The Sophons Are The Best Starter Race in Endless Space 2

If you ask experienced Endless Space 2 players what the easiest faction is for beginners, a majority recommend trying the intelligent Sophons first. With their simple but powerful fleets, research-focused traits and forgiving quest decisions, mastering the Sophons teaches you important skills for succeeding at ES2 without being too complex.

Why Pick the Sophons?

Straightforward ships and defenses: Sophons have the most newbie-friendly ship designs in ES2. Their vessels specialize in projectile weapons, shields and missiles, without the intricacies of deploying fighters, boarding pods and other micro-managed addons. Sophons also start with Shields doctrine unlocked, immediately bolstering fleet durability. This simplicity helps you learn basics of combat without overwhelming tactics.

Strongest end-game firepower: According to data analyzed on the Amplitude Studios forums, Sophons consistently have the highest damage output potential late-game once you research their entire military tech tree. By the time you unlock Mass Driver weapons, your Shield-heavy cruisers backed by long-range Beam defense platforms can decimate opponents.

Bonuses to science and dust: With innate traits that increase planetary science deposits and boost system dust yields, Sophons get help accelerating research and buying power early. This supports fast teching while funding ample colony and infrastructure growth.

Ideal Playstyle for Sophons

As a new Sophon commander, at first you can comfortably booster your core world infrastructure while teching up safely behind durable shield Defenses. Seek to colonize key systems on the outer edges of nearby minor civilizations to hem them in peacefully.

Once mass drivers and other late game technologies come online, you can rapidly expand while leveraging your research lead to overwhelm opponents with military pushes. This playstyle of early eco Booming backed by overwhelming late game force is accessible for newcomers yet also viable against veteran players.

Managing Faction Quest Decisions

All the ES2 races have a unique branching questline that unlocks permanent bonuses over the campaign. The Sophon‘s "Secrets of the Endless" story choices focus mainly on whether to share dangerous technologies or hide them away from the galaxy. Compared to races like the Vodyani or Hissho with complex quest management intertwined across many systems, the straightforward, mostly self-contained nature of the Sophon‘s quest makes it easier for beginners to follow.

While the Sophons do have overpowered weapon unlocks in their questline, you can‘t truly cripple yourself too badly since the defaults still yield solid damage output. So feel free to explore the narrative options without too much pressure as you learn.

When to Try Other Factions

Once you have a solid grip on Endless Space 2‘s core systems from mastering the versatile Sophons, branch out! The Lumeris can teach you offense-focused 4X conquest fueled by trade profits. Achievement hunters looking to tackle the tougher victory objectives may prefer the United Empire or Vodyani. And if you yearn for entirely fresh game mechanics unlike other space 4X titles, dive into the unique Vaulters, Umbral Choir or Nakalim factions.

But for new players wanting to learn ES2‘s fundamentals while still gaining end-game power, starting with Endless Space 2‘s shield-equipped knowledge-seekers in the Sophons can‘t be beat. Their combination of straightforward but dominant ships, economic bonuses and manageable quest puts you on the path to grasp this stellar 4X strategy game at your own pace.