Re: A team game, but without all the trading and stuff...
 

I'd agree that tech trading is not good in a competetive game with skilled and trusting players. Unfortunately, SE4 makes it extremely easy and cheap compared to the advantages, even using the option to disallow tech trades. The restriction of having to use ships helps only a little, mainly because some techs actually don't have any ship components they can be learned from. However that actually increases the amount of work and thinking needed to effectively collaborate on research.

I'd recommend disallowing ALL trading, using the game option that makes it impossible. Allies could try trading via ship capture, but that will require risk, breaking their treaty, and inconvenience etc.

Seems to me that a research treaty already provides a good and resonable level of advantage to research. Also, even on High research cost, experienced players often get "the good stuff" out of the tech tree rather quickly, anyway.

Despite no free time, I'd want to play in a team game if the settings were like:

All trading disabled
One homeworld
High research cost
Low start tech
No AI's nor neutrals
A balanced start-costs mod such as: P&N, PvK Balance (preferably with Limited Resources on), Proportions, AIC, or Adamant.
Max ships and units in space both 20000
Surrender disabled

PvK