Just a few raandom thoughts alliances and the system in them.
1) Firstly, about a few positions in alliance - a negotiator (he gets the ability to request truces), combat officers to whom people are able to transfer
1 counter a day ( 1 per officer, not 1 per person), and scouts. The thing behind the combat offs is sometimes guys attack small members with high-cost, low power fleets, and they can't answer that back, as don't have money, or the other guy activates a reserve of superships, or something like that. Or, in another case, when tiny people attack big guys just to destroy their p-ships for annoyance, or when they raid unprotected commanders, but so small, that they escape the high powers. This is a bit unfair (especially the last case), so my thought is to be able to transfer 1 counter to a specially selected by the alliance leader officer, who can use that counter. And to make sure it won't unbalance the mechanics and tactics, officers can't reaceive a counter on a commander if they already have 1 on that commander. And he'll get half the reward if attack was successful. And to amke it even more fair, once an officer is elected, he/she can't leave this post for a week, so that there won't be instances of switching if he/she gets 0ed .
Then, negotiators. They will be able to accept and request non-aggression pacts(see below) from other alliances. Simple.
Scouts- they can get the ability to "mark" a target. Since people from the same alliance can already tell each other coords of other players, this will enable them to place a marker (like an intel) at the alliance board, so you don't have to type up the location.
2) And a thought about alliance stances. I think there should be 4- Peace, non-aggression pact , war. Last two explain themselves, so I'll explain peace- it will last until broken by the leaders, and forbids players at peace attacking each other even for a cost. Also, peaced alliances can do terms and requests with each other like: allowing allies (peaced alliance) to mine in your quadrant; allowing allies to do encounters in your quadrant; buying and selling minerals and direct sale of items. And maybe even a transfer of command of a station. However, the last one is only available to do once for an alliance, while the station is alive, so that small alliances aren't beefes up with cloaks and enhanced techs
. And the leader is the new keeper of the station.
Well, thats all.
