Dev Diary #422: Defender of the Galaxy, Champion's Forge LIVE, Heirs of the Khan

by Eladrin

Hello everybody!

The team has been competing against one another to see who can write the longest dev diary, so I’m going to sabotage their efforts by keeping my preamble short. Let’s get straight into the fray!

Hi everyone! Cosmogone here to tell you more about the expansion of Defender of the Galaxy. For the past couple years, we have been adding new crisis paths to Stellaris, exotic ways of wrecking the galaxy, some more morally grey than others, but none that would let you be “The Good Guy” without lying to yourself. Building upon the crisis mechanics and systems, the reworked Defender of the Galaxy is what we call an Ambition; a new term to encompass paths that unlock specific victory conditions, be they harmful to the rest of the galaxy, or not.

Now with updated art!​

In terms of vision, Defender of the Galaxy is about being truly good. Being ready to sacrifice everything fighting so that others may live, and this principle is what has guided the rework. There are ways to play around that a bit, but overall, I wanted to reward players for cooperating and protecting other empires rather than encourage total galactic subjugation, and as such, DotG will come with several bonuses to being the Custodian, but will also prevent you from creating the Galactic Imperium.

To protect is to serve.​

As with the Crisis Paths, the Ascension Perk will become available after you have picked 3 other APs, and is inaccessible to genocidal empires, barbaric despoilers, crisis empires, fanatic xenophobes or inward perfection empires.

While the ambition does not outright prevent you from being a little evil, progressing through it will go faster if you can work together with the other empires of the galaxy, and eliminate any arising crisis with extreme prejudice, of course.

Never before have crisis empires looked so juicy.​

As you progress through the Ambition Levels, you can expect to unlock the old opinion modifiers and damage vs crisis empires, but also buffs to federations, the Galactic Community, diplomacy and defensive structures as a whole. Here are a few examples:

Your allies will give you the strength you need.​

After becoming the Custodian and creating the Galactic Defense Force, you will be able to begin the Paladin Initiative, eventually unlocking unique ships, manned by remarkable commanders. More than weapons of war, these ships and those who man them will stand as symbols of hope to inspire the rest of the galaxy and lead your forces to victory.

More than a ship, a symbol.​

They might not be as fearsome as a behemoth, but together with your fleets and the GDF, they are more than up to the task of slaying the beast.

A single paladin ship will not be a game changer, but with support and a stalwart commander, they will lead your forces to victory.​

Paladin ships have many unique abilities, the basic ones being the Paladin Aegis, which fortifies the paladin ship in battle, the Lance of Valor, which deals damage scaling with your diplomatic weight, and Recall which lets a paladin ship retreat from a dangerous situation. Additionally, the ship will receive a 4th ability depending on the leader commanding them and can unlock a fifth one through resolutions in the Galcom. You will be limited to building only one paladin ship, but every member of the galactic council will also be able to choose their paladin, and should the situation be grave enough, the galactic custodian has the power to assume direct command of all paladins in order to defend the galaxy.

The Galcom will be an important tool to defend the galaxy.​

A commander will be promoted to Paladin upon being assigned to their new ship, and receive a new leader trait, as well as a class trait. They can be retrained to receive the class of your choice, but that is an expensive option.

Paladin, ready to serve!​

So, how do I win as a Defender of the Galaxy? Simple! Reach level 5 of the ambition, defeat two end game Crises, make sure no other crisis empires are left alive, then abdicate your custodianship. After all, with no looming threats, there is no moral reason to hold onto the extraordinary powers you have been granted. There is still good to be done, but you won’t need to stand above your peers to do it. Oh and for the more impatient ones in the crowd, you will be able to risk it all and bring forth the end game crisis early in order to complete your ambition. And if you’re bold enough, you might just see two of them at the same time.

Hi there. I am Iggy, and I know what fuels you. Not to be the ‘good guys’ saving the galaxy. Not taking care of demanding passengers or discovering your spiritual roots out in the galaxy. No, what truly drives you is revenge.

In Heirs of the Khan, you were once a member of a Marauder community. After endless service, it was finally your people's turn to lead the united clans. Only you were betrayed. Now, exiled, you have to avoid hunters.

In Marauder culture, revenge is served hot!​

One of the first things you will notice when starting your Heirs gameplay is a special military contract somewhere nearby in the galaxy. Similar to Forever Cruise, this is a unique contract for Heirs empires. It will be key that you complete these contracts whenever you can, for you see, the Marauders will be sending fleets after you. Bounty hunters who will only grow stronger each time you defeat them. By completing these contracts you will weaken them and survive to fight another day.

These Hunters might stay their fire if you ask nicely.​

These fleets will be a constant threat and opportunity for you until you reach the mid-game year. Instead of the event you are used to from Apocalypse you are instead involved in the process of selecting this new Khan, and it might be you.

It’s a very comfortable throne​

If you now manage to survive the overwhelming firepower of the Great Khan’s Vision and assembled fleets. You might just get to sound the Drums of War.

Just desserts.​

Now, being the Khan is hard work. You have to go out there and gather satrapies, and the other empires might not be happy to help you. Thankfully, your new Marauder friends will supply you with reinforcements, and you have access to civics and traits traditionally reserved for the Khan.

I hope your ruler doesn’t die.​

The galaxy might band together and try to stop you, but that is just because they don’t understand your great vision for the galaxy.

As being the Khan is a full-time job, it is incompatible with other Ambitions like Defenders of the Galaxy and Behemoth Fury. But once you have survived the gauntlet that is the early game, you can be your own midgame crisis.

Take revenge on the galaxy!​

Alfray Stryke with another Intel Report on Arkships:
[c][/c]

Military Arkship Tiers​

Unlike the other two Arkship classes, Military Arkships are outfitted for combat from the start of the game.

In lieu of gaining access to various abilities, Military Arkships have additional weapon slots that are automatically equipped with appropriate weapons.

As previously teased in other Dev Diaries, Arkship Systems allow you to equip the Arkship with a variety of Defensive and Utility Components from regular ships, including selected Auras from Juggernauts, Titans and Starbases.

In terms of Defensive Components, each of the below equips the Arkship with 3× Large (or Aux) version of the latest components from their respective category that you have researched. The Shield Amplifier and Ancient Shield Recharger instead provide Shield HP and Hardening instead of equipping components.

For example:

In addition to the Utility Modules we have been showing off, Arkships can also equip Weapon Modules, these equip an appropriate amount of turrets (depending on the turrets the weapons themselves use) automatically upgraded with your latest technology.

Of course, Arkships can’t be outdone by a Titan, so they have the Devastator Mount…

Which means I could build something like this

Arkships can have the full spectrum of Fleet Stances for their combat behaviour, but are always equipped with a combat computer with the unique Arkship Tactics.

Finally, all Arkships (except for those operated by the Forever Cruise) have the Ordinance Engineering district. This military district normally provides soldier jobs, but can be specialized with any of the following, depending on your unlocked technologies:

Finally, here’s some tables of detailed information on Arkship numbers:

Base Stats by Tier (All Classes)​

Cost and Upkeep​

Class-Specific Innate Modifiers​

Innate Weapon Slots​

Exploration and Harvesting​

Now over to Gruntsatwork for how Nomadic wars function.

Nomad on Everyone Violence​

Hello, I’m Gruntsatwork and today I get to talk about Warfare and Nomads. Without too much preamble, let’s jump right in.

Arkships are colonies, however, as they are not planets they can not be bombarded, nor can they be invaded. If you wish to take out an Arkship, your only option is good old honest ship combat, because damage to their hull is equal to their devastation.

So, does that mean I can conquer Arkships as a non-nomad and then cruise around?
I’m afraid not. Even if Eladrin thinks it would be hilarious, Arkships will only ever be available to nomads. Neither can you use a conquer war goal against nomads as there is nothing to claim.

For non-nomads the general flow will always be similar.
Once you reduce an arkship to 0 hull, they will become disabled and drop out of combat.
At that point, we intervene in the background.

For normal empires, the Arkship will simply remain disabled until the war ends. Once the war concludes, we re-enable the Arkship, and it will be dealt with according to your war goal.
If you are a genocidal empire type, you will immediately blow them up, leaving debris full of alloys.

What about non-default empires, you ask? Critters, Leviathans, and similar creatures will disable your ship at 0 hull, and your Arkship will escape to a nearby safe system before re-enabling.
End-game crises will destroy your Arkships, no exceptions.

But what about the other way around, what about a nomad conquering a planet?
You will not be able to make claims and conquer planets. You will be able to invade and occupy them, but like any proud nomad, you will release those filthy balls of dirt once the war concludes.

Instead of conquering them, you can always vassalize the planet-dwellers, but what if you desire a more … permanent impact on them?

Genocidal Nomads or Nomads using total wars can not occupy planets; however, any planet they invade will immediately be split off into a vassal. These can be either proper vassals or aptly-named purge-vassals.

Purge-Vassals are temporary existences who will only exist as long as it takes them to purge all pops on the planets you have conquered. Once they have finished purging, they will transfer over any resources they generated as well as passing on purge unique effects like Necrophages or Galactic Nemesis.

For the keen-eyed, there is a case we have not covered yet: Nomad on Nomad Violence.

Nomads are perfectly capable of taking over Arkships from other nomads. To achieve this we recommend the new Nomad Raid CB, which allows a nomad to take over any Arkship and Waystation that they have successfully disabled.

In addition, nomads also have easier access to the Subjugation CB. As a reminder, normal empires need to be superior on average in all three values: economy, research, and military power. Nomads only need to be superior in military power to subjugate another empire.

But what if I am a normal empire and one of those nomads is encroaching upon my borders?
In that case, you will gain access to a new CB to expel them from your borders, which will delete all their waystations within your borders, move their ships out of your systems, and actually force them to respect your closed borders for the duration of the truce.

LITHOIDS, ORGANICS, AND WAR MACHINES ACROSS THE GALAXY - WELCOME BACK TO CHAMPION’S FORGE LIIIIIIIVE!
Iggy is back as your presenter for the greatest show around. Our latest enclave is focused on delivering glorious free-for-all arena battles to entertain the galaxy.

Red and gold is classy.​

Like most enclaves, they have multiple purposes. However, they mainly specialize in lighting up the galaxy and forging legends! Every twenty years or so, they will invite the greatest forces to join in and prove themselves.

Good thing they are nomadic, cus they would make bad neighbors.​

Like any well-respected combat sport, the CFL has weight classes. Starting out in the early game, you can only send in highly optimized strike forces, however come late game, entire armadas can be pitted against each other.

And worry not about losing your fleet, the CFL will ensure that most of the ships make it back.

We even get a cut of the commercials for winning!

The trophy is very shiny!​

Now, you will have to return the trophy when it’s time for the next tournament. Some of you might be thinking that if you shoot down the CFL before then you might get to keep it! Just know that I thought of that.

As for the other services the CFL can offer:

• For the right price they will let you decide where the next tournament should be, this is excellent as you can prepare your fleet for combat in a pulsar and overwhelm everyone else.

• They are willing to sell combat data on your rivals.

• Finally, if you are a Nomad, then they are ready to introduce you to Nomadic Paragons.

Hi, I am Nele (Content Designer), and it is my pleasure to present our new six Paragons arriving alongside the Nomads DLC: five are Renowned, and one is Legendary! All six are exclusive to nomadic empires, and you meet them through the Champion’s Forge Live! Enclave.

Special thanks to Chad Inglis, our Managing Design Lead, for bringing them to life.

Paragon Concept Art- Scott Austin, Art Director
“The team always loves working on Paragons because they don't follow the same set rules of our typical portraits. They're a "one and done" type of deal, so we get to go all out on them. Paragons always have more character than typical species portraits with detailed backstory, etc., and that's what makes them so fun.

Our Nomads Paragons come from all walks of life, everything from an eccentric archeologist to a former soldier, hell-bent on revenge. The one binding factor being that they are all, in one way or another, part of the Nomads. We see this in their diverse wardrobes and outward appearances. Less uniforms and more in-world clothing.”

Orun Veyth, the Revenant

Orun is a scarred admiral whose homeworld was purged. They hunt the instigators of their planet’s annihilation with patience, and every purger they defeat tightens their oath into something even more powerful, stacking their trait with each victory.

Their combat trait grows stronger with every fleet battle won against a purge-committed empire. This implies that Orun is a paragon whose career performance depends on the galaxy remaining terrible. So far, the galaxy has not let them down.

"Show me the butchers, and I will return their cruelty tenfold."

Orun Veyth Concept Art - Scott Austin, Art Director

“For Orun Veyth, (working name the Revenant) we explored several of our species and both male and female before landing on the final species of choice.”

“For the longest time, they had a rifle with which they would snipe these evildoers who had committed genocide on their planet. We eventually decided to go with a blade weapon so they would get their revenge up close and personal.”

Ashar, the Wandering Sage

Ashar is a robed wanderer who held a senior counselor's seat at a royal court for many years, then walked away from it to chase wisdom. She teaches that "truth must remain in motion," and the Arkships are the first ships fast enough to keep up with them. Convenient, isn’t it? Ashar wanders the stars, teaching that “true wisdom flows like starlight through the void”. If that sentence made you want to write it down somewhere permanent, congratulations: you are now one of Ashar's students.

"The one who carries nothing bears all things."

Ashar’s Concept Art - Felix Englund, Concept Artist

“Ashar was one of the most fun briefs I’ve worked with since I started on Stellaris. It’s right up my alley of interests, and it’s probably my favorite portrait I’ve done so far!

As the brief suggested, wisdom and mystery are at the heart of this character design. I wanted to design her with thick traveling robes, playing into the traveler and eclectic vibe, and give her oriental and gothic jewelry and clothing resembling a ribcage, playing into the necroid origin, as well as a ceremonial and spiritual touch. Early ideas included larger ribcages, larger scrolls, and other necroid species, but as we reviewed my sketches, it was clear that the team was on board with going for the human necroid look.”

Sero the Younger, the Naturalist

Sero the Younger walked out of a Grand Archive because he decided to research living and thriving things instead. Sero will bring 300 living specimens aboard your capital Arkship the day he signs on, and his deep scans reveal what ordinary surveys miss.

A scientist who walked out of a prestigious lifelong post because everything in it was already dead. Honestly: mood.

"To study life, one must walk beside it."

Sero the Younger Concept Art - Lloyd Drake-Brockman, Concept Artist

Unit Solace, the Caregiver

A synthetic father who chose exile over leaving his fragile son behind while his people ascended. His special trait Life in Motion increases research speed under Solace's patient instruction, and your researchers grow a little sharper and a little better cared for with every lesson he gives.

Solace is, without question, the most wholesome paragon. We dare you to dismiss him, you heartless monster. You can't. You won't.

"Life endures, and when we choose to care, it thrives."

Unit Solace’ Concept Art - Cassandra Lindquist, 2D UI Artist

“With the pitch being “A dad robot and his sick son" I wanted to make sure everything revolved around the sick child and I had the idea very early to have him "hooked up" to the dad as a type of life support. I also played around with equipment for the dad that could help the child, like carriers, sun protection, comforting plushies, medical kits etc.

It was challenging since it was my first attempt at a character, but it was fun to figure out how to portray a robot dad, caring for his little sick bio child.

I had fun conversations like "Does the dad wear clothes? Can we give him facial expressions? can a robot have more of a robust dad bod? Does it make sense? Do we care if it doesn't make sense?" and we ended up making him more Baymax shaped.”

Special shoutout to Mia for this magnificent rig! Did you notice the little plushie the child is holding?

Mia Svensson, Animator: “The rig was built and animated with this relationship, that Cassie \[paragraph above] described, in mind, to make the kid feel physically connected to the dad, but also the other way around. A wholesome symbiosis between human and machine.”

Th'aal Hask'Guron, the Champion

Th'aal is a rather joyful warrior who treats every battlefield like a hunt for trophies. Speaking of, Th'aal will fill a Trophy Hall on your Arkship if you let him, and every piece on display strengthens your armies. This is the kind of momentum that carries the troops through a long war.

Also, doesn't the beast around his shoulders look rather familiar? We are not sure its kin appreciates it.

"The void takes everything in time, so fight hard and laugh while you can!"

Th'aal Hask'Guron’s Concept Art - Felix Englund, Concept Artist

“As the brief suggested a big, bulky and very jolly warrior, I wanted the paragon Th’aal to reflect that in many ways.The first iterations didn’t feel quite right, and we adjusted the brief early to find a more appropriate and fun species to work with. The idea here was to have the facial expression and the stance looking confident and joyful, not only menacing. I dressed him up in a champion's outfit with gold belts and details as well as a robe with a trophy carried on his shoulder. His weapons are clearly meant for melee combat, but it’s something he carries with him to emphasize his dominance in combat. Early on I played with different elements such as more skulls and bones before I ended up choosing to stay with the boar trophy and his skull helmet. It felt less on the nose and more grounded in the character.“

Seralune, the Lost Princess \[Legendary Paragon]

Seralune steps onto your bridge and politely requests passage. She is the youngest of our new paragons but she is already remarkably accomplished.

She possesses the Amnesiac trait and the story chain that grows out of it. As time passes, scraps of memory will surface such as a strange feeling, a familiar name, and perhaps even the silhouette of a system she swears she has seen before. Seralune will mark places in the galaxy that pull at her, and if your Arkship is willing to go where she points, you may begin to learn what she lost.

You will, despite yourself, find yourself rooting for the lost princess. We can't wait to see where you take her, but you'd better keep her safe from the dangers that await out there, especially since the rewards for aiding Seralune in reclaiming her scattered past are rather extensive.

"Somewhere in the endless sweep of stars, a voice is calling me home."

Seralune’s Concept Art - Scott Austin, Art Director

“Our earliest brief had this character as royalty but it wasn’t yet locked in whether or not they would be a male or female, only that they were dethroned and in exile. My very first sketches were of an older, sweet and appealing character. I still like this character and hope that we can get her in somewhere else…”

“I really wanted to stick with our classic Orange and Teal color palette. So that was prominent for a quite a while.”

“I did, however, explore several other options. The main point we wanted to stick to were that they clearly were of a royal background and had a commanding presence to them. A character that you would want to see back on the throne. And we wanted them to clearly be part of our nomad faction. I think all in all, I did several dozen character options (there will be a Nomads Art Blast later). One of the clear standouts was the momentary idea of using our orc species as a base.”

“Before eventually going back to my very first orange and teal sketches and working those further into what became our final princess.”

We all hope you have lots of fun with these characters!

That's it! Until next time. :)

One of the common questions I’d get is “where can I get one of those Stellaris bomber jackets you guys wear?”, and we’d always point them to the Paradox careers page. That answer is still correct, but we have a tenth anniversary one up for preorder on our official 10th Anniversary Merchandise Store.

The store also has a new Blorg Body Pillow, pins, magnets, hoodies, a Swolefin beach towel, playing cards, a glow-in-the-dark Rick the Cube poster, and more, so check it out!

We’re getting closer to release, so next week we’ll be covering the Stellar Cannon, the Civics of Nomads, the Exodus Jump Spinal Mount, how Embarking or Settling works, and we’ll hunt for our new Prescripted Empire.

See you then!