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How do you use the quantum catapult in Stellaris?

How to use the quantum catapult in Stellaris is more complicated than it might seem, especially if you don’t want to waste your hard-won Alloy. The catapult is one of the best late-game structures, though it comes with a few risks. Using it means giving up one of your fleets for a while, and there’s no guarantee they’ll end up where you want them to anyway.

How do you build the quantum catapult?

The quantum catapult is a late-game megastructure in most cases, though the new Slingshot to the Stars Origin lets you have it right away. You can only choose to build a quantum catapult around a pulsar, and it costs 300 influence and 5,000 Alloy to construct the basic catapult. You’ll need quite a bit more for future upgrades, but it’s definitely worth the resources. The base-level catapult has a high chance of depositing your fleet in the wrong area, and it takes much longer for the process to finish.

Since the catapult’s range is limited initially, it’s best to place them in a fairly central location, if possible. That way, you can still maximize the advantage they offer without having to spend so much Alloy up front.

Using the catapult involves a few steps. Put your desired fleet in the catapult, select it, then open the galaxy view. Click the "Catapult Fleet" option from the icon bar. It’s near the jump drive option, second in from the right, though it can be difficult to see given how small the icons are.

Once you’ve clicked it, a new screen opens, showing a broad view of the galaxy with a large circle. The circle is your catapult’s general range, which increases at higher upgrade tiers. Green means the location is within the catapult’s current capabilities, and red is a no go. Make sure to pay attention to the whole circle during your planning, since the end location can be anywhere in it – not just in the center.

Also note how long it will take for the process to complete. At the basic tier, you’ll lose access to that fleet for several days.

While you’re off building megastructures in Stellaris , don’t neglect your vassals. Make them too unhappy, and they might forge a Secret Fealty pact with one of your enemies.

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Stellaris quantum catapult guide - how do you build and use the quantum catapult.

Stellaris has been going strong for years, but with each new expansion, there’s a whole new set of mechanics that you’ll have to adapt to.

Quantum Catapults were added to the game in the Overlord DLC , but what are they and how do you use them?

Stellaris Quantum Catapult Uses

Quantum Catapults use the power of a star to fling your fleets across the vast emptiness of space, but not just any star will do. The Catapults can only be built in systems with a Neutron or Pulsar star. They, unlike many other Megastructures, can only be built around the star itself.

In many ways, this makes them less useful than the more traditional end-game Gateway network. They take longer for the fleet to arrive at its destination as the fleet enters a missing state until it emerges into real space. Quantum Catapults also suffer from a lack of accuracy, with the fleet essentially being shotgunned across the galaxy.

However, the Catapult has one overriding benefit. It allows fleets to be sent far beyond your borders or into systems where you may not have built an expensive Gateway. In short, you only need one Catapult. Before you can build one though, you need to complete both the Quantum Catapult and Mega Engineering research projects.

If you start your game with a Slingshot to the Stars empire, you will have a dormant Catapult in the home system. Restoring this grants Quantum Catapult research, but you will still need to research Mega Engineering to improve it. If you don’t start with the dormant Catapult but come across one later in your game, you can also restore it, but remember that this requires the Mega Engineering tech.

Improving the Quantum Catapult will confer benefits to Missing in Action time, range, and accuracy. But it should be noted that at higher tiers, constructed Catapults are better than those that have been restored, having a -25%/-50% windup time at stages 2 and 3.

Once you have the Quantum Catapult online, using it is easy. Simply move a fleet into the system with the Catapult - anywhere will do - and click the Catapult Fleet icon in the Fleet Manager window.

This produces a targeting cursor which you can use to designate a target for your fleet. If the target is valid it will turn green, and then you just click and keep your fingers crossed that they appear in the correct place.

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The galaxy is full of mysteries in Stellaris , ranging from the benign to the apocalyptic. In order to steer their fledgling civilization safely across the stars, players will need to constantly develop new technologies to allow them to reach further and faster. However, sooner or later, all explorers and colonizers in Stellaris will eventually run up against a major obstacle, whether it's a hostile empire, a terrifying guardian, or simply a gulf of empty space.

Fortunately, Stellaris ' Overlord DLC introduced a new Megastructure that can allow players to bypass any obstacle and continue exploring and spreading their empire into new Systems. The Quantum Catapult is one of the cheapest Megastructures to build in Stellaris , but players will still need an advanced empire to research it.

RELATED: Stellaris: How to Build a Holding

How to Build a Quantum Catapult in Stellaris

Like most of the Megastructures in Stellaris , the Quantum Catapult cannot be researched until players have completed the Mega-Engineering tech, which in turn requires Zero Point Power, Battleships, and Citadels. Both Mega-Engineering and Quantum Catapults are rare techs, which means that they have a low chance of appearing in Stellaris ' semi-random tech tree unless the player has ruined Megastructures or a large amount of Citadels within their territory.

Once researched, players can use a Construction Ship to build a Quantum Catapult Site in any System that contains a pulsar or neutron star for the cost of 5,000 Alloys and 300 of Stellaris ' all-important Influence . Once the Site is completed, players can upgrade it through four stages, each of which costs 10,000 Alloys. At each stage, the Quantum Catapult will become more accurate and more efficient, allowing players to launch their fleets further and faster across the galaxy.

Alternatively, players who chose the Slingshot to the Stars Stellaris Origin will start the game with a ruined Quantum Catapult in an adjacent System, and can repair it without needing the Mega-Engineering tech. This is the best way to get a functional Quantum Catapult in the early game, allowing players to spread their Empire far without having to reach Mega-Engineering.

How to Use a Quantum Catapult in Stellaris

Once players have constructed a Quantum Catapult Megastructure in Stellaris , they'll be able to use it to launch their fleets or ships to distant star systems , ignoring the normal Hyperlane network. This is done by selecting a fleet in the same System as the Quantum Catapult, and then pressing the new button in the fleet UI to the right of the Jump icon.

Although this propulsion method works a little like a Jump Drive, it comes with a few provisors. The most notable is that the further a Quantum Catapult sends a fleet, the less accurate their launch will be. This can lead to fleets landing in adjacent Systems, or even Systems several jumps away from their intended target. The potential spread of a Quantum Catapult launch is shown by the circular reticle when choosing a target system.

Once a target system has been selected, the Quantum Catapult will take a short time to wind up and then launch the fleet. Based on the level of the Quantum Catapult, the launch wind-up will take longer, and it will also take longer for the fleet to actually arrive at their destination. Once a fleet arrives, they'll receive a +33% fire-rate bonus for 4 months , making the Quantum Catapult a useful tool for surprise attacks to take enemy home worlds .

Stellaris is currently available on PC, macOS, PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

MORE: Stellaris: How to Form a Mercenary Enclave

How To Use Quantum Catapult In Stellaris

Find out how to use these cosmic slingshot machines to transport your fleets.

Stellaris is a grand-strategy MMO game that involves space exploration of a technologically superior species in a race to conquer the galaxy. This cosmic sandbox game allows players to interact, explore, research, and formulate a strategy for expanding their galactic empire. Transportation being an important part of the cosmic colonization, the game offers you a number of options. Jump Drives are one of the first methods players can use to travel but you soon realize they are not enough. Quantum Catapults are slingshot megastructures that warp space-time to launch your fleet as much as 5 times the distance covered by Jump Drives. So in this guide, we will discuss how you can use Quantum Catapults in Stellaris.

How to Use Quantum Catapults in Stellaris

Firstly, you need to launch the game with the Overlords DLC in which they were introduced. Now although Slingshot to the Stars Origin gives it to you from the get-go, you can also choose to build a Quantum Catapult around a Neutron Star (Pulsar) for 300 Influence and 5000 Alloys. This will be a basic catapult that can be later upgraded for more accurate launches. This is because Quantum Catapults, although better than some other FTL options, still just launches your troops in a general direction near your desired destination.

In order to use these megastructures, follow the steps below:

• Select the fleets you wish to launch and plant them in the same star system as your Catapult
• Now, open the Galaxy View and click on the Catapult icon on the bottom left bar.
• You should now see a wider map and a circle to mark the ‘throwing range’ of the catapult. This range can be extended with upgraded catapults.
• Select your desired destination somewhere in the general direction of where you wish to catapult your fleets.
• After a brief charge period, the Quantum Catapult will launch your fleet.

You should also remember to be cautious while using Quantum Catapults to launch your fleets. This is because they are not accurate and sometimes it may end up launching your fleet into a territory with closed borders causing your fleet to go MIA immediately.

That is all there is to using Quantum Catapults in Stellaris. If you found this article helpful check out our other Stellaris guides on GamerTweak.

Kevin is a novel contributor who loves to write about gaming, still in college Kevin always hunts down what is new in the gaming world.  In one line he is a "Resident Gamer" who can and most likely will talk about all trivial things in video games.  You can reach me at [email protected]

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Stellaris How To Use The Quantum Catapult

The Overlord DLC added Quantum Catapults to the game. How do you use them? How do you gain access to them? Are there any advantages to having one? Read on!

To use a Quantum Catapult first move your fleets into the same system as the Quantum Catapult. Go to Galaxy View and select your fleets. A targeting reticule appears. Place it where you want your fleet to go and if it’s green, click on the destination. After a warm-up period the Catapult will “slingshot” your fleets, hopefully somewhat close to the intended destination.

Stellaris Quantum Catapult

A Quantum Catapult “slingshots” fleets across the galaxy by harnessing the power of a star. You don’t need to enter it with your fleets (you can’t anyway), all your fleets need to do to use it is to be in the same system as the catapult. Just click the Catapult Fleet icon at the top of the fleet screen to use it. It’s probably easier go to the Galaxy View and then click the Catapult Fleet icon at the top of the fleet manager. After clicking the Catapult fleet icon, a targeting reticle will appear, a green reticle means everything is ok. Click on the destination and your fleets will on their way shortly after a brief warm-up time for the Quantum Catapult has elapsed.

When you own hyper relays a Quantum Catapult reduces the time spent by a fleet while Missing in Action by a certain percentage depending on the stage of the Catapult.

What Are The Requirements For Building A Quantum Catapult?

First you must have Maga Engineering technology unlocked and have the ability to build Battleships. After you unlock Mega Engineering, you’ll need to unlock the Quantum Catapult technology when it becomes available.

If you want to have a Quantum Catapult in the early game, then select the Slingshot to the Stars origin when starting a new game. This guarantees that a ruined one will be in a system close by, plus you’ll have the technology to fix it and use it. Another advantage to this origin is that Starbases can be built for 75% less in Influence, a significant reduction. You’ll still need Mega Engineering unlocked to improve the Quantum Catapult.

Since a Quantum Catapult needs an immense amount of power it harnesses the power of a star, and not just any star. It can only be built in a system with either a Pulsar or Neutron Star. Also, it cannot share the system with another Megastructure like a Mega Shipyard.

Quantum Catapult Stages (Not Ruined)

A Quantum Catapult has 3 stages, with each higher stage providing more range, shorter warm-up times, better accuracy, and less time fleets spend Missing in Action.

• It takes a Construction ship to build the site
• Building the site takes 5 years
• Cost is 375 Influence (not Unity) and 6,250 Alloys.
• Upkeep Costs are 5 Energy Credits per month
• Upgrading to stage 1 takes 5 years (no construction ship needed)
• Cost is 12,500 Alloys.
• Upkeep Costs are 10 Energy Credits per month
• 10% reduction in Missing in Action time (if you have Hyper Relays)
• Upgrading to stage 2 takes 5 years (no construction ship needed)
• Upkeep Costs are 20 Energy Credits per month
• 20% reduction in Missing in Action time (if you have Hyper Relays)
• 25% reduction in Catapult warm-up time
• Longer range than stage 1
• Better accuracy than stage 1 (the longer the distance to target the less accurate the targeting becomes)
• Upgrading to stage 3 takes 5 years (no construction ship needed)
• Upkeep Costs are 30 Energy Credits per month
• 30% reduction in Missing in Action time (if you have Hyper Relays)
• 50% reduction in Catapult warm-up time
• Longer range than stage 2
• Better accuracy than stage 2 (the longer the distance to target the less accurate the targeting becomes)

Ruined Quantum Catapult Stages

• Takes 10 Years to restore a Quantum Catapult
• Cost is 2,500 Alloys
• Takes 10 Years to improve a Quantum Catapult
• Cost is 15,000 Alloys
• Upkeep Costs are 40 Energy Credits per month

Is the Quantum Catapult Useful?

Yes. One use could be for bypassing an empire with closed borders that you aren’t at war with so you can attack another one. Accuracy is the biggest problem. Fleets will be scattered when they arrive, making them easy targets if you need the strength of several fleets together to survive and win. If some fleets happen to end up in an empire with closed borders they will immediately warp back home, leaving your remaining fleets possibly exposed due to reduced firepower.

Another use is if a crisis emerges in a distant part of the galaxy, you can get some fleets into the area to help our besieged allies although fleets will still be scattered upon arrival.

A good method to counter the scattering of the Quantum Catapult is Jump Drives or Psi Drives. Jump drives “tear ship-sized holes” in space, provided almost immediate travel between systems although the range is limited. By using jump drives you can quickly reassemble your fleets and prepare for battle.

Stellaris Hyper Relays

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Since I mentioned Hyper Relays in this article, they’re worth a brief mention. Hyper Relays can be constructed after unlocking the Hyper Relay technology. When a network of Hyper Relays is constructed, it enables fleets to travel almost instantly from one sector to another. They’re great for rushing fleets to troubled areas in your empire and if you have an open borders treaty with another empire you can use theirs for travel as well. They take a year to construct and cost 25 Influence, 500 Alloys and 100 Rare Crystals. They can be built in systems with wormholes and gateways, making them an efficient network for getting fleets to remote parts of the Galaxy fast. The drawback is that you need to control both ends of the network, something you don’t have to worry about with a Quantum Catapult.

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Quantum Catapult precision is very troublesome

• Thread starter DanielPrates
• Start date May 23, 2022

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DanielPrates

Lt. general.

• May 23, 2022
• Add bookmark

Finished a QC. Even in the final stage, it is very very imprecise, to a point that it feels just bad game balance. I get that something so powerful should have drawbacks but as it is... I am playing a small galaxy and even so the thing feels next to useless. Are there techs that improve it's precision, little by little? That would be a decent end-game repeatable tech; at least you could invest in improving the thing's usefulness. Lesson learn'd: always build it as close to the galaxy core as possible.  

Here it is on the wiki. It doesn't seem to mention anything about upgrades, beyond the typical megastructure ones. I guess it's a balance thing. But I haven't built one yet so I'm not sure how inaccurate it is. If it were too accurate, however, then you could just sneak up on your enemy's capital or snipe their fleets.  

Northernwwater

PDX said it was supposed to be inaccurate. It warns you about possible inaccuracies and the consequences. If it was precise then we wouldn't need gateways and relays. If it was accurate then distance would be meaningless in the game.  

First Lieutenant

It’s just useless big toy.  

I wouldn't say it's useless. It's exactly good for the thing mentioned by paradox: If you have a crisis spawn on the other side of the galaxy or want to bring your fleet near a target on the other side of the galaxy, this is very useful. It reduces the travel time by a huge amount, even if you have a galaxy spanning hyper relay network. The only thing that's maybe more efficient are gateways in comparable distance to your target or even closer. The QC is not meant for a precise strike against another empire. It's a reaction tool if you/your galaxy is in trouble. So i think it's fine.  

Second Lieutenant

I guess many people forgot that jump drives exist. -> catapult all your fleets and armies to target area. -> wait for them to scatter around at target area. -> select all, use jump drive to central system -> wait for jump drive to spool up and ships to jump -> have your entire navy and armies at one system and start to obliterate enemies. In stellaris, you cant just look at things independently and say "Oh, this is overpowered/underpowered". You have to look at things combined. And in this case, i would argue heavily that there is a end game technology which lets you reduce the scatter of your catapult. Its called jump drive technology and psi jump drive technology.  

Speaking of the Catapult, is there any image which would show the range of the catapult? Especially interested about Huge galaxy and if a ~central catapult can reach most of the galaxy.  

Guys you are all correct of course - I said it myself that it needs a handicap for obvious reasons. Still, isnt it too much? See I am playing a small galaxy, my QC sits halfway between the edge and core of the galaxy, and a mere half-galaxy away the scatter is almost the size of a whole galactic quadrant! That's just too much. The QC should be a liability, but not something you will eventually never use.  

DanielPrates said: Guys you are all correct of course - I said it myself that it needs a handicap for obvious reasons. Still, isnt it too much? See I am playing a small galaxy, my QC sits halfway between the edge and core of the galaxy, and a mere half-galaxy away the scatter is almost the size of a whole galactic quadrant! That's just too much. The QC should be a liability, but not something you will eventually never use. Click to expand...

I don't think QC should ever be accurate tbh. Think about it, this thing can bypass everything that the enemy prepare to face you and with no debuff whatsoever like jumpdrive too. So making it inaccurate seem like a clear balance design for me. If you want more accurate jump? Jumpdrive is there for you with another drawback that you need to workaround instead.  

the catapult is one the best megastructure in game. It's not imbalanced, but more like ppl said if the catapult was too accurate what's the point of the gateways, wormholes then? and if too accurate would be just cheating to the player to reach enemy territory and just steamroll them I think is perfect the way its, it isn't that innacurate or accurate. It serves its purpose and avoid player cheat win sniper his enemies. Specially on large galaxy 1k starts. The range is limited so you can just jump of one point to another  

Field Marshal

DanielPrates said: I am playing a small galaxy Click to expand...

Serenity84 said: I guess the accuracy could scale a bit with the galaxy size. Click to expand...

If the scale of accuracy is not different for different sizes of galaxy, well, I don't understand a notion of "I am playing a small galaxy and even so the thing feels next to useless.". The smaller the galaxy is, the less useful is the stuff reducing speed of movement within it. To clarify: if I have a choice between making ten jumps or collect scatter fleet for ten jumps, then, of course, QC is useless; but what if I would need to make, like, 25 jumps through two big empires who hate my guts, and are larger then I can jump over?  

dannazgui said: I think is perfect the way its, it isn't that innacurate or accurate. It serves its purpose and avoid player cheat win sniper his enemies. Click to expand...

A Groundbreaking Scientific Discovery Just Gave Humanity the Keys to Interstellar Travel

In a first, this warp drive actually obeys the laws of physics.

If a superluminal—meaning faster than the speed of light—warp drive like Alcubierre’s worked, it would revolutionize humanity’s endeavors across the universe , allowing us, perhaps, to reach Alpha Centauri, our closest star system, in days or weeks even though it’s four light years away.

However, the Alcubierre drive has a glaring problem: the force behind its operation, called “negative energy,” involves exotic particles—hypothetical matter that, as far as we know, doesn’t exist in our universe. Described only in mathematical terms, exotic particles act in unexpected ways, like having negative mass and working in opposition to gravity (in fact, it has “anti-gravity”). For the past 30 years, scientists have been publishing research that chips away at the inherent hurdles to light speed revealed in Alcubierre’s foundational 1994 article published in the peer-reviewed journal Classical and Quantum Gravity .

Now, researchers at the New York City-based think tank Applied Physics believe they’ve found a creative new approach to solving the warp drive’s fundamental roadblock. Along with colleagues from other institutions, the team envisioned a “positive energy” system that doesn’t violate the known laws of physics . It’s a game-changer, say two of the study’s authors: Gianni Martire, CEO of Applied Physics, and Jared Fuchs, Ph.D., a senior scientist there. Their work, also published in Classical and Quantum Gravity in late April, could be the first chapter in the manual for interstellar spaceflight.

POSITIVE ENERGY MAKES all the difference. Imagine you are an astronaut in space, pushing a tennis ball away from you. Instead of moving away, the ball pushes back, to the point that it would “take your hand off” if you applied enough pushing force, Martire tells Popular Mechanics . That’s a sign of negative energy, and, though the Alcubierre drive design requires it, there’s no way to harness it.

Instead, regular old positive energy is more feasible for constructing the “ warp bubble .” As its name suggests, it’s a spherical structure that surrounds and encloses space for a passenger ship using a shell of regular—but incredibly dense—matter. The bubble propels the spaceship using the powerful gravity of the shell, but without causing the passengers to feel any acceleration. “An elevator ride would be more eventful,” Martire says.

That’s because the density of the shell, as well as the pressure it exerts on the interior, is controlled carefully, Fuchs tells Popular Mechanics . Nothing can travel faster than the speed of light, according to the gravity-bound principles of Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity . So the bubble is designed such that observers within their local spacetime environment—inside the bubble—experience normal movement in time. Simultaneously, the bubble itself compresses the spacetime in front of the ship and expands it behind the ship, ferrying itself and the contained craft incredibly fast. The walls of the bubble generate the necessary momentum, akin to the momentum of balls rolling, Fuchs explains. “It’s the movement of the matter in the walls that actually creates the effect for passengers on the inside.”

Building on its 2021 paper published in Classical and Quantum Gravity —which details the same researchers’ earlier work on physical warp drives—the team was able to model the complexity of the system using its own computational program, Warp Factory. This toolkit for modeling warp drive spacetimes allows researchers to evaluate Einstein’s field equations and compute the energy conditions required for various warp drive geometries. Anyone can download and use it for free . These experiments led to what Fuchs calls a mini model, the first general model of a positive-energy warp drive. Their past work also demonstrated that the amount of energy a warp bubble requires depends on the shape of the bubble; for example, the flatter the bubble in the direction of travel, the less energy it needs.

THIS LATEST ADVANCEMENT suggests fresh possibilities for studying warp travel design, Erik Lentz, Ph.D., tells Popular Mechanics . In his current position as a staff physicist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington, Lentz contributes to research on dark matter detection and quantum information science research. His independent research in warp drive theory also aims to be grounded in conventional physics while reimagining the shape of warped space. The topic needs to overcome many practical hurdles, he says.

Controlling warp bubbles requires a great deal of coordination because they involve enormous amounts of matter and energy to keep the passengers safe and with a similar passage of time as the destination. “We could just as well engineer spacetime where time passes much differently inside [the passenger compartment] than outside. We could miss our appointment at Proxima Centauri if we aren’t careful,” Lentz says. “That is still a risk if we are traveling less than the speed of light.” Communication between people inside the bubble and outside could also become distorted as it passes through the curvature of warped space, he adds.

While Applied Physics’ current solution requires a warp drive that travels below the speed of light, the model still needs to plug in a mass equivalent to about two Jupiters. Otherwise, it will never achieve the gravitational force and momentum high enough to cause a meaningful warp effect. But no one knows what the source of this mass could be—not yet, at least. Some research suggests that if we could somehow harness dark matter , we could use it for light-speed travel, but Fuchs and Martire are doubtful, since it’s currently a big mystery (and an exotic particle).

Despite the many problems scientists still need to solve to build a working warp drive, the Applied Physics team claims its model should eventually get closer to light speed. And even if a feasible model remains below the speed of light, it’s a vast improvement over today’s technology. For example, traveling at even half the speed of light to Alpha Centauri would take nine years. In stark contrast, our fastest spacecraft, Voyager 1—currently traveling at 38,000 miles per hour—would take 75,000 years to reach our closest neighboring star system.

Of course, as you approach the actual speed of light, things get truly weird, according to the principles of Einstein’s special relativity . The mass of an object moving faster and faster would increase infinitely, eventually requiring an infinite amount of energy to maintain its speed.

“That’s the chief limitation and key challenge we have to overcome—how can we have all this matter in our [bubble], but not at such a scale that we can never even put it together?” Martire says. It’s possible the answer lies in condensed matter physics, he adds. This branch of physics deals particularly with the forces between atoms and electrons in matter. It has already proven fundamental to several of our current technologies, such as transistors, solid-state lasers, and magnetic storage media.

The other big issue is that current models allow a stable warp bubble, but only for a constant velocity. Scientists still need to figure out how to design an initial acceleration. On the other end of the journey, how will the ship slow down and stop? “It’s like trying to grasp the automobile for the first time,” Martire says. “We don’t have an engine just yet, but we see the light at the end of the tunnel.” Warp drive technology is at the stage of 1882 car technology, he says: when automobile travel was possible, but it still looked like a hard, hard problem.

The Applied Physics team believes future innovations in warp travel are inevitable. The general positive energy model is a first step. Besides, you don’t need to zoom at light speed to achieve distances that today are just a dream, Martire says. “Humanity is officially, mathematically, on an interstellar track.”

Before joining Popular Mechanics , Manasee Wagh worked as a newspaper reporter, a science journalist, a tech writer, and a computer engineer. She’s always looking for ways to combine the three greatest joys in her life: science, travel, and food.

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