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Stellaris Dev Diary #151 - 2.3.3 beta patch [checksum 35d6]

Hello everyone!

We’ve been working on the 2.3.3 patch, but before we put anything live we will release it as a beta version as usual. To try the beta, right-click Stellaris in your Steam Library and select Properties. In the BETAS tab there should be a drop down list where you can find stellaris_test. Set your beta opt in to stellaris_test to try the 2.3.3 beta.

Save file compatibility between versions is never guaranteed. If you need to roll back to a previous version, do this: go to your Steam library, right click on Stellaris -> betas tab -> select the version you want.

The beta has a couple of known issues, but they are also things we will address before 2.3.3 goes live.

  • AI Robot empires are a bit slow to expand with outposts.
  • We have added a Relic stealing feature, but it only works while in a Galatron war instead of when not in a Galatron war
  • While Caravaneers no longer get stuck, they are prone to moving to the same destinations.

Here are some highlights of changes in the 2.3.3 beta:

Admiral XP
We’ve tweaked how admirals get XP from patrolling and combat. Admirals will now get XP according to the max piracy value as opposed to previously only checking current piracy. XP from combat should also be increased due to fixing a bug with how ship value, in terms of XP, was calculated. Disengaged ships now also provide some XP, not just destroyed ships. In general it should now be easier to level up your admirals.

Archaeology Site Rewards
We’ve improved a lot of rewards for the archaeological sites to make them more unique, more fun and in some cases stronger.

Grand Herald
Although we like how the Grand Herald can change the game quite a lot, we think it was a bit too common and too easy to get so early on. The Grand Herald site now spawns less frequently and the site difficulty is higher. When you complete the site, there is a chance that you find the Grand Herald in a weakened state. In that case it will be possible to restore it to its full glory.

Full patch notes here:
#################################################################
######################### VERSION 2.3.3 ##########################
#################################################################

###################
# Ancient Relics Story Pack Features
###################
* A number of archaeology sites have been overhauled to give more interesting rewards for completion, with new techs, empire modifiers, and ethics-based outcomes

###################
# General
###################
* Updated localisation for all languages

###################
# Balance
###################
* Further changed Precursor system spawning to always connect to an owned system, if possible, to reduce them appearing in inaccessible places
* More archaeological site events will grant minor artifacts
* Zroni chain grants Psionic Theory tech option for non-gestalts
* The Surveyor relic now has a chance to find multiple deposits during its activation time. It has also been reduced to a five year timer
* Adjusted the rate at which Admirals gain XP when patrolling and when in combat
* Daily patrolling XP is now based on the max piracy in a system rather than the current piracy
* Disengaged ship now also give xp, they have their own define: LEADER_ADMIRAL_FLEET_COMBAT_SHIPS_DISENGAGED_CONVERSION
* Zro is slightly more common
* Marketplace of Ideas trade policy unity per trade value increased from 0.15 to 0.25
* Grand Herald site is less common. When the Grand Herald is found it may be damaged to some degree, if so there is a special project to restore it to full power
* Finishing Arc Sites may yield Technology Research Options/Boosts
* Lowered the chance of archaeology sites being discovered when planets are surveyed
* Non-genocidal gestalt empires may now also seize the galatron from those who would withhold access to its glory

###################
# UI
###################
* Added MP DLC ownership icon for Ancient Relics
* Fixed line break in Zro Deposits causing unnecessary truncation of text
* Fixed displayed Army Recruitment time not including build speed modifiers
* You should no longer be able to see the orders of the fleets of other empires
* Fixed the resources going haywire in the trade view. Hopefully for the last time
* Added a country modifier to remind you that you can safely colonize Holy worlds as the chosen of Zarqlan

###################
# AI
###################
* Fixed so that the AI uses their idle science ships to assist research rather than just drawing salaries and doing nothing like typical freeloading intelligentsia
* AI empires will finish tradition trees before starting new ones
* Changed AI weight for consecration decision, so that it's actually used
* AI will now build city districts on planets if needed even if not many pops live there
* AI no longer juggles leaders back and forth, and also makes sure there is always at least one leader assigned to a ship
* Fixed the AI declaring war on empire they can't reach, or empires on the other side of the galaxy
* AI no longer needlessly upgrades starbases if they still have unused module or building slots
* Removed ostensibly arbitrary pop requirement for research buildings, also capped holo-theatres to one per planet

###################
# Modding
###################
* add_anomaly effect now adds the anomaly to the scoped country instead of the first country to survey the planet
* Added "min_jumps" and "max_jumps" parameters to the "spawn_system" command for better control of where and to what world spawned system appear
* min_jump and max_jump now use -1 to be ignored, so that you can make systems that attach directly to your base system
* Added `steal_relic = { target = TARGET_COUNTRY relic = <all/random/RELIC_NAME>` effect
* The `on_arrival_effect` is now properly called with a fleet scope
* Replaced hard texture limit with hybridarray for people that have excessive amounts of textures due to mods
* Added 'is_last_lost_relic' and 'is_last_received_relic'. Both trigger return true if the relice passed as a parameter is the last (lost/received) relic by the country from the scope country scope: is_last_lost_relic = <relic_key> / is_last_received_relic = <relic_key>

###################
# Stability
###################
* Fixed a freeze when editing trade routes from a system you stole
* Fixed a crash when using mature galaxy in observer mode

###################
# Bugfixes
###################
* Colony automation now has a 3 day cooldown after a building completes in order for recently completed constructions to take effect
* Increased weighting of favorited jobs so that they're properly prioritized
* Made the logic for buy/selling slaves better. AI is now more likely to both buy and sell slaves, wrote someone in the 21st century
* Fixed automation not working on planet capitals or new colonies if you don't change the designation
* Conquered habitats will now convert districts that are not permitted by their new empire type
* Fixed so that rogue servitor AI will no longer just build organic sanctuaries
* All non-Exterminator Machine Intelligences should now be able to make Farming Colonies
* In MP only the first player to discover the Baol or Zroni precursor will begin their chain. Others are free to discover different precursors
* Fixed overflow issues in AI diplomacy due to relative strength calculations
* The result of "Reverse-Engineer Minor Artifacts" is now properly randomized
* Disabled map-ping for finished arch sites
* Admiral XP is based on the total cost of ships instead of just minerals
* Fix for all buildings swapping issues
* Secrets of the Irassians will no longer sometimes give machine intelligences a tech they can't use
* Changed so that arch sites and certain events use the correct GFX files
* Fixed Growth species disappearing every other month in some cases
* Ship build speed modifiers are no longer applied twice
* Fixed Build Speed modifier being applied twice to buildings
* Fixed some new Tutorial Lines not playing VO (VO for a bald eagle flying out of an explosion with a pistol grasped in its beak didn't arrive in time for today, alas)
* The Caravaneers roam space once again instead of sitting in orbit ringing your doorbell for all eternity with an "offer you can't refuse"
* Deficit modifiers are properly applied again
* Master Builders no longer ever affects Habitat size
* Rare resource tech will also be researchable if any planet you own contains an Industrial sector deposit
* Primitives living on Ring Worlds will no longer build normal districts on them when invaded, enlightened, or if they naturally develop spaceflight, because inscrutably we have created a game where apparently such things are possible
* Maintenance Drones again have a positive weight for the Emotion emulators trait
* Fixed ships not going MIA when they can't return because they don't have access
* Presapients can now be found again to be uplifted/exploited/devoured as your whim decrees

stellaris_test is the version you need to be in to crossplay between Steam, GoG, and Paradoxplaza versions of the game.

Our goal is to fix whatever issues may arise and be able to set 2.3.3 live next week before we disappear on summer vacation.
 
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I think in this case there could be an easily implementable and good solution: edict that uses zro (+X % ship disengage change) that everyone can use

That gives nonpsionics something to do with zro. It doesn't change the imbalance of being a spiritualist or robot empire and getting a precursor chain that pushes you down the opposite path (ie. robot for spiritualists and vice versa).
 
*Fixed the AI declaring war on empire they can't reach, or empires on the other side of the galaxy*

Is this referring to the bug that made all AI empires think they were neighbours with each other, regardless of distance?
 
Are you building the habitats on planets with a science space deposit? With 2.3 habitats built on planets with no space deposit now only have 2 district types (trade and leisure). Ones built on planets with a space deposit, (energy, minerals or science) get a third district type of the corresponding resource.
Sadly, none. Always leisure, trade and housing district, no matter which resource

Edit: Nvm, I am a bit stupid. It's all fine. Thanks!
 
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"A number of archaeology sites have been overhauled to give more interesting rewards for completion, with new techs, empire modifiers, and ethics-based outcomes"

Sweeeet, now all I need someone to add in or mod where we can get new archaeology sites from Curator's.
 
"A number of archaeology sites have been overhauled to give more interesting rewards for completion, with new techs, empire modifiers, and ethics-based outcomes"

Sweeeet, now all I need someone to add in or mod where we can get new archaeology sites from Curator's.
Indeed. Here's hoping the one with the planet-killer worms actually causes, like, some empire-wide paranoia or something.
 
I presume this refers specifically to Ai robot empires, as I don't see anything that should affect player robot empires
I just started a game with a machine empire, cant say for the AI but dang, expanding as a player machine empire requires 150 alloy to build an outpost is going to be sloooooooow. so i will wait for final patch.
 
expanding as a player machine empire requires 150 alloy to build an outpost is going to be sloooooooow
Keep in mind that Machines also have more efficient versions of Metallurgist jobs that give more alloys.
 
I started a new game and found the Rubricator system but it doesn't have a hyperlane connection. Additionally, I found two other systems, which I think are the disconnected gaia world + corrupted avatar system and the one with the wormhole leading to it. But i can't say for sure because they both don't have any hyperlane connections.
Disconnected System.png
RubricatorSystem.png
 
I started a new game and found the Rubricator system but it doesn't have a hyperlane connection.
Ditto. And we aren't the only ones.

I've uploaded a save file that reproduces the issue 4 out of 6 tests (the remaining tests it worked fine) to the current bug report for this: https://forum.paradoxplaza.com/foru...tor-system-spawns-without-connection.1197898/

So it is a sporadic occurrence.

Since it is a problem with creating connections to a system created using a system initializer, it quite probably can affect other system initializers as well.
 
I hunted down a mod that would appear to address the issue with the Rubricator.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1770473973
That mod addresses the 2.3.2 issue of there being no valid targets for the initializer.

The 2.3.3 issue is different; It can occur even where there are valid targets and reloading and trying again and again in the same situation will sometimes connect and sometimes not.

EDIT: That being said, I've not tried said mod, so who knows, it might help, but it seems pretty clear about which issue it is supposed to address, and the current issue is different.
 
That mod addresses the 2.3.2 issue of there being no valid targets for the initializer.

The 2.3.3 issue is different; It can occur even where there are valid targets and reloading and trying again and again in the same situation will sometimes connect and sometimes not.

EDIT: That being said, I've not tried said mod, so who knows, it might help, but it seems pretty clear about which issue it is supposed to address, and the current issue is different.
Since it overwrites the files involved, I believe it will function correctly.

Rolls back new changes and makes different ones basically.
 
I just started a game with a machine empire, cant say for the AI but dang, expanding as a player machine empire requires 150 alloy to build an outpost is going to be sloooooooow. so i will wait for final patch.

...It has been that way on the live version for a while now. It is to balance out ME's having much more efficient metallurgists when compared to organic empires
 
I'm still seeing the issue where declaring population controls eliminates all growth instead of turning it into emigration, meaning you have to choose between totally losing the growth from any planet you don't want more pops on or manually resettling every time a pop grows to keep it level, but get those pops elsewhere.

This change wasn't in the patch notes anywhere, so I'm really hoping it was an unintended bug... If it isn't, I guess I'll start using an automatic resettlement mod so I don't have to resettle a half dozen pops every month in late game.

(Also, it would be great if there were an equivalent for machine empires, so they weren't stuck with the same dilemma even if population controls gets fixed.)
 
Good fixes, but it makes me fear that we will only get extensive rebalance and hivemind / machine empire overhauls after holidays.

I think that is a given. As that list also includes Criminal Heritage, Barbaric Despoilers and dud Civics like Shadow Government, then it will be a while before things are back to "normal".
 
But there are all sorts of bonuses in the game which you are not guaranteed to get and are not guaranteed to be useful if you get them so why should precursors be different? If you get a good one it feels great but if you dont then youre no worse off then you were before.
I don't entirely disagree with you, the randomness is part of the appeal of the game, and I start every run just a little excited to see which one I'll get this time. The issue is both one of power, with the different pre-cursors being of greatly varied usefulness as already touched upon, but moreso it is an issue of length (they're all long event chains, possibly the longest), and you're actually forced to deal with them. Nearly every other event has an 'I-don-wanna' option to end it and get something useful out of it (usually influence or other resources) and in the few instances where they don't it's over with just one notification ('Well, I would have liked that Warform, but it's just one ship). With the pre-cursors you're dragged along until its completion, and when you know that the 'big reveal' is going to be next to useless sometimes you'd rather just opt out. It's the choice, or rather the lack of one, that's the real problem. I can't speak for everyone, but I find choice to be a big part of vidya games in general, both making choices and dealing with the outcomes. When you take choice away, you reduce agency, and vidya games are built on a sense of agency.
TL;DR: The sheer power of the pre-cursor chain rewards don't compare to anything else (except perhaps the Grand Herald, which is universally useful), and if you get a pre-cursor you know you can't use then you're just stuck with it. If not universally useful rewards (or a choice of a few thematically appropriate rewards)at least an option to opt out with a lesser, but immediate benefit would let you feel that your choices actually mattered. Hell, an option to reverse-engineer or even sell the artifact would do
 
I started a new game and found the Rubricator system but it doesn't have a hyperlane connection. Additionally, I found two other systems, which I think are the disconnected gaia world + corrupted avatar system and the one with the wormhole leading to it. But i can't say for sure because they both don't have any hyperlane connections.View attachment 497357 View attachment 497358

This bug also causes problems with mods that change or add systems, too.

Presapients - they do show up (on planets and in species list) only after their planet is colonized.

And one bug from previous version that might not been mentioned: anomaly that adds brain sludges doesn't give them to primary species.