War is fun and everything, but the galaxy in Stellaris is dangerous enough without everyone trying to kill each other all the time. Sometimes a bit of cooperation and friendship is what will save the day.
One such method of cooperation is the creation of the galactic market. The market is a shared pool of infinite resources that all the empires have access to, for a fee, of course.
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Creating this market should be early on the to-do list of any beginner galactic community. This guide will cover how to form the galactic market, how the galactic market works, and how to become the hub of the galactic market.
To get into the galactic market in Stellaris and to be a member, the galactic community must have been formed, you must be a member, and the galactic market resolution must have been passed on the Senate floor.
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How to get into the Galactic Market in Stellaris
While not available to every empire, members of the galactic community can form and be in the galactic market.
If formed, the galactic community holds a vote to see where the hub world of the market will be. That planet’s owner enjoys extra discounts when buying resources on the galactic market.
It is best to start at the beginning; for the galactic market to form, the galactic community first needs to exist. This will always happen, independent of any player input.
Around the end of the early game, you have explored a little chunk of the galaxy and met some other space empires.
A lot of these empires decide that if you are to cohabitate in the galaxy, then a community of empires is the best solution moving forward.
This galactic community will determine the laws, principles, and pecking order of the galaxy. Think of it like the Republic from the Star Wars prequel trilogy.
When the galactic community forms, every empire has a choice about whether to join or not. Genocidal empires refuse, of course. If you join, you get a say in the governance of the galaxy, and who doesn’t want that?
Empires in the community can pose resolutions, which are then voted on by every empire. If passed, the resolution becomes law, and every empire must abide by it.
One such resolution is the form galactic market decision. You can pose this resolution yourself, or another empire may try to do so.
The AI seldom opposes this decision, as it provides a free benefit for everyone. If it fails to pass, you can try again. Stack favors and improve your diplomatic weight to increase your voting power.
What is the Galactic Market
Before you reach this point in the game, you may have bought or sold resources on the market. Clicking on any resource icons on the interface opens up the market screen.
Only physical resources can be bought or sold on the market: minerals, food, etc.
The market is a shared, infinite pool of resources, and the prices of these resources work on a supply-and-demand system. The more you sell, the fewer credits they are worth. The more you buy, the greater the credit cost.
This market is available to all empires, regardless of ethics, civics, or galactic community membership. So, what does forming the galactic market do to this market?
Literally, nothing is the answer except for three minor things.
The first is that after passing the form of the galactic market resolution, all members of the community receive a ten thousand unit increase in their resource storage capacity.
The second is the opportunity to have the hub of the market in one of your home worlds. Having this reduces the market fee for using the market by 10%.
This happens through the birth of the galactic market event chain. Every member of the community will be able to make their case for being the market hub.
The final change is that the slave market will now open. If your empire is into that sort of thing, great; if not, you can ban the selling of slaves by passing a resolution.
Other than that, the market remains the same as it always was before the resolution passed.
How to become the Host of the Galactic Market
You want to be the host for the market to enjoy that sweet discount on the market fees. Over the course of a full game, that discount will stack up.
If you are successful in your bid to host, it does not get taken from you unless you lose control of that planet through war.
Unlucky for us the process of becoming the host is semi-random, but there are ways to mitigate this luck factor.
After the galactic market resolution passes, every empire will be able to nominate a planet of theirs to be the host. It will cost 1000 energy and 150 influence to nominate a planet, and you can only nominate one.
A planet nominated receives a candidate status of weak, adequate, or high. The greater the planet’s trade value, the better chance it has of receiving a higher rating.
You can pay to boost whatever rating you get twice. Doing so will cost 2000 energy and 300 influence each time. It can end with a higher than a strong rating, too.
After five years, the game will close nominations, perform some dice rolls, and do some confusing math too. I won’t cover the math here because it is very convoluted, and it is easier to explain without going into detail.
Suffice to say, the higher your planet’s trade value and the higher you boost its rating, the better chance you have at becoming the host.
After the math is done, the game will send you a notification telling you whether you were successful in your bid. If you were, your empire now pays 10% less in market fees when doing business on the galactic market.
If unsuccessful in your nomination, you can take steps to get another chance if your empire isn’t above a bit of bloodshed.
Taking over the galactic market hub planet, either through invasion or destruction, will remove its designation and start the five-year nomination cycle over again.
Be sure you are not in breach of galactic law by carrying out invasions such as that.
This is everything you need to know about how to form the galactic market in Stellaris.
If you have any questions or suggestions for this guide, please let us know in the comments section below. As always, have fun creating the galactic market in Stellaris.
