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

[Zaacplot300]

This is certainly an exciting list of DLC! Looking forward to seeing them in action down the line

 

[lxlTiagolxl]

Thinking about it, while i like the idea of living ships i actually i don't really like meat ships that much, my interests are more to living wood/tree ships: self-regenerating , tough, economic (photosynthesis), cool and not disgusting.

Considering the guys posting a lot of MEATSHIP is it just me?

Also always found it a pity that plantoids never got wood ships while lithoids kinda of got mineral ones at least as far as ship looks goes, but not mechanics.
​

 

[klopkr]

Looks exciting but no new bio portraits?

I want my all tomorrows horrors! Give me a portrait of a living wall! Give me creatures turned inside out!

 

[cryptkeeper]

If we're getting new volcano worlds are we potentially getting updates to other worlds? I'd love to see Hydrocentric get a bit of a buff

It makes me dissapointed we didn't get a new toxic world type in toxiods. Hydrocentric is fine, it at least gives you more then detox. Also this gives me hope we may see habitable gas planets with gas bags and other weird creatures who may live in one.

Also am I the only one who notice the steam page for Shadow of the shroud has psionic robots....

 

[Falrinn]

I kind of wonder if Volcanic Worlds is ultimately foretelling a more general update of terraforming/colonization mechanics in Season 10. As in they advanced the bits that were relevant to Infernals specifically because it could help that DLC reach it's full potential.

 

[Warboss Efan]

Thinking about it, while i like the idea of living ships i actually i don't really like meat ships that much, my interests are more to living wood/tree ships: self-regenerating , tough, economic (photosynthesis), cool and not disgusting.

Considering the guys posting a lot of MEATSHIP is it just me?

Also always found it a pity that plantoids never got wood ships while lithoids kinda of got mineral ones at least as far as ship looks goes, but not mechanics.
​

Plants and fungi are really just green meat if think about it

But in all seriousness, I think it'd be fantastic if every phenotype / shipset had a respective flesh version. I suspect or at least hope there will be more options in the future to at least some degree

At least having barky, viney, veiny, tentacly, keratinous, and chitinous ones would have something for everybody

 

[Holyspawn]

When 4.0 will be released?

 

[thetick2]

I am so hyped for this whole season, but I can tell you right now, as cool as the bioship model set is, I would love more variety, more different types. Insectoid bioships, aquatic bioships, mammalian bioships etc. Being able to super customise my ships and make them look cool is so much fun and a huge part of the identity of the Empire I'm playing. I understand their are limitations on the engine, but a whole ship set pack would be a guaranteed purchase.

In closing, more ship sets for both Metal and Flesh.

 

[thetick2]

When 4.0 will be released?

5th May, it's in the original post.

 

[Ajacoba]

Since we can use both shipsets simultaneously I think it makes kinda sense that there isn't a shipset for any specific species type

It probably means that the shipsets actually do different things and aren't just basic shipsets like the regular ones

 

[Egodeus]

The mighty Progenitor-God has delivered us from the woes of having to travel between the stars in these cold metallic devices, we can finally stay embraced in our warm fleshy vessels even in the cold vacuum of the enemy of existence! Oh this joyful d...I mean MEAT SHIPS! MEAT SHIPS! MEAT SHIPS! MEAT SHIPS! MEAT SHIPS!

But no, honestly, I would have been extremely happy with just getting a shipset that looked organic, but this that there are different mechanics for them is even better! I'm so going to make my devouring swarm hive mind again as soon as the expansion drops!

 

[Nyrael]

I am suspicious about a lot of this. While the new ascensions look good, the crises paths just seem forced. As bad as Nemesis's flavor was it made sense to call it a crisis. Cosmogenesis is no more evil than your next door Fanatic Xenophobe Slaving Despot, and these look like they won't be much different.

Have you tried playing in the Galaxy that Cosmogenesis left behind. Around half ofthe systems are blown up, that is very much more than enoguh to categorize them as a crisis, even if only the Fallen Empirs know how dangerous they are. You don't need to be evil to be a menace that has to be stopped at all costs.

Reading headers was surprised to see the price disparity between organic ascension dlc and psionic dlc. Reading the features I can see why it is so, it seems that psionics add nothing to empires that aren't going onto the said path. That's kinda weird, no new megastructure, crisis, player crisis or some common mechanic rework (think robots earning their individuality). I hope there is something extra we are missing, because while it does seems like a very chunky dlc it's always kinda disappointing if entire dlc is tunneled into one "thing".

Biogenesis is a major expansion.
Shadows of the Shroud is a Content Pack (like Leviathans, Synthetic Dawn, Distant Stars, Ancient Relics, First Contact, Astral Rifts and Grand Archive). Those tend to be smalelr but more focused.

All seasons have one big expansion and then some smaller DLCs. It has worked this way for 9 years now.

Im super hyped for this but i have a big question for devs that im a bit worried about. The other 2 ascensions reworking dlcs have their own crisis path themed to it, but i saw no mention of one in the shroud dlc notes here or on steam. Now yes i agree that the galactic crisis is pretty much the (psionic crisis path) but i feel that compared to the cosmogenesis its lacking and a bit bland. (heck the infernal species pack is getting one) There is zero variation (even if its mostly lore or flavor), its kind of a hyper evil path compared to the cosmogenesis (although the behemoth one does seem also pretty aggressive) and its unique structures and ships to me look pretty bland and generic compared to what cosmogenesis got.

So i was wondering is there plans to rework the galactic crisis path to make it more up to speed with the other crisis paths at the same time as the shroud dlc? Also no shroud ships or ascending to energy beings? Like yes the end of cycle is also getting a revamp but i dont think they really count as a crisis path.

I'd say that End of the Cycle is their Crisis path. It may not use the Crisis interface, but in Utopia days the End of the Cycle was not an End Game Crisis, it was an Apocalyptic one. I don't think anyone managed to beat it, or even got close to beating it. And now we seem to have more interactivity with it. So if it can get as strong as back in those days, it's very much a Crisis.
Not everything needs to have user the Crisis Interface to be a Crisis. That just limits creativity.

Will Shadows of the Shroud also grant psionic empires THREE ascension paths, as with machine and biological ascensions (that also get three ascension paths)? Please, I beg of you to give three ascension paths for psionics as well.

Doubt it, the Psionics already have Patrons to add variety. I hop those will be improved upon to be more interesting and interactive.

 

[Ajacoba]

Have you tried playing in the Galaxy that Cosmogenesis left behind. Around half ofthe systems are blown up, that is very much more than enoguh to categorize them as a crisis, even if only the Fallen Empirs know how dangerous they are. You don't need to be evil to be a menace that has to be stopped at all costs.

Also there's some really silly "fun" side effects when you try to rewrite reality and fail

 

[Swarm lover]

I'd say that End of the Cycle is their Crisis path. It may not use the Crisis interface, but in Utopia days the End of the Cycle was not an End Game Crisis, it was an Apocalyptic one. I don't think anyone managed to beat it, or even got close to beating it. And now we seem to have more interactivity with it. So if it can get as strong as back in those days, it's very much a Crisis.
Not everything needs to have user the Crisis Interface to be a Crisis. That just limits creativity.

I hope not, tbh the end of the cycle is really not that strong from what i heard, bypass weapons can kill it quite quickly as it has zero armor and no hull regen. Personnaly hope that they go back and rework the galactic nemesis (give it actually interesting ships and megastructure assets or make a different crisis path. One issue i would have with the end of cycle being the new crisis path all paths currently (even the bio one) seems to be a bid for your empire for "ultimate power" in one form or another, binding yourself to an entity that will forever dictate your existence doesnt really feel like that.

 

[Nyrael]

I hope not, tbh the end of the cycle is really not that strong from what i heard, bypass weapons can kill it quite quickly as it has zero armor and no hull regen.

As I said, in Utopia days. It was nerfed for Toxoids for the sake of the story content (and it allowed the AI to trigger it), and then got unintentinally nerfed by some new additions to the system.
The fact that it's being overhauled, and treated as a "Deal with the Devil" again where you are racing for time, implies it'll be more like in Utopia days. And back then, you could not defeat it. You just sat and waited for it to consume you. It was glorious.

 

[Ajacoba]

I hope not, tbh the end of the cycle is really not that strong from what i heard, bypass weapons can kill it quite quickly as it has zero armor and no hull regen. Personnaly hope that they go back and rework the galactic nemesis (give it actually interesting ships and megastructure assets or make a different crisis path. One issue i would have with the end of cycle being the new crisis path all paths currently (even the bio one) seems to be a bid for your empire for "ultimate power" in one form or another, binding yourself to an entity that will forever dictate your existence doesnt really feel like that.

Binding yourself forever to a giant ravenous space pet also doesn't feel like "ultimate power"

And the original crisis, nemesis, is all about listening to silly voices from the shroud and spreading death and destruction in their name to learn more and more secrets until you can join them

Voices that are in opposition to the end of the cycle, since it will offer its powers to their enemies

 

[shenyangmark]

This might be a little expensive, but it’s worth it.

 

[Critical Ethics]

Thinking about it, while i like the idea of living ships i actually i don't really like meat ships that much, my interests are more to living wood/tree ships: self-regenerating , tough, economic (photosynthesis), cool and not disgusting.

Considering the guys posting a lot of MEATSHIP is it just me?

Also always found it a pity that plantoids never got wood ships while lithoids kinda of got mineral ones at least as far as ship looks goes, but not mechanics.
​

I'm hoping that they'll take the meatship mechanics and release a treeship skin. Visually the meatships can also sub in for mushroomships.

 

[MetalSaviour]

With all the focus on ascensions.
Are there any plans to improve the machine ascensions and bring them to a similar standard as the rest.

They feel kind of dull in comparison att the moment.
Nanites dont even have leader trait.
(And yes, i am still pissed that synths gott all the modularity traits without giving anything in return).

Not trying to sound spoiled or anything.
I appreciates the hard work the devs do, and the direction the game is currently taking.

 

[Ajacoba]

With all the focus on ascensions.
Are there any plans to improve the machine ascensions and bring them to a similar standard as the rest.

They feel kind of dull in comparison att the moment.
Nanites dont even have leader trait.
(And yes, i am still pissed that synths gott all the modularity traits without giving anything in return).

Not trying to sound spoiled or anything.
I appreciates the hard work the devs do, and the direction the game is currently taking.

Don't nanites have the synth trait?