Dig up Ancient History in the Stellaris: Ancient Relics Story Pack

Today Paradox Interactive released a trailer announcing that a new story pack for Stellaris, named Ancient Relics, would soon be coming to PC. The DLC will add two new Precursors to investigate, as well as letting you explore ancient Relic Worlds and uncover unique archaeological finds.

In Ancient Relics you’ll explore ruins of extinct civilizations in Relic Worlds, piecing together the story of their evolution and downfall. Ancient cities and derelict ships are yours to mine as you unearth powerful relics to utilize for your empire.

“For millennia we studied the heavens, hoping to find our answers among the stars. Only now is it clear that all that time we were looking in the wrong direction”, the trailer cryptically tells us. You can watch it down below and although it’s under a minute long, it showcases an expansive dig around a mysterious artefact, telling us in no uncertain terms what this expansion is going to be about.

Here’s a breakdown of what the Ancient Relics pack is set to include, more info on which can be found on the official site:

• Ancient Relics (of course) – Collect and acquire valuable relics in your adventures as rewards for overcoming major crises or after completing a dig at an archaeological site and solving chapters. Each relic gives significant benefits to your empire to aid in your interstellar escapades.
• Those Who Came Before – Encounter clues about two extinct Precursor civilizations, the Baol and the Zroni. The former was a sprawling hivemind of plantoids, the latter some of the most the most powerful psionics to have ever lived. Players can investigate these home systems to understand who they were and, more importantly, what we can learn from their demise.
• Relic Worlds – Once filled with teeming life, these Relic Worlds now lie dead, replete with desolate ruins and dormant mysteries. Players can excavate guaranteed archeological sites on these worlds to explore these remnants and bring to light powerful relics and artifacts.
• Dig In – Hit the dirt on a variety of enigmatic and alien worlds with more archeology sites available for your empire to study… or plunder. Each site begins a story with between one and six chapters to investigate. Retrace the history to discover artifacts and relics that can be boons to your empire.
• Matter of Artifacts – Learning from history is much more than parables and antiques, it can often be the key to understanding one’s own place in the galaxy. Utilizing archaeological research, discover Minor Artifacts, a new resource type which can help empower your empire.

Ancient Relics looks like it’s set to give a fresh and interesting treatment to the Fallen Empires side of the game. Though there’s no official release date yet, Ancient Ruins is “coming soon” to PC.