I really really REALLY hope they get added as a Major Faction eventually. They along with the Amoeba and Harmony were  my most played factions.

I loved their visual theme, their eco-friendly industrial culture, their "live on ringworlds/big ships so that planets can be developed into sanctuaries" vibe.

I would love to play them again too, plus we still don't have a mechanical playable faction (Riftborn doesn't count, they are special). But I don't have big hope. With the exception on the Vaulters who have a privilegied place as the linking race of the games, I think every new faction will be created to represent the new gameplay elements introduced in their expansion. The same way an espionage faction is created for the next espionage expansion. What game-changing elements could be represented by the Automatons? 

The Automatons would make a pretty good single-system or limited-expansion faction.

They've inherited this planet and carefully curated it, and are described as both lovers of nature and developers of immense industrial capacity. They're relatively insular lorewise and not aggressive or expansionistic. Their occupation of stations around their planet suggests a desire to build upwards rather than outwards. This is also supported by their faction traits, such as bonuses to trade, defence and the ability to stockpile industry. Their ability to build orbitals could be worked into a repeatable improvement on population space, and I can imagine them employing SKyfin-like prospector units that roam around and exploit resource deposits.

We could sure use another another Political Ideology - Ecologists race.

Automatons could fit that niche quite nicely.

Have they been mentioned in lore anywhere so far besides ES1?

I can't help but feel tht they are stuck in some sort of limbo along with the Dust Collective.

After introduction of untold tales and lost symphony, we are left with only one original faction that is not in the game, The Automatons, Neither as minor or major faction. With last two dlc's we got two of original factions as minor ones, which makes me think why didn't they also add Automatons, instead of one of the new minor factions. Is Amplitude planning to make them fancy major faction? Or did they just forgot about them? What do you think?  

Please Amplitude for the love of god, you already took my Harmony and Hissho, please don't take away my Automatons as well. Let them be a major faction!

#Automatons for major faction 2018

Automatons' gameplay feature in Endless Space 1 was deferred use of Industry (collecting industry as semimanufactures, investing it, getting defensive bonuses from excess industry, then building something huge in 1 turn). IMHO it could be adopted & developed in Endless space 2 in combination with new features of ES2, for example:

1. Automaton's system with spaceport could transfer Industry points instead of population to another system (probably with penalty for balance, we put 100 Industry points in civilian ship, recipient system gets 75 Industry - due to fuel costs maybe). Recipient system could be developing colony or we just want to avoid overflow of Industry reserve.
2. For Automatons instant refill of recruits requires stored Industry as well as 1 population, but number of received recruits is increased.
3. Planetary warfare tactics based on stocked Industry.
4. Usage of stocked Industry to manipulate elections.
5. Additional bonuses from luxury resources to Industry stock size of system upgraded using this resource.
6. Like Horatio have unique ecologist laws, Automatons could have unique industrialist laws which increases Industry stock size or percent of invested industry growth.
7. Purchase of trading ships with stocked Industry of system where trading company HQ is located instead of dust.

I think Automatons could be good major faction. At least they could be minor faction, in this case assimilating empire could get ability to stock Industry.

I think they would make a great Ecologist faction with bonuses to industry and population slots.

TeddyTi wrote:

I would love to play them again too, plus we still don't have a mechanical playable faction (Riftborn doesn't count, they are special). But I don't have big hope. With the exception on the Vaulters who have a privilegied place as the linking race of the games, I think every new faction will be created to represent the new gameplay elements introduced in their expansion. The same way an espionage faction is created for the next espionage expansion. What game-changing elements could be represented by the Automatons? 

They could be released with a dlc that introduces static defenses like space stations and such. Like the Sea Forts in Endless Legend they could be good at building stations and putting improvements on them.

Yup. I'd go full on craver on somebody for this. Space Castles PLZ?

Let me also cast my vote in favor of the returning of the Automatons.

They could add so much to the game.

While I'd love to have Space Platforms to construct, I prefer the idea of adding actual ecology as a mechanic, with pollution and ecological restoration. I have an idea for one half of that here, and the perfect counterpoint would be if Industry did the opposite, slowly terraforming a planet back towards more barren planet types, possibly with some sort of threshold so it doesn't happen from a small amount of Industry.

Then the Automatons can used their stored industry as a way to still have industry and be highly industrial, but not harm their planets in the process.

I also imagine that their combined focus would maybe make them our very first mixed-politics Major Population, with Ecologist as their primary and Industrialist as their secondary!

Automatons were a favorite faction of mine in Endless Space 1- I was surprised and disappointed they haven't made it in at least as a minor faction by now. The Epistis are very similar to the Automatons, which along with the Unfallen make me pessimistic we'll see them, which is a real shame. 

There is a chance the Automatons could be the next faction to be added after the Umbral Choir since the game lacks a second Ecologist faction... but then again, the Amoeba and Harmony could also fit that bill and the later is probably the third most popular ES faction with the playerbase.

UndeadPuppy wrote:

There is a chance the Automatons could be the next faction to be added after the Umbral Choir since the game lacks a second Ecologist faction... but then again, the Amoeba and Harmony could also fit that bill and the later is probably the third most popular ES faction with the playerbase.

Sowers could solidly be an ecologist faction as well. and nothing is preventing the devs from upgrading them straight from mino to major.

I posted a thread a little while ago about the Automatons, but I'll repeat what I said here as well.

The Umbral Choir is currently in the works and the next major faction to come to Endless Space 2. Typically these expansion also come with a minor faction. I would love to see the Automatons come to the game along side this expansion as a minor race. 

It would also be a nice note that a fan voted race in ES2 is introduced along side a fan voted race from ES1.