General Enquiries: Present & Past Perfect tense usage

Hi Mentors, Tutors and Native English Speakers/writers

Can i say:                        
1) we form the Present Perfect tense with "has/have"                  2) we form the Past Perfect Tense with "had" 
   + the past participle. It is used to show:                                     + the past participle. It is used to show

a) actions that have been completed recently.                            a) an action that was completed some time ago
    E.g. Tom has eaten the noodles.                                              E.g. Tom had eaten the noodles.
           He has gone to Beijing.                                                     He had gone to Beijing.

Is the abovementioned contrast correct? Yes/No

2) we use the Present Perfect tense with ever, never, for and since for an action
which happened from a period or point of time in the past till now.

a) I have never been to Maldives before.
(would be alright if i omit or add before) Yes/No. It sounds the same meaning to me. 

b)what if this person just landed on the airport of maldives and told his
friends, "I am so excited! I have never been to maldives before."
In this case, is the above sentence correct? Yes/No  I have never been to Maldives before. is both used but has different meaning.

c)if i were to use it in the Past perfect tense, which is past in the past form.
can i say, I had never been to Maldives before Yes/No  until a month ago when I when there with my friends.

d)To add on to the above example, when people say i had never been/seen/eaten and etc. at that point of time, they already had been/seen/eaten? Yes/No  
Just that they are illustrating the examples in past forms, E.g. I had never seen such a demure lady in my life before, however i saw one last month.   

3) I found this example and sentence in my grammar book.

a)(Function as the past form of the present perfect)    - The Chong brothers had never cheated anyone in their lives before.(why present perfect is not used here)

b)Is it wrong to use present perfect here? - The Chong brothers have never cheated anyone in their lives before. Yes/No  

Also, found this example in the post here.

c)Jane wanted to stop by his office because she had never met Richard (CEO) in person.
past perfect tense is used here because this is not relating to the present situation but instead relating to a event that has happened before? is it?Yes/No  

d)if we want to use present perfect tense because up till now, is it a fact that Jane still have not met Richard in person.
Can we say, Jane has never met Richard (CEO) in person.   Yes/No  

4) Never and before.
whenever there's never and before in a sentence, is it a must to use past instead of present tense. Yes/No  
i never ate this before. i never been to this place before.
i have never eaten this before. i have never been to this place before.

Thank you in advance. awaiting the replies.
for clarity to other learners like me too, pls reply using 1a) 2) a b c d 3a) b and 4) for easy reference and understanding.
appreciate & with lovess!!

thanks for the timely reply! you're superb active. thanks!!

i agreed to almost all of your answers!
however, my grammar text states that past perfect tense can be used to show an action that was completed some time ago. The example given is Joan had gone to England.
So i was wondering whether if my book is wrong in the illustration?

Also, as for the last question, i think i'd try to rephrase it. In a sentence when there is Both "never and before", is there a probable chance to use present tense? or a must to use past tense.

My examples, I never see her before, i never play before. i never sing before. are they grammatical wrong?

thank you