Stellaris can be an overwhelming experience, especially for new players. Since there is a whole lot of going on at the same time, we have compiled a Stellaris beginner’s guide to help you understand the game’s complex UI and each and everything that is in it.
In addition to this, we have also provided some tips on where to go from the start and begin your journey in this massive game.
For more help on Stellaris, do make sure to check out our Stellaris Fleet Guide and Stellaris PC Tweaks Guide.
Stellaris Beginner’s Guide
However, do note that although this guide is meant for beginners, it leaves a few things in order to let players explore them on their own. Still, if there is something you would like to know, you can always let us know in the comments section below!
Stellaris UI
Once in the game, you will be able to see the Menu Bar at the top. This basically contains information related to resources, statistics, and so on. Inside the menu bar, you will be able to see a total of 9 icons.
Out of these 9 icons, the first three – starting from the left-hand-side – are your main resources.
Resources
These resources basically include Energy, Minerals, and Influence. Energy is basically your currency which is required for buying things and other important things. Minerals are required in order to build everything in the game – spaceships, space buildings, stations, etc.
Influence is essentially your political influence which is required in order to buy leaders keep your empire going.
Research Per Month
The next three icons are your research per month which are Physics, Society, and Engineering – each one has its own modifier. Throughout the game, you will continue to gain research points every month until you have enough in order to research the tech you want.
As mentioned earlier, research in Stellaris is divided into three trees. In order to gain more research per month, you need to build space stations, constructing buildings, and more.
Planet Control and Fleet Capacity
Coming to last three icons – the ones on the right-hand-side – these are Strategic Resources, Planet Control Limit, and Fleet Capacity. The Strategic Resources include special medals and space pets. Planet Control Limit basically dictates the total number of planets that you can personally control.
Lastly, coming to Fleet Capacity, it basically dictates how many ships you can have. One important thing that you need to note here is that the size of the ship determines how many slots it will take.
For example, a small ship will can take one slot and a larger ship will take 2 or more slots. Aside from these, there are some buttons on the far left-hand-side of the menu bar which are explained below:
Government Screen – Shows information related to government, policies, and more
Empire Screen – Shows information related to planets, leaders, and factions
Contacts Menu – Shows a list of all empires and species that you have met
Ship Designer – Allows you to design your ships
Situation Log – Displays mission logs, events, and victory conditions
Research Menu – This is the place where you research things; pretty self-explanatory
Stellaris – How to Start Things
After starting the game, you will see a Science Ship, a Construction Ship, a Fleet, Spaceport, and your Home World on your screen. It is a good idea to start with exploring your Home System. In order to do so, you need to Science Ship, right click the sun, and then click survey system. This will allow you to explore the system.
Once you are onto it, you can press E or M in order to zoom out the camera to Galaxy Map. This will essentially allow you to see where in galaxy are you as well as your adjacent systems.
While exploring the area, you may come across an anomaly which you will be able to research, but do keep in mind the failure risk. Anyway, in order to return to your Home System or any other system, simply click on it and press E. From there, you can continue to survey other systems and take any approach you prefer.
While this guide does not touch upon the subject of buildings, colonies, fleets, and other things; I hope it helped beginners in some way. Moreover, if there is something else you would like to know, you can always leave a comment below and we will get back to you!
