5 - I researched the advent long range jump visualization - but still can only seem to jump along starlines from one planet to the next - isn't it supposed to allow me to jump directly from A -> D, and not A->B->C->D?

Long range jump visulization allows you to jump between stars.

3 - I read that building a second comm center at one planet helps spread culture, but not as much as having another one at the next planet you own - do trade depots work the same way?

For every planet that a comm center goes through it looses a certain percentage of its spread rate. So yes it is better to build them every couple planets. I like to build one at every planet on my front line to fight my enemies' push. Not really sure about trade depots

4 - I heard something about refineries - but didn't see them in my tech tree.  For advent is that just the resource focus thing?

Refineries are a TEC Tech. Advent or Vasari do not use them

Edit: The rest I am not sure about.

All factions have refineries....

Vasari has relatively early access to refinery.

1.

youtube is your friend( or google)

2.

yes, the longest tradeline desides how much income you get pr tradeport., but you can have infinite amount of tradeports at one planet to bosst that income(if you mouseover the credits display in the top right corner you'll see)

3.

yes and no. the longer the tradeline the more each tradeport gives, so making the line longer is better than making multiple tradeports at each planet(as long as you can make the line longerdo so)

4.

only tec and vasari use refinerys, advent use resource focus. the technology that followes the tradeport. when reshearched your trade ports gain the abillity to stop being tradeports but boost crystal/metal gaterring at that planet(only do this at planets with 4 mines imo)

5.

No, it makes you able to jump from star to star.

6.

It is a heal - GET IT!

7.

it will be unable to use it's abillities - for a carrier that includes strikecraft building. butt the lunched squards will function untill shot down.

8.

dominas are not there to disable enemy ships -- RESHEACH THAT HEAL GOGOGOGO

as for vengence -->

Radiance Battleship

Animosity
Level available: 1 / 3 / 5
Antimatter cost: 65
Cooldown time: 35
Affects: enemy frigates, capital ships and structures
Range: self
Area radius: 3000 / 4000 / 5000
Max targets: 6 / 12 / infinite
Duration: 20
Effect(s):
Enemies forced to attack self

Progenitor Mothership

Malice
Level available: 1 / 3 / 5
Antimatter cost: 50
Cooldown time: 10
Affects: enemy frigates, capital ships and structures
Range: 8000
Area radius: 3000
Max targets: 8 / 16 / 24
Duration: 10
Stackable
Effect(s):
Damage propagation: 30%
Affects: other enemy frigates, capital ships, and structures affected by Malice
Area radius: 5000
Max targets: 8 / 16 / 24

Rapture Battlecruiser

Vengeance
Level available: 1 / 3 / 5
Antimatter cost: 75
Cooldown time: 30 / 35 / 45
Affects: friendly frigate, capital ship or structure
Range: 6000
Duration: 20 / 30 / 40
Effect(s):
Damage retaliation: 40% / 80% / 120%

Cast animosity-> cast vangence on the revalation -> cast malice -> win( keep them of aoutocast and micomanege them!)

9.

mke a fleet and set it to cloose formation (but it also make it easier to use aoe(area of effect) dmg on you- it's a tradeof

10.

no it pushes frigs away not strikecraft ( you capship carrier has an abillity called telecenetic push- thats for strikecraft)

it is a very good abillity but not all the time( if you have lots of longrange it is good if you don't it is not so good) and it is a very fast way to drain your guardians antimatter meaning no more shield!

tip, google soase wiki

anyway hope it helps

3. Multiple culture centres increase the rate culture spreads from that planet. Spread rate of one broadcast centre is 10.0/sec (this can be increased through research, maximum 12.0 for TEC and Vasari, 13.0 for Advent), split evenly among each phase lane connected to that planet.

4. More specifically, Resource Focus increases the extraction rate of the extractors in that gravity well only. Initially, RF provides an 8% bonus to extraction, but this can be researched to 17% and finally 25%. Just note that using RF on planets with higher alleigance will benefit more from RF than a distant planet in your empire.

5. Long Range Visualization, as already stated, only allows star-to-star jumps. The only faction that can bypass the regular phase lane network is the Vasari with their Phase Gates (search forums for details).

6. I'm assuming you're talking about Perseverance? It is the Advent repair function, repairing 25 hull per second. It also prevents the ship being Persevered from being disabled (this means Ion Bolt/Reverie/Distortion Field cannot disable the ship until the Subjugator itself is disabled or the buff expires). However, this ability has a 30 second cooldown, so it is not as easily spammable as the Hoshi's Repair Bots or the Overseer's Reactive Nanite Armor.

7. Suppression on a carrier (I presume) would simply stop it from building replacement strike craft. It has no weapons itself in the first place.

9. Alternately, assign a fleet leader and use the tight formation setting (click on the icon with the finger and click on the four-ship formation button until it shows a tight formation).

10. Replusion only affects frigates and capital ships. The Halycon Carrier's Telekinetic Push ability, however, does physically push away strike craft, dealing 20/30/40 damage to them and reducing their max speed and acceleration by 25%/50%/75%, depending on the level of the ability.

Oh yeah, Advent does not have them. I suddenly forgot that fact.

Refineries are a Vasari tech, your much more likely to see a vasari use his refineries then a TEC wasting money on refineries where he couldve invested in trade ports, but even vasari rarely uses them on small to medium maps

your not being very helpfull rofl

just saying hew should do it.. not implying why he should do it

yes you should upgrade your homeowlrd civilain infrastructure first, it pays off rly well, when population hits max you'll have an increase of olmost 4 cr a second, thats pays itself off pretty fast

having so much in start has no practical use, since you probably wont hae planets fast enough to spend on civilain upgrades, so paying for your homeworld civilain infrastrucutre in an extra investment wich is bought first