I like the idea of adding the variable to allow for the tech, I am a little confused though, you say for egg runs time would start on the final run, I'm wondering if there is also a variable for runs where time starts at the start of the setup run too.

The tips I could give would vary depending on the category but I'll talk about any% random since it's the most popular and competitive category. For this run you would want 2 main things, 1: a way to traverse the map quickly (such as the multiple versions of teleports and acceleratium), and 2: a boss killer (such as freeze kick, acid, chainsaw). Definitely watch a bunch of runs that people have submitted and understand what they're doing and why they are doing it, knowledge is power.

Good luck with the runs.