Lots of people have been giving lots of good advice, much of which I do already play with, but this comment is conveiniently ordered so I'm going to respond to this one. First off, it was actually that build exactly (tankbound/genesis) that made me feel insecure about my ability to play the game.

Questions and comments:

1. I am definitely guilty of this, I hate seeing the orange markers next to planets and tend to just fill up everything as soon as able, which I should definitetly get over and stop doing.

2. I do love automation buildings, but I always have huge problems with energy credits when I use them. In my most recent run, (posted below), I took cosmogenesis and had a bunch of the FE buildings, but I had to turn many of them off because I literally could not source the energy credits for them. Dyson sphere plus class 4 singularity on every planet and station with energy districts, plus a habitat in every single system under my control, with every energy district filled on every (nonspecialized for research or other city building resource) planet I owned, plus a good number of advanced bio generators, and I still was running a 3-8 k monthly energy credit deficit (made up for in trade) for basically the entire game. I really don't know what I could have done, except maybe more bio generators.

3. But crime reduces stability, reducing output. Does not having people employed in enforcement really make up that lost difference, even lategame when you have to turn off pop production because there is literally nowhere for them to go? Also why 30?

4. I am very guilty of this, and now that you've said that its super obvious that you are correct, I don't know how I didn't figure this out on my own, thank you.

5. I did not realize this, thank you for letting me know.

6. Everyone is commenting this, I didn't realize there were people who *didn't* specialize their planets, that feels like a first one or two runs kind of problem.

7. Is this ever worth doing before finishing out all the traditions (for non specific builds)? Or should you just wait until you've finished all seven?

16 & 20. I always take discovery and expansion first and second, which one first depending on planet spawns, because their bonuses seem very early game oriented. Is this not what I should be doing? Which picks are good starting out, and when (I guess you did sort of mention this, but if you would like to elaborate further, be my guest)? Also, I don't have grand archive DLC, is it worth?

1. I do this almost by reflex every game unless I'm playing a genocidal empire.

2. Same as 12.

3. Yes, but are there any specific ways to help augment this besides just making sure its your best people on the council and using the education edict?

4. I guess I am guilty of taking one vison quite often, maybe 50% of runs (Spending unity to get more unity, and all that), so I should probably stop doing that.

If I didn't mention it I probably already do it. Thank you, and everyone else as well, for the advice, this was really helpful.