My thoughts and suggestions

So, I have been thinking a bit and here is the outcomes of my thoughts.

Exponential growth is nice to start but it's what is creating the so called "gap" in late game. This comes from the fact that one's "power" growth exponentially whereas it's level growth logarithically, with the protection rule put in place today a level 80 can more or less be attacked by anyone. 6 levels 80 can nothing against 1 level 130.

Another parts of the game which is fun is the specialization thing but which kind of disappear at high level because you have so many points that you can be specialized in many domains and, in my opinion, it's reducing the need for alliance organization which could be well more developped and strategic.

My 1st set of suggestion I think could answer to these points :
- The game should be a 2-phase game:
- 1st phase is development and specialization. This phase is quite similar to the game as it is today, with exponential growth. This phase ends when you reach a certain level (level 80/100?) afterwards you don't win anymore level and you have access to the second phase.
One suggestion here is to limit the number of building one can buid on a planet. This could be integrated by adding a size to the planet. For example an average planet has a size of 10000 (just and example, to be defined) and each building take it's level power 2 in size (power 4 for geo). You have to choose what building you want to build, and up to which level you want to level it up to optimise your building with your specialization. A limitation in terms of technology should be introduced also based on the buildings built (not only laboratory) so that when you specialized you can access only to some technology and no others (for example you could need mines level 2*X to get "laser" level X). ==> This would lead to the need of more specialized buidings I think.

Regarding the size of the planets, there should be big planets on which you can build more buildings but harder to defend, and small planets with lesser building that can be build, but easier to defend (defence efficiency inversely linked to planet size). Also, to be more "realistic" the speed of a flight depends of the size of a planet. To launch from a small planet you need less "fuel" to exit the gravitation of this planet, leaving you with more "fuel" to accelerate in space, reducing the travel time. On the other hand, launching from a big planet need more fuel to leave its gravity, leaving you with less fuel to accelerate in space and therefore longer flight duration. So that big planets are more development oriented and small planet fight oriented.

Defense are buildings! So that it end the 10k plasma era.

During this first phase you have access to modified skill trees that need to be discussed. 1st phase skill trees should have exponential growth also.

Honour points are won with the same logic than for phase 2 but cannot be used before entering the 2nd phase.

When the 1st phase end, you cannot research technology anymore, you cannot build buildings anymore. The exponential growth ends.
You reached your objective and you can now see if the choice you made (your "deck") - with your alliance - can let you reach the top in phase 2.

At the end of this phase you should have many different payers profiles. Way more than today, and alliance must be well organized to have a good team profile if they want to stand a chance in phase 2.

- 2nd phase is a logarithmic growth and this is how you close the gap. Growth in the second phase can be obtained only by honour point or something similar. Honour point can be obtained only if you attack someone with same or higher honor ranking than you (or an alliance with higher honor ranking than your's). That way, the leading alliance will not be able to grow anymore until it is reached by some other players.
When you enter the phase 2, you can spend the honour point won during the 1st phase in new skill trees, with logarithmic growth such has the one today + special skills like increasing size of a planet (by building megastructure around it or whatever).
When you reach 2nd phase, the following rules enter into actions
- You cannot farm afk anymore
- An undefended planet can see its building destroyed (with CD on that to prevent bashing?) but can be rebuild
- Fleet logistics apply for attacker and defender

That way if you want to grow, you have to fight, if you want ressources, you have to fight and in the other hand if you want to keep your planet producing, you have to defend it, and so, you have to fight! This should answer the problem of high level player not able to fight anymore.

- Access to some PVE to be discussed


I think this kind of evolution could answer to the problem when you reach high level, this increase the pvp interaction.

2nd set of suggestion, not really link to game mechanics:
- Add a weekly limitation of ressources taken from afk players to increase the pvp
- Come back to previous hydro cost for flight, it was great!
- After a while afk players could be converted into pirates (no more government turn people crazy!), using the ressources of the planet to build ships. That way there should be different level of pirates.

I forgot : One can only attack players in the same phase of the game as itself.