One big issue i have with the current stellaris.

[Lykus Cerebros]

It makes no sense for machine empires to be able to access the shroud though.

It would make sense for hive minds though and since they can't take psionic ascension they would be blocked out as well.

Also how about a kind of radiation destroying biological tissue aka Halo rings or mass effect.
Would only require some flavor text adjustments.

 

[Swarm lover]

Perhaps a ‘ultimate assimilators’ for bio ascension and a ‘gray goo’ for machines?

Possibly in my mind i feel like something like this would fit (i tried to imagine a scenario where your people depart like the current crisis)

Bio ascension: Turns every planet with living things into some sort of raw biomass while your peoples minds are intact allowing them to inhabit the biomass and craft any kind of body they desire. Your people form into one huge fleet of space faring creatures leaving the galaxy completely bare of biomass and depart from your galaxy to feed and collect more DNA and stuff.

Machine ascension: something similar i guess where everything is turned into living metal or nanites allowing you to build constructs other people can only imagine as your mind fuses with the metal. WIth there being nothing left of worth in this galaxy you depart to another.

 

[Swarm lover]

It would make sense for hive minds though and since they can't take psionic ascension they would be blocked out as well.

Also how about a kind of radiation destroying biological tissue aka Halo rings or mass effect.
Would only require some flavor text adjustments.

A halo like weapon would be kinda cool but to me a crisis path should be aimed at making you achieve your own version of "godhood". So simply wiping out all organic life isnt all that special since you can do that yourself and the stars are still fine. Plus sure it wipes out organic stuff but what about other machine empires, they would still be standing.

 

[currylambchop]

It would make sense for hive minds though and since they can't take psionic ascension they would be blocked out as well.

Also how about a kind of radiation destroying biological tissue aka Halo rings or mass effect.
Would only require some flavor text adjustments.

Hive mind should have access to psionic ascension

 

[Ikael]

While I would introduce the "becoming the crisis" path later in the game (say, after you pick 3 other "regular" ascension perks), for it starts too early, the problem is not that it is too crazy, but rather that the other ascension paths are too tame and change the game in much smaller ways. Bring them all up to the same level of craziness and balance them all asymmetrically, I say.

Make them different paths leading towards different victory conditions and game-changing bonuses like "becoming the crisis" does. Make your own bioships and clone leaders with biological ascension, give sentient AI ships to synths, The Culture-style, give psionics some real game-changing powers like generating warp storms and mind control, there are a ton of possible ways to go. Hell, you could make megastructures into another ascension path while you're at it, it is almost done already.

 

[Zagreb 887]

While I would introduce the "becoming the crisis" path later in the game (say, after you pick 3 other "regular" ascension perks), for it starts too early, the problem is not that it is too crazy, but rather that the other ascension paths are too tame and change the game in much smaller ways. Bring them all up to the same level of craziness and balance them all asymmetrically, I say.

Make them different paths leading towards different victory conditions and game-changing bonuses like "becoming the crisis" does. Make your own bioships and clone leaders with biological ascension, give sentient AI ships to synths, The Culture-style, give psionics some real game-changing powers like generating warp storms and mind control, there are a ton of possible ways to go. Hell, you could make megastructures into another ascension path while you're at it, it is almost done already.

Gigastructures mod already does it, you have 2 megastructures related to the psionic path, with very interesting mechanics and challenges. And for recent updates they add one for the bio ascension which allow you to build bio-ships. IIRC the Forgotten Queens mods also create a psionic and somewhat "synthetic" ascension for Hiveminds.

I know it would be good to have such features into vanilla, but I don't think it will happen any day close. Imo, to have an interesting and dense late game, you have to rely on mods, vanilla is just half broken, repetitive boring stuff

 

[Swarm lover]

Hive mind should have access to psionic ascension

Im torn between this to be honest, on one side doing something like the tyranids with psychic powers sounds cool but at the same time the hive mind is already a psionic entity but different than an individual psyker. Like its drones are basically empty husks it uses by inserting its will i could image if it went psionic in the traditional sense other psionic entities could try forcing their way in.

 

[Swarm lover]

While I would introduce the "becoming the crisis" path later in the game (say, after you pick 3 other "regular" ascension perks), for it starts too early, the problem is not that it is too crazy, but rather that the other ascension paths are too tame and change the game in much smaller ways. Bring them all up to the same level of craziness and balance them all asymmetrically, I say.

Make them different paths leading towards different victory conditions and game-changing bonuses like "becoming the crisis" does. Make your own bioships and clone leaders with biological ascension, give sentient AI ships to synths, The Culture-style, give psionics some real game-changing powers like generating warp storms and mind control, there are a ton of possible ways to go. Hell, you could make megastructures into another ascension path while you're at it, it is almost done already.

Maybe not to the same level of craziness but definitely need a lot more love, they are meant to be important undertakings your empire does. Like full psionic talks about how your people use telepathy rather than talking now etc. Right now they are little more than number changes and one or 2 small toys.

Don't really see how mega structures could be a full on ascension path, like the current three is something that changes the very "core" of your empire and has some tangible change/effect on the people. How exactly would megastructures be able to do that. Apart from your people suddenly craving to make big space objects i dont really see it as a proper path to take, and even then its not a very good one.

 

[Swarm lover]

Gigastructures mids already does it, you have 2 megastructures related to the psionic path, with very interesting mechanics and challenges. And for recent updates they add one for the bio ascension which allow you to build bio-ships. IIRC the Forgotten Queens mods also create a psionic and somewhat "synthetic" ascension for Hiveminds.

I know it would be good to have such features into vanilla, but I don't think it will happen any day close. Imo, to have an interesting and dense late game, you have to rely on mods, vanilla is just half broken, repetitive boring stuff

True mods can help fill in the gaps or provide something entirely new, i do agree that any big changes to the three ascensions is far away but hey not like time is of the essence, we also got the custodian team to keep us company and who knows when and what the next dlc will be.