Species rights

Version

Please help with verifying or updating older sections of this article. At least some were last verified for version 2.8.

This article is for the PC version of Stellaris only.

Species rights interface.

Species rights is a system where the rights of a species in an empire can be determined. The rights can be determined individually for each species and can be changed every 10 years. What rights can be selected depends on if the species is the main species of the empire, what ethics, active policies and government form(s) the empire has. The set rights interface can be found from the species panel.

Citizenship[edit]

Citizenship represents the status of a species in an empire: whether they are free, partially free or subjugated, whether or not they can participate in the political processes of the country, what freedoms and restrictions can be placed on them and even whether they have the right to live in the empire at all. In addition to rights and obligations, citizenship also affects pops' migration attraction: A Pop that is currently enjoying full citizenship is unlikely to move to another empire where their rights could potentially be curtailed, while Pops living under second-class citizen conditions are more likely to move to an empire that would possibly grant them a fairer life. Note that enslaved Pops cannot migrate, but they may revolt in low stability worlds.

Type	Pop Effects	Requirements	Description
Full Citizenship		Only option to primary species Only option to Hive-Minded species if empire is Hive Mind Citizen Rights AI policy if species is Mechanical Xenophobe if species is alien Machine Intelligence	Pops are free, are allowed to join factions and the species can produce Leaders. Each and every individual of this species is an esteemed member of this society.
Residence	-10% Happiness -25% Amenities Usage -50% Political Power	Citizen Rights AI policy if species is Mechanical Full Military Service species rights if empire has Citizen Service Gestalt Consciousness	Pops are free, but are not allowed to join factions and the species cannot produce Leaders. They have yet to prove themselves worthy of all rights afforded to others. Perhaps they never will.
Slaves	0.75 Base Amenities Usage 0.75 Base Housing Usage -75% Political Power	Allowed Slavery Policy OR empire is Gestalt Consciousness Full Military Service species rights if empire has Citizen Service Hive-Minded species Robotic species Genocidal Rogue Servitor Driven Assimilator	All Pops of this species will be Enslaved. Freedom is an illusion. For some this truth is more tangible than it is for others.
Undesirables	-100% Political Power	Only option to aliens if Fanatic Purifiers Only option to non- Hive-Minded species if Devouring Swarm Only option to organic species if Determined Exterminator Only option to Hive-Minded species if empire is NOT Hive Mind, unless Evolutionary Mastery Only option to Machine species if empire is NOT Machine Intelligence Only option to Mechanical species if Outlawed Robotic Workers Policy OR empire is Hive Mind Otherwise, Allowed or Displacement Only Purge Policy Full Military Service species rights if empire has Citizen Service	All Pops of this species will be Purged. State records do not recognize the existence of this species.
Servitude	0.5 Base Amenities Usage 0.5 Base Housing Usage -100% Political Power	Mechanical species Servitute or Outlawed AI Policy Outlawed Robotic Workers Policy Gestalt Consciousness	The overriding purpose of any machine must be to serve its masters and perform whatever tasks it was designed for, regardless of how intelligent it may be. A toaster will always be a toaster.
Assimilation	-100% Political Power	Robotic species Hive-Minded species, unless Evolutionary Mastery Evolutionary Mastery If empire is Hive Mind, adds Hive-Minded, otherwise removes it Transcendence Adds Psionic if species is NOT Cybernetic The Flesh is Weak or Driven Assimilator Adds Cybernetic Synthetic Evolution Turns into Synthetic	Pops of this species are changed over time to better match the dominant species of the Empire. Pops that are in the process of being assimilated will not produce any resources. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us.
Machine Integration		Machine Intelligence Only option to Robotic species Driven Assimilator civic if the species is Cybernetic	All owned Pops of this species are fully integrated with the Machine Intelligence. Assuming direct control.
Bio-Trophy		Rogue Servitor civic Only option to organic species that are not Hive-Minded	Pops of this species are revered and cared for by the Machine Intelligence, freed from the burdens of responsibility and agency. Glory to organics.

Living standards[edit]

Living standards represents how economically favored a population is, for example whether or not they benefit from social welfare or have restrictions placed on their economic activity or what kinds of occupations they can be employed in. The higher the living standards of a Pop is, the more Consumer Goods it will use, but the happier it will be.

Changing the living standards of a species from Chemical Bliss to anything else will give that entire species a Withdrawal Symptoms modifier, which reduces its Happiness by -10% and its Resource Output by -20%.

Type	Ruler effects	Specialist effects	Worker effects	Slave effects	Unemployed effects	Requirements	Description
Chemical Bliss	1.0x Upkeep +40% Happiness -60% Job Output +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	1.0x Upkeep +40% Happiness -60% Job Output +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	1.0x Upkeep +40% Happiness -60% Job Output +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	1.0x Upkeep +40% Happiness -60% Job Output	-20% Happiness	Subdermal Stimulation technology	Entertainment media is made freely available as a drug regimen induces a euphoric stupor. The Pops are happy, but useless.
Academic Privilege	1.0x Upkeep +15% Happiness +10% Output +900% Political Power +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	1.0x Upkeep +15% Happiness +10% Output +400% Political Power +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	0.25x Upkeep +0.15 Trade Value per Pop	0.05x Upkeep	-20% Happiness	Materialist Shared Burdens	Academic Privilege prioritizes the educated Population, to the general benefit of the sciences.
Utopian Abundance	1.0x Upkeep +20% Happiness +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	1.0x Upkeep +20% Happiness +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	1.0x Upkeep +20% Happiness +0.4 Trade Value per Pop		+1 Unity +2 Research	Egalitarian	Utopian Abundance ensures that every member of this species has access to nearly any type of luxury conceivable.
Shared Burden	0.4x Upkeep +5% Happiness +0.2 Trade Value per Pop	0.4x Upkeep +5% Happiness +0.2 Trade Value per Pop	0.4x Upkeep +5% Happiness +0.2 Trade Value per Pop		+1 Unity -45% Stratum demotion time	Shared Burdens	Shared Burden ensures an equitable distribution of resources between all members of society. Pops demote Strata much more rapidly.
Stratified Economy	1.0x Upkeep +15% Happiness +900% Political Power +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	0.5x Upkeep +5% Happiness +100% Political Power +0.25 Trade Value per Pop	0.1x Upkeep -10% Happiness -25% Political Power +0.1 Trade Value per Pop	0x Upkeep -10% Happiness	-20% Happiness	Authoritarian	Stratified Economy prioritizes the ruling classes at the expense of the impoverished masses.
Social Welfare	1.0x Upkeep +10% Happiness +400% Political Power +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	0.5x Upkeep +10% Happiness +100% Political Power +0.25 Trade Value per Pop	0.5x Upkeep +10% Happiness +50% Political Power +0.25 Trade Value per Pop	0.1x Upkeep +10% Happiness	+1 Unity	Shared Burdens	Social Welfare strives to improve the lives of the poorer Stratas through generous social policies.
Decent Conditions	1.0x Upkeep +10% Happiness +700% Political Power +0.4 Trade Value per Pop	0.5x Upkeep +5% Happiness +100% Political Power +0.25 Trade Value per Pop	0.25x Upkeep +0.15 Trade Value per Pop	0.05x Upkeep	-20% Happiness	Shared Burdens	Decent Conditions ensures that most members of the species have what they need for an acceptable quality of life.
Basic Subsistence	0.5x Upkeep -5% Happiness +400% Political Power +0.25 Trade Value per Pop	0.25x Upkeep -10% Happiness -25% Political Power +0.15 Trade Value per Pop	0.05x Upkeep -20% Happiness -50% Political Power +0.05 Trade Value per Pop	0x Upkeep -10% Happiness	-20% Happiness	Shared Burdens Full Citizenship Rights	Basic Subsistence offers only the most essential of goods to the Pops of this species.
Servitude						Robotic species Servitude Artificial Intelligence Policy	The overriding purpose of any machine must be to serve its masters and perform whatever tasks it was designed for, regardless of how intelligent it may be.
Non-Existent						Undesirables Rights Purge is not Neutering or Displacement	This species is in the process of being purged, and Pops from it will have no Upkeep cost.
Drone						Hive Mind if species is Hive-Minded Machine Intelligence if species is robotic	While it may have little use for luxuries, a drone population still requires a great deal of resources to sustain itself.
Mandatory Pampering	1.0x Upkeep +40% Happiness				-80% Happiness	Bio-Trophy Citizenship	This living standard enshrines a small population of organic beings as display pieces, through relentless and unyielding pampering.
Hive Dissociation						Hive-Minded trait Assimilation Citizenship	This species is undergoing a difficult physiological separation from a Hive Mind.
Identity Sublimation	-50% Happiness					Hive Mind or Driven Assimilator Assimilation Citizenship	This species is becoming one with the unified mind.
Transubstantiation Synthesis	-25% Happiness					Cybernetic or Synthetic main species Assimilation Citizenship	This species is melding with the machine.
Transcendent Awakening	-25% Happiness					Psionic main species Assimilation Citizenship	This species is awakening to its psionic potential.

Military service[edit]

Military Service determines a species' right to join the police or military and whether or not they can become military leaders.

Type	Effects	Notes	Description
Full Military Service	Can produce Armies or take Soldier or Enforcer Jobs Can produce Admirals and Generals	Xenophobe if species is alien If Citizen Service, the species cannot have Residence, Slaves or Undesirables species rights Always on for the primary species	They are doubtlessly among the most competent in our armed forces.
Soldiers Only	Can produce Armies or take Soldier or Enforcer Jobs Cannot produce Admirals or Generals		They make excellent soldiers - but command is better left to others.
Exempt	Cannot produce Armies or take Soldier or Enforcer Jobs Cannot produce Admirals or Generals		They serve better away from the battlefield.

Colonization rights[edit]

Colonization Rights determines whether a species is allowed to board colony ships and settle new worlds.

Type	Description
Colonization Forbidden	In a vast sea of cold emptiness, a habitable world is the greatest treasure of all. Not all are worthy to seize it.
Colonization Allowed	Who are we to deny any species their place among the stars? Together we will drive back the darkness.

Population controls[edit]

Population Controls determines whether a species is allowed to reproduce enough to grow new Pops or only enough to ensure it will not die off.

Type	Happiness	Requirements	Description
Population Controls Enabled	-10%	Xenophile Allowed Population Controls Policy	Selective reproductive suppression fields are often referred to as the blunt instruments of demography.
No populations controls		Always on for primary species	A species that does not propagate itself is at an evolutionary dead end.

Migration controls[edit]

Migration controls determines whether a species is allowed to migrate. It applies both to migration between planets within the empire and migration to and from empires with a Migration Treaty.

Type	Requirement	Description
Migration Controls Enabled		The free flow of pops can allocate resources efficiently, but sometimes what is necessary is not efficient.
No Migration Controls	Species is not enslaved	Just as our primitive ancestors wandered in search of a home, every being must be free to seek its destiny among the stars.

Slavery type[edit]

The Slavery Type requires either a species to have the Slaves Citizenship or the empire to have the Slaver Guilds or Indentured Assets civic and determines how the enslaved pops will be used.

Type	Pop Effects	Open jobs	Requirements	Description
Chattel Slavery	+10% Resources from Jobs -30% Happiness	Worker jobs	Gestalt Consciousness	Chattel Slavery is the most common form of slavery in the galaxy. Whether for life or a limited time, unrestricted access to the labor of others is in some parts seen as a privilege with numerous counter-duties attached, and elsewhere considered a self-evident prerequisite for a functioning society.
Battle Thralls	-20% Happiness +20% Army Damage	Worker jobs Enforcer Soldier Duelist	Gestalt Consciousness	Battle thralls are weaponized serfs, often trained from birth in the martial arts and conditioned for absolute obedience. In exchange for unquestioning military service, they are granted much more autonomy than other slaves and can be employed in a greater variety of jobs.
Domestic Servitude	-20% Happiness	Worker jobs Entertainer Servant	Gestalt Consciousness	Domestic servants spend much of their time tending to the needs of free Pops - some are assigned to individual domiciles, while others tend to public spaces. They tend to live alongside their masters, and thus require almost no dedicated housing.
Indentured Servitude	-20% Happiness +50% Political Power	Worker jobs Specialist jobs (except Entertainer)	Gestalt Consciousness	They can theoretically pay off their debts and be freed, but their contracts are intentionally structured to make this a non-issue.
Livestock	-40% Happiness	Livestock	Xenophobe or Hive Mind	Livestock is Pops!
Grid Amalgamation	-40% Happiness	Grid Amalgamated	Machine Intelligence	Combined with a form of fusion, we have found all the energy we will ever need.

Purge type[edit]

Purging is where a species receives the Undesirables Citizenship and is then systematically exterminated from within the empire. The Purge Type determines how this is carried out in practice. A pop will be removed every time 100 Pop Decline Points are accumulated.

Pops being purged can produce resources based on the purge type, for as long as the Pop has the Undesirables Citizenship, not just when the Pop is being declined, meaning that a planet with a pop of Processing purge type will yield +6, while a planet with 2 of these pops will yield +12 in total, after all undesirable pops have been purged.

The Fanatic Purifiers civic gives +2 Unity for each Pop being purged while the Devouring Swarm civic gives +2 Society Research per Pop in addition to the resources said purge type may have.

Type	Monthly Decline Speed	Effects	Loss	Generates refugees	Requirements	Description
Displacement	-50 (2 months/pop)	Happiness −30% Pop Housing Usage −50%	no	100%	Genocidal empire Hive-Minded or Machine Unit species Cybernetic species if empire is Driven Assimilator Mechanical species, unless the Pops are sapient	It's not that we drive them from their homes. Their homes are simply no longer theirs.
Extermination	-200 (2 pops/month)	Happiness −1000%	yes	5%	Devouring Swarm	The extermination squads are efficient. The dissolution of entire populations naturally takes time, but they get the job done.
Neutering	-0.2 (500 months/pop)	Happiness −20%	no	0%	Gestalt Consciousness Hive-Minded species Robotic species	Think of it as a phasing-out of a people. Our nation goes to meet the future, only some will not be with us.
Forced Labor	-100 (1 month/pop)	Happiness −1000% Food +3 Minerals +3	yes	33%	Gestalt Consciousness Hive-Minded species Robotic species	With this final sacrifice, they will at least have been of some use.
Processing	-100 (1 month/pop)	Happiness −1000% Food +6 if species is organic Minerals +4 if species is Lithoid Alloys +3 if species is Robotic	yes	20%	Machine Intelligence Hive-Minded species Robotic species, unless empire is Devouring Swarm	It is a sad but inescapable fact that some are destined to simply fuel the ambitions of their betters.
Chemical Processing	-100 (1 months/pop)	Happiness −1000% Energy +6	yes	20%	Machine Intelligence Robotic species	They will soon attain a more efficient form.
Necrophage	-50 (2 months/pop)	Happiness −50% Purged Pops are changed to primary species	yes	10%	Necrophage origin	Only the strongest may survive in a hostile galaxy. This way their journey may continue.