Ok...

[Slick]

Here's some dumb things I did when I first started playing:

- I thought you needed a spaceport on every planet. You only need one in each system (unless you take the "Natural Merchant" trait which means you never need any spaceports)

- I also thought that 1 spaceyard per system was enough. That isn't enough. Read the FAQ in section 17 on "economic harmony".

- I had a rude awakening when the first Psychic AI used an Allegiance Subverter on my ships. Beware of these. Some AI's use them pretty well. They steal your ships.

- I lost a really big fleet to a minefield before I realized that the AI likes to mine warp points. Make minesweeping ships.

- I learned the hard way that Point Defense Cannons are essential against an enemy that uses missiles or fighters. They are good against drones and sats too but these generally aren't that much of a headache.


Slick.

[Alneyan]

I would expect your problem to be expansion; an aggressive expansion is mandatory in the game, though the AI does not usually shine at it.

The rough guideline on expansion is to go as fast as possible, and then a bit quicker than that. Having twice as many planets as the current turn number would be a good start (so 100 planets on turn 50), though certainly not the easiest thing in the world to achieve.

You should use your first colony ships to expand forward, two or three systems away from your home, if not farther away. Ideally, you will have one or two spaceyards on these places a bit after turn 10, and will be able to produce other colony ships to further expand your area of control. You should only develop your economy as needs arise in this stage of expansion; a few facilities should be all that you will need to fuel this first wave.

The main purpose of an outward expansion is to control as many systems as possible, and/or to establish an easily defended border. For example, if there are only two systems through which an Empire can attack you, defence should be much easier than if you had ten systems to defend at once. Once you have established this perimeter, developping your colonies will be much easier. Mines make the perfect defence against early raids; these require you to research Construction, and then Mines (at least up to level I).

The above was very generic advice, as a typical gamefile would help to see the problems of your Empire, and I am reluctant to tell you too much at once (both to leave you discover part of the game, and because a lecture on economics would not exactly be easy to assimilate in a few minutes).

[Col. Mustard]

Well... Usually I turn mines off, and mainly focus on colonizing all the planets in my starting systems. I don't usually go far. Maybe 1 or 2 systems. then I research other colony techs, and colonize all the planets there. No good?

[douglas]

Very bad strategy. You should always keep colonizing new systems until there are no unclaimed systems left, and you should do it quickly so as many of them are yours as possible. I think you may also be researching the other colony techs too soon. They are very expensive at 500000 research points each, and should not be researched until you can either do it quickly (I'd say 3-4 turns each max) or you have no important techs left to research that aren't also rather expensive (depends on the situation and the specific tech, but I'd say typically around 200000, though sensors and combat support 3 at 225000 are an exception).

[Col. Mustard]

Thats another thing. These neural networks or whatever, and those ship training and fleet training things, I never use them. I rarely waste points on sensors either.

[Captain Kwok]

Col. Mustard said:
Thats another thing. These neural networks or whatever, and those ship training and fleet training things, I never use them. I rarely waste points on sensors either.

No wonder why you are getting destroyed so easily. Training and sensors are the best options for your ships. They vastly improve your ships ability to hit enemy targets. Without them by the middle stages of the game, your ships will rarely hit their targets while being struck by enemy fire almost 100% of the time.

[douglas]

Combat sensors and ECM are CRITICALLY IMPORTANT techs. NEVER neglect them (unless you have the talisman; then you can ignore sensors, but ECM is still a must-have). Training facilities aren't as important, but they're still very powerful.

[Col. Mustard]

Hmm... that kinda stuff seems stupid though. It just seems like it doesn't do anything, and takes to much time. Are you sure your not delusional?

[douglas]

Quite sure. Let me put it this way, which would you rather have: you hit with 20% of your shots and 80% of enemy shots hit you; or you hit with 80% of your shots and 20% of enemy shots hit you? Sensors and ECM alone can easily make the difference between those two scenarios, and training on top of that could conceivably make it 99% and 1%, especially if you get stealth and scattering armor 3 for an extra 30% defense bonus.

[Col. Mustard]

Hmm... Well, it can't hurt to try I guess. (I still think your a bit loony... lol) Oh, and can you tell me the best race/advanced traits and stuff to getin the star trek mod?