What are your starter dupes and skills?

[minespatch]

I prefer using Stinky, Max, and Otto as my starter dupes while Research, architect, and miner for the jobs I want. New due to the roguelike nature of the game, the order of which of my chosen dupes don't have the same jobs but I like these starter jobs to hurry my way through the game.

What are your choices of starter dupes and jobs?

[cpy]

I just pick my starters dupe at random but only make sure they dont fart or snore or fall asleep randomly etc etc.

[wronny]

Traits: Quick Learner and some non-impactful negative trait.

A Scientist with Research as only interest (+7 Science). The other two depend on the asteroid and the game settings. Generally a Digger (+7 Excavation) and a Gopher (+7 Athletics), on some asteroids the gopher gets replaced with a 2nd digger or a 2nd researcher.

[isendel11]

I usually start with a +7 researcher, +7 digger and either +7 builder or a farmer+rancher, depending on how I feel. Having a farmer early game helps getting more seeds if I plan to farm something unusual, but it's not really necessary. I rush ranching very early though, so having farming on the rancher helps getting the morale bonus.

This being said, for my new colony upon release I will probably change my strategy a little and try to have research on every starting dupe, so something like +7 researcher, +3 +3 researcher/digger, +1+1+1 researcher/farmer/rancher or +3+3 researcher/builder. I noticed that in 300 cycles my researcher dupe (20 science) skilled up the other skills way way faster than anyone else, so now I try to have the 3 research skills on everybody.

As for negative traits, aside for avoiding the obvious ones, I also try to avoid as much as possible (definitely on the starting dupes, on all the others unless they're exactly what I'm looking for) the no research, no dig, no build traits since they severely limit the usefulness of a dupe outside of his/her main task

[Yoma_Nosme]

I am more after the right combination of interests.

For example. Research and supply are great together because of the exo suite and later space training 

I even spread around the research time. I don't like 1 super smart dupe and the rest beeing dummies 

In my colony (Almost) every dupes gets to attend ''school'' for a few research points in their c.v....sure its not the fastest way and needs some micromanagement but I am for equality (to a certain degree) and it makes me happy to have like 5-8 dupes in the end with 4-5 learning skill and 1 or 2 brainy dudes that fly to space

[metallichydra]

researcher (+7)

digger(+3) + builder (+3)

farmer / supplier and tidier

[Lurve]

Dupe Nye the science guy: +7 Research if I need to rush something, else +3 research and +3 suit wearing, to transition to astronaut.

Diggy diggy dupe: +3 mining/+3 building.  Is so much faster at early-game construction than someone who has to team up.

And also Bob: cook/farming, farming/ranching, ranching/supply, supply/operate... some kind of decent late-game role that has something early game to make them useful.

Traits: diver's lungs and twinkletoes are worth putting up with an unnecessary interest, mouth breather/allergies/narcoleptic/flatulent are hard passes.  Anything that interrupts dupe tasks and makes them drop slime or bleachstone in the middle of the base makes them less than useless in the long run.

[dereq]

3 diggers/builders, they are the keystone of the colony

[KittenIsAGeek]

I generally try for dupes that don't have farting or allergies.  My next requirement is that they have three skills they enjoy.  Finally, I try for starting dupes so that between the three of them, I have at least one instance of the following skills:  Digging, Building, Supply, Research.  In one start, there were two instances of each of those skills, with the 9th skill "Doctor."  It was a very good combination.

Also, a dupe that has "Build, Supply, Operate" is one that I'll always take.   They make perfect engineers.  With those interests, I can get my engineer trained much earlier in my base progression.

[Caochu]

As I go for 2000+ cycles long colonies, I only take +7 research dupes. Quick learner is the best trait for me, but I also like Early Bird and Night Owl, No Taste or Uncultured.

No flatulent, no allergic, no narcoleptic and no snoring dupe. I am a bit difficult when I choose my slaves 

[erny0507]

Researcher, takes a while to have a astronaut, digger, so no rock gets on my way and operator so i can build shipping rails and shipping stuff sooner cause also takes a while

[Aelfled]

Snoring really isn't problematic, if you have 8 schedules then only one duper per bedroom is asleep at any time, so there is never anyone else to wake.

[Gunhaver]

2 hours ago, wronny said:

Traits: Quick Learner and some non-impactful negative trait.

A Scientist with Research as only interest (+7 Science). The other two depend on the asteroid and the game settings. Generally a Digger (+7 Excavation) and a Gopher (+7 Athletics), on some asteroids the gopher gets replaced with a 2nd digger or a 2nd researcher.

Do you find that single trait dupes keep up or even excell in the long run? I know it's only a sacrifice of 6 moralle but I'm curious as to the advantages you see inn single interests.

[dcabines]

+7 Digger, +7 Cooker, +7 Researcher.

No snoring, no farting, no allergies. Really avoid trypophobia, unconstructive, mouth breather, bottomless stomach.

I like not being as picky as I used to be on the initial selection.

[xialeth]

I try to get a researcher, a miner, and an artist; the researcher either +7 or with an interest in exosuit wearing, and if possible the quick learner trait. The other two, I try to get bonus interests in farming/tidying/supplying/constructing.

Found it much easier to "spread the love around" wrt interests/pre-invested skillpoints in the MK III version, what with launch having only skillpoints in the interests, but the dedicated research role is quite nice.

I avoid allergic, narcoleptic, flatulent, mouth-breathing and small-bladdered dupes (... it might have been easier to list which traits I do take, but ... I don't know those off the top of my head...). Snoring doesn't bother me much, shifts do take care of that...

[Gunhaver]

I take a 7 researcher anf

2 digger-supply-opperate with either farm  or cooking

I'm always tempted to take a dupe if i randomly roll a cooking art and doctor dupe to get that all in one out of the way.

 

 

either buff, twinkle toes, researcher im actually starting to really love no taste. The food bonus gets sweet later on. Quick question does divers lung also how long your dupe holds their breath or just how much sir they consume daily?

[Neviiir]

Also in the boat of +10 learning dupes (7 research, quick learner). The 2x attribute gain speed is worth the morale hit in the long run. 

Plus, it adds a bit more challenge to the early game

[wronny]

9 minutes ago, Gunhaver said:

I know it's only a sacrifice of 6 moralle but I'm curious as to the advantages you see inn single interests.

For the starting duplicants, I care much more about the immediate benefit of the high starting stats, as I want to speed up the early digging and research, than the long term benefits of multiple interests. Duplicants that join later do not need to be as much of an immediate benefit to the colony. The later they enter the colony, the more I look for interests rather than stats.

Morale is not an issue either way.

 

[angrybovine]

A +7 Researcher and 2 Diggers (with 2 additional interests).  I stay away from slow, weak, farty, dumb, mouthbreathers and narcoleptics.

[suicide commando]

I always go for multi interest dupes.
First off my digger/builder who Must have digging and either operating or decorating as second interest. Building interest is optional actually, as the actual building skill while useful for it's stat bonus to building speed, is mostly a nice to have. Whereas interest in operating gives you easier access to rail constructions, and decorating is a required one ( preferably at level 3 ) for making décor items. Having easier access to these earlier in the game can be very useful. Digging interest is the baseline for obvious reasons.

Second dupe is my cook/researcher. Preferably with supply or operating as additional third interest. Research is 'finite' so once it's done, it's done. And unless my colony grows to a huge number of dupes, cooking is only a part of what this guy will be doing. Hence operating as third skill.

Having interest in these makes it easier to get these skills up in early game.

 

Final dupe is my rancher. Farming is optional on them, supply is definitely a yes-please. I've still not quite decided on what my third dupe on my 'dream team' should be. I've considered making him my research dupe so my cook doesn't need to interrupt research to make food for everyone. But depending on the map, having a rancher can be very beneficial. On some maps having a farmer can also be good, but I prefer having a rancher as this means easier/quicker access to moar coal, reed fiber and plastic.

Especially for my dream team, these traits are always rerolled:
Anemic, noodle arms, mouthbreather, bottomless stomach, biohazardous ( except on rime ), flatulent, narcoleptic. interior decorator, gourmet.

 

[Yunru]

Generic 1, with +7 Research and Quick Learner.

Generic 2, with +7 Research and Quick Learner.

Generic 3, with +7 Research and Quick Learner.

[mathmanican]

3 minutes ago, Yunru said:

Generic 1, with +7 Research and Quick Learner.

Generic 2, with +7 Research and Quick Learner.

Generic 3, with +7 Research and Quick Learner.

That looks like mine.  

[Yunru]

Just now, mathmanican said:

That looks like mine.  

It is, I stole them!

[miauly]

A question to those players who prefer +7 lerning dupes - if you ranch, how fast do you dupes accumulate ranching? I.e. for example if you can check on an established map, what's your current max ranching and what's the cycle?

[mathmanican]

5 minutes ago, miauly said:

if you ranch

I don't groom any critters.  I keep them all in 1 by 1 open boxes (except dreckos that I keep in 96 tile room with a shearing station) and then live of the wild stuff they provide. Every critter can be forced to stay inside a 1 by 1 room, without cramping them, so they don't contribute to extra pathing problems.  The +7 learning skill (and +3 quick learner) helps level up all the other stats rapidly.  I also keep my new later dupes on wheels, till they get close to max athletics and exosuit training. No reason to let them roam around unless they can do so at lightning speeds. 

I do train a basic rancher, just so I can wrangle dreckos to contain them in proper spaces for shearing.

I'm currently testing a new shearing station design for dreckos that hopefully will lock them in a 1 by 1 room as well (using liquid walls that won't drown the station).  If it works, then all my critters will be in 1 by 1 blocks.