System Architect
The System Architect is a career to build and manage colonies to utilize star systems.
Overview
The architect can develop 1 or more star systems by placing facilities such as a starport, planet port and settlement. The facilities determine the economy type such as high tech or agribusiness. You can create new civilizations and expand a faction's influence.
To construct facilities, the architect must deliver extremely large quantities of materials which vary depending on the type of building. It is recommended to use a fleet carrier to buy and bring all needed resources to the system, and then ship them to the construction site using a large cargo ship, such as a panther clipper or type-9.
Upon completion, the architect receives passive income each weekly reset. It is initially low, but it increases with each facility that has been constructed.
Colonial development
A player becomes a system architect when an unpopulated star system is claimed by building a primary starport.[1] There can be only 1 architect per system.[1] That person stays the architect forever.[1] It requires lots of commodities to expand a colony.[1] There are no upkeep costs.[1] Facilities such as settlements and outposts, determine the economy in the system.[2] This affects the trade within and between systems. You can be the architect of countless systems.[1] If you move on to another system then the BGS takes over.[1] Previous colonies stay the same, but you can return to develop it further.[1]
Development
The System Architect career was added with the Trailblazers update on 26 Feb 2025. It includes developing planetary bodies with tenuous atmospheres thus it requires the ED: Odyssey expansion.