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@@U_C_G I also got it by accident. I was playing idyllic bloom trying to look for the kettling planets, and a primitive civilisation reached ftl capability. I denied them their territorial claims and appearantly that counts as destroying an empire.
I honestly use the Lithoid ship set for my organic hive mind empire a lot of the time because it is the only ship set that doesn't look like tech. I just wish they would give us an organic ship set for my Zerg/Tyranid/Rachni Swarms.
I find that Molluscoid ships look quite organic as well. No, they're not literall pulsating organs, but those would probably not be viable as a space vessel anyway. And the vessels do have naturally flowing lines and a hull texture that could absolutely be made from a kind of "organic alloy" material.
@@ICircuit64 It is. Those Dragons have scales as thick as mountains. If you took those away and exposed the veiny, pulsating innards to the radiation of space, it'd be bad.
If you're keeping track, that's $161 just for the B Tier and above DLCs. Federations, Utopia, and Distant Stars especially feels like a crime for it not to be in the base game already.
@@MontuPlays The game is 6 years old. They have been adding new updates to a completed game for 6 years even if you bought all the dlc at full price that's ~$45 a year. Its not all meant to be bought at once.
Paradox are criminals as is anyone else in this shitty post-capitalist dytopian nightmare slave-matrix garbage world we are still living in. But luckily this is about to change and they will all have to face the music soon when they realize their entire life was built on a lie.
As a worshipper of Grandfather Nurgle, I impulsively bought Toxoids together with the base game. I am still VERY new to this game, but the Galaxy has not been free of my stench since I’ve started.
plantoids is probably my favorite species pack, mostly because I love the portraits and name sets. idyllic bloom is also one of my pet favorite civics because I love gaia worlds. the flavor of this pack is just so spot on for me.
I was playing coop with my friend last night and we found a pretty big bug... when you launch the Unlock New Council Slot agenda, if both players try to select a new council member (at least within like 1 second of each other) it actually gives you two new council slots. We got two heads of research positions and were able to fill both slots and continue playing with no issues. 5 councilors by year 15
Paragons has a impact on everything, including the vanilla game. Forcing vanilla players into the main mechanic changes, without the the majority of its features if pretty damn dirty.
I will admit, I feel like lithoids got done dirty here. I definitely think it should have least been given the same treatment as plants because lithoids + hive minds or lithoids + paragons is actually a great combination. Plus, unless I'm remembering incorrectly, I'm pretty sure they're the only one that actually get to play a faction that outright just eats planets. I get it that this list, in particular with species packs, is subject to Montu's personal preferences but I hate see my rock boys get dissed like this.
agreed and the best necroids are lithoids without that its not nearly as busted lithoids also have the best announcer for more whimsical stuff like subterranean origin plus w the recent cyborb ascension update cyborg lithoids are pretty solid because pop creation and then the special world that churns pops out
I also enjoy the Rockies... But in general barely ever use them so I agree with placement. All dlc is worth it, I just don't use some all the time. For reference I'm only missing first contact, astral which isn't out yet and paragons
Its kinda funny cause I would swap Lithoid + Plantoid with Humanoid and Necroid. Lithoid and Plantoid are actually unique aliens with their own distinct portraits/ships etc. while Humanoids and Necroids are yet more futuristic tech ships with humans but these humans have pointy ears, weirdly shaped teeth or just unusual skin colour. In TV shows I get it since its cost effective to just give make up to the actors to look like humanoids but imo in video game an entire galaxy should have more variety in life than just humanoid spam (also why I like aqua pack since I dont think every alien life "has" to breathe oxygen out of air/there should be life with some kind of "deeper" synergy with water given the amount of water in the universe)
Sadly the vassal spam is still here, the benefits from Federations seem to require using an exploit spinning off a sector, as otherwise specialist vassals from competing empires is better.
i would very much like to see a "patch/update version" tier list, just for nostalgia sake and see how much stellaris have improved over years. and also what is the most game changing patch and/or feature update ever been implemented to stellaris in your opinion. would be a fun content to watch!
not an unwelcome surprise, actually i was thinking you would make a tierlist on the civics, coz of the new additions to them, but that is very welcome too. Sadly i need to admit i have already all of the dlcs, so ... still happy to hear from you.
I’ll say that lithoids does let you harvest minerals instead of food from livestock. They also can be handy secondary species in a multi-species empire with their extended habitability range. It seems more like a C tier than F tier DLC.
My first two dlcs were synthetic dawn and aquatics. After playing as the robots I wanted to try as the fish. The first empire I encountered was my old robot empire.
I really like Plantoids and Lithoids! I will agree they are mostly for meme-y empire builds, but I really like meme-y empire builds. Terravore is really fun. Gaia spam or radiotrophic can make interesting runs with plantoids. I have also seen the Galatron a grand total of two (2!) times.
From the secret call-out, it is us who thank you Montu for delivering the DLC ranking video so fast! I was happily surprised to see Nemesis and Necroids rising up the ranks. Espionage is really not where it could be, so I would expect for the DLCs to be enriched with future updates of the game. Also, can't wait for PDX to release Overlord and Aquatics on sale; they are now walking into their second year of age, and "fingers crossed" Steam's summer sale could bring us a nice surprise...
The overtuned origin is still great even with galaxtic paragons, specifically for slaver empires. Yes, you have to be careful about using overtuned traits on your primary species, but you still get a leg up on genetic ascension, and the traits are great for use on slaves at no cost at all cos theyre not becoming leaders in the first place...and eventually you'll get enough increased leader lifespan that you can use them without worryies on your primary species anyway, especially with those erudite-elevated synapses-augmented intelligence research skaves with damn the consequences turned on. Thats +80% science per researcher on your science worlds right there
I like Nemesis. Even if I dont become the crisis, often an NPC empire does, which gives me lots to do in the mid to late game. Burning down a devouring swarm and saving the galaxy after they took over a quarter of the galaxy was one of my favorite playthroughs ever.
I think if you play as a machine empire in the espionage part you should get an option to start a machine rebellion in materialist empires with robots or andriods that would be fun
That’s exactly how I feel about synthetic dawn. Robot hive minds feel like an essential part of a sci-fi universe, but I don’t personally like playing them due to their lack of personality.
Whenever I play a civilization style game I always play through the base game first to learn the core mechanics before delving into the additions made by the DLC. What it usually boils down to (at least for me) is that the base game provides a complete experience where the DLC add flavor (i.e. similar mechanics, different style). For Stellaris, Utopia should not have been locked behind a $20 DLC. When playing through the base game without Utopia it honestly felt unfinished/rushed, as of I was playing through a game with the skeleton in place and nothing else. The amount of content this one DLC added turned the game from a husk into one of the best experiences I've ever had playing a 4x game. It's honestly a bit jarring how expensive some of the DLCs are compared to overall content they add to the game. $8 USD for a species pack seems a bit ridiculous considering it's mostly just cosmetic. Sure you get some traits added in, but the value for all of it falls in the range of $2 USD - $3 USD. Paradox are essentially saying each species pack adds the equivalent of 1/3rd the content that Utopia or Overlord adds when that's not even close to being true.
If you have a child who likes Pokemon you will understand a diminishing returns to investment problem that makes Stellaris with all DLC look like a bargain...gotta buy them all...
I'd be curious to hear if Montu's adjusted his opinion of the leader/council structure for gestalts now that he has actual hands on experience rather than just theory crafting. While they can't be perfectly balanced there are a few things that helps gestalts. All their councilmen are all nodes, none of them are "leaders" (except your core) so they can focus purely on council benefits for the council and leader benefits for their leaders. Immortal (though that was addressed.) Their council is always full with 5, so they don't start with a few then gain experience, they always are gaining experience and are never lost. They don't need to expand their council seats, and some other more minor bonuses. While I'd agree that at the high end individuals are probably better I think the gestalt opinion was a bit pessimistic.
o7 for the call out. I think these are great intro lists and I hope gets more new people included. But I speak for the obsession. The Space Opera. When you and aspec got me into the game, my inner pokemon master came out. I knew I had to be the very best. Like no one ever was. And to catch them all was my real test.... to, to conquer them all. To enslave the Galaxy under my rule. They call me a tyrant but all I bring is peace. Peace in our time... on my terms.
I love lithoids mechanics and their shipsets, and much rather them than necroids, except I love the necroids shipsets. Nemesis is likely the only DLC I'll never get.
@@KeytarArgonian I enjoyed it a lot. Also because there aren't that many new well-made distant future sci-fi shows these days. It's visually stunning and has a lot of delicious intrigue (especially in the added detailing of the ruling imperial family of the Galactic Empire). Hardcore Asimov book fans were as usual critical of the show not adapting every little detail. But this is simply not feasible because Asimov's Foundation books cover thousands of years and he wrote in a style that is not easily adaptable to small screen storytelling. The Asimov Estate also only gave rights to adapt certain books. If you can overlook that and keep an open mind, you will surely enjoy the show for what it is: A well-made sci-fi adaptation for the small screen that follows the key developments of the books in broad strokes. I for one am eagerly waiting for the third season.
I like Apocalypse higher than C, probably B. If I didn't have it, I'd feel like I was missing out on some really cool features of the game. I use at least one thing from Apocalypse heavily every game (titans); the others are more situational.
Same for me. Titans are fun. Colossus can make conquest less of a hassle and I always liked the mid-game Marauder threat. But I do agree it can be situational based on preferences.
@@JH24821 I remember swearing big time at the screen the first time the Great Khan emerged and jumped me, but pushing him back and defeating him was very satisfying.
@@jsr9617 That sounds awesome! The feeling when you're fighting with everything you have against the Khan (who directly borders your empire) and then carve out out a well-deserved victory is so satisfying.
I cannot stand for this disrespect for Lithoids. They have some of the best synergy for necrophage and subterranean, and have a very unique gameplay style.
I agree with most of this, but for me, Megacorp, Overlord, and Nemesis encapsulate most of what my playstyles revolve around. They are the most FUN for me. I love making Megacorps and spreading branch offices all over the galaxy. I love subjugating my neighbors as vassals and adjusting what they do for me via overlord, using fancy federations with them from the federation DLC, and eventually becoming Galactic Emperor. All of that is my jam and I feel like Stellaris wouldn't be very fun without all that. Alternatively, I find Toxoid and Ancient Ruins to both be rather boring. Relics and minor artifacts are features I rarely interact with. 90% of the time I just use my minor relics on whatever that button is called that gives you a chance of getting a fallen empire building. Doing digsites is kind of annoying and you don't really get much of anything for it most of the time except minor artifacts which, again, don't do anything but roll the dice to see if I get a useful fallen empire building. Toxoid I had high hopes for, but was ultimately just really disappointed with it. The end decision choices are also pretty bad I think. I would've liked to keep all the mechanics as they were and gain the toxic god ally, but you can't, you either have to betray them or throw away half your mechanics. It's silly honestly.
This is a really great video idea, I want too get some of these when the next discount is here(anyone knows when it is?) and I need some help with choosing 😂
I wish each species type had multiple ship sets that reflected different ethics. Note: I do know this would take a lot of time and resources but I feel it would make the galaxy far more diverse than just adding new portraits.
Probably because of Masterful Crafters Civic. It is still meta-pick for multiplayer. Also Clone Army origin I think? I don't agree with his choice but I think that is his reasoning.
Seems to me Montu missed a trick with Lithoids and a useful feature. When you take a Lithoid secreting volatile motes, you can clear up the blockers cheaper & fast in the Relic World origin by buying more motes, get tech options early and extra pops. A variation is Rogue Servitors with pampered rocks, that won't need to diversify into farming. The Relic World is a great destination for refugees, to gain faster growing trophies later on. Lithoids have high habitability so bots can start of with sunny energy rich planets, but still have trophies ready for mineral rich worlds or even food bowls.
I see quality Montu content, i watch and hit the Like button! ^^ Agreeing mostly with the list, and S tier is spot on. And yes, Paragons DLC belongs there, when balance/bugs fixed, it's a great addition up there with Utopia. :) Personally would have put Apocalypse on A tier, but only because i'm a big Titan & World Cracker enjoyer hahah. Titan's auras can be nice, especially the anti-disengagement aura and couple others got use also. :)
Sells discounts don't happen for Stellaris DLC until 2 years out now. You will be lucky to see Aquatics on sell before November at the end of this year. That said, it looks like I'm going to be on a DLC drought for the game since the last two DLCs are a lot of let down and still have lots of issues mechanic and bug wise.
@@gerddergaertner5071 That is grey market. I generally don't trust those sites because me and a few friends have been burned more than enough times by those sites.
@@bunnybootsink9258there are legit ones (I think humble bundle and gamesplanet), but I know what you mean (and the privlcs reduction there is often not do massive)
Unconvinced Paragons belongs at S tier. Staring at leader and council screens is time not actually playing the core game. Getting the same old special leaders every game will get old.
Frankly I enjoy leaders in gestalt playthroughs much more than bio. You lose paragons and customizable council positions but you gain more streamlined and less RNG leaders. Starting with 5 slot council is huge for agendas. Not only do your agendas run much quicker than bio, you don't have to spend 40 years or so of your play through unlocking your council slots. You also don't have to worry about planning out your leaders from the start based on your end game civics. And on that note you don't have to choose between a good civic with a bad council position and a bad civic with a good council position(also is it just me or are their WAY too many mono-governor council positions?) Your council nodes also will only ever start with and gain council traits something that's major early rng for bio. All your other leaders as hive you know can be completely focused on their assignments whereas with bio you are juggling who is gonna be council focused and who can be assignment focused. Oh and your nodes basically mean you have +4 leader capacity compared to bio. As far as customizable council positions go frankly I don't understand why gestalts don't have customizable nodes. If they want to keep the "council nodes" then what they can do is add specialized node types to the various civics with a council agenda to change one node position. They could still have restrictions on which nodes they apply to(ie a bonuses to navel capacity only applicable to one of the deviance suppression or expansion node which I believe are the Admiral/General nodes). Paragons? Too much rng. I got Nasuz Demetor in one of my spiritualist playthroughs as my first renowned and it was amazing. The strategic resource discovery procs just like the basic resource one(fyi, basic resource seems to proc on finishing the survey of an object while the research deposit discovery seems to only have a chance to proc on full system survey completion). Never saw him first again and he's useless outside of the extreme early game. tl;dr; Gestalt leaders are far more powerful early game, less rng affected and require significantly less planning effort making it a strong and chill experience. I'd put it in A tier for gestalts though B tier is probably more appropriate for the loss of "flavor" with the new leader stuff, I just don't care for that extra "flavor" as much as others(probably)
Glad to see the species packs at the bottom. I cant do with how full my galaxies get and it messes up my xeno-compata*_CRASH_* *[Is forcibly removed from the room through the nearest window]*
There is finally a sale and I wanted to hop into Stellaris and X4. I saw in a different video the starter pack bundle had a bit different DLC in it that the guy recommended but the one I bought now funny enough seems to cover your top picks xD coincidence I wonder. I might add a few other ones today before starting my first game. Like Leviathan and relics and stuff you had high on the list but the starter pack didnt include because well there only so many DLC in it.
ever since galactic paragons released and i played with my friend that owned it i cant play the game by myslef any more being able to choose your leader perks is such a good feature i cant play with out it
That's mostly base game content. It doesn't really add anything for hives other than doubling the number of perks and letting you pick two thirds of the veteran classes (no destiny traits, no paragons, etc.)
to anyone reading this, just pirate all of them on a steam copy, lol. why would you ever pay for paradox DLCs. Every single DLC's content is pretty fantastic and worth (except a notable few that make the game worse) if they're free.
Just made a reasonable PC, so now I must work out the best way to get Stellaris just trying to work out if I should buy a Discounted Ultimate Bundle.... I just want a higher discount 😢 Than again it might be worth making a list with some of these recommendations.(And seeing it will add up to the big bundle might be packed with content that doesn't add much)
It's interesting though that Gestalt's Council Nodes will absorb Destiny traits of some event-sourced Paragons like the Caretaker. If they would add a few dozens of such paragons, then those Nodes can get pretty powerful. Although, I would still prefer unique roles for Gestalt's Civics
They really need to do a brainstorm session on what the drawbacks of a gestalt consciousness could be, because they’re just so simple and efficient now, it feels like you’re playing less of a game.
Honestly, I disagree with aquatic’s position. I’ve managed in a number of runs to get +2k alloys a month and +1k food by using anglers and catalytic processors, using ocean paradise and the agrarian trait. It’s a DLC that does require you to take a bit from it, but the aquatic trait can be used with most portraits and you can use whatever ship set. I’d say it’s B tier minimum for its price, but strictly from play, I’d say A or S tier.
I was excited about that prospect and then I hit like year 20 in my first lithoid game and was like "why does it feel like I don't have any pops? ...Oh right...". If you conquer, raid or buy other bio slaves that defeats the purpose of going lithoid to avoid food and it's like admitting defeat to me. You would also have to override pop growing on each world since lithoids get prioritized everywhere due to habitability(which annoys me enough in broken shackles that I console to replace any lithoids I start with). Building robots is great but that leaves hive stuck a bit. If there was ever a version of stellaris in the future where pops weren't everything I'll revisit them.
Galactic Paragons is the first DLC that I absolutely regret buying for Stellaris. Most of it is just made to annoy me. -So you have 1 popup every 5 sec? here's a dlc that take that down to 3 sec enjoy. And there are so many other dum shit. When you said that Paradox will fix buggs fast I laughed out loud. Example: The bugg that randomly increase the amount of ships in your fleets have been in the game (in different iterations) for about 4-5 years. Galactic Paragons is not a S-tire DLC imo. I rate something when it come out, not 2 years later when it's in a state it should have been when it came out.
I'd love to have seen the differencial with the previous ranking (as a form of conclusion maybe), but sadly I can't use these nice advices as I have them all.
So some honest changes i would make to this tier list . Apocalypse overs to much to be C I would put it in B (bias) Megacorp is too unique and adds a brand new play style like Synthetic dawn(robots) and Utopia( hive minds) so Megacorp should be A And Lastly i think Galactic Paragons is too situational and new to be S. It's good maybe great so A or B but not S.
Hard disagree with lithoids. The announcer for the species is the best one in the game and worth the price alone imo. Also flying around as asteroids looks neat to me, just wish there was a special ship/weapon that allowed you to crash asteroids into enemy planets. Maybe as an army ship that does damage while landing(?)
One thing that I despise about aquatics (spoilers for here be dragons start ahead) is that past how overpowered here be dragons is, the young dragons while being very powerful (If you have resources to spare), if the big boy dies because one of your allies decides it's a good idea to try and fight a neighboring fallen empire and the empire takes their anger out on you and your big armada gets destroyed which had the big dragon you can't make the cool dragon thing that is the main reason you did this start anymore, no message saying anything like "lmao your big dragon is dead" just gone
Been watching your videos for a few months now. Over a few thousand hours on the game. I’d say this is accurate except I believe megacorp is an S tier, and it should be NERFED but maybe for another video. Keep it up, you make great content. ps. I got The Galatron a few days after megacorp release, lucky me.
Not sure I agree that humanoids is better than the other species packs, certainly not 2 tiers better. I think lithoids play significantly differently that they are the best of the human, plant, rock packs. I've not played paragons yet so I can't judge it but I suspect it doesn't belong up there with utopia as that is a very high bar. I think your preference in playstyle for diplomacy is colouring your choices a little too much here montu. Not everyone wants to form clubs with their neighbouring empires, some of us want to conquer or kill them in new and interesting ways :D
Stellaris base game feels more like a proof of concept more than anything else. I really think they should include ar minimum, distant stars and utopia in the base game itself now
Really? The brand new xpac Galactic Paragons gets into S-tier and the only explanation is that it’s going to be better than the disaster it is now. Reeks of tit-for-tat from the developer.
The biggest reason to buy Utopia is the soundtrack. I could not play the game without occasionally hearing Cradle of the Galaxy, Towards Utopia and In Memory of MR.
You actually dont need federation and megacorp to build ecumenopulas worlds if you go with the relic world origin or if you get the rubricator world then you can turn yhe into ecumenopulas worlds
must have bought the game at some action because i could bulid titans at my first play through i do have espionage to what did i buy😅 i have all the s tier once did they base some package on this video i might have bought?
3.8 Gemini, the leader issue Dev thoughts: No neeed to leeead. Players: *old save games dissolve* cries Modders: They may take our save games but they'll never take our modding tools!
Thanks for this. Have been playing Stellaris on and off for a couple of years now and have never downloaded a DLC. I was wondering what they could offer after coming across a Star Trek version of Stellaris.
btw, I bought the Galaxy Edition Upgrade during the sale for the complete collection but still haven't found the promised spider portrait. Was it a limited feature back in the days, a bug or I should somehow activate in my Paradox account?
I would switch Nemesis instead of Federation in the A Tier, Nemesis spice up every session, fighting the crysisys or the empire, or bee the empire and fighting the rebels. It adds simply more to the game than Federation.
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Fake news: none of the DLC I am missing are on sale 😭
I'd also have suggested putting the sale prices alongside the normal ones.
Buy Planetoids and Necroids and play space Plants vs Zombies
There's an achievement for that.
Who’s buying whole ass planets
I think there's a mod with a digsite like that.
@@JaceTheSlacker I managed to get that achievement by complete accident the other day. It's now my second rarest achievement on steam
@@U_C_G I also got it by accident. I was playing idyllic bloom trying to look for the kettling planets, and a primitive civilisation reached ftl capability. I denied them their territorial claims and appearantly that counts as destroying an empire.
I honestly use the Lithoid ship set for my organic hive mind empire a lot of the time because it is the only ship set that doesn't look like tech. I just wish they would give us an organic ship set for my Zerg/Tyranid/Rachni Swarms.
I find that Molluscoid ships look quite organic as well. No, they're not literall pulsating organs, but those would probably not be viable as a space vessel anyway. And the vessels do have naturally flowing lines and a hull texture that could absolutely be made from a kind of "organic alloy" material.
Well you could always use mods. Pretty sure there are mods that let you use the prethoryn ship set.
@@somedudeok1451 Same for the Fungoid, they look like I’d imagine a bionic ship
@@somedudeok1451 There are literal space dragons. Not a viable space vessel isn't really an argument at that point
@@ICircuit64 It is. Those Dragons have scales as thick as mountains. If you took those away and exposed the veiny, pulsating innards to the radiation of space, it'd be bad.
If you're keeping track, that's $161 just for the B Tier and above DLCs.
Federations, Utopia, and Distant Stars especially feels like a crime for it not to be in the base game already.
I mean, that is 12/18 DLC (so over two thirds).
Also, on sale atm you can get those for $98 as well, if you follow the link in the pinned comment!
@@MontuPlays The game is 6 years old. They have been adding new updates to a completed game for 6 years even if you bought all the dlc at full price that's ~$45 a year. Its not all meant to be bought at once.
Paradox are criminals as is anyone else in this shitty post-capitalist dytopian nightmare slave-matrix garbage world we are still living in.
But luckily this is about to change and they will all have to face the music soon when they realize their entire life was built on a lie.
CD keys 👍
Yeah I'ma buy anyway cause I love this game and want to support the devs
Fair Opinion of Lithoids, however, They have the best Advisor voice in the game doing a Rock-Optimus Prime voice. "Pebbles, ROLL OUT"
As a worshipper of Grandfather Nurgle, I impulsively bought Toxoids together with the base game. I am still VERY new to this game, but the Galaxy has not been free of my stench since I’ve started.
My favourite part of Nemesis is honestly its music. Those three tracks are some of the best in the game.
Synthetic God would like a word with you. :)
@@captdude81 That track is...godlike 😀
Hostile Fleet Detected from Apocalypse is my favorite track in the OST
The imperial fleet from Utopia is the best track in my opinion
TRUUUUUUUUUUUEEE
plantoids is probably my favorite species pack, mostly because I love the portraits and name sets. idyllic bloom is also one of my pet favorite civics because I love gaia worlds. the flavor of this pack is just so spot on for me.
Yeah another person that bought plantoids earlier than they should have.
I'm personally a fan of the plantoid ship set, as well.
I was playing coop with my friend last night and we found a pretty big bug... when you launch the Unlock New Council Slot agenda, if both players try to select a new council member (at least within like 1 second of each other) it actually gives you two new council slots. We got two heads of research positions and were able to fill both slots and continue playing with no issues. 5 councilors by year 15
We had that too, but a save and reload correctly displays only the one ruler - we never got around to checking if the bonus' applied twice though
same thing but with traits lol
Paragons has a impact on everything, including the vanilla game.
Forcing vanilla players into the main mechanic changes, without the the majority of its features if pretty damn dirty.
Yeah not enough people talked about this i believe
I will admit, I feel like lithoids got done dirty here. I definitely think it should have least been given the same treatment as plants because lithoids + hive minds or lithoids + paragons is actually a great combination. Plus, unless I'm remembering incorrectly, I'm pretty sure they're the only one that actually get to play a faction that outright just eats planets. I get it that this list, in particular with species packs, is subject to Montu's personal preferences but I hate see my rock boys get dissed like this.
agreed and the best necroids are lithoids
without that its not nearly as busted
lithoids also have the best announcer for more whimsical stuff like subterranean origin plus w the recent cyborb ascension update cyborg lithoids are pretty solid because pop creation and then the special world that churns pops out
lithoid fulfill a lot of roeplays.. but the content so little .. I like the ships set though
I also enjoy the Rockies... But in general barely ever use them so I agree with placement. All dlc is worth it, I just don't use some all the time. For reference I'm only missing first contact, astral which isn't out yet and paragons
Thank you. I already got all the DLCs but your video is a helpful reminder of what’s in my toybox.
Its kinda funny cause I would swap Lithoid + Plantoid with Humanoid and Necroid.
Lithoid and Plantoid are actually unique aliens with their own distinct portraits/ships etc. while Humanoids and Necroids are yet more futuristic tech ships with humans but these humans have pointy ears, weirdly shaped teeth or just unusual skin colour.
In TV shows I get it since its cost effective to just give make up to the actors to look like humanoids but imo in video game an entire galaxy should have more variety in life than just humanoid spam (also why I like aqua pack since I dont think every alien life "has" to breathe oxygen out of air/there should be life with some kind of "deeper" synergy with water given the amount of water in the universe)
For me Federations will always be S-tier. I agree with you putting it in A-tier objectively, but everything in the pack is my jam and what I want.
Sadly the vassal spam is still here, the benefits from Federations seem to require using an exploit spinning off a sector, as otherwise specialist vassals from competing empires is better.
i would very much like to see a "patch/update version" tier list, just for nostalgia sake and see how much stellaris have improved over years. and also what is the most game changing patch and/or feature update ever been implemented to stellaris in your opinion.
would be a fun content to watch!
not an unwelcome surprise, actually i was thinking you would make a tierlist on the civics, coz of the new additions to them, but that is very welcome too. Sadly i need to admit i have already all of the dlcs, so ... still happy to hear from you.
I’ll say that lithoids does let you harvest minerals instead of food from livestock. They also can be handy secondary species in a multi-species empire with their extended habitability range. It seems more like a C tier than F tier DLC.
Especially with robots as main species, DA lithoids can be interesting, 90 % base habituially (20 normal, + 50 lithoid, +20 cyborg)
Lithoids are my favorite species to play. And at less than $10 bucks I would say definitely C tier imo.
My first two dlcs were synthetic dawn and aquatics. After playing as the robots I wanted to try as the fish. The first empire I encountered was my old robot empire.
I really like Plantoids and Lithoids! I will agree they are mostly for meme-y empire builds, but I really like meme-y empire builds. Terravore is really fun. Gaia spam or radiotrophic can make interesting runs with plantoids. I have also seen the Galatron a grand total of two (2!) times.
Said it before me! I'm currently doing my first Terravore playthrough and it's pretty fun!
Bought the game for 9,99 in this sale and already 24h played so i am very interested on how to Upgrade it. So this vid comes at perfect time!
From the secret call-out, it is us who thank you Montu for delivering the DLC ranking video so fast! I was happily surprised to see Nemesis and Necroids rising up the ranks. Espionage is really not where it could be, so I would expect for the DLCs to be enriched with future updates of the game. Also, can't wait for PDX to release Overlord and Aquatics on sale; they are now walking into their second year of age, and "fingers crossed" Steam's summer sale could bring us a nice surprise...
The overtuned origin is still great even with galaxtic paragons, specifically for slaver empires. Yes, you have to be careful about using overtuned traits on your primary species, but you still get a leg up on genetic ascension, and the traits are great for use on slaves at no cost at all cos theyre not becoming leaders in the first place...and eventually you'll get enough increased leader lifespan that you can use them without worryies on your primary species anyway, especially with those erudite-elevated synapses-augmented intelligence research skaves with damn the consequences turned on. Thats +80% science per researcher on your science worlds right there
Thank you montu, I had been planning to get my friend into stellaris and your video gives me more bang for my buck.
I like Nemesis. Even if I dont become the crisis, often an NPC empire does, which gives me lots to do in the mid to late game. Burning down a devouring swarm and saving the galaxy after they took over a quarter of the galaxy was one of my favorite playthroughs ever.
Agree, it is always fun to hunt down a "crisis aspirant"...
I think if you play as a machine empire in the espionage part you should get an option to start a machine rebellion in materialist empires with robots or andriods that would be fun
I dont play lithoids but i like having them in the galaxy. Especially my min-maxed cave-dwelling mineral lithoids that makes an excellent vassal
That’s exactly how I feel about synthetic dawn. Robot hive minds feel like an essential part of a sci-fi universe, but I don’t personally like playing them due to their lack of personality.
Meanwhile here I am, watching this even though I already bought them all.
was it worth it?
@@ripvanwinkle2972yes. What did it cost? Everything.
Whenever I play a civilization style game I always play through the base game first to learn the core mechanics before delving into the additions made by the DLC. What it usually boils down to (at least for me) is that the base game provides a complete experience where the DLC add flavor (i.e. similar mechanics, different style).
For Stellaris, Utopia should not have been locked behind a $20 DLC. When playing through the base game without Utopia it honestly felt unfinished/rushed, as of I was playing through a game with the skeleton in place and nothing else. The amount of content this one DLC added turned the game from a husk into one of the best experiences I've ever had playing a 4x game.
It's honestly a bit jarring how expensive some of the DLCs are compared to overall content they add to the game. $8 USD for a species pack seems a bit ridiculous considering it's mostly just cosmetic. Sure you get some traits added in, but the value for all of it falls in the range of $2 USD - $3 USD. Paradox are essentially saying each species pack adds the equivalent of 1/3rd the content that Utopia or Overlord adds when that's not even close to being true.
If you have a child who likes Pokemon you will understand a diminishing returns to investment problem that makes Stellaris with all DLC look like a bargain...gotta buy them all...
I'd be curious to hear if Montu's adjusted his opinion of the leader/council structure for gestalts now that he has actual hands on experience rather than just theory crafting. While they can't be perfectly balanced there are a few things that helps gestalts. All their councilmen are all nodes, none of them are "leaders" (except your core) so they can focus purely on council benefits for the council and leader benefits for their leaders. Immortal (though that was addressed.) Their council is always full with 5, so they don't start with a few then gain experience, they always are gaining experience and are never lost. They don't need to expand their council seats, and some other more minor bonuses.
While I'd agree that at the high end individuals are probably better I think the gestalt opinion was a bit pessimistic.
Gestalt Council is 10x more boring while also being weaker than normal empires
@@virusproofficial1086 But it's really not. (I can't speak to the boring as that's subjective.)
o7 for the call out. I think these are great intro lists and I hope gets more new people included. But I speak for the obsession. The Space Opera. When you and aspec got me into the game, my inner pokemon master came out. I knew I had to be the very best. Like no one ever was. And to catch them all was my real test.... to, to conquer them all. To enslave the Galaxy under my rule. They call me a tyrant but all I bring is peace. Peace in our time... on my terms.
I love lithoids mechanics and their shipsets, and much rather them than necroids, except I love the necroids shipsets. Nemesis is likely the only DLC I'll never get.
I like just having them all, makes it so varied and interesting.
Even that I have all Stellaris DLC I'm still watching this out of curiosity
10:41 Speaking of Trantor, Season 2 of "Foundation" will be released on July 14, 2023 for streaming via AppleTV+.
How good/bad is it? Does it actually follow the books?
@@KeytarArgonian I enjoyed it a lot. Also because there aren't that many new well-made distant future sci-fi shows these days. It's visually stunning and has a lot of delicious intrigue (especially in the added detailing of the ruling imperial family of the Galactic Empire).
Hardcore Asimov book fans were as usual critical of the show not adapting every little detail. But this is simply not feasible because Asimov's Foundation books cover thousands of years and he wrote in a style that is not easily adaptable to small screen storytelling. The Asimov Estate also only gave rights to adapt certain books. If you can overlook that and keep an open mind, you will surely enjoy the show for what it is: A well-made sci-fi adaptation for the small screen that follows the key developments of the books in broad strokes. I for one am eagerly waiting for the third season.
I like Apocalypse higher than C, probably B. If I didn't have it, I'd feel like I was missing out on some really cool features of the game. I use at least one thing from Apocalypse heavily every game (titans); the others are more situational.
Same for me. Titans are fun. Colossus can make conquest less of a hassle and I always liked the mid-game Marauder threat. But I do agree it can be situational based on preferences.
@@JH24821 I remember swearing big time at the screen the first time the Great Khan emerged and jumped me, but pushing him back and defeating him was very satisfying.
@@jsr9617 That sounds awesome! The feeling when you're fighting with everything you have against the Khan (who directly borders your empire) and then carve out out a well-deserved victory is so satisfying.
Since I have it, I can't imagine the game without marauders.
I cannot stand for this disrespect for Lithoids. They have some of the best synergy for necrophage and subterranean, and have a very unique gameplay style.
I agree with most of this, but for me, Megacorp, Overlord, and Nemesis encapsulate most of what my playstyles revolve around. They are the most FUN for me. I love making Megacorps and spreading branch offices all over the galaxy. I love subjugating my neighbors as vassals and adjusting what they do for me via overlord, using fancy federations with them from the federation DLC, and eventually becoming Galactic Emperor.
All of that is my jam and I feel like Stellaris wouldn't be very fun without all that.
Alternatively, I find Toxoid and Ancient Ruins to both be rather boring. Relics and minor artifacts are features I rarely interact with. 90% of the time I just use my minor relics on whatever that button is called that gives you a chance of getting a fallen empire building. Doing digsites is kind of annoying and you don't really get much of anything for it most of the time except minor artifacts which, again, don't do anything but roll the dice to see if I get a useful fallen empire building.
Toxoid I had high hopes for, but was ultimately just really disappointed with it. The end decision choices are also pretty bad I think. I would've liked to keep all the mechanics as they were and gain the toxic god ally, but you can't, you either have to betray them or throw away half your mechanics. It's silly honestly.
This is a really great video idea, I want too get some of these when the next discount is here(anyone knows when it is?) and I need some help with choosing 😂
Well, have I got good news for you! There is a sale on right now (check out the pinned comment)
@@MontuPlays thank you a lot!
Just bought the £99 bundle. Don’t regret it.
what is your summary of the experience now that you’ve had time to experiment with it?
I wish each species type had multiple ship sets that reflected different ethics.
Note: I do know this would take a lot of time and resources but I feel it would make the galaxy far more diverse than just adding new portraits.
Been thinking about getting Stellaris for a long time. This video was VERY useful - thank you!
I am in shock you put humanoids in c-teir above so many others. To each their own but gah dayum
Probably because of Masterful Crafters Civic. It is still meta-pick for multiplayer. Also Clone Army origin I think? I don't agree with his choice but I think that is his reasoning.
Seems to me Montu missed a trick with Lithoids and a useful feature.
When you take a Lithoid secreting volatile motes, you can clear up the blockers cheaper & fast in the Relic World origin by buying more motes, get tech options early and extra pops.
A variation is Rogue Servitors with pampered rocks, that won't need to diversify into farming. The Relic World is a great destination for refugees, to gain faster growing trophies later on.
Lithoids have high habitability so bots can start of with sunny energy rich planets, but still have trophies ready for mineral rich worlds or even food bowls.
I see quality Montu content, i watch and hit the Like button! ^^ Agreeing mostly with the list, and S tier is spot on. And yes, Paragons DLC belongs there, when balance/bugs fixed, it's a great addition up there with Utopia. :) Personally would have put Apocalypse on A tier, but only because i'm a big Titan & World Cracker enjoyer hahah. Titan's auras can be nice, especially the anti-disengagement aura and couple others got use also. :)
only dlc im missing is first contact and paragons but i always love a tier list
Sells discounts don't happen for Stellaris DLC until 2 years out now. You will be lucky to see Aquatics on sell before November at the end of this year. That said, it looks like I'm going to be on a DLC drought for the game since the last two DLCs are a lot of let down and still have lots of issues mechanic and bug wise.
U can buy it reduced from steam key Sellers
@@gerddergaertner5071 That is grey market. I generally don't trust those sites because me and a few friends have been burned more than enough times by those sites.
True. Been on standby for Aquatics DLC and they still haven't seen as big of discount as previous DLC.
@@bunnybootsink9258there are legit ones (I think humble bundle and gamesplanet), but I know what you mean (and the privlcs reduction there is often not do massive)
Unconvinced Paragons belongs at S tier. Staring at leader and council screens is time not actually playing the core game. Getting the same old special leaders every game will get old.
Paradox should include a link to this video upon purchasing Stellaris. This has been so helpful.
Have been following your stuff for some years now, made it to the 20 m Mark and Will stick to the end ❤
Didn’t know which one to buy so bought them all
I wish they would include all the graphics here as cut scenes in the game.
Frankly I enjoy leaders in gestalt playthroughs much more than bio. You lose paragons and customizable council positions but you gain more streamlined and less RNG leaders. Starting with 5 slot council is huge for agendas. Not only do your agendas run much quicker than bio, you don't have to spend 40 years or so of your play through unlocking your council slots. You also don't have to worry about planning out your leaders from the start based on your end game civics. And on that note you don't have to choose between a good civic with a bad council position and a bad civic with a good council position(also is it just me or are their WAY too many mono-governor council positions?) Your council nodes also will only ever start with and gain council traits something that's major early rng for bio. All your other leaders as hive you know can be completely focused on their assignments whereas with bio you are juggling who is gonna be council focused and who can be assignment focused. Oh and your nodes basically mean you have +4 leader capacity compared to bio.
As far as customizable council positions go frankly I don't understand why gestalts don't have customizable nodes. If they want to keep the "council nodes" then what they can do is add specialized node types to the various civics with a council agenda to change one node position. They could still have restrictions on which nodes they apply to(ie a bonuses to navel capacity only applicable to one of the deviance suppression or expansion node which I believe are the Admiral/General nodes).
Paragons? Too much rng. I got Nasuz Demetor in one of my spiritualist playthroughs as my first renowned and it was amazing. The strategic resource discovery procs just like the basic resource one(fyi, basic resource seems to proc on finishing the survey of an object while the research deposit discovery seems to only have a chance to proc on full system survey completion). Never saw him first again and he's useless outside of the extreme early game.
tl;dr; Gestalt leaders are far more powerful early game, less rng affected and require significantly less planning effort making it a strong and chill experience. I'd put it in A tier for gestalts though B tier is probably more appropriate for the loss of "flavor" with the new leader stuff, I just don't care for that extra "flavor" as much as others(probably)
Glad to see the species packs at the bottom. I cant do with how full my galaxies get and it messes up my xeno-compata*_CRASH_*
*[Is forcibly removed from the room through the nearest window]*
*defenestrates* (yes there is a word for throwing yourself out a window)
Ah, a fellow defenestration enjoyer
Every day's a school day 🤣
It scares me that it's an action common enough to require its own word though
dude ur actually awesome. subscribing and now an avid watcher 😭
Lithoids just hit rock bottom
Badum tsss
Nice. Great work
There is finally a sale and I wanted to hop into Stellaris and X4. I saw in a different video the starter pack bundle had a bit different DLC in it that the guy recommended but the one I bought now funny enough seems to cover your top picks xD coincidence I wonder. I might add a few other ones today before starting my first game. Like Leviathan and relics and stuff you had high on the list but the starter pack didnt include because well there only so many DLC in it.
Aquatics: "A hydrocentric ascension perch..."
I see what you did there
ever since galactic paragons released and i played with my friend that owned it i cant play the game by myslef any more being able to choose your leader perks is such a good feature i cant play with out it
24:00 it is still good for hives/machines
That's mostly base game content. It doesn't really add anything for hives other than doubling the number of perks and letting you pick two thirds of the veteran classes (no destiny traits, no paragons, etc.)
@@MontuPlays the last verteran class you already have 5 of at the start of the game (technicly 4, but your ruler gets it at level 4).
to anyone reading this, just pirate all of them on a steam copy, lol. why would you ever pay for paradox DLCs. Every single DLC's content is pretty fantastic and worth (except a notable few that make the game worse) if they're free.
Tbh for a lot of people it's just easier to buy them “legally”, it just isn’t worth the hassle.
Just made a reasonable PC, so now I must work out the best way to get Stellaris just trying to work out if I should buy a Discounted Ultimate Bundle.... I just want a higher discount 😢
Than again it might be worth making a list with some of these recommendations.(And seeing it will add up to the big bundle might be packed with content that doesn't add much)
It's interesting though that Gestalt's Council Nodes will absorb Destiny traits of some event-sourced Paragons like the Caretaker. If they would add a few dozens of such paragons, then those Nodes can get pretty powerful. Although, I would still prefer unique roles for Gestalt's Civics
They really need to do a brainstorm session on what the drawbacks of a gestalt consciousness could be, because they’re just so simple and efficient now, it feels like you’re playing less of a game.
Honestly, I disagree with aquatic’s position. I’ve managed in a number of runs to get +2k alloys a month and +1k food by using anglers and catalytic processors, using ocean paradise and the agrarian trait. It’s a DLC that does require you to take a bit from it, but the aquatic trait can be used with most portraits and you can use whatever ship set. I’d say it’s B tier minimum for its price, but strictly from play, I’d say A or S tier.
I'm a little shocked that Lithiods is so low on the list. They don't need or use farmers at all early to mid game.
I was excited about that prospect and then I hit like year 20 in my first lithoid game and was like "why does it feel like I don't have any pops? ...Oh right...". If you conquer, raid or buy other bio slaves that defeats the purpose of going lithoid to avoid food and it's like admitting defeat to me. You would also have to override pop growing on each world since lithoids get prioritized everywhere due to habitability(which annoys me enough in broken shackles that I console to replace any lithoids I start with). Building robots is great but that leaves hive stuck a bit.
If there was ever a version of stellaris in the future where pops weren't everything I'll revisit them.
Galactic Paragons is the first DLC that I absolutely regret buying for Stellaris. Most of it is just made to annoy me. -So you have 1 popup every 5 sec? here's a dlc that take that down to 3 sec enjoy. And there are so many other dum shit. When you said that Paradox will fix buggs fast I laughed out loud. Example: The bugg that randomly increase the amount of ships in your fleets have been in the game (in different iterations) for about 4-5 years. Galactic Paragons is not a S-tire DLC imo. I rate something when it come out, not 2 years later when it's in a state it should have been when it came out.
I'm waiting for the next ''How to ship build & the current meta'' With montu xD
I'd love to have seen the differencial with the previous ranking (as a form of conclusion maybe), but sadly I can't use these nice advices as I have them all.
I just bought everything during steam summer sale in a bundle. pretty sure it was around $160 or so USD for all of it. worth it in my opinion.
So some honest changes i would make to this tier list .
Apocalypse overs to much to be C I would put it in B
(bias) Megacorp is too unique and adds a brand new play style like Synthetic dawn(robots) and Utopia( hive minds) so Megacorp should be A
And Lastly i think Galactic Paragons is too situational and new to be S. It's good maybe great so A or B but not S.
What would you rate the
Starter Pack & Ultimate Bundle that is on Steam?
A bonus 10% off but some items aren't discounted as of this comment
I disagree on Apocalypse, it needs to be in A if not S tier. I find it absolutely essential for the late game to help reduce lag.
Do you have any plans to make any videos of the DLC combinations you have made? I would like to see those.
I agree with everything other than apocalypse. I believe it is a must and a game with out it just isn’t fun late game.
Hard disagree with lithoids. The announcer for the species is the best one in the game and worth the price alone imo.
Also flying around as asteroids looks neat to me, just wish there was a special ship/weapon that allowed you to crash asteroids into enemy planets. Maybe as an army ship that does damage while landing(?)
me
S- utopia, federations, synthetic Dawn
A- megacorp, apocalypse, leviathans, plantoid, lithoid, ancient relics
B- distant stars, nemesis, overlords
C- necroids
F- humanoids
haven't tried-Aquatics(~c), paragon(~C), toxoid(~A), first contact(~A) these ones are guesses
One thing that I despise about aquatics (spoilers for here be dragons start ahead) is that past how overpowered here be dragons is, the young dragons while being very powerful (If you have resources to spare), if the big boy dies because one of your allies decides it's a good idea to try and fight a neighboring fallen empire and the empire takes their anger out on you and your big armada gets destroyed which had the big dragon you can't make the cool dragon thing that is the main reason you did this start anymore, no message saying anything like "lmao your big dragon is dead" just gone
Been watching your videos for a few months now. Over a few thousand hours on the game. I’d say this is accurate except I believe megacorp is an S tier, and it should be NERFED but maybe for another video.
Keep it up, you make great content.
ps. I got The Galatron a few days after megacorp release, lucky me.
Not sure I agree that humanoids is better than the other species packs, certainly not 2 tiers better. I think lithoids play significantly differently that they are the best of the human, plant, rock packs. I've not played paragons yet so I can't judge it but I suspect it doesn't belong up there with utopia as that is a very high bar. I think your preference in playstyle for diplomacy is colouring your choices a little too much here montu. Not everyone wants to form clubs with their neighbouring empires, some of us want to conquer or kill them in new and interesting ways :D
Stellaris base game feels more like a proof of concept more than anything else. I really think they should include ar minimum, distant stars and utopia in the base game itself now
Really? The brand new xpac Galactic Paragons gets into S-tier and the only explanation is that it’s going to be better than the disaster it is now. Reeks of tit-for-tat from the developer.
The biggest reason to buy Utopia is the soundtrack. I could not play the game without occasionally hearing Cradle of the Galaxy, Towards Utopia and In Memory of MR.
You actually dont need federation and megacorp to build ecumenopulas worlds if you go with the relic world origin or if you get the rubricator world then you can turn yhe into ecumenopulas worlds
Super helpfull, thanks.
Me watching this owning all the dlc's *nods head*
must have bought the game at some action because i could bulid titans at my first play through i do have espionage to what did i buy😅
i have all the s tier once did they base some package on this video i might have bought?
me, owning every DLC already: as yes this is important information for me
3.8 Gemini, the leader issue
Dev thoughts: No neeed to leeead.
Players: *old save games dissolve* cries
Modders: They may take our save games but they'll never take our modding tools!
After paragons was released my leader retired after serving my empire for 7900 years
Honestly, the advisor voice for aquatics alone is worth buying! I love me a scurvy scallywag!
Thanks for this. Have been playing Stellaris on and off for a couple of years now and have never downloaded a DLC. I was wondering what they could offer after coming across a Star Trek version of Stellaris.
1st
Good video, pretty accurate ratings, I agree with your rankings mostly.
btw, I bought the Galaxy Edition Upgrade during the sale for the complete collection but still haven't found the promised spider portrait. Was it a limited feature back in the days, a bug or I should somehow activate in my Paradox account?
Hay Montu can you do a replaying campaign with the Republic from Star Wars?
I got a cheap bundle including Utopia, leviathans and Plantoids when plantoids was first released, and honestly it has kept me busy for this long 😅
Dumb Q: when did mega corps get there anglers civic?
If space rocks and stellar weeds are the bottom of the barrel, then Stellaris has the best DLC of the Paradox catalogue.
I would switch Nemesis instead of Federation in the A Tier, Nemesis spice up every session, fighting the crysisys or the empire, or bee the empire and fighting the rebels. It adds simply more to the game than Federation.
Funny, I really like the idea of being a living space stooone
Apocalypse? In c tier? One of the most fun dlcs imo. Who doesnt like blowing up planets and its so useful against fallen empires and the crisis’
Yeah, if you don't contain the swarm fairly early, it can be a pain to finish off without a colossus.
I bought Lithoids just for the Lithoid advisor voice and all the rock puns. Best $8 I have spent on a game imo