Alright, new game started. All settings are the same except tat AI2 has been changed from Neinzul Youngster to Golemite, because why not. (Actually, I can think of a great many reasons why not, but who cares)
Bonus ships are now Medic Frigate and Tackle Drone Launcher. Fun times ahead for sure.
My two homeworlds are separated, which will prove problematic if I don't link them soon. GLaDOS and Pootis are priority planets to take at the start as doing so will allow me to more easily defend my worlds.
The first wave comes in with 70 Mk. V Bombers to Sandvich and 70 Mk. V Fighters to Mienhoff. No big deal, I have 1/2 cap of ships on each so the waves are easily beaten. There's also the champion on Sandvich, so that helped with the bombers.
I unlocked Mk. II Tackle Drones and Medic Frigates as well as Econ II CC and Grav Turrets. Modular Fortresses are also included, although I won't be able to afford them just yet. However, they will be useful to secure the end planets of the dual semi-ring that my empire will eventually form.
Note that the direction of expansion will vary depending on where the nice stuff is, but the forts will always be on the opposite side of the expo route.
17 minutes in and I take GlaDOS and Pootis. This is not my usual strategy, but linking the homeworlds is necessary. Both planets belong to The Core, but the Tackle Drones are hilariously good at dealing with the threats. I hardly took any damage from the enemy ships because the drones kept dragging them away. I'm not going to call OP yet as this is my first combat experience with them.
So I kill both CCs and trigger a SpecFor Alarm Post. Oops. Threat jumps to 254 in an instant. Not too bad, considering. My fleet should make short work of it. The threat is mostly dealt with when a wave of 180 Mk. I (whew) bombers shows up to Sandvich. No biggie.
I unlock Mk. II scouts and send huge scouting parties of Scout starships+ MK.I/II scouts in both directions. The Northern path has nothing of value at all, but the southern route has a Zenith Generator on Wheatley, a Factory IV on Konsartini, an ARS on Tarsonis and a broken Botnet on Tosin. I think it's fairly obvious in which direction I shall advance. As far as threats I'll face, there are a few Fortresses and Eyes, but my biggest worry is the AI Botnet on Monlyth and the AI Regen Golem on Konsartini.
More scouting reveals that Sucrel has a Broken Hive Golem (2nd most powerful, I'd say. Arguably moreso than the Botnet since it can hit Core ships, which I will be seeing a lot of.) and a second Z-gen. Oh, and a Data Center. The Southern branch is ridiculously lucrative. I don't want to get to greedy though lest I incur the AI's Wrath.
Both GlaDOS and Pootis are now secure and each is getting a nice modular fortress to bolster defenses. My unlocks from the knowledge gathered are Heavy Beam Turrets I-III. I don't want anything getting through my defensive line.
I buy two Z-gens from the trader that passes by, but put them both on hold for a while. That way I will be able to have 4 of them once I capture Wheatley and Sucrel.
A wave from Golemite hits Meinhoff and GLaDOS. Oh, and there's Beachheads, but there aren't enough ships yet for that to be a problem.
