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Stellaris Dev Diary #56 - Ascension Perks

Hello everyone and welcome to another Stellaris development diary. Today we'll be talking about a feature that was hinted at in last dev diary, Ascension Perks. Ascension Perks are related to the Traditions and Unity system, but is a paid feature in the (unannounced) expansion accompanying the 1.5 'Banks' update, rather than a part of the update itself. Those without the expansion will get full access to the Traditions and Unity features, but not to the Ascension Perks themselves.

Ascension Perks
The idea behind the Ascension Perks is to provide more unique unlockable features for Empires, and to provide the player with the ability to determine an 'endgame' for their species: What their empire is striving towards. Perhaps your goal is to go all-in on AI, replacing the frail biological bodies of your pops with immortal machines, or to harness the psionic potential of your species and reach a higher form of existence, allowing your empire to tap into other planes of being? All these and more are covered by the Ascension Perk system.
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Each time you complete a Tradition tree, you will unlock one Ascension Perk slot, of which there are 8 in total. There may also be other ways to unlock slots, such as from certain rare technologies or as a reward for a particular event chain. This slot can then be filled with any of the Ascension Perks available to you. The final number of perks is not yet set down, but there are currently more than 20 and there will likely be more added. Ascension Perks have pre-requisites, which can for example be a particular technology or tradition, a certain number of Ascension Perk slots to be unlocked, or a specific ethos or government type. Some Ascension Perks are one-offs that simply provide a bonus to a particular area of your empire: For example, a bonus to border range, or cheaper terraforming. Others unlock new features, such as the ability to construct new types of space structures (more on in later dev diaries).

Finally there are the three 'Species Endgame' paths: The biological path, the spiritual path and the synthetic path. These three paths each consist of two perks, the first of which unlocks access to the second once a number of other pre-requisites have been met. The paths are mutually exclusive, and once you start heading down one of them, the other two are locked off.
  • The Biological Path focuses on mastery over biological evolution. The first level of it gives access to more gene points and significantly cuts the cost of genemodding projects, while the second level expands the options available during genemodding in addition to further providing more points and less cost.
  • The Psionic Path focuses on developing the psionic potential of your population. The first level unlocks new psionic technologies and benefits, while the second level allows your empire to reach a higher level of existance and communicate with the beings present there.
  • The Synthetic Path focuses on the replacement of biology with machinery. The first level allows you to turn your population partly synthetic through the use of cybernetics, while the second level replaces your biological pops with robots, turning your empire entirely synthetic.
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That's all for today! Next week we'll be talking about the concept of species rights and obligations.

Also about eating pops.
 
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In fact, picking certain tradition trees opposite to your ethos will cause imternal strife and eventually lead to a change in empire ethos.

Really? I don't remember hearing anything about that before now.
 
Super cool Wiz.

I really appreciate the efforts you guys are making to flesh out the character of the empires and make them feel more your own.

After this all that will be missing is some kind of overarching interaction between species (not just empires) that players can strive for. In CK2 the analog was expanding the spheres of religions and culture, in EU it is Christian denominations (where you did your best to expand protestant faiths or defend catholicism). I yearn for something to cultivate and be a part of beyond my empire. Maybe some sort of Civilization Sphere where pops gravitate to depending on their ethics, which empire they reside in, and events. Or rework religion. Just something. Half of the fun of CK 2 was trying to scuplt your part of the world to your faith, culture, ethnicity.
 
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In my opinion should exist a fourth "conservative" option to made the things really interesting, a clear non-ascension path (maybe reversible) Something beetween wanting the things going "natural", fantatics of tradions and luddites.

The conservative path is in the others ascension perk. The "Endgame Species" is by description a profound modification of your(s) specie(s). But there are perks about terraforming and space construction (it is clearly a conservative path, it is adapting the environement to the species, not adapting the species to the environnement), unifying your species behind an unique ideology (fanatics), extermination of the fallen, etc.
 
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I would imagine it has something to do with making domesticated space creatures.

In 40k Universe, Void Born are basically those who are born and live in space, most spaceship and station been multi-generational affair, as most have been active for thousands of years.

My guess is that it increase your fleetcap, due to part of your population permanently living in space.
 
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Interesting concept, one thing that I am wondering about though is whether you can still turn other biological creatures into synths after you have done so to yourself or if it is a one of a kind event. In case of the latter we would have to either wait until we have conquered all of the galaxy (at which point we have already won) or would have to start comitting genocide if we want to turn all intelligent life in the galaxy into robots.
 
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the second level allows your empire to reach a higher level of existance and communicate with the beings present there.

Umm, I've already "communicated" with the beings present in so-called higher levels of existence. :eek:

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Am I correct in assuming that these paths might come with some unexpected disadvantages?
 
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Looks pretty good - can't wait to hear more.
 
Umm, I've already "communicated" with the beings present in so-called higher levels of existence. :eek:

Am I correct in assuming that these paths might come with some unexpected disadvantages?

Well considering Wiz accepting mention of Total Annihilation ARM vs CORE, which I bet is a synthetic path result, I am pretty sure civil war are part of it, if you don't compromise and try to force it on everyone.
 
I'm pretty sure it was in the last dev diary thread, in the responses.

Wow, I did remember that there was going to be ways to change your empire's ethics but I completely forgot Traditions were a part of it!
 
Looks really cool. Can't wait to ascend and be one with the Deus Machina.

Really excited for next week. I've been wanting to Om nom aliens since the game was released.
 
Really? I don't remember hearing anything about that before now.

From DD55:

Which Traditions you unlock also has a significant impact on the ethics of your population, and so can be a useful tool to either strengthen your existing empire ethics or further a planned empire-wide shift towards a different set of ethics altogether.
 
Well, I really hope that Ascension Perks benefit from other additions, like new, more diverse traits (genemodding already being something that you just do once, and there aren't many traits to pick from anyway), or specific gameplay for Synths (to avoid the "yayyy, I'm now playing with Synths! Which can do amazing things, like... being immortal... fighting harder... and not eating food... yay....).
More techs and events are also nice, but that's not really gameplay if it just provides bonuses and modificators.

I'm not really hyped by Ascension Perks that just provide you plain bonus like border range. I can't really imagine a sci fi universe with something like "By all my positrons, the Metagurd have ascended! - What does this mean, CI80-rg? Do they control the atoms by the power of their minds? Did they become gods? Are they going to... - Their border grew and they claimed our world. Now we are ascended too. Look at that nice border range on the map.".
It feels more like a Tradition. Well, except probably if it's something like a +100% border range, but it doesn't seem fun.

I also hope that this means there's a point in playing in end game. Most of these Ascension Perks seem to provide bonus and new abilities, but if they don't provide new challenges, or if it cannot change the course of things... meh. It would be amazing if the first empire to achieve transcendence could become a threat for the rest of galaxy, even if they are a tiny 3 systems-empire at this point. Not necessarily on the military field, btw. But they could hack the economy of all the other empire without an efficient enough AI to protect them, for example. Or possess the ability to shield their world thanks to their psionic powers. Well, I do hope we'll have these kinds of abilities.
I would really be hyped if, as the first empire to reach the end of the synthetic path, we could embark with our synthetic pops in gigantic nomadic planet-consuming space fortresses, not caring for the lifes of biological pops, and if the other empires could form a galaxy council to oppose us, while the robotic beings of the galaxy could choose between joining our way of life or helping those poor bio units. Basically, becoming the end game crisis.

Agreed, border range for an ascension perk? Seriously? This is a paid part of the DLC I expect better no offense Wiz.
 
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With this being the first feature which is unveiled of the new DLC and already having seen the great systems for factions and traditions for the update, I'm very excited to see what is next and how species rights and obligations will work.
 
Thanks for the update Wiz

One question reguarding these new traits.

Will choosing one over the other , or even none of the above , change the dynamics of diplomacy?

Example. Being apart of a Federation with strong ties to the members. Only to have them upset you are experimenting with the evolution of your pops.
 
Finally there are the three 'Species Endgame' paths: The biological path, the spiritual path and the synthetic path. These three paths each consist of two perks, the first of which unlocks access to the second once a number of other pre-requisites have been met. The paths are mutually exclusive, and once you start heading down one of them, the other two are locked off.
  • The Biological Path focuses on mastery over biological evolution. The first level of it gives access to more gene points and significantly cuts the cost of genemodding projects, while the second level expands the options available during genemodding in addition to further providing more points and less cost.
  • The Psionic Path focuses on developing the psionic potential of your population. The first level unlocks new psionic technologies and benefits, while the second level allows your empire to reach a higher level of existance and communicate with the beings present there.
  • The Synthetic Path focuses on the replacement of biology with machinery. The first level allows you to turn your population partly synthetic through the use of cybernetics, while the second level replaces your biological pops with robots, turning your empire entirely synthetic.
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This is all great, but I was hoping for more info regarding the possibility of a visual representation of these paths.
For example:
Level 1 Psionic could add a halo around the race's portrait, while Level 2 could make them appear slightly translucent or a ball of light/lightning etc.
Level 1 Synthetic could add a few wires or mechanical parts here and there, while Level 2 could make them something other than just a humanoid robot. Maybe an asymetric mechanical being. Humanoids though could stay the same I guess.

Also about eating pops.

"Mic drop". :cool:
 
Look like you guy missed an unique Ascension Peak that you could have build on.

Image a civilization that evolved to have all of it's members all linked together in one mind (biologically speaking as one organism but with many independence worker/solder all bent toward a single goal).

I can cite a few Sci-fi example of the what I am describing. But MorningLightMountain, named after a location where this personality got it's start, is the best example.

Halo Flood comes close but lack a "centralized" thinking organism that coordinate everything.
 
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