I was thinking about the promised expansion pack for Stellar Monarch and decided to write first my views on expansion packs/DLCs in general. It is intended for Stellar Monarch’s expansion but it should apply to all my games I suppose, maybe with some exceptions/differences. So here it is, my policy on expansion packs.

The premise of an expansion pack is to extend the base game, not to fix it or make it playable. The base game comes first, it must stand on its own and be complete. Once that’s achieved an expansion can be introduced.

Rules of an expansion pack:

• expansion pack CAN NOT be a fix or balance related (it belongs to the base game)
• expansion pack CAN NOT be about improving interface (it belongs to the base game)
• it is possible for an expansion to introduce more complex mechanics for example concepts that I have decided to not include in the base game due to additional complexity (still it must be within reasonable limits, so the game with an expansions does not turn into a complex monster)
• it is possible for an expansion to include new content (races, audience events, technologies, etc)