Your early-game build order.

I would have to say being a personal advent fan first u want 4 scouts u auto maticlly get one free cap ship so get a cap facilty early and get civ tech centers 2 perferbly so u can expand and then build a small attack fleet and go clear some planets for colony ships and thats how to start

1-2 scouts, a bunch of light combat frigates, and either a battleship or colonization class capitol ship (depending on faction) Also, research trade ports as soon as possible. they are the key to expanding quickly. that and planet developement

It depends.  Regardless of your race, get a cap factory>get asteroid facilities>increase max population>create cap ship.  I recommend the following for cap ships...

TEC: Kol>Dunov>Marza

Advent: Progenator>Radiance>Halcyon

Vasari: Egg>Kortul>Vulkoras

As advent I build 2 scouts and place Cap factory FIRST and start a mothership.(I scrap the Cap factory after mothership is built) Then I place the three extractors.  The Mothership is more than enough to land your first asteroid, and between your home planet and the asteroid, you have 3 logistical slots before upgrades.

What I'll usually do with that on a large map is dump money into Military research until I have 3 of them, and then make a small fleet of Illuminators. Mothership does a pretty good job of keeping them alive while I take over a 2nd planet. I don't bother with disciples, they're the worst Lt Frigate in the game, all things considered.

An alternative that I'd been thinking about was taking a break at 2 military research and building Drone Hosts instead of Illuminators for taking planets/rushing the opponent.

That's what I do, and it has worked okay so far. I am by no means an expert, though.

i generally play advent the most and this strategy works pretty well

build cap factory first mothership

3 extractors

2 scouts

5 disciples

1 temple hostility

colonize asteroid>temple of hostility on asteroid

another temple of hostility on homeworld

go illlums

then work toward guardians

meanwhile making money for the halcyon

then go aerias

radiance battleship

now your set, you can form a well balanced battleball and can take out fleets 2-3 times your size with about 20 illums, progen, halcyon, rapture, 5-6 aerias, and 2 guardians!

Except that they are wonderful for allowing the use of shield regen spam.  They have this wonderful thing called transfer AM.  They disable enemy cruisers and replenish your ships' AM reserves.  Its great for helping a Progen to consistently use its regen.  It won't help Halycons because they don't use AM much and Radiances have the energy armor and animosity, so a Radiance and a Domina can refill its AM reserves without taking much of a hit...