The VR are basically just the Trinity Vasari+new stuff.  The VL on the other hand have been the ones to radically change.

In a lot of ways, you should really think of them as a new race, not just a subfaction as you're right, they do play very differently.

But in all reality, Strip-Rushing is a very OP tactic right now because it is actually very easy to rush to Shipboard Labs at which point, research tiers become moot.  This means that a VL player can rush to 2000 fleet supply within the first 30 minutes of the game and because STTC produces untaxed income, that 75% tax doesn't make any difference.

If you're going to be VL, you get the most benefit out of rushing Striped to the core and going on the offensive as you use it to accumulate far more resources than any other faction can generate in that time. If you can do it by striping planets you really can't hold its a double plus, as that denies them to your enemy as well. The scorched earth aspect isn't really noticed much now as its already a game winner, but once it gets nerfed as an opener I think we'll see that matter more.

even when strip rush get nerfed (likely taxed), I think an empire lab opening is much more viable than it was before, when it was limited to eco/feed positions. trade ports to shipboard labs/pricelss goods will remain a viable strategy.

how many mil labs do people think is right in this case though. 2 slow your shipboard lab time by a lot but get you flak and corvettes, along with starbase if necessary to defend, 1 is much faster and gives you LRF to support your carrier cap, 0 is viable with egg on larger maps.

I do like the new emphasis on caps, in diplomacy I got to using carrier caps like transporters and not protecting them as well as I should.