I always play as Yor, this start works pretty well for me.
1. Early on, you have two structures to go for: The efficency center (25%) and the recruiting center (10%). Recruiting center also boosts population, critical for economy. Research efficiency I, then the first tech on the track to the recruiting center (stellar fortification? or the one before that...), going back and forth between the two tracks will save time, it seems. You'll get the recruiting center first, then the efficiency center at efficiency studies III. By the time you get these two techs, you'll have had time to rush build at least one collective and regular-build the research structure and the maintenance grid on Iconia. Keep the tax rate at 49%, production at 100% for now.
2. The next track to pursue is toward economic capital, which you get with Trade. These techs go fast, sometimes one turn apiece for the first three, so this won't take long. Build the economic capital on Iconia.
3. Don't rush-build any, but you should only be building colony ships up to now unless there's a resource nearby. I usually send them out with 100-150 colonists. Yes, Iconia's econ takes a hit in the short term, but the head-start on population on new planets is worth it down the road.
4. After economic capital/trade, the next techs to pursue are new propulsion/ion drive/sensors. With your miniaturization bonus you can put together a good range/speed survey ship. Use a cargo hull and build a couple of these to investigate anomalies. Even in ToA, with less cash floating around out there, these can be a lifesaver.
5. Watch your cashflow. About when you get your first survey out, your cash will be at about zero. Don't let it go negative. Drop your production until you're making a profit, even if it's only 1 bc/week. I've had to drop it as low as 20% on occasion. As your population grows, you'll recover, and you can inch the production % back up every week until it's up to 100%.
6. While you're at low production in the interim, you might be reminded why it was such a good idea to spend a point on creativity when customizing the Yor. There's not much cooler than researching Planetary Invasion when you're at a low point (it might be estimated at up to like 80 weeks), and having the research done early. Creativity also saves time sometimes in the above tech branches.
After I get the above foundation in place, it varies depending on the circumstances. I might go for the colonization techs if there are planets making it worthwhile, target aphrodisiac, or be forced to get a couple defenders out, but at this point, the economy is well on its way.
Hope this helps, fellow evil-robot fans.
