Planet-rush

on a tiny map i'd buy the ships at turn 1 and colonize i think (i never play tiny maps, only big/huge).
also, the ship you have at the start, use that to colonize a good planet and not the one next to you but a bigger one.
also, what difficulty your playing, on high levels the IA gets a bonus.

theres pleanty wrong here my good fellow. first! dont bother with the low PQ planet in your system even if another race gets to it your own influence from your home planet (granted u make it a good one) would turn it. 2nd! use your mini map. It mostly takes expriences to know how to judge but use your influence map to decide what planets to pick. go for one close to the enemy just so they cant have it first. then work closer to home. unless your enemys are close. 3rd and MOST IMPORTANT build your own ship. make it fast and try to put as little life support on it as possible to make room for engines. 4th! do you really need spy ships? spend the first two days and more on colony ships. I know the AI has lots but your not an AI now are you. Buy ships every week until you have about 500 or 1000 BC left. try this tips out the next time you play and remeber. there just tips. Some people just get a few good planets and spend all their money on those. you must find your own style

Here's pretty much how I do it:

-I design colony ships with only one colony module, the rest engines.

-On every turn until I run almost out of money, I buy colony ships and send them out to every planet I can.

-I ususally send only 100 to every planet. They'll build up their population soon enough.

-Forget the "scout" ships. Exploring the map can be saved until you've grabbed as many planets as you can. Usually I don't use scouts at all, because after the planets are grabbed, the next phase is to build starbases to fill the empty spaces and grab the resources.

The first few turns of the game are critical, and must be carefully planned. A single turn can means the difference between you owning the planet, or another nation. Buy the colonization ships when possible; don't wait for your factories to contruct them!

Ulimately, your troubles stem mostly from waiting for the ships to be built instead of buyng them so you get them the next turn. Factories take several turns to build ships, but buying them makes them available the next turn. Spend the money you are given at the beginning of the game: Buy.

Also, depending upon what race you are, you may have to get a few techs in order to have the engines for the colony ships. Put your science at 100% at least until you get them, maybe longer for other important techs.

Well what i do at the opening stages of a game is:
Buy buildings on my homeworld so i dont dran the unused social to military bounus
The buildings that you should buy on your homeworld are four markets (the reason being is that you get your industral capasity up to 100%)
One entertiament network to boost your moral and if the markets don't get your industral capasity up to 100% you can tax your people the difference
One factory to boost your military rating an get those colony ships in the air
One lab to boost your reasearch skills.

With reasearch you should focus on two lines of the tech tree, engines and planetary upgrades. I like to go in this order "new propulsion techs" then follow it up with "ion drive" then i start focusing on "planetary improvements" then "Xeno eco" and "xeno indus" and skip back up to "impulse drive".

when you colenise your class 3 planet you should a market or factory with entertianment net. and starport and since the planet usally doesn't have enough to fill a colony ship i get the planet to spit out scouts untill it's population reaches 1 billion.

Follow this, don't buy colony ships it drans your bank like hell and focus on economic sability, the computer always goes though a market crash early in the game because it buys too many colony ships, too many planets and too many factories and labs. The point is that when the com. is suffering this you can sweep in and takeas many planets as your homeworld permits.

Everyone has their own way of playing, here is how I start.

First Week
1. Set tax rate to 50% (most cases)
2. Set sliders for production
A. Military Production 0%
B. Social Production 40%-50% (depending on bonuses)
C. Research Production 50%-60% (depending on bonuses)
3. Send initial Colony ship to closest star system with the most planets.
(Unoccupied)
4. Send Survey ship to closest anomaly or system opposite of Colony ship.
5. Buy Manufacturing building
6. Build Manufacturing building
7. Research Engines
8. Redesign Colony ship
9. Buy Redesigned Colony ship

Next 4-7 Weeks, continue with research, and redesign Colony ships as research allows, Buy 1 Colony Ship per week until cash is below 1000bc. Once that happens I re-adjust sliders to build ships instead of buy. Then start to stabilize my economy.

Pretty quick start for me. This is a very brief description.

Allright, thanks for all the help guys!



/Pan