Like basically if someone could just explain how they work from a gameplay perspective and what I can really use them for it would be much appreciated

Did some testing for you as I was curious myself

The definition[i.imgur.com] specifies that the skipgates can be placed in "any location with a permanent presence."

Going to a map I could enter (relic complex), I could place a skipgate down and travel between my home settlement and this map. I could do the same when attacking an enemy faction's settlement. Teleporting all pawns back home from either destroys that skipgate and renders the map inaccessible for 24 hours (as if you'd simply re-created the caravan and fled).

Despite the "permanent" requirement in the description, I could do the same for temporary maps; this would, however, remove those maps from the world screen (same as fleeing them).

So it seems pretty handy if you have multiple colonies; you can teleport folks between them easily.

For raiding, you could drop down a skipgate at your home, send a smaller force (with the psycaster) to the target map, drop down a skipgate on that end, and bring everyone through.

For base defence, I suppose you could have a few skipgates set up on your home map to teleport response forces to key locations.

There are no options to create a skipgate at a faction's settlement, at least not in the world screen. I don't think you can use it the way you have described. I don't see any way to use this for trading directly.

Ah, okay. Thanks a lot bro. Wasn't meaning to make someone test it for me, I'm just not savvy with the dev side of things and figured some others had already used them naturally in their gameplay.

No worries mate, did it for myself and figured I'd share the findings.

To be clearer on it, it's basically just a little one-tile portal you put down and name. You can right-click it with a pawn or pawns and teleport from any portal to any other portal.

They exist in generated maps, though, so unlike Farskip or calling a personal shuttle it doesn't look like it's usable as a 'make trade faster in one click' solution, at least not without some other mods.

I suppose I could make tiny, unmanned colonies next to cities for trade, but then it's a question of whether animals can be packed and brought through

Actually nvm, cities would be angry if I'm within 4 tiles lol

You could always drop pod a single pawn with skipgate (or a skipgate psyring), create a skipgate, then manually send a caravan through. Not sure about the animals though.