I keep getting wiped out early on in the game as the other races in my pocket get planetary invasion and eliminate me within the first 200 odd turns and I have not been offered anything in the tree that leads to it.

On the rare occasions I do, it is slipstream travel that I never see. I tend to get offered warp theory has they are launching the fina; assault on my home world from their galactic wide empire.

Current game, I actually got slipstream, in the first 100 moves and the Mimot sold me planetary invasion, the first time anyone has been prepared to sell me either technology, normally marked red. 

Still coping a hiding though because  the Mimot have 17 more weapons technology than me and every other race combined.

It is so sad when my 2 titans and a Battleship get blown out of space by two medium Mimot ships or worse, two or three tiny Mimot ships. 

I thought I was clever by paying EVERY other race to go to war with the Mimot at once, but most almost immediately surrendered and turned their entire empires over to them within around 10 turns, even though the Mimot were actually losing quite badly.