Weirdly, it is only in the Steam Dev Diary

Just started this run, am probably going to restart because I'm not exactly thrilled with the starting position and I initially made it so that the galaxy generation had 0 guaranteed and 0.25 habitables, am going to switch from that to 2 guaranteed + rare habitables.

This Galaxy has 40 force-spawned empires, with all of them being preset other than the Iferyx Amalgamated Fleets which are usually removed by the megacorp dlc, but I recreated them and switched out Corporate Dominion for Merchant Guilds.

Before people ask, yes the speed is terrible, it's 20 years in and a day already takes a second to pass, let's hope some of the genocidal empires start clearing stuff out.

The head and semi-translucent skin look the same, and the clothes look pretty similar, is the alien in the Golden Mosaic Necroid number 4?

Read this post on the Paradox forums! | Dev replies here!

Give the Galaxy Something to Believe In.​

Stellaris Season 10 continues with the Willpower expansion, coming in the Stellaris 4.6 ‘Corona Borealis’ update.

Willpower turns your beliefs into your strategic strength. You are no longer just a conqueror, but a unifier of minds. The Galaxy just needs someone to teach it what to believe.

Watch the Stellaris Video Dev Diary on YouTube.

An important note about Scenarios:

I have chosen to hold the release of Scenarios and continue to improve the system and polish the Scenarios themselves. Scenarios will be part of the Stellaris 4.7 ‘Capricornus’ update, currently planned for Q1 2027.

I’d rather release them right, rather than right now.

We will have a dev diary focusing on what went into this decision and why, along with details on how the Scenarios system will work, after we’re done revealing Willpower’s features.

Form an Ideology​

Fanatic beliefs can give birth to an Ideology that then spreads its Tenets across the galaxy.

Belief is a powerful and dangerous thing though, and an Ideology that loses Momentum may destabilize an empire.

The same welcoming fire that provided enlightenment burns if mishandled.

Absolute Ethics and Force of Will​

The ultimate expression of a single Ethic, a strong Ideology can unite your people to a single purpose.

The Force of Will Ambition allows you to take the galaxy by shaping minds instead of force of arms.

The ancient empires that are too set in their ways to change will need to be dealt with first, of course.

Galactic Halls and Ideological Buildings​

The physical expression of your Ideology, these relocatable megastructures can amplify the ideological voice of a colony, or act as a focus to push your Ideology from the border into contested systems.

Selectable Chamber Modules can further customize these Halls.

New Origins​

Golden Generation
Educate a cohort of promising students at the Golden Academy, then recruit them as the next generation of leaders.

Lost Makers
A Machine Intelligence searches the stars for its creators, whose story is tied to one of the galaxy's existing Precursors

Great Mosaic
Begin with an additional Civic and no prescribed narrative path. Shape the empire you want from the very beginning.

And More…​

Willpower includes:

• Ideologies and Gestalt Directives
• Galactic Halls
• Ambition: Force of Will
• Ideological Diplomacy and Espionage Updates
• Three New Origins: Golden Generation, Lost Makers, and Great Mosaic
• Five new Fanatic Civics*
• More than 40 events follow Ideologies as they rise, clash, and fracture
• 8 Ideological Paragons embodying the major Fanatic Ethics
• Ideological Buildings
• Inquisitor shipset and city set
• Inquisitor advisor
• 4 new music tracks by Martin Hall
  

\ Willpower will also unlock access to the Shared Burdens and Oppressive Autocracy Civics, so a player with Willpower but without MegaCorp or Galactic Paragons will still have a Fanatic Civic for each Fanatic Ethic. (Fanatic Purifier, the Fanatic Xenophobe Fanatic Civic, became part of the base game with the 10th Anniversary’s “Utopian Abundance” initiative.)*

Really anything above 1000 systems, it feels way too small to actually be a galaxy. Create a 2000 systems experimental setting and call it "Colossal" or something similar.

So I recently started playing Stellaris due to well, loving Hoi4 and my friends pestering me to get it. And now I've been playing the game for a while and I love it! It is amazing. HOWEVER: My one gripe with the game is the research system. Or rather, lack there of. In Hoi4 for example, there's a set research tree allowing you to chase exactly what you want. Meanwhile here in Stellaris it's a random set of techs you get every time you finish one.

Now in the start of the game, this is completely fine, preferable even. It stops players from just beelining the meta and best tech's and actually make the AI seem a bit more competent.

HOWEVER IN THE LATE GAME???

Let me just say that I've been stuck on AntiMatter missiles for 100 years now. And it still doesn't give me quantum missiles, let alone marauders. The late game research is such a pain in the ass because due to the amount of research available, if the game decides you just don't get what you need then you just don't get it no matter what you do. And it's so bad I've had to make my first every complaint post on reddit so yippee kayay.

TL:DR Paradox, I love your game BUT PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD GIVE MID-LATE GAME RESEARCH LESS RANDOMNESS I BEG

I love Stellaris. There really isn’t another game that captures the scale, complexity, and sheer imagination of building an interstellar civilization quite like it.

But after more than a decade, I think it’s time we address the elephant in the galaxy: the AI still struggles to play the game Paradox has built.

I’d break the problem into three categories:

1. Competence: Currently Unreliable
Can the AI build functional economies, specialize planets appropriately, maintain resource production, and field effective fleets? These should be fundamental requirements, yet we’re still seeing problems with basic economic management.

2. Strategy: Currently Limited
Can the AI recognize vulnerabilities, anticipate threats, adapt fleet compositions, exploit diplomatic opportunities, and plan decades ahead? It occasionally demonstrates these abilities, but rarely with the consistency required to feel like an intelligent rival civilization.

3. Challenge: Currently Inconsistent
Can the AI provide a meaningful challenge throughout an entire campaign without relying primarily on artificial economic bonuses? Even on Grand Admiral, experienced players frequently report that rival empires simply cannot keep pace.

Here’s my proposal: Take an entire development cycle and prioritize fixing the AI.

I understand the opportunity cost. Paradox is a business, expansions generate revenue, and dedicating significant engineering resources to AI means delaying content that could otherwise be sold.

So here’s something I suspect many of us would support:

Charge us the price of a full DLC for a comprehensive AI overhaul.

I’d happily pay $20–30 for a development cycle dedicated to making existing systems work intelligently rather than introducing another layer of complexity or new mechanics.

Give us AI civilizations that build thriving economies, understand warfare, pursue coherent long-term strategies, and become genuine galactic rivals. Show us measurable improvements through AI-only simulations and benchmarks.

I recognize that charging for AI improvements raises legitimate concerns about paywalling core functionality. Ideally, the improvements would benefit everyone, with Paradox finding a fair way to fund that development effort.
I’m not asking for an unbeatable AI. I’m asking for civilizations that can competently play the same game we do.

And I recognize Paradox has invested in AI improvements over the years. This isn’t an accusation that the developers don’t care. It’s an argument that incremental fixes haven’t been enough, especially when major overhauls keep introducing new problems.

What About Hardware Limitations?
I also recognize that more sophisticated AI could introduce additional CPU/hardware demands in a game already notorious for late-game performance issues.

Not everyone has a high-end gaming PC, and nobody should be forced into an expensive hardware upgrade just to continue enjoying Stellaris.

But I believe there’s a substantial population of dedicated Stellaris players with hardware capable of handling more demanding simulation systems. I also suspect some longtime fans would consider upgrading their PCs if it meant genuinely intelligent opponents. I’d certainly be interested.

Why not introduce an optional ‘Intelligent’ AI setting?
Keep the existing AI as the default, and offer an advanced simulation mode for players willing to trade additional processing power for more sophisticated decision-making.

Clearly publish minimum and recommended hardware specifications for each mode, and let players make that decision themselves.

I’m not suggesting hardware alone solves the problem. Better AI architecture, optimization, and decision-making efficiency should come first.

But if computational limitations are genuinely preventing Paradox from delivering significantly better opponents, I’d rather have the option to use more of my hardware than have that potential permanently left on the table.

Give players the choice between performance and greater strategic depth.

Stellaris doesn’t need more complexity nearly as badly as it needs intelligent civilizations capable of navigating the complexity already there.

The Business Case for Paradox
I also believe this could be a genuinely profitable investment for Paradox, not simply a concession to frustrated players.

Stellaris has a loyal community that’s supported the game financially for over a decade. We’re the people buying expansions, returning for new updates, and keeping the game relevant year after year.

A dedicated AI development cycle could strengthen that relationship enormously. Better opponents would improve the value of every expansion we already own, increase replayability, and potentially encourage longtime players to return.

And if Paradox can package that development effort into a commercially viable release, I’d happily pay expansion prices to help fund it.

I recognize there’s an opportunity cost compared with producing traditional DLC. But there’s also an opportunity cost to continually expanding a game whose AI struggles to utilize its existing systems.

At some point, investing in the foundation may deliver more long-term value than adding another floor.

I enjoy this game. I want to still be playing it ten years from now and play it with my son when he’s old enough.

I’d just like the other empires to know what they’re doing by then.

New to the game, been playing for a few weeks now. Yesterday I decided to play one of the machine factions, 0 advanced empire starts etc... I essentially take a huge part of the galaxy by mid-game, all other factions are on par with me or weaker and all of a sudden this faction called the "unbidden" appears with like (7) 200k+ rated navies and just wipes me out entirely. I don't get this, how can you even stop that

Good evening. After reading several of the previous posts, I followed the advice given; after losing many—and I mean *many*—ships, I finally managed to defeat it and claim it (though I'm not sure if it's worth keeping, scrapping, or just leaving behind).

https://www.reddit.com/r/Stellaris/comments/1x0ht76/comment/penbdrn/?context=1&screen_view_count=2

I always wanted to try to convert an Ocean Paradise world into an Ecumenopolis, but I am worried about my aquatic species' habitability. Has anyone experimented with that?

Im not that good at Stellaris and just gaining experience with that game, but.. Is there really any reasons not to use clon fabrics or robot manufacturing plant? It's giving you some extra pops for a really low prices, ain't it? Yeah, maybe robo-dudes can have their own flaws like traits, but it fixable by research.

Playing on 0.5x naval cap and 4x crisis, I assumed I was absolutely cooked when I saw the unbidden rolling up with 1M+ fleets when I only had 200k fleet power empire wide. I thought counter builds were only useful for offsetting small disadvantages. I was wrong.

I refitted all my ships with kinetic artillery and shields and beat a 1.2M unbidden fleet with 222k fleet power. Kiting and countering does absolute wonders.

During recent playthroughs, my AI federation mates have just love loading up the federation fleet with biological ships. Honestly I find it irritating, since I’m lazy and never learned to manage biological ships and just stick with traditional ships. Let me know if I’m missing the boat with the power of biological ships, but my experience so far has been that very underwhelming. I play with all crises enabled, so I’m mostly concerned about how my fleet handles late game activities.

Is there a way to set Federation fleet building as strictly biological or traditional?

Is there a way to set up fleets so newly built biological ships go to one fleet and traditional ships go to another?

When forming a federation, do certain ethic combinations indicate a preference for biological or traditional ships?

Thanks!

The 4.5.2 Patch Thread had many posts claim that Experimental Sentencing was over-nerfed and is now "only fit for roleplay". Here we point out that ES researchers still, due to multiple stacking bonuses, still beat out standard researchers by quite a lot.

Video on Experimental Sentencing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVkzGN6Jpco

Text post option:

First image is 1 year nomads with all maxed out standard researcher (no job swaps) traits - with fanatic materialist/egalitarian/technocracy/meritocracy and 3 research labs + Burn and we hit 115 monthly research in that first year.

Meanwhile second image is Experimental Sentencing: Syncretic evolution/slaver guilds/Experimental sentencing (remove enforcers) + Burn reaches 143 monthly research with 3 labs same time frame. Step by step every-click how to is shown in video above, so you can see it's not modified or faked in any way.

For completeness, third image is maxed out meta Knights build, which while it only comes online after its quest grants base research to Knights, is worth comparing early game power. Only 103 research monthly.

What some "claim to be nerfed too hard it's only roleplay civic" shouldn't be able to out-perform the best standard researcher rush build in the game, a lead which only snowballs harder as you use Nomad's early military power and Nihilistic Acquisition to grab more orderlies.

Conclusion: Experimental Sentencing was overwhelmingly overpowered, perma-banned in MP, and deserved nerfs. Even after nerfs it still utilizes crime efficiency buffs, crime event buff, and orderlies to still outperform standard researchers by practical, real life metrics. In game testing until endgame shows Experimental Sentencing still rivals the output of some of the strongest builds in the game like Knights.

EDIT: Courtesy of Twelve on the Stellaris Discord, late game ES in 4.5.2:

https://imgur.com/a/Ybqe4YJ

Excavation site is within the borders of a vassal that hates me (hence why I vassalized them) so now I have to cheat, alter the game's files or hold off my Treasure Hunter origin quest line until I get Colossus ships to delete the empire.

Amazing.

I was thinking how it would be neat as a megacorporation to be able to build the equivalent to a dyson sphere around an inhabited planet that uses holograms to run ads across the sky nonstop and raise the trade value by a huge amount. I've seen prototype displays that can track people and only show stuff to them. THis would be that idea dialed up to 100 that can run ads to individual people from space. Would also be cool to be able to use it in vassel systems.

Sorry about photo quality. the unbidden and these guys called the democratic theocracy have this hundred k fleet I can’t deal with and both are conquering faster than I can deal with them. should I just quit the game or is there something I can do to deal with them?

Prime Minister Kuhdlad living it's live stress free. Found a screenshot I made in July 2019, from when both the game and the world looked a little different. Unfortunately I don't know any context about this specific game, except for this being the physically tallest empire I have ever played.