How to Play a Slaver Empire

[Tyr4el]

Lol yes! I'm going to give it a try. I hope I don't run into too many issues.

Do I suppress the Docile Slaves faction? Or leave them be? The Emancipation faction I want to suppress and then there's another one or two. Idk if I leave them be or not.

 

[The Founder]

Ah okay, so the problem isn't with enslaving my own species (because I'll be Fanatic Collectivist), it's when I start enslaving alien species that because I'm only Xenophobe, they only have a 50% tolerance to it. So they get a little unhappy, right? But that can be solved with buildings and edicts and if they join factions, suppressing them.

Should I do anything with the Docile Slaves faction?

Comining Xenophobe and Collectivist is a bit redundant. Collectivism allows enslaving and purging all pops. Xenophobia allows the same with pops not your primary species only alien Pops. Wich results in you being able to enslave everyone if you got both (Collectivism is the better brother).
The big thing about Collectivist are the techs: Frontier Collectivs -> Frontier Comissars and Galactic Benevolence. With those you got passive ethics divergence on par with Fanatic Spiritualist. But getting them is not that easy, actually. If you got Leviathan DLC, consider going for Ministery of Culture too.
The one thing Xenophobia adds (besides borders and Rivalries), is the Monument of Purity. Arguably the strongest, easiest to access happiness building. Only the Pacifists Paradise dome is comparable. And you will need it as you convert the people to be Xenophobic of your rule.


The Docile Slaves faction:
Early on you should consider lowereing it to regulated slavery. Keeps your slaves docile and Influence will be rather hard to come by that early.
Once you do got Malcontent Slaves anyway, just go back to full Slavery and double down on getting everyone in there to supress them in one neat package.
On low-medium support they will cause slave strikes. Beyond that, they only Radicalize.

 

[Tyr4el]

Comining Xenophobe and Collectivist is a bit redundant. Collectivism allows enslaving and purging all pops. Xenophobia allows the same with pops not your primary species only alien Pops. Wich results in you being able to enslave everyone if you got both (Collectivism is the better brother).
The big thing about Collectivist are the techs: Frontier Collectivs -> Frontier Comissars and Galactic Benevolence. With those you got passive ethics divergence on par with Fanatic Spiritualist. But getting them is not that easy, actually. If you got Leviathan DLC, consider going for Ministery of Culture too.
The one thing Xenophobia adds (besides borders and Rivalries), is the Monument of Purity. Arguably the strongest, easiest to access happiness building. Only the Pacifists Paradise dome is comparable. And you will need it as you convert the people to be Xenophobic of your rule.


The Docile Slaves faction:
Early on you should consider lowereing it to regulated slavery. Keeps your slaves docile and Influence will be rather hard to come by that early.
Once you do got Malcontent Slaves anyway, just go back to full Slavery and double down on getting everyone in there to supress them in one neat package.
On low-medium support they will cause slave strikes. Beyond that, they only Radicalize.

So I DO or DO NOT want Fanatic Collectivism and Xenophobic? It sounds like a good combination for a slaver empire to me. Those buildings sound awesome though.

It sounds like Malcontent Slaves are an inevitability and riots are something I'm just going to have to deal with. Is that accurate?

 

[The Founder]

So I DO or DO NOT want Fanatic Collectivism and Xenophobic? It sounds like a good combination for a slaver empire to me. Those buildings sound awesome though.

It is not the best combination, that is for sure. If you convert conquered pops to Xenophobia, they will hate you more (rather then less, wich is the usual goal of Ethics Convergence). Plus it will penalize you Diplomatically.
One goal as Collectivist is to go for "Contentness". You do not need 75% happiness, just keep above 50%. Or put everyone below that into a slavery faction.

Personally I think Militarist might be better. No War unhappiness for converted pops, extra firepower. In multiple 1.4 games now, the Tzynn prooved to be a huge danger when attacked.

It sounds like Malcontent Slaves are an inevitability and riots are something I'm just going to have to deal with. Is that accurate?

The trick to avoid riots is to keep supressing them, when you can afford that. 2 Influence per Month, discountet by Collectivism. And you can use unregulated slavery without issues empirewide.
Once you do that, the strikes of the Docile Slaves faction are actually more of an issue then Malcontent Slaves. It is somewhat broken in that regard.