I usually don't get Refineries. If only Refinery was cheaper to build by half I would get that tech every time.

My point on both counts was that the technologies aren't a problem.  If you're using the unit/structure they improve they're quite worthwhile.  While it's arguable that gauss cannons are never worthwhile in any reasonable amount, this doesn't hold water for skirmishers, which are one of your better counters to carriers.

Refineries are rarely useful, but if you find a great place to put one sometimes you just can't resist.  Advent resource focus needs a buff.  You need a high loyalty (close to 100%) planet with at least 3 (preferably 4) asteriods, all efficiency upgrades, allure of the unity, induced reverence and a moderate-to-short trade (not long) chain to make them competitive with their trade port form.  In that rare case where all those things come together, then resource focus is worthwhile.  It's way way way too niche currently.  Agreed on refinery cost discounts for the other races.

kinda figured but the wording and context seemed to imply that you agreed that the Guass technology was worthless but that pulse gun technology was worthwhile though you gave the same reason for both which seemed contradictory

I get advanced manuevering alot as tec.It actually helps in saving your cap when you need to run away from an egg.

Kitkun,  I almost always watch replays and look to see what people research.  I would say:  there is very little concensus in what to research. 

The only essential techs on the civil tree are: ice & volcano, and maybe trade, and then maybe culture.  Nothing else is game changing early on.  (In fact, I've seen people scuttle their civic labs, after they get ice & volcano, and research nothing else there)!  Often, online players never even build civic labs, and rush to full military!  They just skip over the ice & volcano planets.  It kinda depends on how long the game goes, and where you are located on the map, in relation to your enemies.

On the military tree, only the various units, and repair are essential.  There is wide diversion among the armor, health, shield, and various weapon upgrades.  I think the vast majority err here, by spending too much money for the measly 5% improvements (when just buying one more unit is probably more cost effective).

Later, when I've got more time, I will give my lengthy list of 'worthless', or non essential techs.

The big benefit of those "measly" 5% boosts instead of a new unit is that it doesn't push you into another level of upkeep...

I've also gotten too many capital ships out of danger with around 100 hull points left over.  Every health and armour upgrade counts, big time.

Does any body use the reintegration ability on the skirmisher. to me it seems useless cuz if they need it they are probly in heated battle and will die anyway or the fights over and i rather use overseer or repair bay than wait for these ships to regain function.

In a massive fleet battle where they're getting focus fired it's not particularly useful.  Where reintigration shines is in smaller skirmishes where that kind of focus fire doesn't occur.  Fighting over neutral gravity wells is the perfect scenario for reintigration.

It's also nice (though I mainly only use it on the enforcer) if you win a big battle and your enemy retreats to an unfortified planet. Sense the skirmishers and enforcers can heal themselves, you can use the overseers to heal the rest of your fleet and then give chase to your enemy much faster than any other faction. It's also nice defensively sense late game I only have a defense fleet of low level caps, sentienels, and skirmishers/enforcers that often have to immediately jump from one battle to the next via phase gates. Getting them to full hull points quickly can be the difference between a battle won and a battle lost.

Was playing last night and noticed: this doesn't actually affect capital ships.  All the previous upgrades in the chain affect all caps and siege frigates (and enforcers too? I can't recall), but the last one just affects siege frigates.  Since you like caps, i doubt you build many siege frigates, so I'd guess that's why you haven't noticed it doing anything   And yes - it's a pretty expensive upgrade to allow your seige frigates to bombard from higher altitudes...  Presumably it makes hit-and-runs more viable against hard targets, but like you said in a different thread; siege frigates didn't get un-nerfed *that* much.

Beam weapons affects only capital ships.  SF and HC attack damage is affected by "wave" attack upgrades, which are a separate upgrade line.

As far as pin-point bombardment goes, the biggest problem is that moving a few paces closer is virtually free to begin with.  There's no real use for extra range.  It's not even like LRMs where there are actually static units you want to be able to shoot from outside of retaliation range.

Well, I never really build turrets, but I can see a situation where someone rings the planet with them at low orbit to protect against siege firgates, and the point of an upgrade which would then allow siege frigates to fire from outwith turret range.  I have no clue if the upgrade is significant enough to allow for that, since I haven't built siege frigates in ages (though I have been trying them a bit with the latest patch).  If I use anything it's hanger bays with fighters to protect from siege, and against that extra range does nothing except a slight dps gain (if you are comparing damage to time-in-system).  So, yeah, still with you on the upgrade being pretty damn worthless.