb, too.
  • Will we be seeing any interesting interactions between this and fallen (or awoken) empires - and other special places like the sanctuary ringworld?
  • If an FE sees you rolling around in archaeotech they probably ought to become a bit... grabby, demanding you had the good stuff over, if your relations are poor or something to that effect.
  • This could also be a good way to unlock/build 'Tier6'/fallen empire grade high-end buildings (that don't need pops to generate resources) or floating city districts and so on, too...
  • Edit: I also hope ais really highly value these resources and don't sell them cheap in bilateral trades - without equal relations or a tight alliance or something like that - to encourage you to mine the reliquaries yourself*
  • *Can prospectoria spawn Artefact deposits?
Given how rare arch tech will likely be (based on those numbers and deposit sizes) - would also be pretty cool to have arch-tech-enabled ships use a different colour text for their names.
  • If they remain fairly low in supply, seeing a bunch of high end 'purple'/epic ships coming at your starbases will make you clench up...
 
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Looks like dual system ownership is back on the menu. Well, sort of. I am looking forward to trying this origin. Minus one reasearch alternatives is a very spicy downside though, hope the events are worth it.

With minor artifacts having more sources for regular income, will some of the artifact actions become toggles, like edicts? I'm specifically thinking of the "Find peaceful/military application" ones. While their effects are nice, I mostly find them not worth the hassle of remembering when they need to be renewed.

I like the idea of the devolution colossus. I am however concerned about the trait being considered a positive trait, while only having negative effects. I do like keeping xenos as pets though. Pet slavery type when? :D
 
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Will a scientist with the archaeologist trait increase the chance to drop arcanetech and his study speed?

If so, does having a social, energy, or mechanical specialty benefit the output of an arcanetech from that specialty?
 
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With even more goodies being given to precursors, will you finally give the AI the chance to find precursors themselves?

I know you don't want them to step on the players toes/precursors, but surely it is possible to simply exclude the players precursor from being found by the AI but allowing them to gain all the other ones (or at least a few of them)?

I would certainly like to experience an AI using the Cybrex Warforge against me for example.
 
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While i'm slightly disappointed with the "Fear of the Dark" Origin because i thought this would be a cloaking based origin (where you're species hide from the rest of the galaxy), the more impressed i'm with all the changes made to minor artifacts!

With the rubricator as the only reliable source until now it was i bit weird somtimes. But those deposits and especially the archeo technology & AP are a huge deal!

Same. I'm still holding out hope that expanding nebulas become possible, at least a bit. That they may even be the one item that cannot be penetrated with a sentry array, I think would be a good choice too. Giving people the room to be an elusive, unknown empire (unless they simply expand too big!). Then again the Stormcaster might be doing this? Just at a wider level rather than being locked to a origin :D yay

Anyway, very good DD, thank you Iggy.
 
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Very interesting!

Looks like the galaxy may end up having more relic worlds than before - any chance they're having their deposits tweaked so that they scale with planet size and maybe get a little bit of randomization?

Are the 1-5 minor artifact lumps from archaeology site excavation being adjusted for the new minor artifact economy? If they aren't, a minor artifact deposit seems to be mandatory for unlocking precursor secrets now.

Are any existing tech moving into the new Archaeostudies category (besides presumably Arcane Deciphering)? Is it Ancient Relics exclusive?

Could the Forcefully Devolved trait be made red, since it's entirely negative and we don't really need yet another trait using the exact same icon?
  • Fear of the Dark appears to start you in a split ownership system, going by the different planet flags.
  • Is that the new observation post icon on Sol system? Can you build one over your separatist's planet? I feel like that might annoy them.
  • I also spy a five alloy deposit on the shattered planet.
  • Looks like science ships have a new fleet order in addition to the cloaking button.
  • And is Take Point getting a new button there in the first image?
  • The Haven Defense Fleet admirals has a trait I don't recognize, looks a bit like a wolf head.
  • That image of artifacts in the topbar looks to be a starting empire sitting on 15k nanites and the L-Gates already discovered. I wonder if that means anything?
  • The guaranteed Czymi species appears to have lost Tomb World preference and gained Survivor.
  • There's a whole bunch of new ship components on display:
    • I believe that's a new, green titan weapon.
    • A new large weapon, which seems to be a laser.
    • Two new utility components, one of which has an icon that looks a bit like the shield hardeners.
    • A new titan aura, likely dealing with cloaking.
Unique buildables for each precursor is a fun idea! The Zroni Storm Cluster Caster will be fun to play with, if I can teach starbases using it to not use shield components.
 
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A minor note that i will add is gestalt empires are a little bit left out. Normal empires can use selling minor artifacts early-mid game and gain a substantial economical advantage while gestalts can only make use of them by boosting unity-spam planets slightly. Any plans on making us machine/hive only players happier? :, ) I dunno, maybe a similar but unique gestalt exclusive action?
I figure they should at least gain the ability to sell them once the galactic market is established. Maybe also to the Curators?
 
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It might be generally a good way to improve some of the weaker precursors. Makes me wonder how it'll influence some existing stuff. Rubricator. 30 Artifacts on a 10 year CD suddenly seems, very very very weak.
I suspect it'll give greater chance to gain these archaeotechs, and the active effect will give you research progress on some random one. If it was kept in line with being consistently decent.

I am VERY interested in these though, I've never played with the mod, but with my limited understanding of it, this gave me the impression of being 'ancient chache of technologies' lite, which is very cool.

Echoing what others have said, will there be any interaction with FE tech? We already have a small chance to build one of their buildings with reverse engineering artifacts. Like we could get a 'less' powerful version of their buildings that do have jobs, but with similar in/outputs. Maybe limited to your original capital world (doomsday would need to be changed for that)? Idk, I'm just spitballing, and it's really early for me.
 
Will the new archaeo-technologies have any interaction with the end game crises? I’m thinking specifically about ancient contingency tech or the like. Alternatively are we likely to see any integration with the L-cluster or marauder empires? I feel like both of these have the scope to be involved with the new technologies.
 
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.... Aaaand now I can't play Stellaris again until the new update. :(

Really curious what Cloaking Strength means and what it will do, seeing how it's not only civilian ships that seem to be able to obtain it as evidenced by the cloaked patrol fleet. Is cosplaying Romulans finally on the menu?
 
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