Side story 1: Build your interstellar empire, part one: Downloading the game and configuring settings

Happy New Year!

Surprised?

There are even bigger surprises ahead: you'll discover that most of the updated chapters are actually nonessential tutorials, and there are only five or six chapters of main story!

Looks like a lot, but there's barely anything to sink your teeth into. Fun, right?

(Bad news from 2025: Stellaris version 4.0 made sweeping changes, rendering this tutorial obsolete. It is now for reference only.)

[Up next is a whole series of side-story beginner tutorials. Skip them if you're not interested.]

[There are accompanying images in the author's notes at the end of each chapter. Once I reach level four in February, I'll be able to put images directly in the main text.]

First, as a Stellaris player, I'm delighted to see more people join the great Sea of Stars family and become proud members of the Fourth Calamity. I wrote this story to draw more people into learning about this dazzling Sea of Stars, too.

If you bought a copy of Stellaris during the winter sale and have no idea how to play, congratulations: I've prepared a tutorial for all newcomers. That's why this side story exists.

I promise every reader that this tutorial is absolutely simple and easy to understand (debatable). Follow it, and anyone can get the hang of Stellaris with ease.

You need a curious heart, brimming with curiosity about this unknown universe. Only then will you feel the wonder and appeal of Stellaris as you play, and keep going even when you run into difficulties.

Now, let's begin our tutorial!

We'll start at the very beginning.

Suppose one day, while idly scrolling through your phone, you came across a strange Stellaris fanfic on Tomato. Its setting and story drew you in, and you became deeply interested in this game called Stellaris.

You