Popular Game Setups? What Galaxies Do You Play In?

[Setho]

I've been wondering, how do most folks set up their galaxies? I was hoping to have my question fairly answered with a google search, but the best I got was one guy and only one guy mentioning a "best" setup on Reddit without mentioning every setting. I'll go over each setting one at a time (multiple where appropriate), so this might be a long read.

Galaxy Size and Density (AI empire count):
I've been doing the "go big or go home" approach and selecting Huge with the maximum number of AI (39) and fallen (4) empires every time so far. On one hand, I have a lot of empires I could trade and do diplomacy with and a lot of galaxy to potentially explore. On the other hand, I have yet to either do war in the further half of a huge galaxy or survey most of it, or even perhaps 25% of it (especially with Wormhole Travel), at least before I start dominating everything. Also, a lot of empires make things crowded for peaceful expansion purposes and bigger galaxies seem to make it harder to find leviathans or enclaves since there's more space to search through (although I'm not sure that's really the case; do smaller galaxies have fewer leviathans/enclaves?). I'm wondering what effect reducing the galaxy's size has on the game.

Galaxy Shape:
I haven't given this all that much thought. I've done 2 arm galaxy mostly because that's how our own galaxy is (or does that have yet to be proven?). I believe I've mostly done it because I like how having wormhole gates in the right places allow you to cross the gap between the arms. I don't know much about the other types, and haven't even seen a ring galaxy map.

Fallen Empires (FEs):
As I said already, I max this out to fit the "go big or go home" approach, but haven't given it much thought outside of the risk of having one awaken on top of me and beat my empire into submission. I'm wondering what its like to have Guardians of the Galaxy (I haven't seen it yet over 1 or 2 games since Leviathans) or 0-3 FEs.

Habitable World Percentage:
I haven't touched this setting since it came out. What's it like to crank it up or turn it down? Do FEs and end game crises scale with habitable world percentage? Does having it maxed out make it possible to build up like a mad man, even if your borders are small (ie you're surrounded by members of your federation (also, has the federation victory condition bug been fixed? Presumably no, but asking doesn't hurt)).

AI Aggressiveness:
Another setting I haven't touched. Supposedly higher aggression means more [defensive] war and lower aggression means more peace?

That's all the settings I'm going over. With the other settings, there's either obvious choices such as setting Empire Placement to Random so you aren't boxed in from colonizing early on and the others are largely personal preference.

So how do you folks set up your galaxies and what do you think of the setting variations?

P.S. Although Stellaris is the most sci-fi 4X fun I've seen in a game since Master of Orion 2, I haven't been playing Stellaris recently because it takes me around a week IRL to get from start to finish (I do fastest game speed and pause often to make decisions). How much IRL time do people take to go through a game of Stellaris from start to effective finish (or victory)?

P.P.S. How viable is it to explore the majority of the galaxy with Wormhole travel with and/or without trading for wormhole access? As far as I know, its borderline impossible to survey everything without using Warp or Hyper drives.

 

[henzington]

For most achievement runs, I do a tiny galaxy with one fallen empire and one normal empire.

For a normal game, I prefer 600 with 4 fallen empires and max normal empires. 1000 is fun but even with psi jump drive it takes forever to cross.

 

[Oscot]

I put everything on random.
Even the things I can't put on random, I roll dice for.
And the things I can't roll dice for, I make randomiser sheets for.

THE GODS OF PROBABILITY REWARD THOSE WHO SURRENDER THEIR WILL

 

[Seryss]

I generally play with these settings:

• Large (800 systems)
• Ai Aggression - Maxed
• Difficulty - Hard sometimes Insane.
• Habitable Worlds - 100%
• Elliptical galaxy
• 4 Fallen empires (i like symmetry)
• 18 ai 6 advanced
• advanced neighbors/clustered

It takes around 18 hours to achieve a conquest victory if i try hard it (constant enslavement, and colonization of all worlds, non stop war dec, and get the tech i need from debris), or 24-36 if i play a more relaxed game. If i want the game to end faster and actually get a victory i'll just mass colonize all the planets in my borders at around 1/3 of the total galaxy. I don't form or join federations, so i have no idea what the time scale on that is.

I stop using wormholes around 2300 as i'll likely have jump drives, which makes things a little easier, but the entire galaxy usually hates me (i.e. no border access) so even with those there's only so much you can do as a warmongering, genocidal, slaver. It is worth trading star charts with every new empire that doesn't hate you yet outside of your immediate area because you won't have to worry about too much about missed anomalies. You don't really need them too much though, humans will mine what you would mine, and the ai mines everything so when you enter a system you already know what everything is.

It's pretty rare that i'll actually force myself through to a win in most games. After 30 planets it's basically impossible to lose - you will likely out tech, out fleet, out produce every empire in the game. After 2400 you've likely killed the end game crises, AFE's, and all that stands in your way is just time.

 

[garbud]

i love having a huge galaxy and wither 2 spires or a ring galaxy

 

[The Founder]

Galaxy Density and AI:
I usually play huge (1000) with default number of AI, but no advanced starts.
Default number of FE (4) as well. Indeed I largely pick huge because there is room for all 4 FE's without there being too much hinderance.

Galaxy Shape:
Mostly the default one. However I did play with Spiral (4 Arms) a bit. It can be a more interesting early game (similar to how hyperdrive does), but you might end up boxed in between two FE's.
Plus the AI is of course terrible at using it.

 

[BlackUmbrellas]

Medium-small, usually 2-arm spiral. No advanced starts, sometimes low aggression. Never max empires.

 

[OBRkenobi]

I always do maximum galaxy size (1000), either elliptical or 2/4 arm spiral shape, almost always maximum empire count (39) or occasionally just 25 to change the dynamic, 2-4 advanced starts, 1-3 fallen empires, and I either leave the habitable world percentage at 100% or boost it up to 250%, again for a change in dynamic.

 

[Agamemnic]

Galaxy size: 800 - 1000
AI: 10-15
Advanced AI: 2-3
Habitabiles: 75%
FEs: 4
Aggression: +1
Random starts
No advanced AI neighbours

 

[gdj]

My usual preferred start is a medium galaxy, preferably with a 2 arm spiral. 4 arm spirals are fine too, spherical not so much, ring galaxies not at all.

I leave the number of AIs as it is (12/2/2 i think).

Habitable worlds are always at the 25% minimum: planets are scarce, you will fight for even the smallest, bleakest moon you can find. If you start next to a species with the same planet preference, then its you or them - ther is no 2nd place.

The endgame crisis does not seem to scale with the ratio of habitable worlds.

Other than that i usually play ironman as i´m too lazy to save the game myself, and wouldn´t reload anyway if things go wrong.

 

[The Founder]

The endgame crisis does not seem to scale with the ratio of habitable worlds.

Indeed neither the crisis nor the fallen empires scale with the habitable world count in any way. They do however somewhat scale with difficulty (a buff on anything past normal).
That makes thier planets even more valuable.