You pick your sponsor up front on the setup screen; the map conditions, commander and mystery are all decided in-game.
| Choice | How you decide it | When |
|---|---|---|
| Sponsor | Picked on the setup screen as a single-select row (one sponsor, or "Random", which resolves to a concrete sponsor on the spot), exactly like the base game. Russia (Roscosmos) is not offered. There is no in-game sponsor pick. | Setup screen; active from Sol 0. |
| Map conditions | Not a pick. Every colony rolls six conditions, fixed for its life, shown in a "Map Conditions" notification. Across all six the colony always lands on exactly two medium and four extreme. | Automatic, at colony start. |
| Commander | On the setup screen you check which commanders are possible ("Possible Commanders", all checked by default). No commander at start; you click the "Select your Commander" notification and pick one of three drawn from the checked pool. | Pool at setup; pick right after the map loads, when you click the notification. |
| Mystery | On the setup screen you check which mysteries are possible ("Possible Mysteries", ones you have not finished are pre-checked). No mystery at start; on Sol 50 an event offers three drawn from the checked pool, one per difficulty tier where the pool allows. | Pool at setup; pick on Sol 50. |
The setup screen is reshaped. The Sponsor row stays a single-select pick (one sponsor, or "Random"), so the map starts with your sponsor active and its funding, starting rockets, research, prices, goals and perks apply at colony start. The Commander and Mystery rows become multi-select "Possible ..." checklists: you tick which options can appear this run, and the specific one is chosen in-game.
The Game Rules row, the pre-game Colony Site screen and the pre-game Rocket Payload screen are all removed, so setup goes straight to the map. Inflation is always on. Below and Beyond commanders are hidden from the Commander checklist.
The setup screen's "Effects" summary box, which normally lists the combined effects of the picked sponsor, commander and game rules, is replaced with a four-section campaign blurb (Randomized Setup, Randomized Map Conditions, Escalating Difficulty, Balanced Gameplay). Tutorial and challenge runs keep the base text.
You drop onto a random colony site (there is no site-pick screen), and the map arrives with its rolled Map conditions. One trade partner appears from each trade group (Research, Colonist, Economy, Other), drawn from your checked Possible Trade Partners and never your own sponsor - each as a trade project on the Planetary View, not a rival colony.
You call your first rocket in-game from the Resupply screen and it arrives with zero flight time (you still pay the cargo cost); later rockets use normal travel time. That first rocket opens pre-filled with a default loadout you can edit or clear.
The "Select your Commander" notification appears right after the map loads; you click it when ready and pick one of three drawn from your checked Possible Commanders, and its bonuses apply live. On Sol 50 the mystery event offers three drawn from your checked Possible Mysteries, one per difficulty tier where the pool allows, and the chosen one starts live.
Part of the Survive the Storm mod. See also Map conditions, First rocket loadout, and the commander rebalance.