Ascension Perk Elimination

[Jmes Snowscoran]

Consecrated Worlds: -1 (-2)
Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 11
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 10 (+1)
One Vision: 8
Shared Destiny: 10
Technological Ascendancy: 22
Transcendent Learning: 16
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 16
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 14
World Shaper: 17
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 15
Galactic Wonders: 14
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 15
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 21

I don't think MoN is as bad as its current score implies. It offers a nice way to dump influence into planet improvement when you run out of unclaimed space and don't want to go to war (yet). Voidborne typically does offer more tiles per influence point, but with the right edict cost reductions MoN can actually exceed habitat efficiency when used on small planets- and the effect is instant, doesn't cost minerals, and comes with a bonus to energy credits in the form of cheaper blocker removal.

Consecrated Worlds is added to the graveyard.

Eliminated
23. Consecrated Worlds
24. Enigmatic Engineering
25. Synthetic Age
26. Nihilistic Acquisition

 

[Jabby]

Round Two
Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 11
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 10 (+1)
One Vision: 8
Shared Destiny: 10
Technological Ascendancy: 22
Transcendent Learning: 16
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 16
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 14
World Shaper: 17
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 15
Galactic Wonders: 14
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13 (-2)
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 22 (+1)


Reasoning: Bio Ascension can be pretty op but the micro is hell. In the next version I expect this to shoot back up in popularity. I will personally choose it probably even though I’ve never used it in the game as of now.

Psionic Ascension is usually op. The shroud and the covenants can boost your empire to god levels. The chosen one influence gain for ruler is very useful.

 

[Hapchazzard]

My second post. Like someone else said, will avoid voting for the same things that I did before.

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 11
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 10
One Vision: 8
Shared Destiny: 8 (-2)
Technological Ascendancy: 22
Transcendent Learning: 16
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 16
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 14
World Shaper: 18 (+1)
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 15
Galactic Wonders: 14
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 22

World shaper is IMO one of the ideal perks from a game design perspective. It offers a unique new feature(gaia terraformation), is useful but not OP, and is almost always a decent choice but isn't a must-have like some other perks. Very well balanced.

Shared destiny is boring, extremely niche, and even in said niche it has a rather dubious usefulness.

 

[bunkerman]

wanted to vote differently but seeing one of my favorite perks get -3 overnight made me change my mind

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12 (+1)
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 10
One Vision: 8
Shared Destiny: 6 (-2)
Technological Ascendancy: 22
Transcendent Learning: 16
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 16
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 14
World Shaper: 18
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 15
Galactic Wonders: 14
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 22

already talked about imperial prerogative just gonna add that i like it also cause i like to play no-sector runs occasionally and there it obviously shines
Shared destiny: never really liked the vassalization system at all and from what i see here its not a fringe opinion

 

[RedPearlA]

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 10
One Vision: 8
Shared Destiny: 4 (-2)
Technological Ascendancy: 22
Transcendent Learning: 16
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 16
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 14
World Shaper: 18
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 15
Galactic Wonders: 15 (+1)
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 22

Galactic Wonders unlocks the Dyson Sphere, the Sensor Array, The Science Nexus, and Ring Worlds. Need I say more.

Shared Destiny only applies after you get a vassal.

 

[GloatingSwine]

Shared Destiny only applies after you get a vassal.

It's worse than that he's dead Jim, it only applies after you get a vassal you didn't really want, because it's just cheaper integration and if you wanted their stuff why bother with the awkward half measure.

 

[Pointyearedgit]

It's worse than that he's dead Jim, it only applies after you get a vassal you didn't really want, because it's just cheaper integration and if you wanted their stuff why bother with the awkward half measure.

Because your empire is locked to liberation wars. It’s situational, but not as bad as you guys make it out to be. It’s on par with master builders, which is only ever useful with voidborne, which is only useful if you are sitting around, twiddling your thumbs and not conquering.

On that note ...

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 10
One Vision: 8
Shared Destiny: 4
Technological Ascendancy: 22
Transcendent Learning: 16
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17(+1)
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 12(-2)
World Shaper: 18
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 15
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 22

Mater builders is just plain bad unless it’s picked with voidborne, which is a strong, but very situational pick itself. Picking MB after wonders is too late and fails to utilize the research and habitat bonuses.

Galactic Force Projection gets the snowball rolling quite a bit faster, and can close the naval capacity gap from difficulty settings or become a nasty surprise in MP. The best part is that it is instant and costs nothing to maintain, unlike GtV (although GtV is still pretty good because of the lower tier).

 

[DeadEyeTucker]

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 10
One Vision: 8
Shared Destiny: 4
Technological Ascendancy: 23 (+1)
Transcendent Learning: 14 (-2)
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 18
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 15
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 22

Tech Ascendancy is just too good. Getting an extra 10% boost to research speed when you only have about 4-15% research speed is just amazing. I'd prefer to see it switched it up some and not just be a copy/paste of Discovery finisher, but only reasons I don't get it is because I am RPing a non-science focused empire.

As for Transcendent Learning, just does too little with what I can easily do with techs, traits, civics, etc. And with Leaders capping out at level 10, it's easy to invalidate this perk I think. For a leader focused Ascension Perk, it should do something like allow for more traits on leaders or allow us to interact/improve the traits.

 

[eagletrekkie]

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 11 (+1)
One Vision: 8
Shared Destiny: 4
Technological Ascendancy: 23
Transcendent Learning: 14
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 18
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 15
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 20 (-2)

Day 2

The extra space on planets is just nice, and getting them cleared faster and cheaper means more energy and/or minerals to use elsewhere.

Psionic is a nice trait, but all the best parts are RNG locked so I don't really think it's worth it.

 

[WhapXI]

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 11
One Vision: 6
Shared Destiny: 4
Technological Ascendancy: 24
Transcendent Learning: 14
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 18
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 15
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 20

Self-explanatory I think.

Tech Asc is old reliable. More or less a first pick for every build unless something's going horribly wrong. Tech fast and tech long.

One Vision, because nobody every lamented their lack of governing ethics attraction.

 

[Lord Beyer XVII]

Day 2

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 11
One Vision: 6
Shared Destiny: 4
Technological Ascendancy: 25(+1)
Transcendent Learning: 14
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 18
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 13(-2)
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 20

TA was, is and probably will always remain my first pick. It gives a steady research bonus and fills one of the first two points, before you can spend them on something more interesting
GC is a good, yet a very specific bonus. FE and AE can be defeated without it, so it feels to be a waste of an slot, instead Ill rather pick Voidborne.

 

[Talanic]

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 11
One Vision: 6
Shared Destiny: 5 (+1)
Technological Ascendancy: 25
Transcendent Learning: 14
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 18
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 11 (-2)
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 20

Shared Destiny is admittedly too specific a bonus, but it is useful with a few different approaches. If you have a lot of primitives to uplift and integrate, it may be a decent choice as a xenophile empire. Conquering an enemy without immediately adding them to your empire not only costs no influence upfront, it generates less unrest when you do integrate them, and the reduction to cost makes it four times faster as well.

Galactic Contender dropped because if you're fighting a fallen empire, you're going to want superiority due to other factors other than an ascension perk. Either you got it or you don't; trying to fake it with a meager buff is not going to be the deciding factor.

 

[InvisibleBison]

Day 2

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 9 (-2)
One Vision: 6
Shared Destiny: 5
Technological Ascendancy: 25
Transcendent Learning: 14
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 15
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 19 (+1)
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 11
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 20

 

[General Guderian]

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 9
One Vision: 6
Shared Destiny: 5
Technological Ascendancy: 26 (+1)
Transcendent Learning: 14
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 13 (-2)
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 19
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 11
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 20

 

[Atreides]

Executive Vigor: 19

As for Transcendent Learning, just does too little with what I can easily do with techs, traits, civics, etc. And with Leaders capping out at level 10, it's easy to invalidate this perk I think. For a leader focused Ascension Perk, it should do something like allow for more traits on leaders or allow us to interact/improve the traits.

If they removed the Level 10 Hard cap on Leader Level then Transcendent Learning would be niche build useful. Maybe if it gave +2 LL, +25% Learn time, and raised the Level cap to 15. That would at least be worth a pick if you are a Leader focused empire.

 

[GloatingSwine]

If they removed the Level 10 Hard cap on Leader Level then Transcendent Learning would be niche build useful. Maybe if it gave +2 LL, +25% Learn time, and raised the Level cap to 15. That would at least be worth a pick if you are a Leader focused empire.

I'm not sure the idea of a "leader focused" empire makes all that much sense, because you can have high level leaders with basically any kind of empire without really trying. Especially governors which are the most important anyway (governor bonus is multiplicative).

(Transcendent Learning is good for Machine Empires though because they lack Selected Lineages/Capacity Boosters).

 

[Livigy]

New
Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 9
One Vision: 6
Shared Destiny: 3 (-2)
Technological Ascendancy: 26
Transcendent Learning: 15 (+1)
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 13
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 19
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 11
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 20

Transcendent learning is a nice pick for robotic empires who do not get access to capacity boosters. Rulers are immortal (mostly) so greatly benifit from being able to cap out and without any ascention paths to follow robotic empires have the room to pick Transcendent learning.

Shared destiny does't work for me. Maybe if there was some sort of improvement to vassalisation or tributaries/protectorates I would be more interested. For example, if vassals also provided tribute I might want it.

 

[Pointyearedgit]

I'm not sure the idea of a "leader focused" empire makes all that much sense, because you can have high level leaders with basically any kind of empire without really trying. Especially governors which are the most important anyway (governor bonus is multiplicative).

(Transcendent Learning is good for Machine Empires though because they lack Selected Lineages/Capacity Boosters).

It's even worse with the 2.2 as you now seem to have +leader cap to rulers (domination) and scientists (discovery, from the streams) in the tradition trees along with governors and admirals. This also makes Philosopher King even more pointless, but they may have changed it.

On the bright side, the +25% xp is somewhat useful, maybe if it also let leaders ignore empire size penalties for upkeep/cost? That might turn out to be interesting.

 

[navymule]

Executive Vigor: 19
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 9
One Vision: 6
Shared Destiny: 1 (-2)
Technological Ascendancy: 27 (+1)
Transcendent Learning: 15
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 13
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 19
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 11
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 20

TA is almost always my starter Ascension unless I am RPing something specific. I do not enjoy the slaver/vassal playstyle, so I could live without Shared Destiny.

 

[ffsffs1]

Executive Vigor: 20 (+1)
Imperial Prerogative: 12
Interstellar Dominion: 20
Mastery of Nature: 9
One Vision: 6
Shared Destiny: 1
Technological Ascendancy: 27
Transcendent Learning: 15
Voidborne: 20
Grasp the Void: 17
Eternal Vigilance: 11
Galactic Force Projection: 17
Machine Worlds: 13
Master Builders: 12
World Shaper: 19
Colossus Project: 16
Defender of the Galaxy: 14
Galactic Contender: 9 (-2)
Galactic Wonders: 15
Biological Acension (Engineered Evolution+Evolutionary Mastery): 13
Synthetic Ascension (The Flesh is Weak+Synthetic Evolution): 16
Psionic Ascension (Mind over Matter+Transcendence): 20

Executive Vigor is amazing in the mid-game when you typically want to be running as many edicts/campaigns as possible. Influence is the hardest resource to amass in large quantities and executive vigor saves a ton of it.

Galactic contender sucks. All it does is allow you to take out a FE a few decades earlier than you normally would be able do. Using the criteria specified in the OP, it doesn't actually help you win the game (you don't need to conquer a FE to win), and it doesn't help you against crisis events.