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Stellaris Dev Diary #376 - Announcing BioGenesis and Stellaris: Season 09

Metal rusts. Flesh adapts.​


It’s my great pleasure to announce the start of Stellaris: Season 09, with the BioGenesis expansion leading the way alongside the Stellaris 4.0 ‘Phoenix’ update.


The future of evolution is here. BioGenesis continues our remastering of the Ascension Paths by granting you unprecedented power over life itself and hatches May 5th, 2025.


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Evolution had its chance. Now it’s our turn.​

Two Biological Shipsets

Command living fleets that evolve alongside your empire. Customize these genetic marvels for specialized roles, from ferocious Maulers to adaptable support Weavers, each capable of empowering allies and weakening foes.

Three New Origins
  • Evolutionary Predators: Push the boundaries of Species Traits by unlocking and combining unique phenotype abilities to craft the ultimate adaptive empire.
  • Starlit Citadel: Solve the mystery of your empire’s biological attackers while boosting hyperlane choke-point strategies with early access to the Deep Space Citadel megastructure.
  • Wilderness: Begin as a sapient planetary ecosystem, a living gestalt of countless lifeforms united in harmony, seeking to spread its consciousness to the stars.
Overhauled Genetic Ascension

Choose from three Ascension paths (Cloning, Purity, and Mutation) and over 18 enhanced Authorities. Customize your genetic ascension by blending Purity, Cloning, and Mutation traditions into a unique path for your play style.

Hives with a Twist

Encounter a Hive Fallen Empire, a fractured hive mind struggling to awake between its three splintered personalities.

Six New Civics
  • Genetic Identification, Crowdsourcing, Familiar Face, Aerospace Adaptation, Shared Genetics, Civil Education
Deep Space Citadel Megastructure

A versatile new defensive station capable of holding off powerful enemy fleets at any system.

Behemoth Fury Crisis Path

The apex predators of the stars are not bound by petty limitations. Cast off the biological weaknesses that hold you back, and become a force of nature.

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The BioGenesis expansion includes:​

  • Gestalt Hive Empires (also unlocked by Utopia)
  • Two biological Shipsets with distinct mechanics from traditional spacecraft
  • Three new Origins
    • Evolutionary Predators
    • Wilderness
    • Starlit Citadel
  • Civics
    • Genetic Identification
    • Crowdsourcing
    • Familiar Face
    • Aerospace Adaptation
    • Shared Genetics
    • Civil Education
  • Deep Space Citadel Megastructure
  • Biological Ascension (also unlocked by Utopia)
    • Expanded with BioGenesis to include a mutable tradition tree that reflects your path through Ascension
  • Exploration of the effects of Biological Ascension on society
  • Advanced Government Forms
  • 16 new genetic Species Traits, including phenotype based traits
  • Portraits that change based on pop strata and leader level
  • The Splintered Hive Fallen Empire
  • Two Diplomatic Rooms and City Sets
  • 7 music tracks
  • And a new Player Crisis Path - Behemoth Fury

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Planned Dev Diary Schedule​
March 27​
Biological Ships and Mechanics​
April 3​
Ascension, Traditions, Advanced Governments​
April 10​
Phenotype Traits, Evolutionary Predators Origin​
April 17​
Deep Space Citadel, Starlit Citadel Origin​
April 24​
Hive Fallen Empire, Wilderness Origin​
May 1​
Civics, Behemoth Fury, Preliminary Release Notes​
May 5​
BioGenesis Release Date​


Stellaris: Season 09 Expansion Pass​

The Stellaris: Season 09 Expansion Pass is your gateway to an entire year of cosmic evolution, psionic mysteries, and apocalyptic infernos. With instant access to the exclusive Stargazer Species Portrait, this expansion pass delivers three major content packs that will redefine the Biological and Psionic Ascensions and the most ambitious species pack so far!

Purchasing the Expansion Pass grants access to all four DLCs as soon as they become available.

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Stargazer Species Portrait (Instant Unlock)​

Dream of the stars with this exclusive portrait, available immediately upon purchasing Stellaris: Season 09. Featuring three variations and unique animations, the Stargazer Species Portrait is perfect for players who seek to embody the spirit of cosmic curiosity.

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BioGenesis (Releases May 5, 2025 - $24.99)​

Take command of the forces of life itself in Stellaris: BioGenesis. Engineer living ships and wield advanced genetic tools to shape the destiny of your empire. Will you create a utopia of adaptation and growth or weaponize biology to dominate the stars?

  • Overhauled Genetic Ascension: Choose from three distinct paths—Cloning, Purity, and Mutation—and customize your evolution.
  • Living Ships: Command biological starships that evolve alongside your empire.
  • Player Crisis Path: Unleash the unstoppable Behemoth Fury on the galaxy.
  • Three New Origins: Play as evolutionary predators, a sapient planetary ecosystem, or a fortress civilization.
  • New Megastructure: Construct the Deep Space Citadel to control hyperlane choke points.

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Shadows of the Shroud (Releases Q3 2025 - $19.99)​

The psionic plane holds untold power—but at what cost? Shadows of the Shroud is a complete overhaul of the Psionic Ascension path, introducing new moral dilemmas, Patron allegiances, and a whole new way of interacting with the mysteries of the Shroud.

  • Breach into the Shroud: Shape your empire’s spiritual destiny with a revamped Shroud system.
  • Shroud Panel: Track your empire’s attunement and unlock new powers.
  • Revamped End of the Cycle: The ultimate deal with the devil—can you delay the inevitable?
  • Psionic Auras: Let your Shroud influence shape entire star systems.
  • New Content: Origins, civics, ships, government types, and more!

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Infernals Species Pack (Releases Q4 2025 - $12.99)​

Forge your destiny in the Stellaris: Infernals Species Pack - our most ambitious Species Pack ever. Adapted to relentless heat and volatile landscapes, you wield the power of extreme environments to reshape the galaxy. Will your empire thrive in the heat, or be consumed by the very forces it seeks to command?

  • Player Crisis Path: Burn the galaxy to ashes as your empire thrives in destruction.
  • New Origins: Unearth ancient kin or endure the scorching wrath of a dying sun in two new Origins.
  • Volcanic Worlds: A new planetary class with unique districts, events, and archaeological sites.
  • New Species & Customization: Ships, portraits, civics, and more!

The Stellaris: Season 09 Expansion Pass is now available for purchase for $44.99 or regional equivalent, a 20% discount over purchasing the contents individually.​


What’s Next?​

This Thursday we’ll flesh out the bio-ships!

See you then!

MEAT SHIPS! MEAT SHIPS! MEAT SHIPS!​


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BioGenesis is now available for pre-purchase for $24.99 or regional equivalent,
or with a 20% discount as part of the Stellaris: Season 09 Expansion Pass, which is available now for $44.99 or regional equivalent.​
 
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Wilderness is by some distance the origin I'm most interested in ... from that little blurb, my head goes to the Chiron Planetmind from Sid Meiers Alpha Centauri
 
What are the odds that there will be a new, bio-ascended ratling species in the expansion?
(Ketling = psionic ratlings, Racket = cybernetic ratlings, and there are anomalies/digsites that hint at more ratlings being out there.)

Sian said:
Wilderness is by some distance the origin I'm most interested in ... from that little blurb, my head goes to the Chiron Planetmind from Sid Meiers Alpha Centauri
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Pretty close to Avatar's Pandora, too.
 
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Calvax said:
I think that’s unlikely. The devs have said that nothing they write could be as interesting as the mystery and that 100% makes sense.

Having it ambiguous means we can imagine several answers. Perhaps it’s another swarm that hunts its own, perhaps it’s an hostile entity of even greater power, perhaps it’s an intergalactic coalition formed by the survivors of scourge incursions.
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True i forgot they saaid that, guess the extra lore for the unbidden got me hhoping,. Still curious to learn more about this behemoth and what makes it crisis worthy.
 
Swarm lover said:
True i forgot they saaid that, guess the extra lore for the unbidden got me hhoping,. Still curious to learn more about this behemoth and what makes it crisis worthy.
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It's a player crisis path too so won't likely won't interact with the end game crises. My speculative guess is that it will be a crisis all about becoming an organic swarm, since behemoth is the name of the first tyranid hive fleet that invaded the galaxy in warhammer 40k. How that would be different to a normal devouring swarm with an organic ship set I have no idea, so I'm probably wrong.
 
Calvax said:
It's a player crisis path too so won't likely won't interact with the end game crises. My speculative guess is that it will be a crisis all about becoming an organic swarm, since behemoth is the name of the first tyranid hive fleet that invaded the galaxy in warhammer 40k. How that would be different to a normal devouring swarm with an organic ship set I have no idea, so I'm probably wrong.
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"Behemoth" in this sort of context is likely referring to a single creature of absurdly colossal scale.

Given that it's a crisis and "mere" colossus ships are not, the behemoth we are creating will likely dwarf anything short of some of the larger megastructures.
 
As I really was never capable of appreciating the plantoid ship set:
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I'm really hoping for some living tree ships for the plantoids, like this:
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And hopefully without the the need of a plantoid2 dlc for it.
 
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Calvax said:
It's a player crisis path too so won't likely won't interact with the end game crises. My speculative guess is that it will be a crisis all about becoming an organic swarm, since behemoth is the name of the first tyranid hive fleet that invaded the galaxy in warhammer 40k. How that would be different to a normal devouring swarm with an organic ship set I have no idea, so I'm probably wrong.
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True but i initially thought that the galactic nemesis was the class 24 singularity the contingency talked about but since it has no reaction to it im wrong i guess. But from the description on steam its not being an organic swarm its one "monstrous" ship you can unleash on the galaxy that has the power to reshape or devour the galaxy. So yeah seems like one ship is at the center of it all.
 
Ajacoba said:
But you don't want to conquer? You wanted to plunder?

Which you can do with that casus belli

Raid their planets, bring home some slaves, steal their archive stuff and potentially even a proper relic (if they have those)

Should be especially fun in mid to late game when your borders are established and fortified and expending them any further would be a massive hassle

Also if you wanna do both you can do both, all your claims will be added to your territory regardless of war goal, assuming you win or at least defend your claims - so where's the issue with the casus belli?
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I'd like raid like ck2/3 sending a single fleet withouth declare a true war. Simply like the khan,destroy station,assault 1/2 planets and go back.
 
Took a look at lithoid ships and noticed that as lithoids are silicon based lifeforms and their shipset seems to be made of crystals, their ships could easily be classified as lithoid bioships with no need of a different skin for the ships.
EHfvXqTWoAAsVy8.jpeg
 
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This looks like a solid season, great job stellaris team!

Last season, Machine age was a must have for me, but I was meh about Grand Archive, and wasn't interested in Cosmic Storms.

But everything in this season looks like a must have for me. I'm stoked.
 
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lxlTiagolxl said:
Took a look at lithoid ships and noticed that as lithoids are silicon based lifeforms and their shipset seems to be made of crystals, their ships could easily be classified as lithoid bioships with no need of a different skin for the ships.
View attachment 1271841
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Sure, but meatships have different underlying mechanics - they're more than a ship set

Just like the crisis ships or space fauna differ from default ships
 
Ajacoba said:
Sure, but meatships have different underlying mechanics - they're more than a ship set

Just like the crisis ships or space fauna differ from default ships
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Yeah, it’s just that the lithoid ships already look like lithoid "meat"(silicon) right now, so their mechanics could be changed from traditional ships to biological ones without a need to change how they look.

Lithoid ships always have look different from ships from any other phenotypes, plantoid ships for an dlc example don't look like wood and are purely metalic, but lithoids seem silicon based just as lithoid themselves.
 
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Plant-like ships for a more benevolent form of bioships definitely would be nice to see and use, even if they had no mechanics attached, but I've already accepted that it's not going to happen.

If anything, I wish the meatships could be a normal shipset even if just optionally. Like have a Devouring Swarm who already is a space swarm from the start instead of having to invest in becoming one later.
 
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