[RonGianti]

The first thing I do, is research a couple levels in Small hull ship tech, Sensors and Ion Engines.

Then I build as many colonizers as fast as I can, usually using the Emergency build Queue setting.

I never, ever colonize a planet in the early game unless its got a breathable atmosphere. If you waste a colonizer on a planet that only gives you 5 facilitys (or 1!!) you will miss out on a planet in a nearby system with 15, 20 or even 25 facilitys, which your neighbors will then get while you were colonizing a moon... Somewhere around turn 15 - 20, if you check the status of other races, it says you have about the same number of planets, but thats misleading. Their planets are fully developed, because they colonize everything. Your planets are still building facilitys and your economic and research potential is growing long afterwards.

I keep upgrading the sensors and engines, upgrading the colonizer ships, so they can see more and go farther, only colonizing breathable atmospheres.

I keep doing this until either 1. I have colonized and claimed every system between myself and my neighbors and carved out an empire, or 2. I run across a megalomaniac that will not have a treaty with me and I think we're heading to war. By the time either of these happens, I usually have a good lead in quality planets and a good buffer of systems in the "outer rim" that can protect my homeworld.

If you can keep the peace after your borders are solid, then I go back and colonize the medium and larger, non-breathable atmospheres.

Preparing for an early war by building FG's before you have explored is a big mistake, imho. You may have to travel through many juicy systems, filled with 20+ facility planets that are basically FREE, to find a well defended system that you will need to fight to the teeth for.

j/m .02