Glossary
The words Galaxy Forge and this guide use, in the order you're likely to meet them.
Save
A .sav file of a campaign in progress. Edit a save to change the game you're playing. See Open a save or scenario.
Scenario
A galaxy map that a new game starts from instead of a random one. It is a .txt file in a mod's map/setup_scenarios folder. See What a scenario is.
Static galaxy
The game's own name for a scenario. The status bar calls an open scenario a "static galaxy scenario". See What a scenario is.
Paint a Galaxy
A Steam Workshop mod for playing hand-made galaxies. It fixes what goes wrong when the game loads one. Most scenarios are made for it. See Paint a Galaxy.
Initializer
A definition, from the game or a mod, of what a system spawns: its star, its planets and anything else the game places there. In a scenario you pick one for each system. See Initializers.
Spawn point
A system an empire can start on. Galaxy Forge also calls it a seat. See Spawn points.
1st Player seat
A seat on a Paint a Galaxy map for you, or for the host in multiplayer. See Spawn points.
Reserved seat
A seat on a Paint a Galaxy map kept for one specific empire. Seats A to Z and Alpha to Omega need the Reserved Spawns submod. See Spawn points.
Fallen empire zone
The ring on a Paint a Galaxy map where the mod builds a fallen empire on day one. See Fallen empires, marauders and L-Gates.
Marauder clan
A marauder home and two outposts, joined by hyperlanes. See Fallen empires, marauders and L-Gates.
L-Gate and L-Cluster
The L-Gate is a gate that leads to the L-Cluster, a hidden group of systems. In a save you can read and change what waits behind it. See Empires and the L-Gate.
Hyperlane
A lane that ships travel along between two systems. See Hyperlanes.
Component
A group of systems joined by hyperlanes and cut off from the rest. A galaxy with more than one component is split. The status bar counts them. See Join a split galaxy.
Bypass
Any way between systems that isn't a hyperlane: wormholes, gateways, the L-Gate and shroud tunnels. The Bypasses layer shows them. See Layers.
Wormhole pair
Two wormholes that link two systems. See Wormholes.
Gateway
A bypass that empires build or repair. Fleets can travel from one working gateway to any other. Galaxy Forge shows gateways but can't add or move them. See Layers.
Nebula
A cloud over a group of systems. See Nebulae.
System height
How far a system sits above or below the galaxy plane, in a save. See System heights.
Inner radius
The circle the system's hyperlane exits sit on. See Asteroid belts and the inner radius.
Galaxy core
The empty middle of the galaxy. Its core radius is set when you start a blank scenario, and the map draws it as a ring. Keep stars outside it. See Make a scenario.
Deposit
A planet's resources, such as minerals, energy or room for more districts. See Deposits and modifiers.
Blocker
A deposit that takes away districts until an empire clears it. See Deposits and modifiers.
Modifier
A planet feature or timed effect, such as being a terraforming candidate. See Deposits and modifiers.
Model
The field on a planet page that sets which art the game uses for a planet or moon, such as the Earth look. It doesn't change the class. See Planet pages.
Ironman
The game mode where the game keeps one save and writes it itself. The Open screen marks Ironman saves "⚿". I haven't tested them. See Go back to your campaign.
Steam Cloud
Steam's copy of your saves. It can put the original back over an edited save. See Steam Cloud.
Game data
The definitions, names and art Galaxy Forge reads from your Stellaris install and your enabled mods, such as star art, planet classes and initializers. See Game data and mods.
Playset
The list of mods you enable in the Paradox launcher. Galaxy Forge reads the mods in the playset Stellaris last started with. See Game data and mods.
Issues
Problems Galaxy Forge finds on the map, such as a system with no hyperlanes. The Issues tab lists them. See Issues.