Haven't played in a while, was wondering how fast I should colonize?

[Ultimate_Waffle]

So I tried looking this info up before posting, but I can only find outdated info. I'm playing the latest version and was wondering how fast/slow I should go about colonizing. I've got my first five planets going nicely. I got planetary administrations set up on each finally. Is that the point I should sector them off and go find a new planet to colonize?

Side question: I'm able to colonize wet climates, but I also want to colonize dry climates. I found a pre-space civilization on a desert world that occupies the same system I own a jungle world in. If I uplift them, will I immediately have the ability to colonize dry worlds with them, or do I have to research that technology first anyways? After they're uplifted, I imagine they start out independent. How does that work out if I already own their star system?

 

[Sightsear]

The pacing of how fast you want to colonize is up to you, although personally I'd say do it as fast as you feel comfortable, with an eye on your energy and influence budgets (if your minerals are an issue at this point, you probably have other problems). That's just me though, and I like to blob as many worlds as I can get away with.

As for colonization, you no longer need any techs to colonize non-standard worlds, just a race that has a minimal level of compatibility with the environment (35% habitability, I think?) I'd be more careful about how you 'uplift' that pre-space civ. If you use enlightenment, they'll become a protectorate under you, but to get direct access with to their species you'll need to get a migration access treat going with them. Just annexing the planet isn't possible until they graduate from protectorate to vassal.

Alternatively, you could use the covert infiltration methods, but that's only available if they're already in the industrial era or later. Possibly the best option, depending on how fast it works?

Finally, you could just conquer the place, but than ALL the pops will be slapped with a 'culture shock' modifier, which apparently prevents the immediate use of your new subjects for colonization.

Oh, and those last two options require that your civilization have the 'unrestricted access' policy for dealing with pre-space civs, which is denied to pacifist and xenophile ethoses, in which case enlightenment (and migration) is the way to go!

Some of this was probably redundant, but hopefully the rest was helpful!

 

[Derp]

I do it as fast as I can without going broke or falling dangerously behind in ship production.