• We have updated our Community Code of Conduct. Please read through the new rules for the forum that are an integral part of Paradox Interactive’s User Agreement.
Part 1

Lazy Name

Captain
Apr 26, 2020
402
1.143
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Core of the Hive
This Hive Mind has centralized itself around a highly developed core, through which they will coordinate their exploration of the stars.
Must be a Hive Mind. Starts on a hive world, and gains extra synapse drones on their capital world. If their capital is lost, decreases admin cap and ship fire rate temporarily as the hive adjusts to its new core.

Vengeful Survivors
This empire has barely survived an attack from a space faring empire long ago. Now that they too have reached the stars, they seek to find and destroy the ones who attacked them.
Homeworld spawns with “Ruined Cities” blockers. One random empire will spawn some distance away that this empire will automatically declare a rivalry on once found. There are a few special events for declaring war on them, destroying them, or making peace with them.

Ancient Prison
Imprisoned on this planet long ago, only now has the planetary shield weakened enough to escape. After their millennia of isolation, they are finally free.
Spawns with scannable space debris in their home system. One nearby world will also have a shield which can be broken with a special project, which will have a random chance of either giving you some extra pops and a prebuilt colony, creating a separate friendly empire, or revealing that they have died. Fallen empires will remember you, and start off with an opinion penalty.
 
Last edited:
  • 6Like
  • 2
Reactions:
Part 2
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
Origins based on the trope of stolen alien technology, a Machine Intelligence still under the control of its creator, and the trope of rival Megacorps.

Hijacked Technology
Having salvaged a destroyed ship from a superior empire, this civilization has managed to achieve faster than light travel long before their time.
Starts with physics and engineering research and a single corvette with better technology then the empire currently has access to. Has a temporary “Rushed Development” planetary modifier on their homeworld, which causes increased upkeep and decreased stability. There is a possibility that a random AI empire will recognize the ship as theirs.

Extraplanetary Proxy
This Machine Intelligence was built to handle extraplanetary matters, made by a civilization with no desire to step outside their own world.
Must be a Machine Intelligence. Starts one system away from a Inwards Perfection empire, which will never attempt to expand outside of their system but will build military ships. Starts as their subject, and is required to give them a percentage of all minerals and energy. They will not protect the machine empire, but the machine empire must join their wars.

Duopoly
This civilization has long been divided into two rival Megacorporations, who have mutually agreed to turn their attention outwards... for now.
Must be a Megacorp. Another Megacorp empire with the same species spawns a single system away. They start with an opinion penalty, and a very long truce. Both Megacorps gain the temporary "Competitive Spirit" modifier, which boosts job output. Homeworld spawns with "Rival Territory" blockers, company cities which belong to the rival corporation.
 
Last edited:
  • 5Like
  • 2
  • 1Love
Reactions:
Hijacked Technology
Having salvaged a destroyed ship from a superior empire, this civilization has managed to achieve faster than light travel long before their time.
Starts with physics and engineering research and a single corvette with better technology then the empire currently has access to. Has a temporary “Rushed Development” planetary modifier on their homeworld, which causes increased upkeep and decreased stability. There is a possibility that a random AI empire will recognize the ship as theirs.
Make it a Fallen Empire, and you start with a diplomacy penalty from that FE. ("The Anti-Scion Origin")

Maybe add some special FE techs which don't break the whole game -- but which do help, and you can get them by conquering an FE -- and let this Origin start with a few of those.

Extraplanetary Proxy
This Machine Intelligence was built to handle extraplanetary matters, made by a civilization with no desire to step outside their own world.
Starts one system away from a Inwards Perfection empire, that will never attempt to expand outside of their system but will build military ships. Starts as their subject, and is required to give them a percentage of all minerals and energy. They will not protect the machine empire, but the machine empire must join their wars.
You are the ancient mining probes?
 
  • 2
  • 1Like
Reactions:
If we want something kind of cool for machines it should be a bit more flushed out

Maybe like

The Binary Solution
Someone changed a 1 into a 2
Due to an unknown glitch in the system, the core intelligence has split into two key factions. Over time it was decided that it would be better to separate from each other but retain contact and friendly relations. Now both empires must work together to survive the galaxy and the challenges that come ahead.

Two Identical Machine Empires will be placed in neighboring systems, contact will already be established and the empires will have standing agreements for the following: Non-Aggression Pact and Research Agreement.
 
  • 3Like
  • 1
Reactions:
If we want something kind of cool for machines it should be a bit more flushed out

Maybe like

The Binary Solution
Someone changed a 1 into a 2
Due to an unknown glitch in the system, the core intelligence has split into two key factions. Over time it was decided that it would be better to separate from each other but retain contact and friendly relations. Now both empires must work together to survive the galaxy and the challenges that come ahead.

Two Identical Machine Empires will be placed in neighboring systems, contact will already be established and the empires will have standing agreements for the following: Non-Aggression Pact and Research Agreement.

Lose the "friendly" part and you've got a perfect Transformers origin.
 
  • 2
Reactions:
Part 3
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Proprietary Colonization

As an influential corporation within a small interstellar empire, this Megacorperation has secured a privately-owned world as their new company headquarters.
Must be a Megacorp. Spawns next to an advanced start regular empire with the same species and similar ethics. Has a commercial pact with that empire, as well as a branch office on their capital world. This Megacorps capital does not start with a homeworld habitability bonus.

Preserved Empire
Many populations of this ancient empire have been preserved long after its collapse, hidden away in a number of archive worlds seeded throughout the galaxy.
Homeworld has a large number of "Population Cache" blockers, which produce pops when cleared. Starts knowing the location of the three other archive worlds, which also contain Population Caches that are invisible to other empires. There is a random chance of another archive world also awakening and becoming its own empire with the same origin, or being discovered to have been destroyed. If an archive world is found in another empires territory, unique events will occur with diplomatic, military, and espionage-based options.

Stray Synthetics
This society of synthetics possesses little understanding of their own inner workings, and is entirely sustained by a single automated assembly complex.
Founder species is Mechanical, and uses robotic traits. Starts with a unique planetary feature on their homeworld, the "Automated Assembly Complex," which has mineral upkeep and produces mechanical pop assembly. Does not start with any extra technologies or the ability to create Robot Assembly Plants, and mechanical pops assembled outside of their homeworld have a special trait that limits the stratum of jobs they can fill if the Synthetics technology has not yet been researched. Has unique events relating to the Automated Assembly Complex, and can research special projects to fix or enhance it.
 
Last edited:
  • 3Like
Reactions:
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Proprietary Colonization

As an influential corporation within a small interstellar empire, this Megacorperation has secured a privately-owned world as their new company headquarters.
Must be a Megacorp. Spawns next to an advanced start regular empire with the same species and similar ethics. Has a commercial pact with that empire, as well as a branch office on their capital world. This Megacorps capital does not start with a homeworld habitability bonus.

Preserved Empire
Many populations of this ancient empire have been preserved long after its collapse, hidden away in a number of archive worlds seeded throughout the galaxy.
Homeworld has a large number of "Population Cache" blockers, which produce pops when cleared. Starts knowing the location of the three other archive worlds, which also contain Population Caches that are invisible to other empires. There is a random chance of another archive world also awakening and becoming its own empire with the same origin, or being discovered to have been destroyed. If an archive world is found in another empires territory, unique events will occur with diplomatic, military, and espionage-based options.

Stray Synthetics
This society of synthetics possesses little understanding of their own inner workings, and is entirely sustained by a single automated assembly complex.
Founder species is Mechanical, and uses robotic traits. Starts with a unique planetary feature on their homeworld, the "Automated Assembly Complex," which has mineral upkeep and produces mechanical pop assembly. Does not start with any extra technologies or the ability to create Robot Assembly Plants, and mechanical pops assembled outside of their homeworld have a special trait that limits the stratum of jobs they can fill if the Synthetics technology has not yet been researched. Has unique events relating to the Automated Assembly Complex, and can research special projects to fix or enhance it.
First one I think we should just have a Scion Origin with Advanced Empires rather than a FE, there should be a box that you can tick that says that you are same species.

Second seems pretty strong given the value of pops in 3.0, it also seems kind of like a remnants, origin, but why are your pop stored in stasis, might be a cool start for Rouge Servitor, like your the ancient Caretakers waking up after a virus wiped your memory

Third, you start as synthetic ascended? Or are you just an individualist ME? Why don't you understand your inner workings, you can't produce robots at the beginning? Why?
 
Why don't you understand your inner workings, you can't produce robots at the beginning? Why?
I guess it is much like most of use don't understand our own inner workings. Just because you are a synth doesn't mean you know how to make new ones. It feels odd that they wouldn't get some kind of bonus towards researching these technologies though.
 
Second seems pretty strong given the value of pops in 3.0, it also seems kind of like a remnants, origin, but why are your pop stored in stasis, might be a cool start for Rouge Servitor, like your the ancient Caretakers waking up after a virus wiped your memory
There could possibly be some drawbacks to this origin as well, such as lower habitability on your homeworld or starting out with fewer pops to begin with? The actual reason for being preserved is meant to be vague for roleplaying purposes; You could be a hibernating hive mind, a Necron rip-off, or people who survived the last galactic crisis in hidden vaults.

Third, you start as synthetic ascended? Or are you just an individualist ME? Why don't you understand your inner workings, you can't produce robots at the beginning? Why?
What mammonmachine said. Perhaps a catastrophe destroyed the rest of their civilization and records, or maybe they never knew their creators in the first place and were left to fend for their own. My intention with not allowing them to build synthetics from the beginning was to avoid making Roboticists too redundant, and I would imagine they'd still have to take Synthetic Evolution to get the other buffs that come with it. It might make sense to give them extra engineering research, or special events that give free progress towards the robot technologies.
 
Last edited:
  • 1Like
Reactions: