As we get into the swing of things in Uni 2, I'm going to share a brief snippet I shared in the EARN alliance at this same stage in Uni 1.
Maybe this will even help with recruitment?
At this stage of the game, there are not yet any inactives, so it's about being slightly more crunchy than other targets.
Do not browse the galaxy unless you are ready to send fleets. There is a cost per page to check out who your neighbors are.
If you have incoming, assess your resource levels. If you have more than 2k metal go into defense and load a single turret. That will prevent you being attacked again for a while. If you don't, then being hit does minimal resource loss. Take the hit and stick to plan to get your own cargo fleets ready.
If you have never had incoming, don't waste the rez on defenses yet. Please stick to the plan.
When you are ready to send raids, use the statistics rankings. Toggle to defense, and note the names with defense. Do not attack these yet. Toggle to fleets and note the names with fleets. Do not attack these yet.
With these names noted, switch back to points and start just above the N cutoff. When you click their name, it shows their starting planet. Right now that's all they have. Check a few to see who is closest to you. You can also see fleet and defense points here. Stick to 0s for now.
If you don't have an alliance, drop me a request ingame. We have a core group following from Uni 1, but we are also accepting new member.