The 2023 Complete Beginners Guide to Stellaris

👉My Steam Curator Page: store.steampowered.com/curato... 👈
👉My Video Essays Channel: / @feelingfictional 👈
Support the Channel-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Want to appear on the endscreen?: / @coloneldamneders
Grab some Holy drinks: uk.weareholy.com/coloneldamne...
Buy some merch!: damngoodapparel.launchcart.st...
Get some cheap games: www.instant-gaming.com/?igr=C...
Buying anything on Epic? Use my Creator Code: COLONELDAMNEDERS
Get in Contact---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Join my Discord: / discord
Follow me on Twitter: / coloneldamneder

[@BrockPlaysFortnite]

Jesus christ this game is complex I feel like I am taking a college course just to understand how to start lol

[@dillonedwards981]

Bro you ain't lying. I've been literally studying this game so I can play with a buddy of mine, since he's always playing my games. But damn, this is something lol, you really need these guides for this game, it's crazy

[@austinh1242]

True, but at least it's more fun than a normal college class lol

[@dominicp9296]

​@@dillonedwards981college is nothing compared to this and that's a problem and I don't mean with the game

[@lillones]

Worst part, once you become proficient in a play style, a new dlc will drop and change everything you thought you knew

[@mr.voidroy6869]

Think about it this way. The game is essentially an economic game. Not a battle game. Try to compound your economy asap as it will give better returns later on. Find decent builds and watch vids on how to open with them. The rest should be easy. The game essentially is how often do u want to pause to min max ur planets lol.

[@Brass319]

opened the game for the first time and was immediately overwhelmed, so thanks for making this

[@fuzzlewit9]

Same. I felt like I'd gone into a kitchen to make some toast and 10 minutes later the curtains were on fire, there was soup all over the floor, there was metal sparks in the microwave and the refrigerator was in the sink. And I never did get my toast. Anything to make sense of it all is a huge help.

[@maxpower2743]

​@Brass319 , lol glad to know I'm not the only guy that has just started playing the game. I'd heard about the game for years but just now grabbed it and started playing it. Was a little overwhelmed but I'm still enjoying playing through the tutorial. Trying to take it slow in order to understand the mechanics and general strategy of the game but I can tell it's going to be a bit of a bumpy road getting started. Figured I'd look to see if there was any content out there to help me out and was glad to find this video. I bought and am playing the game for XBox, hopfully there is parity between the other platforms.

[@badger3802]

@@maxpower2743 just got the game. wayy more complex than other strategy games I've played. I'm also trying to get into total warhammer 3

[@TheDestinyGamez]

It's a lot... But just take it easy, I never turn the game faster than normal speed. I also recommend using the auto manage planets often, It tends to feel super slow but I think it only builds more when there's no more open jobs. There's so much to learn but that's also the beauty of the game. My personal favorite dlc content wise is leviathans. Coolest things ever

[@bobgrey6137]

@@fuzzlewit9 Of all of that, I'm still stuck on why there are curtains in the kitchen.

[@thesimmertron2685]

So much has been changed since I've last checked this game

[@sebastienbechard798]

I had to play the whole video at 0.75 speed to be able to reasonabily start to digest the crazy amount of content in that video... amazing game, very step learning curve! I'm hooked!

[@chonky2129]

i watched 20 minutes of your 2022 before I simply looked to the right of my screen and saw your 2023 guide, lmao so here i am great guides

[@ericfrank4991]

Nice refresher video, I have not played since 3.6 was out so I needed to see what has changed since then. I was hoping the automation was improved, as all the micromanaging can be overwhelming. Also, too bad the espionage part of the game has not improve, I never really understood what options to pick and rarely saw much positive come out of it. I think its high time I give this game another solid run.

[@levijustice6742]

Wow thanks for the exhaustive and comprehensive video here. I'll admit my eyes glossed over a few times and I watched it in two sittings but there seems to be a ton of useful info here. I'm planning on getting Stellaris on a great current sale for my Steam Deck before said sale ends so this really helped me get an idea of what I'm getting into. Which is a LOT. Likely more than I'll want or really be able to handle but for only 10 bucks I wanna give it a go and see if the game clicks with me. Thanks again for the video!

[@chloejessica7961]

thanks a ton for this! your commentary was smart and engaging and the video felt very accessible. big help!

[@megaautism7437]

This was such a good refresher for Stellaris! I left the game alone for like a year and it feels like a different game! Thank you for taking the time to make this!

[@OliverLawrence-bz2rz]

This is a wonderfully detailed and helpful video. And I give it bonus points for talking so fast, as a lot of other videos like this make me impatient.

[@lunarholiday1377]

Thanks for making this guide, I appreciate it! I remember your voice from somewhere, until it hit me - you're the same person who also helped me get into warhammer so many years ago! Glad to see you're still around

[@haraldd4838]

Nice! THX! Added to my Stellaris playlist right-away

[@jaker4ster]

Fantastic video, so helpful!

[@TeamBevontation]

I just started to get the hang of the game. Left for work for a few months and came back to everything being changed. Thanks for this!

[@kenoo_7497]

Great guide Colonel !

[@NoksUndKutten]

I used to play at release and a few years after that. I recently got the itch to play again and this video is very helpful.

[@cryptototalwar2915]

Amazing comprehensive guide. Thank you!

[@KierEv02]

Hadn’t played the game in like 3 years (at least since the covid lockdown if not longer!) - to say I was overwhelmed at the start is an understatement - thank you for making this guide!

[@Arno_vanZyl]

Once you get the basic layers of the various mechanics, it becomes about scaling them. Noice. Cool vid pal!

[@HCivicFg2]

Been playing on ps5 for about a week. Figured out a lot so far. Excited to find out things I've been missing.

[@OrangeNash]

Really appreciate the effort in this and I did understand some of it. Though it may well be due to age, but it felt like the video was at 2X speed! I know we have short attention spans these days, and TBF its happening in a lot of tutorials for complex games. They race on at 500 words a minute, like it's a speed run! Thankfully,. 0.75 speed was perfect 🙂

[@artesim_779]

I totally empathize with you. And I would add that it's even worse for foreign viewers. My english is now good enough, that my brain can translate directly from "word" to "concept" without an extra "translation-to-first-language" step, but still, it does need a few milliseconds to do that... but maybe it's due to age for me too. Anyway, I'll join you in the 0.75x room :) (edit: although 0.75 is a bit too slow now, maybe I need a 0.85x :)

[@wataru69]

Yep, totally agree with you. Its too fast. It's a starter's guide, so we need some possiblity to let it sink in, and understand what he is saying. It is a good guide, very complete. I can appreciate that. But if it is too much for one video, please split it up in several parts. This speed is good for some advanced tactics or so. NOT for starters who still have to let it sink in.

[@lesm3652]

Just left a comment something like yours lol slow tf down

[@woj_kal]

Guides like this are very appreciated. And good to update.

[@jjb33083]

Goated guide. Thank you brother.

[@blogovitchxyz]

What an impressive tour de force of how to get started with Stellaris!

[@connorkenney6938]

Just got this game. Thanks for the guide

[@mariuszsz5986]

Hehe, lots of good knowledge. Thx mate. Last time I played, you could choose what type of stellar drive your race starts with. XD

[@ronzerker390]

I haven't played in about a year and half and I'm ready to play again. I've got a lot to catch up on and re-learn.

[@christopherspencer2143]

I have not played since 1.8...... and now I have all the new DLC, so this should be indescribably helpful.

[@RedPanda9965]

Wish i would have had this when i started ive tried starting this game multiple times over the years always gave up because the amount of info would get me but i forced myself to learn it amd im hooked this os definitely a good video to learn from

[@fictitiousnightmares]

33:10 Holy information overload! I thought there was a lot to learn, but holy crap after watching your UI section I don't know if I'm smart enough for this game. Sheesh! And you talk super fast to get through all this info I'm sure. i need to remember I can adjust the playback speed in my old age.

[@DrKra]

Really a video new players need.

[@willk7184]

10 mins. in and I'm completely lost. I guess these games are just too complex for an old guy like me. Back to Asteroids for me.

[@hailarwotanaz5848]

Halo wars or Civ 6 is a great choice if you want something simpler

[@warhokn4178]

I'm in the same boat. I just watch these guides while playing with ships basically accepting I'm not doing anything right. The game still works and is fun even if you don't know what to do

[@baitposter]

4X games like this are complex even for modern games Well, there are some specific old PC games of similar complexity, and both are niche.

[@OrangeNash]

Try slowing the video down to 0.5 speed.

[@kevartje1295]

@@hailarwotanaz5848 Yes! great advice, I started with civ and now im looking more into stellaris. Stellaris is very simillar to civ but stellaris is a bit more complicated.

[@Super_Black1]

Coming from a few 100hrs of endless space 2, i thought i could figure out stelarris without issue. Boy was I wrong, this guide is awesome thanks

[@Toshiro_Mifune]

i haven't played since the toxic dudes, guess it's time for an upgraded campaign.

[@airwalklp14]

Are you teaching the stellaris 223 class too? That's a bit out of our scope but I like your style.

[@n-z0]

I was so taken off guard by the bell pepper joke that i had to pause the video and laugh for 2 minutes, incredible

[@bobgrey6137]

Only thing I can think of that was missed was diplomatic weight: what it is, how one gains it, and what it is used for. When it was first brought up while looking at the government tab in the interface section, you said it would be discussed during diplomacy, but it wasn't as far as I can see.

[@xXN0SK1LLZXx]

Feeling kindof like im finally grasping the basics of this game. When i first bought this game i thought id instantly be creating the systems alliance from mass effect or the imperium of man from 40k. When really im just figuring out how to survey a system

[@MiguelBaptista1981]

Why does this video sound better and more natural in 0.75% speed?

[@movinMat]

Bro just talks fast

[@reelgesh51]

watched the vid you made last year only to click on this literally right after Started playing the game yesterday - have you been spying on me? For how else can this video come out at such a perfect time ;)

[@simon-orlandosinghai]

To anyone wondering the best way to learn games, watch a tutorial while you play. If you can learn and listen then good, but if you need a practical learning session then playing while you learn is the way to go. I learned alot in 2 days aftet i declared war and they had 3 alliances :)

[@TheSlyMouse]

I played for few days then watched this. It was easier to understand

[@jowsarrret3963]

good guide

[@wipidipipaku]

I don't remember this game being so complex! I played it years ago and I did fine, but I feel is too much learning to do to retake playing.

[@Jam-xg3qx]

Thank you sir for this

[@MrJoel69xxx]

I've had the game for a very long time but I'm coming here lol . I got Stellaris when the console version was differnt to the PC version. I loved the console version, got really good at it, but then they changed it to be like the PC version and I wasn't good at it anymore . I just don't understand the food , energy, industry, commercial goods and housing system they put in. I kinda scraped by with it and then they released the machine , killer machines dlc and I got good at the game again, but I guess it was OP cause they scaled their strength back . The last time I played it about 3 years ago , I tried playing with the machines and got beat swiftly , I was rocking only about 20-30k fleets when the computer had fleets of over 100k , really not sure where I'm going wrong now I don't understand the systems anymore . I use to love this game, was one of my favourites before they switched things to PC version and now I don't want to play it even on easy settings I get my butt kicked . I recently feel like I want to play it again so I've come here to watch some Stellaris videos that hopefully can bring back the love for the game I once had .

[@imjustbryce6235]

The most important tip I don't see being said is that you can ignore like 90% of the mechanics and still have a fun game, don't get overwhelmed with the nitty gritty when just starting out and have fun (:

[@Erika_Redmark]

21:17 The Galatron 🤤

[@fehmibilgin2114]

I have 50 hours in the game and know most of the things you have shown in this video. Maybe even more such as mass research focus on the capital. Even though, I feel like I know nothing about the game. So I started a new save with xenophobic and fanatic militaristic empire. I was able to take on 2 other empires at the same time. I won 2 wars by taking their planets and their planets were just criminally criminal. No seriously they rebelled against me and I didn't know how to stop rebellion so they brought 3 times more fleet power than the 2 empires I defeated. Just a single planet that hade 15 cruisers while I only had 4. My question is Where the fuck they are getting this massive giga fleet out of a small slave rebellion. Literally their empire is 10 times more weaker and they just pull the guns out and start blasting. I dont understand how this game works. And I can't do this anymore with all the micro and brainmelting features such as why in a fight I win I lose more ships and their ships just escape somehow?

[@omagod500]

I get what you are saying as far as it’s a bit of a shock to the realism aspect that a rebellion would whip up such a strong fleet out of nowhere. I imagine it is where the resources lost to crime have been ending up.

[@internallyscreaming2788]

I have 150 hrs in this game and still have no idea what im doing

[@Journey22405]

am a massive paradox gamer with 3-4k hours across mainly eu but also hoi4 vic 3 and ck2 and 3. but stelaris is just way too overwhelming. the game is so much more complex than the other 4 at a base line level for me to engage with and while i HATE vic3 because of how unresponsive it feels to your player made decisions, i dislike stellaris because it tries to teach you too much insantly and doesnt give you your own time to learn about things as they come up. so thanks for this.

[@speaketh]

I just got this game at Steam, and now you're telling me the "beginner's guide" is a 1 hour video!? Dear me!

[@David-xn1hj]

where should i go for stellaris builds? i want a good robot build i can learn over time

[@CarlosLopez-ok1gr]

100 hrs later and I finally kinda get it

[@quicksilvertheelegant3964]

Not gonna lie, while I do enjoy space strategy games I’m not much of a strategy game player and I mostly bought Stellaris to play with the custom empires creator and use it to recreate some alien species’ that I’ve made for a Sci-Fi story lol. I purposely started with 0 AI empires so I can focus on learning wtf all the menus do and it is very intimidating, but I think I could get the hang of it eventually; despite all the confusion I can tell Stellaris’ UI design is trying its best to be user friendly even if it’s complicated. Thanks for the guide 👍

[@justmeandmy]

When you say "with every DLC" are you referring to the $130 "Stellaris: Ultimate Bundle BUNDLE" on steam?

[@ThePrimeMinisterOfTheBlock]

That background music, that's from Skylines yeah?

[@karu6111]

These beginner's guide that's made every new major expansion is the lifeblood of this game.

[@gooseloose682]

i played so many cycles of stellaris that i forget how complex Stellaris actually is for a beginner, especially when (heavens forbid) you buy all dlc's and then just jump in the hyperbolic arctic sea. There are soooo many mechanics to worry, war fleets, economy, pop growth, the Galactic Council, Endgame Crisis, Fleet Movement time (thatnk the lord there is no real attrition lmao) and so on and so on. Now it is just "Ok, i do this, settle 5 planets by 2206, this is consumer goods, this is energy...." It is all automatic, but me and my homies hate traderoutes. It is only good that if you have enough repeatables normal outposts can beat pirates by themselves haha

[@20ZZ20]

playing an organic empire for the first time in 250 hours and giving this a watch just in case lmao

[@theemperor1379]

What's the name of the background song? Thx😅

[@MyLifeIsAFrickingMess_MRPOLSKA]

"The Stellaris Guide" for me could be summed up in a sentence ~*Lets be xenophobic, its really in this year!*~

[@revanisalive]

just bought this game but I might be too dumb to play it. thanks for this

[@philipjfry4465]

After seeing the complicated UI, I am good.

[@pure-blood17]

I just bought the game....turned it on, and was completely overwhelmed with all the crap on the screen. I am currently playing Skyrim Anniversary Edition and having a blast.

[@calminacrisis126]

How do you scout what you may be fighting regarding enemy ships?

[@aleksanderm8138]

science ships in cloaking

[@lesm3652]

Anyone remember the micromachine man commercials

[@mvanlisdonk]

Thanks for all the effort it really helps but speaking a littlebit slower would made it from an 8/10 to a 10/10

[@notcreative8325]

Im stuck trying to figure out how to expand so i can colinize

[@godofm3tal1]

bell pepper bro? is there anyone on the planet that thinks a bell pepper is spicey?

[@fleck425]

Not even 30 seconds in and I'm wondering why a beginners guide would include hundreds of dollars worth of DLC...

[@arcdecibel9986]

You should get college credit for learning games like this.

[@yodasgodfather1957]

If only by default you can build more than one Dyson sphere

[@Brass319]

I got stuck in the tutorial because my singular combat fleet refuses to budge and attack the enemy fleet that's mere pixels away from destruction, thus preventing my science ships from doing anything.....

[@Brass319]

just realized I never edited this or made a follow up post, turns out it's because the grey disciples are entirely comprised of spaghetti code, apparently.

[@DoesRocksFloat]

Great guide, but can you zoom in during editing or scale up the ui? I can’t see shit, especially watching this on a phone.

[@Medieval_Productions]

I am the epitome of boring, I've never played as anything but humans.

[@arcdecibel9986]

That's the epitome of awesome. Xenos suck.

[@CaptainCrackSparrow]

Just bought the game. Played for 6 hours. Still no idea what is going on.

[@aarongorton1984]

even after 10 years THEY WILL ALWAYS BE SOMETHING TO BE DISCOVERED I THIS GAME ITS AS COMPLEX AS DWARF FORTRESS OR CVATACLYSM DARK DAYS AHEAD

[@matthewtedeschi5646]

Playing the atar wars mod and im getting my butt kicked as the sith empire 😅

[@OtherwordlyPotatoDevourer]

After this game any kind of Ui is gonna feel empty and devoid of stuff to do.

[@chadcowman6293]

If you think this is on par with a college course I would say whatever you're taking in college isn't going to get you anywhere lol.

[@moonbind]

6 minutes into video i got overwhelmed...

[@jarden714]

Hows about an even NEWER one, lol

[@eddyg1794]

I don't think you can reasonably expect a new player (myself) to own ALL dlc. if you're trying to explain something using dlc choices you are only going to steepen the already steep learning curve. How does a biginner know what is dlc or not?

[@rorycostigan6655]

The only main dlc part he covered here was federations n more government options so don't worry

[@user-wz1bz3py6l]

.75 playback speed👍

[@GideonCyn]

EN SIGN!

[@ThePrimeMinisterOfTheBlock]

jesus christ. "beginners" guide. "BEGINNERS"

[@CashFreedman]

Beginners guide to STELLARIS; yes it's overwhelming but that Stellaris.

[@DaDoctorJ]

@@CashFreedman He's just clicking and talking way to fast for understanding anything about it. This is made for someone who is a somewhat familiar with the game already.

[@travisr3]

Bro lost his voice for a week after recording this.

[@lesm3652]

Slow down not only what your doing on screen cause cant keep up and understand what your clicking but also your speech you are talking so fast its more like a mosquito buzzing in my ear than words i can understand

[@jakemocci3953]

I wonder what the average IQ of this playerbase is lol

[@pure-blood17]

Let's just say that no one in africa plays Stellaris.

[@Dexter_Morningstar]

your just click click click clicking, explain what your doing slowly as all i see is click click click clicking... Remember you know what your doing, people like me dont... Please go slowly especially on the start of a new game... I know less than i do before i watched...

[@johngwoodgate]

Try watching it at a slower speed, like 75% speed or something

[@CerpinTxt87]

Might wanna unmute the video.

[@megaautism7437]

Skill issue

[@willk7184]

Sometimes these videos, while well-meaning, are like a college prof. zooming through a lecture because they're bored explaining something they already know.

[@baitposter]

The issue is that he's not highlighting what your overall macro strategy and overarching goals will be up front, and how to accomplish those goals piece by piece. He's just running down a checklist. If the player knows what they need to be doing, they then only need to know _how_ to do it. And he's going through it entirely too fast, but video speed helps with that. It's wild that even at .75 speed he still goes at a brisk pace.

[@aarongorton1984]

I REFUSE TO PLAY THE GAME THE GAME IS GREAT BUT TOO COMPLEX

[@aarongorton1984]

VICTORIA 2 IS THE BEST GAME BY PARADOX

[@Impericalevidence]

Still new to Stellaris, but one thing I've noticed... why are leaders 80% female?

[@beaswork8520]

Yeah that is the one thing that bugged me a bit. I kept getting nonstop female leaders for a while.

[@sauldownbadman876]

Whyd you think

[@Impericalevidence]

@@sauldownbadman876 there's a probable reason, but we cant state it in mixed company? I've been playing starsector which I see as rather similar. No such bias in that game, completely random. I dunno, I still have stellaris installed, but after buying 200$ in dlc for crusader kings 2 it might as well be Raid shadow legends to me.

[@JackBlack-qn7us]

a beginner's guide is 1h long? this game hates new players huh?

[@carosworldofficial]

quit 5 min in, way too fast for a beginners guide. and as always, todays beginner guides are for advanced players

[@lorrainemurphy8168]

Maybe you just aren’t quick enough

[@aarongorton1984]

PARADOX RUIN ALL THERE GAMES LIKE PRISON ARCHITECT

[@brandoncollins2096]

Whats the song you use in the first few minutes?