Stellaris, a space based grand strategy game from Paradox, recently saw a huge influx of new players. Gameplay focuses on exploration of a procedurally generated universe filled with mystery and wonder - there’s also aliens and you might be one of them. When you first load up a new game you’ll be in your starting solar system, and this guide will help you make the best of it.
If you’re new to the game you might be wondering where should you start? Keep reading to learn more about your Stellaris starting solar system. The first thing to understand is that unless you choose Sol for roleplay reasons, your starting solar system will be randomised.
Stellaris Starting Solar System
Don’t worry though, each race may have a different starting system, but you’re guaranteed a roughly level playing field with everything you need to thrive.
If you’re struggling to understand what you’re doing at first, there are a few tips that should help;
- Send your science ship to survey nearby systems - move in the direction of hyperlane chokepoints to limit the borders you'll have to defend later.
- Build another science ship - do this at the starbase, hire a new scientist by clicking on the empty portrait, and send it out exploring in a different direction.
- Skip over any anomalies you discover - you can come back to them later and they only slow you down early game.
- Set up your research - focus on pop growth and resource bonuses where possible.
- Build mining and research stations - they generate resources without being tied to population.
- Expand patiently, one system at a time by building outposts - choose a path that gives you the most resources and blocks off systems you want to keep for yourself but can't afford to take yet.
- Learn to queue - most actions can be queued using shift+click or the little known ctrl+shift+click to add an action at the front of the queue without cancelling the rest.
With the basics to a good start out of the way you’re ready to dive in and explore the great unknown. You can check out our Stellaris Console Commands article for some of the most useful cheats you may want to try.
