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* The following assumes you have all Stellaris DLC because a) it's all cool and good and worth it and b) it's a mild pain in the ass to remember what is / isn't DLC mechanics in these kinds of games(only exception being the Nova / Galaxy Edition upgrades, as those are literally just a single portrait and some eBook nonsense).
'''''Note:''' Due to ongoing changes to the game over time, some tips can become outdated. The current advice is accurate as of version 3.7, and [https://stellaris.paradoxwikis.com/Beginner%27s_guide a maintained beginner's guide can be found on the official wiki.]''


* As of 2.0 the way to expand your territory is to send a construction ship to an unclaimed system and build an outpost there. Then once it's claimed you can set up your mining / research stations and colonize any planets that are currently colonizable.
==Military & Warfare==


* You don't HAVE to claim your territory contiguously, but you get increasingly higher influence costs the further the system is from any of your claimed systems, so the bulk of the time it'll make the most sense to always grab a system adjacent to your empire's borders
* Always try to be as close to your maximum fleet capacity as possible. Not only is it a good idea militarily, but large fleets also generate bonus Influence which is the main resource for expanding and claiming systems.


* Even basic Outposts can have some Defense Stations built around it without upgrading it to a Starbase. Handy if some small-scale nuisances like pirates keep up gunning for the same system.
* Different weapon types are weaker or stronger against different types of defenses, so when using manual ship design and considering how to gear up your ships, it's best to focus on your opponents' weaknesses. For example kinetic weapons are strong against shields but weak against armor, so if you take a look at your neighbor's ships and see they're heavy on armor but low on shields, you probably want to avoid going hard on kinetic weapons for your own ships.


* Speaking of pirates, they pop up in unclaimed systems adjacent to your claimed systems. They also increase in chance if they have multiple claimed systems around one unclaimed system. So this is an incentive to eventually fill in any unclaimed bubbles left over in your territory that you might've skipped past initially because the system itself wasn't super valuable.
* Use Starbases to block strategic chokepoints and to guard your borders. Especially in the early game, border Starbases should usually be fitted with extra firepower and preferably a Listening Post which allows you to track the other nation's nearby fleet movements. Otherwise the most common use for Starbases is to build Anchorages in them to increase your maximum fleet capacity, especially once fleets become too strong to be threatened by Starbases.


* Don't sleep on Starbases and their upgraded forms though. They are great for defensive wars, especially when you get upgrades like FTL Inhibitors that forces the enemy fleet to take care of it before being allowed to move past that system and into your more vulnerable territory.
* Don't forget to make claims on enemy systems if you plan on declaring a conquest war on them. Claim costs increase the further the claims are from you.


* Like a lot of 4X games grabbing more territory will increase the costs of obtaining new technologies / traditions, with a colonized planet increasing the costs a lot more than a system. You can see the exact percentage by hovering the tooltip over the current cost of a technology / your next tradition unlock. This isn't super crippling or anything but it's something to keep in mind when it comes to what buildings to construct and whether or not that 2 energy and nothing else system is worth claiming.
* Even basic Outposts can have some Defense Platforms built around them, handy if some small-scale nuisances like pirates keep up gunning for the same system. They are quite expensive and fragile without fleet support however.


* The priority of what systems to grab: systems with colonizable planets(either immediately colonizable or colonizable soon-ish), systems with high resources, systems that make good chokepoints because of how the hyperlanes are situationed (either for waging war or cutting off nearby neighbors for expanding in a certain direction you'd like to expand), filling in space to not have to deal with so many damn pirate attacks
==Expanding & Planet Management==


* The general agenda of other empires can be deduced by their trait description. One who's a "Spiritualist Seekers" will like other spiritual empires, and a "Fanatical Purifier" is probably going to try and kill you at some point. Gifts and deliberately favorable trade deals are usually the only way at first to improve relations, until you can get a treaty which starts building trust.
* Specialization of planets is important. Colonies (but not your capital) can be designated to be more efficient at producing a certain type of resource and should focus on producing that resource - for example a Tech World should be filled with Researchers, a Mining World with miners, and so forth. Colony designation is automatic by default, but it's best to choose them manually.


* When you start making Sectors, look at their planets and see if they lend themselves to a specialization rather than just generic resources. They may have really good energy planets for instance.
* A special case for planet designation exists between the alloy-focused Forge World and consumer good-focused Factory World: When switching to one of these designations, all industrial districts on the planet will immediately switch to producing only that resource instead of splitting their capacity between the two. This can be very useful if you face a shortage of one or the other.


* Lasers beat armor, kinetic weapons beat shields, missiles beat a little of both and are more accurate, but can be shot down by point defense. Normal guns and lasers are not point defense.
* Empire Size will impose an increasing penalty on unlocking technologies and especially Traditions as you expand. This doesn't mean you should avoid expanding, but don't neglect research and unity producing colonies as you do.


* Energy production is important, even if you have a good surplus throughout the game, a sizable late game fleet can put you in a pretty big deficit if you don't have a large production. Keep in mind that a fleet costs a lot more upkeep when it is not docked.
* Prioritize grabbing systems with large colonizable planets, systems with high resource quantities, and systems that make good hyperlane chokepoints. High-quality but low-habitability planets can become useful later, either via terraforming or populating them with robots/more suitable species.


* Energy Credits are primarily used as maintenance costs for ships / buildings / stations and for buying new leaders. Outside of that though, some not immediately obvious uses for bulk Energy Credits: getting bonuses from the various Enclaves(they're sorta like Civ V/Vi City-States; Curators will give boosts to science or buying new scientists, Artists will gives boosts to Unity, Traders can trade your energy for minerals), paying off Raiders to attack enemy Empires, Campaigns in the Policies and Edicts tab
* Food is 100% an empire-wide resource, meaning a planet can generate negative amounts of food and still grow normally if your empire is otherwise producing excess food. Excess food has the most limited use beyond selling it in the Galactic Market, so it tends to be the least important of the basic resources.


* Research is stored when your scientists are busy with special projects so don't be concerned about falling behind on tech due to projects.
==General Advice==


* Look through the Ascension Perks tied to your traditions at the start of the game, and try to pick a few to go for. Some are locked behind tech, so its helpful to decide, which type of endgame you want to pursue, so you can pick the techs as they come up.
* Energy production is important, a sizable late game fleet can put you in a pretty big deficit if you don't keep up with it. Keep your fleets docked in a Starbase with Crew Quarters built when they're not in use to reduce their maintenance.
 
* The general agenda of other empires can be deduced by their trait description. "Spiritualist Seekers" will like other spiritual empires, and "Fanatical Purifiers" will probably try to kill you at some point. Gifts and deliberately favorable trade deals are usually the only way at first to improve relations, until you can get a treaty which starts building trust.
 
* Look through the Ascension Perks tied to your traditions at the start of the game, and try to pick a few to go for. Some are locked behind tech, so it's helpful to decide which type of endgame you want to pursue so that you can pick the techs as they come up.


[[Category:Games]]
[[Category:Games]]

Latest revision as of 15:07, 19 April 2023

Note: Due to ongoing changes to the game over time, some tips can become outdated. The current advice is accurate as of version 3.7, and a maintained beginner's guide can be found on the official wiki.

Military & Warfare

  • Always try to be as close to your maximum fleet capacity as possible. Not only is it a good idea militarily, but large fleets also generate bonus Influence which is the main resource for expanding and claiming systems.
  • Different weapon types are weaker or stronger against different types of defenses, so when using manual ship design and considering how to gear up your ships, it's best to focus on your opponents' weaknesses. For example kinetic weapons are strong against shields but weak against armor, so if you take a look at your neighbor's ships and see they're heavy on armor but low on shields, you probably want to avoid going hard on kinetic weapons for your own ships.
  • Use Starbases to block strategic chokepoints and to guard your borders. Especially in the early game, border Starbases should usually be fitted with extra firepower and preferably a Listening Post which allows you to track the other nation's nearby fleet movements. Otherwise the most common use for Starbases is to build Anchorages in them to increase your maximum fleet capacity, especially once fleets become too strong to be threatened by Starbases.
  • Don't forget to make claims on enemy systems if you plan on declaring a conquest war on them. Claim costs increase the further the claims are from you.
  • Even basic Outposts can have some Defense Platforms built around them, handy if some small-scale nuisances like pirates keep up gunning for the same system. They are quite expensive and fragile without fleet support however.

Expanding & Planet Management

  • Specialization of planets is important. Colonies (but not your capital) can be designated to be more efficient at producing a certain type of resource and should focus on producing that resource - for example a Tech World should be filled with Researchers, a Mining World with miners, and so forth. Colony designation is automatic by default, but it's best to choose them manually.
  • A special case for planet designation exists between the alloy-focused Forge World and consumer good-focused Factory World: When switching to one of these designations, all industrial districts on the planet will immediately switch to producing only that resource instead of splitting their capacity between the two. This can be very useful if you face a shortage of one or the other.
  • Empire Size will impose an increasing penalty on unlocking technologies and especially Traditions as you expand. This doesn't mean you should avoid expanding, but don't neglect research and unity producing colonies as you do.
  • Prioritize grabbing systems with large colonizable planets, systems with high resource quantities, and systems that make good hyperlane chokepoints. High-quality but low-habitability planets can become useful later, either via terraforming or populating them with robots/more suitable species.
  • Food is 100% an empire-wide resource, meaning a planet can generate negative amounts of food and still grow normally if your empire is otherwise producing excess food. Excess food has the most limited use beyond selling it in the Galactic Market, so it tends to be the least important of the basic resources.

General Advice

  • Energy production is important, a sizable late game fleet can put you in a pretty big deficit if you don't keep up with it. Keep your fleets docked in a Starbase with Crew Quarters built when they're not in use to reduce their maintenance.
  • The general agenda of other empires can be deduced by their trait description. "Spiritualist Seekers" will like other spiritual empires, and "Fanatical Purifiers" will probably try to kill you at some point. Gifts and deliberately favorable trade deals are usually the only way at first to improve relations, until you can get a treaty which starts building trust.
  • Look through the Ascension Perks tied to your traditions at the start of the game, and try to pick a few to go for. Some are locked behind tech, so it's helpful to decide which type of endgame you want to pursue so that you can pick the techs as they come up.
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