Akkans and.....wait for it.........SOVAS! yes I said sovas! If you haven't been around Sovas are awesome so those are good starting caps

they also have decent LFs and scouts (until the next patch) that can help deal with the LRF/flak spam

that gets a bit more complicated as it can vary due to such factors a how close is the enemy, what planets are nearby, size of map, etc.

I usually will get two civic labs and one military lab as a start as this gives me access to planet research (ice/volcanic) and some military upgrades (I prefer TEC so I get their awesome Repair bay, though you will need a second to get it better)

This is for Multiplayer player, and tips like that are greatly aprieciated.

I am not an expert on TEC by any stretch since I play advent.  First thing you should do is scout and see where your enemy is.  Some orders depend on where my allies are and thus where my enemies are likely to be.  If I am suicide slot(in which I am likely to be 2v1) then you should generally build a colonizer cap in case you have to make a run for it and go for starbase.  If I am likely to be econ with an ally in close proximity on either side then you should not build military tree much(scout around though because sometimes there is an enemy squeezed in) until I am forced to and concentrate on trade with a smattering of culture to get the allegiance bonus.  If I have an enemy on one side then military is the way to go generally but it really depends more on how far away they are and what you research should be catered to what you believe or know your enemy to be doing to counter it.  Knowing what counters what is very important.  Repair bays should be researched pretty early regardless of what else you go with because they always come in handy if you have to retreat your cap or fleet.  Carrier caps are usually a safe bet to get at present.  Colonizers are a good choice generally too.  Marza is still good for TEC but its a less popular choice because of all the carrier cap/LF rushing that goes on.  Sometimes building 2 caps early(usually a carrier cap for 1 of these at least) are a viable thing to do.  My advice is to watch replays and see what they do and how they beat you.

[_]-Greyfox

Great stuff guys, keep it coming !

hmmm true......

i can see this workin in a certain, not-so-unlikely situation though. if you're TEC, and they're advent, (goin off the starcraft, like zerg v protoss) they dont get illums till 3 mil labs, and most people wont have 3 mil labs 5 or 10 mins or so into the game.

the way i would do it is build a 2nd frigate factory, crystal extractor, metal extractorx2, build a few scouts and get them scouting, build a mil lab, start pumpin cobalts, research fleet supply, continue pumpin cobalts, get about 20-40 depending on map size, go for his hw which i should have found by now, destroy any ships in the grav well except caps, kill his frigate factory, kill his capship and fleet if it returns, and while the attack is on throw down a 2nd mil lab, research krosovs, spam krosovs like hell (i mean like hell, so that you're bombing damage is pretty massive), but you only build the krosovs if you know you're gonna have a fair chance at bombing his HW down.

if you do it right, i would predict the other player would surrender once you took his frigate factory and capship out.

i might be wrong though, so please point out any flaws

It sounds as if you are using normal start(uncommon online).  Quick start negates any of that because you can plop down 3 labs right off the bat.  Forgoing your first cap is a bad thing too because it is a good amount of firepower, completely free in quick start(and next to free in normal after putting down a cap factory) and can withstand damage better while bombing.  Plus a marza would even make the bombing of a HW even quicker if you are trying to quick kill a HW while a sova can embargo and fight off LRF with strike craft.  You make it sound easy but the other player isn't exactly sitting on his hands waiting on you to come.  If your enemy pays any sort of attention he is gonna see you coming and is going to attempt to prepare for it whether that is to build more fleet or repairs or both.

[_]-Greyfox

@original poster, I can't speak for TEC, because I play advent exclusively, but i do have a suggestion. Don't bother with build orders. just build a couple of scouts, then learn to feel your way through the game. Take the zen approach to gaming. do what feels right, and you'll win a lot more than you lose. at least i do.