How to not go broke on higher difficulty

[GHerr]

i need help. im playing with ice's AI improvement mod 1.05 and it recommends playing higher difficulty, however when i play very high i can't seem to make ends meet. can't fend off pirates so have to pay them (playinjg few and weak pirates). just looking for some tips.

[SirHoraceHarkness]

On the highest difficulties using the ai mod I turn off automatic refits and military production and design super cheap escorts and spam them at the start. Upkeep and materials needed are minimal and even though they die quickly to even light pirate raids you can spam them out in great numbers until you get your economy up and running. Also get to hyperdrive asap and find a debris field and repair the least damaged capitol ship. Early in the game that one ship will decimate pirates and allow for some offensive action but not break the bank on maintenance. If you want to 'cheat' you can use the editor to place a debris field in your system and get some powerful if expensive to maintain ships early on if the highest difficulty is a bit too difficult. Also using the editor to max your planet size and quality and seed the racial resources on only your homeworld right at the start is an acceptable 'cheat' to me for hard games. This gives you a fighting chance early game without conveying a game breaking advantage mid to late. Rng plays a large role in your start even with the map generation settings in your favor so sometimes you get a really crappy starting system. Also nothing wrong with bailing on a game if the start isn't optimal. Since games tend to last days might as well get the optimal start for the best long term gameplay.

[Retreat1970]

Once you spaceport is up you should survive. You have to learn to play on the cheap for awhile. As for the editor, I wouldn't, but not my game.

[GHerr]

i dont want to cheat, but even milking the debri fields feels a little cheaty (is that a word?). i hadn't thought about turning off auto refit. i'll also try the escort thing. Thanks.

[GHerr]

what about building mining bases, should i just build the minimum to meet my shortages, or get on ahead and build based on galaxy demand ?

[Retreat1970]

At the start on a extreme game I would let the constructors auto and I would keep mines simple. Mines are easy to replace. This is how I used to play but may not be for you of course.

[SirHoraceHarkness]

I don't see any issues with using the editor to smooth out a poor start as long as you don't go hog wild. A simple buff to the homeworld is typically all that's needed when you get a poor universe creation dice roll and are missing key strategics. Certainly faster and much easier than bailing from the game and restarting.