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Stellar Ascendancy

PLAYER MANUAL

The current guide to commanding your empire, from the first turn through the final struggle for galactic ascendancy.

Early Access manualThis guide reflects the current build and will continue to be updated as development progresses.

Welcome to Stellar Ascendancy

Stellar Ascendancy is a turn-based 4X strategy game about exploring a galaxy, building an interstellar economy, researching new technology, commanding fleets, and dealing with rival empires through diplomacy, espionage, or war.

You begin with a homeworld and a small starting force. Every turn, you decide how your empire should grow. When you end the turn, movement, production, research, diplomacy, automation, and AI activity are resolved before the next turn begins.

You do not need to learn every system at once. A good first game can be played by concentrating on four priorities:

  1. Explore nearby space.
  2. Colonize useful planets.
  3. Keep minerals, fuel, credits, and research flowing.
  4. Maintain enough military strength to discourage an attack.

1. Starting a Game

From the main menu, choose New Game and configure the galaxy.

Choose your race

Each race has its own economic, military, population, environmental, diplomatic, and special-trait advantages. Select a race that supports the way you want to play. The available empires include Humans, Robots, Insectoid, Aquatics, Stoneborn, Birds, Lizards, Scourge, Lepora, Canine, Grays, Warriors, and Felids.

The race-selection screen shows the current strengths and disadvantages of each race. Treat those values as authoritative because balance can change between releases.

Configure the galaxy

The new-game setup lets you choose options such as:

For a first game, use a smaller or medium galaxy, keep the default peace period, and avoid filling every available opponent slot. This gives you room to learn without making turns unnecessarily long.

Your first-turn checklist

On the first turn:

  1. Inspect your homeworld and its production.
  2. Queue an economic improvement or ship that supports your immediate plan.
  3. Send a light ship to reveal nearby planets.
  4. Open Research and begin a useful project.
  5. Check your resource income and operating expenses.
  6. End the turn only after every fleet and planet has the orders you want.

2. The Main Screen and Turn Cycle

The strategic map is your primary command screen.

Top information bar

The top bar summarizes the condition of your empire, including:

Hover over a value when you need a more detailed explanation.

Major empire screens

The game provides dedicated screens for major areas of command:

Ending a turn

Select End Turn after issuing your orders. During turn resolution, fleets move, encounters occur, resources are produced, construction advances, research progresses, diplomatic effects are applied, and automated systems act.

Read warnings before forcing a turn to end. They may indicate idle production, fleets without useful orders, resource problems, or another condition worth correcting.

Autopilot

The Auto control can let the game continue resolving turns automatically. Use it only after confirming that your automation settings and current orders match your intentions. Disable it whenever you want to resume direct control.

3. Galaxy Map, Exploration, and Fog of War

Moving around the map

Select planets and fleets directly on the strategic map. Use the map controls to zoom and pan. Selection panels provide actions appropriate to the selected object.

Exploring

Unexplored space may hide planets, resources, fleets, or rival territory. Send fast, affordable ships outward in several directions rather than concentrating every scout in one place.

Plan exploration routes around fuel. A fleet that travels beyond safe refueling range can lose time diverting toward fuel or become operationally stranded.

Fog of war and sensors

Fog of war is selected independently for every new match. Off reveals the entire galaxy and all activity. Persistent hides unexplored space, but every explored area remains fully visible afterward. Standard hides unexplored space and requires current sensor coverage to reveal moving enemy fleets, installations, ownership changes, and other live activity; previously discovered planets remain as last-known intelligence.

Difficulty chooses the initial recommendation (Easy: Off, Normal: Persistent, Hard: Standard), but you may override it before launching the match.

Maintain scouts, frontier bases, or patrol fleets near important approaches. Information is often as valuable as firepower.

Zones of control

Military fleets can project influence around their position. Moving through another empire's controlled space may damage relations or trigger a confrontation. A zone of control is not necessarily an impassable wall, but crossing it should be a deliberate decision.

4. Planets and Colonization

Planets are the economic and territorial foundation of your empire.

Planet qualities

Each world has characteristics such as:

A planet that is excellent for one race may be only average for another. Check habitability and output before committing a colony ship.

Colonizing a planet

To establish a colony:

  1. Build a Colony Ship.
  2. Move it to an unowned planet.
  3. Select the colonization action when it becomes available.
  4. Confirm the new colony and begin developing it.

The Colony Ship is consumed when the colony is founded. Protect it during the journey.

Developing a colony

New colonies need time, population, minerals, and factory output before they become major contributors. Early priorities normally include:

Avoid expanding faster than your economy and fleet can support. A large number of weak, isolated colonies can become a liability.

Planet lists and empire-wide management

Use the Planets screen to compare colonies, identify stalled queues, and jump to worlds that need attention. The empire economy view can help distinguish productive core worlds from developing or resource-poor colonies.

5. Economy and Resources

Your empire depends on several connected resources.

Credits

Credits pay for construction, ships, leaders, infrastructure, diplomacy, market purchases, and recurring operating expenses. Watch both your balance and your per-turn trend. A large treasury can disappear quickly during rapid military expansion.

Minerals

Mines produce minerals used for construction. Minerals are stored locally on planets and may need to be moved to industrial worlds. A planet can have strong factory output and still fail to build if it lacks the required materials.

Rare metals

Rare metals are produced as a fixed share of geological output on suitable worlds. Advanced ships, star bases, or other high-value projects may require them. They can exist in planetary stockpiles or in your liquid empire pool, so check where the resource is located before assuming it is available for a build.

Fuel

Fleets consume fuel while moving. Planets and logistics infrastructure provide fuel, while Tankers can extend operational range and support fleets away from established bases.

Research points

Research points advance the active technology project. Research output grows through your economy, population, racial abilities, technologies, structures, and agreements.

Operating expenses and fleet capacity

Ships, bases, stargates, leaders, and other assets can create ongoing expenses. The top bar also separates naval capacity into light, medium, and heavy categories. Exceeding capacity can impose additional costs.

Before starting a large build program, confirm that you can afford both the construction and the long-term upkeep.

6. Mines, Factories, and Construction Queues

Mines

Mines increase the flow of geological resources. Mining improvements are most valuable on worlds with favorable output and become stronger with mining technology and empire-wide bonuses.

Factories

Factories generate industrial output that advances construction. A planet with too few factories may take many turns to complete even an affordable item.

Construction queues

Each planet can queue buildings, ships, star bases, and eligible ship designs. Items complete in order as the planet applies production and resources.

When a queue appears stalled, check:

Balance mines and factories according to a planet's role. Mining worlds can supply materials; industrial worlds can convert those materials into ships and infrastructure.

7. Empire Structures

Research can unlock powerful empire structures. These are major projects that usually provide broad strategic bonuses rather than functioning like ordinary mines or factories.

Current structure functions include:

When a structure becomes available, the game presents an explanation of its effect. Read the construction location and prerequisite information before committing resources.

8. Research and Technology

Open the Research screen to choose and queue technology projects.

Economic research

Ship research

Technologies have multiple levels. Higher levels cost more but can unlock advanced hulls, components, structures, and strategic options.

Choosing research

Use economic research when your empire needs stronger long-term output. Use military research when a threat is close or when you are preparing an offensive. Falling behind in either area for too long can be dangerous.

The Government screen can provide AI research management. If AI Research is enabled, review its priorities and confirm that the automation mode supports your overall strategy.

9. Ships, Naval Capacity, and Ship Design

Ship classes

The current fleet roster includes:

Different hulls require different research levels and consume different capacity categories. Build a navy that you can fuel, repair, and pay for.

Navy screen

Use the Navy screen to inspect individual ships, experience, damage, assignments, and service records. Mothball or scrap ships when keeping them active no longer makes strategic or financial sense.

Ship Designer

The Ship Designer lets you create and save custom templates using unlocked components.

To use a custom design:

  1. Open the Ship Designer from the naval interface.
  2. Choose a hull and compatible components.
  3. Review the design's weapons, defenses, cost, and limitations.
  4. Save the template.
  5. Select that template when adding a ship to an eligible construction queue.

Specialized designs are useful, but avoid creating a ship that is too expensive to replace or that lacks the range needed for its intended role.

10. Fleets, Movement, Fuel, Repair, and Cargo

Ships operate on the strategic map as fleets.

Creating and organizing fleets

Use the fleet controls to combine compatible ships, split a force, transfer ships, or review the fleet roster. Mixed fleets can cover weaknesses, but the fleet's practical movement and supply needs depend on its composition.

Issuing movement orders

  1. Select a fleet.
  2. Choose the movement action.
  3. Select a valid destination.
  4. Review the route and fuel situation.
  5. End the turn to begin or continue movement.

Movement can take several turns. A fleet may stop, divert, or encounter an enemy before reaching the destination.

Fuel and Tankers

Fleets draw on their available fuel while moving. Refuel at friendly supply points or use Tankers for long-range operations. A Tanker is a dedicated fuel-support ship; an ordinary cargo Transport should not be treated as a substitute.

Repair

Damaged ships recover more effectively at friendly planets and with appropriate infrastructure. Rotate damaged fleets away from the front rather than risking experienced ships unnecessarily.

Cargo

Transports move minerals and rare metals between planets. Use fleet cargo controls to load at a source world and unload at the destination. Confirm that a usable Transport is present before assigning a cargo operation.

11. Logistics Command Center

The Logistics Command Center provides an empire-wide view of resource and fuel movement.

Player Control

Under Player Control, you assign and manage routes directly.

For a resource route:

  1. Choose a source planet with a surplus.
  2. Choose a destination that needs supplies.
  3. Assign an eligible cargo Transport.
  4. Select or confirm the resource route.
  5. Monitor the route for shortages, danger, or a missing carrier.

For a fuel route, assign an eligible Tanker and connect the appropriate fuel source and destination.

The interface warns you when no suitable carrier exists. Build or reposition the correct support ship rather than assigning a route that cannot operate.

AI Control

AI Control allows the logistics director to manage eligible transport activity. This can reduce late-game micromanagement, but you should still monitor isolated colonies, front-line fuel demand, and threatened routes.

12. Star Bases and Stargates

Star Bases

Star Bases provide strong static military power, sensor coverage, supply support, and strategic control. They are expensive and limited by empire size, so place them where they protect valuable worlds or important approaches.

Star Bases do not replace mobile fleets. An enemy can bypass a poorly placed base or attack elsewhere.

Stargates

Stargates create a strategic travel network after the required technology and conditions are met.

Use the Stargate Network screen to:

When placing a gate, select a valid highlighted deep-space location and protect the surrounding area. Stargates can dramatically improve reinforcement speed but add operating expenses and become valuable strategic targets.

13. Diplomacy

Diplomacy becomes available after contact with another empire.

Relations and stance

Relations change through agreements, trade, border violations, warfare, bombardment, conquest, and other actions. Do not rely only on the displayed stance; consider the rival's fleet strength, grudges, alliances, and current wars.

Diplomatic actions

Depending on the situation, you may be able to:

Trade agreements can strengthen both relations and income. Alliances can create shared strategic obligations and may contribute to an allied victory.

Emergency Galactic Coalition

If one empire grows to control at least as many settled worlds as every other surviving empire combined, the Galactic Council may declare it a threat to galactic order. AI delegations vote immediately. An eligible player-controlled empire must choose Yes to join or No to remain independent.

Joining creates reciprocal alliances among coalition members, greatly improves mutual Trust and Respect, and locks the alliance for at least 200 turns. While the declared threat survives, coalition members cannot break the pact or make peace with that empire, and their offensive planning is focused exclusively on defeating it. Defensive fleets still protect coalition territory. Declining is durable: the Council records the vote and does not repeat the same ballot on later turns.

War and peace

The opening peace period can prevent immediate declarations of war. After it expires, hostile actions may escalate quickly. Before declaring war, verify that your fuel, repair, production, and reserves can sustain more than the first battle.

14. Government and Automation

The Government screen is the central location for empire-wide policy and selected automated systems.

Major Government areas include:

Manual versus AI control

Each eligible system identifies whether it is under direct player control or AI control. Some systems may remain manual-only.

Before enabling automation:

  1. Read what the AI is allowed to control.
  2. Select a strategic emphasis if one is offered.
  3. Confirm the system is not about to conflict with an important manual plan.
  4. Recheck it after major wars, expansion, or resource shortages.

Automation is a management tool, not a substitute for strategic oversight.

15. Galactic Market

The Galactic Market allows empires to exchange inventory-backed goods and strategic assets.

Market categories can include:

Buying

  1. Open the Galactic Market through Government.
  2. Filter the listings if needed.
  3. Select a listing and inspect the price, quantity, seller, and delivery details.
  4. Confirm that you have the required funds and capacity.
  5. Complete the purchase.

Selling

Create a listing only for inventory or an asset you are willing to commit. Review the price and terms before confirming. Active listings and clearing-house activity remain tied to real inventory; the market is not an unlimited resource generator.

Keep strategic reserves. Selling every spare unit of fuel or rare metal can leave you unable to respond to an emergency.

16. Espionage

Espionage becomes available through the Spy Academy and Government interface.

You can field a limited number of agents on independent missions. Available operations include:

To launch a mission:

  1. Open Espionage.
  2. Select an available agent.
  3. Choose an empire with the required contact status.
  4. Select a mission and target.
  5. Review the risk, duration, and possible reward.
  6. Confirm the operation.

Operations can fail and may alert the target. Use intelligence missions when you need information and reserve high-risk sabotage for situations where the potential advantage justifies diplomatic consequences.

17. Combat, Retreat, Bombardment, and Invasion

Combat begins when hostile military forces meet under valid engagement conditions. Noncombat-only fleets do not automatically fight a meaningless battle simply because they share a location.

Tactical battle and automatic resolution

When battle occurs, you may be able to fight tactically or use automatic resolution. Tactical control gives you direct influence over movement, targets, weapons, and withdrawal. Automatic resolution is faster but commits the decision to the combat simulation.

Basic combat priorities

Crew experience and admirals

Ships and commanders can gain experience through combat. Experienced forces are valuable assets. The Navy, Leaders, War College, battle reports, and memorial records provide information about their service.

Bombardment

After gaining orbital control over a hostile planet, choose the available bombardment action carefully. Bombardment can damage population, mines, factories, storage, and defenses. If bombardment reduces a colony below 100 population, the colony is destroyed: its life and structures are lost, and the planet becomes unowned. More destructive choices may weaken the target faster but can erase the colony you intended to capture and create stronger diplomatic consequences.

Invasion

Planetary conquest requires an actual ground invasion. Bring Troop Ships and enough ground strength to overcome planetary defense. Bombardment can soften a target but does not by itself transfer ownership.

Plan invasions as combined operations: defeat the defending fleet, secure orbit, reduce defenses if necessary, deliver troops, and protect the captured colony afterward.

18. Leaders, War College, and Battle History

Leaders and admirals

Leaders can provide command benefits and recurring costs. Assign admirals where their abilities and experience matter most. Losing a veteran commander can have lasting consequences.

War College

The War College helps you study battles, compare outcomes, and understand how fleets performed. Use it to improve future ship designs and fleet composition rather than judging a warship only by one victory or defeat.

Battle Log

The Battles screen records engagements and results. Review it after major turns to understand losses, retreats, damage, experience gains, and strategic trends.

19. Victory, Defeat, and Empire Progress

Choose one primary victory condition during match setup. Open the Empire screen during play to inspect score, economic performance, military capacity, and progress toward the selected condition.

When a non-Elimination condition is selected, defeating every rival or forming a sole surviving allied coalition can still end the campaign early.

You are defeated when your empire can no longer continue under the game's elimination rules. Losing the homeworld is a severe setback, but the precise outcome depends on the rest of your empire and the current game state.

Do not wait for the final screen to track the race. Monitor victory progress and the diplomatic map throughout the game.

20. Saving, Loading, and Leaving a Game

Autosave

The game maintains an autosave during normal play and attempts to preserve the current game before returning to the main menu. The main menu can offer a continuation option when a valid autosave exists.

Manual save files

Use Settings to save the current game to a file or load a compatible save. Keep manual saves before major wars, experimental strategies, or version changes.

Do not close the game while a save operation is still in progress.

Multiplayer saves

Saving or loading during an internet session can affect or end the live connection. Read the confirmation warning carefully. A save file preserves game state; it does not guarantee that the same live peer session remains connected.

21. Multiplayer

Stellar Ascendancy supports local hot-seat play and internet multiplayer.

Hot-seat

Hot-seat players share one device and take turns controlling their assigned empires. The handoff screen protects each player's private turn information. Pass control only when the next player is ready.

Internet play

Internet multiplayer connects a host and another player through the multiplayer setup flow. Follow the on-screen connection instructions and confirm that both players reach the lobby or game before beginning.

During play:

Network conditions, firewalls, and relay configuration can affect connectivity. If a connection repeatedly fails, recreate the session and verify that both players are using compatible versions.

22. Mods and Custom Content

The Mods screen manages supported custom content. Mods may change visuals, data, races, ships, or other game assets depending on the package.

Before enabling a mod:

  1. Read its description and version requirements.
  2. Enable one new mod at a time when troubleshooting.
  3. Start a new game if the mod changes core game data.
  4. Keep an unmodified save when testing substantial changes.

Disable incompatible mods if the game shows missing assets, invalid data, or save-loading errors. Modded games may behave differently from the rules described in this manual.

23. Beginner Strategy Guide

Early game

Middle game

Late game

The most common mistakes

24. Quick Reference

When you are unsure what to do next, ask these questions:

  1. Exploration: Do I know what is around my borders?
  2. Expansion: Is there a planet worth colonizing that I can support?
  3. Economy: Are credits, minerals, fuel, rare metals, and research trending safely?
  4. Production: Are important queues progressing?
  5. Logistics: Can supplies reach the planets and fleets that need them?
  6. Military: Can I defend my frontier and replace losses?
  7. Diplomacy: Who is friendly, hostile, allied, or preparing for war?
  8. Intelligence: What important information am I missing?
  9. Victory: Who is closest to winning, alone or through an alliance?
  10. Turn: Have I reviewed warnings before ending it?

If those ten answers are under control, your empire is usually in a strong position.