Stellaris Dev Diary #379 - You Are What You Eat

[TimeMask]

M E A T P O P S M E A T P O P S M E A T P O P S

This is the secret aberration mutant portrait pack dlc as welll huh xD

 

[FiddleSticks96]

You can't combine it with xenomorphs
Only armies based on your pops get trait based buffs

Ah yes, you make an excellent point.

 

[WordyBird]

Can't wait to eat a prethoryn queen alive

It occurs to me how strange it is that Paradox forums of all places doesn't have a "you scare me" emote option (light hearted)-

Have to agree with other folks here: I've never been more hype for a Stellaris DLC before! The wait for every Thursday is awful. but so good when it arrives! And now, some groveling: ahem... pleeease, Iggy, share with us how we "democratically" eat people? Pretty please with Zarqlaan's head on top?

 

[Ajacoba]

Oh, btw

That egg laying trait
It's kinda how chickens work?
As long as they're well-fed they're super fertile

Yet it's not the same for other birds (otherwise we would have domesticated ostriches to get their eggs daily)

 

[Getty]

As Alfray has shared recently, there is a Mutation Tradition that encourages you to stack Habitability:

View attachment 1279391

FINALLY HABITABILITY WILL BE MORE USEFUL!!!!


I find it somewhat regrettable, however, that only a mutation tradition would allow this..... Couldn't this, in a lesser form (like maybe only -1% housing usage and -1% amenities usage for each 10% habitability above 100%) be made available more generally pretty please?

 

[Ilab]

Doesn't virtuality lose pop assembly? They also lose the option to co-exist with organics because organics never stop growing and virtuality actively punishes you for growing


Synth ascension for biologicals is even worse since you lose your entire main species

And I heard nanite leaders lose their special trait for being robots?

Not exactly, technically you 'assemble' them instantly, however you are right that to some extent they 'kinda' do. Even then, it doesn't really affects them and is the unique case (I think?). About pop growth, well, it is related to the machine Species per se and not the ascension either, so it is not what I meant.

What I mean is that Machines (not synths) don't lose any of their stuff when they pick one path (either modular, virtual or nanite). The assembly you mention is not exactly lost, more like the building itself is.

With synths it does make sense though, and is not a fair comparison since they don't have paths as machines do, so machines are the closer we have so far to the new geneascension. Which is why I compared the genetic ascension to machines and not others like synnths or cyborgs for example. Also, note that you don't lose your main species, you transform them. I think you didn't understand what I meant about losing in this context. I meant mechanics. Synths don't lose a mechanic when they ascend for instance, as an example their mechanics swap. Now you assemble instead of growth, but keep having both assemble and growth.. SO the mechanic is not lost per se, just changed.

Not sure about what you mean about nanite ascenion though. You get a new trait that replaces uncompatible ones. This is not unique, it happens to all. Is the same that assimilating a cyborg into a synth, it will lose the cyborg trait. While it is true that you lose the trait, it is not quite what I am talking about here. Read below.

In general, and to clarify, what I means is that a Machine that goes modularity des not lose X functionality it had before, it acquires new ones, but loses none. Sure, the way to play them changes, it is an ascension after all. But no mechanic is lost. The same happens to the other 2. A good example is the leviathan traits for example. That is what I meant with not losing mechanics.

The new genetics does 'lose' some stuff. When I say lose I do not mean removed from the game, just that we currently can and we won't be able to do so with the new ascension. I think that we should retain what we already have and make the three paths different in some other ways. Like I said in my example, what if I want to use leviathan traits and clone vats? Currently I can, in the new system I won't be able. And this is just an example. The same applies to phenotypes for example etc.

 

[Ilab]

FINALLY HABITABILITY WILL BE MORE USEFUL!!!!


I find it somewhat regrettable, however, that only a mutation tradition would allow this..... Couldn't this, in a lesser form (like maybe only -1% housing usage and -1% amenities usage for each 10% habitability above 100%) be made available more generally pretty please?

I like this idea.

EDIT: lol, people disagree with me liking an idea. What are you, an escaped neuron? Shouldn't you instead disagree with the idea instead of me liking it lol

 

[Grenartia]

View attachment 1279044
No, I don't need a map! My genes tell me the gas station will be around the corner.​

Am I the only one who thinks this trait should also (or even primarily) be providing bonus leader experience gain? Potentially also a small amount of extra resources from jobs? Like, even 1% seems fitting.

 

[Ilab]

As mentioned, the Mutation ascension path has a tradition that allows this.

I really think that it should not be gated behind only mutation. Perhaps mutation would improve it somehow? Reducing points cost or making the effect stronger?

Currently we can research a technology that allows us to apply these kind of traits to everybody. Restricting it behind mutation kinda reduces current player freedom. Can this get more consideration? If the general idea is to empower the player and give more options (as was said in a dev stream) then this would remove freedom and options from us. SInce now I won't be able to have vats and leviathan/phenotype traits at the same time. Which is something that I currently can do (hence why I mean it is a loss, not because it was removed from the game).

I think that the paths should improve their thematic mechanics, not gatekeep them. With machines this 'loss' didn't happen. Regardless of whether you went for modularity, nanites etc, you could still use leviathan traits for example. I would love if genetics didn't get 'the short end of the stick' on this, so to speak.

 

[Ajacoba]

"with machines this loss didn't happen"

Nanites and Virtuality are also insanely restrictive though
It's not like machine ascension is three equal paths like genetic ascension is

 

[MineKing3456]

Am I the only one who thinks this trait should also (or even primarily) be providing bonus leader experience gain? Potentially also a small amount of extra resources from jobs? Like, even 1% seems fitting.

Nah, genetic memory doesn't mean you gain new experiences faster but you remember things your ancestors experienced. Maybe leader starting levels tied to how long the species has existed would make sense, but that's a nightmare if you like your existing leaders.

 

[Vanner]

No, it's simply the same text that all the Hive Authorities have, you are capable of assimilating other species into your Hive Mind.

Oh would be cool if it was possible. Apex predators that enhance themselfs with cybernetics. But there is always mods!

 

[Ajacoba]

Nah, genetic memory doesn't mean you gain new experiences faster but you remember things your ancestors experienced. Maybe leader starting levels tied to how long the species has existed would make sense, but that's a nightmare if you like your existing leaders.

It would also have weird implications
Like, do you lose the levels when you remove the trait?

 

[Abdulijubjub]

Or life-seeded and lost colony (your homeworld gets to be gaia and your capital does not, lol)

Doomsday and life-seeded, to add insult to injury.

 

[small tree]

I'm desperate to know if there have been any changes to the advanced traits in Gene Ascension, or the effects of the various new traits. Do any of these traits have effects comparable to the 'Dark Matter Reactors' from Synthetic Ascension? (At least answer one of these questions, I beg you!)

 

[Septin]

One final extra step I took for this Origin was to go through every single event that mentions biological species of some kind and add in an option to consume their DNA, if applicable. Finally, when you discover that ancient avian pilot you can gain Flight, or Shelled from that molluscoid that was buried in that archeological site.

Did you remember the event where envoys from the Galactic Community complains if your in breach of their laws? Hope its available for normal empires now also that have the new Origin instead of being limited to just Hive-Minds.

 

[Ajacoba]

Did you remember the event where envoys from the Galactic Community complains if your in breach of their laws? Hope its available for normal empires now also that have the new Origin instead of being limited to just Hive-Minds.

Necrophages can eat them too

 

[Bitzo]

If you ask me nicely perhaps I will share some more.

Dear Iggy, may we get to see the Democratic Authority for Evolutionary Predators, pretty please?
With all the immortal elites and purging, a glimpse at something more uplifting would be nice.

 

[Thiend]

I like the look of all this, but it's either something I'm seeing as thematically weird or just not understanding.

What is Deathless about Deathless Dynasty? How will that work in practice? What is a Great Leader?

It seems, without knowing specifics, like on average (especially for your starting ruler) your leaders will die around the time your ruler does, so they'll get minimal benefit. Does consuming a leader extend ruler lifespan? Is ruler lifespan buffed specifically and just not listed there?

Basically, it seems like a less extreme version of why Imperial Feedback never impressed me. For that, the problem is wanting leaders to die often but they're robots so you can't use Overtuned with them. For this, it... still kinda looks like you'll want frequent leader deaths, but NOT frequent ruler deaths, which incentivizes me to mod my rulers to be as close to immortal as possible (immortal lobster trait?) and the rest of my leaders be fleeting.

I'm very interested, I just don't understand.

 

[Ilab]

"with machines this loss didn't happen"

Nanites and Virtuality are also insanely restrictive though
It's not like machine ascension is three equal paths like genetic ascension is

The point is not about them being less restrictive or more. Is about losing mechanics. You are not talking about the same thing as I. I said mechanics loss.

Did they lose a mechanic they had? No.

They have their own restrictions? Yes, like everything else. That does not make them special/different.

And again, machines are the closest thing we have to the coming genetics, cyborgs/synths/psionics don't have paths at all. So they are all out of the question for the topic discussed.