What exactly is "Random tech progression"?

[Re:Start-E.D.420]

I have no clue what this is. Thought it randomly put points into your tech tree but it doesn't. What does it do?

[MTB-Fritz]

Usually the bonus increase in the skill trees is a fixed value. When you play with random tech progression the bonus is rolled randomly every time you put in a point.

[Hand's Hermit Permit]

Well lets pretend normal tech progression goes something like this;

Shields

lvl 1: +10% shield strength, +10% better shield recharge time
lvl 2: +20% shield strength, +20% better shield recharge time
Lvl 3: +30% shield strength, +30% better shield recharge time

It makes sense and is fairly predictable

With random progression the trees will be pre-set to have weird and uneven progression to simulate -- well, randomness.

lvl1: +20% shield strength
lvl2: +30% better shield recharge time
lvl3: +40% shield strength, +30% better shield recharge time.

Some levels will end up being gimped, and some levels will end up being overpowered. You can invest your points in order to have better stats for your points invested than you would normally have, and perhaps choose to avoid gimped progression if for example the next 2 levels in the missiles skill is just "+projectile health" and no damange increases at all.

It's just there to make you have to think about your choices more. I use it because it's interesting. In the end, both the random and non-random trees end in the exact same stats, so you don't have to worry about your techtree being really weird and gimped even if you bought all the tiers of technology. It'll end up being the same in the long run.

[Anathema]

I found the game to be more interesting with random tech tree enabled, it felt a bit more real. in real life you rarely find such clean progressions as the default (however the default IS more balanced and probably better for people not used to this type of game)