[Alneyan]

That would be a nice idea indeed, and you could mod a part of the solution. (Basically, make Bases act as satellites, making Bases subject to the satellite limit per sector) Something along these lignes might be done for stationary fighters (outside combat at least) as well.

However, such a suggestion would be difficult to implement for ships, as you could have two fleets of the maximal size on the same sector at the same time. I am not too sure on how you would work around this. The same problem goes for fighters able to move on their own, plus the fact that fighters can be launched during a combat.

This being said, I would also like less ships involved in battles from the midgame onwards. And then, there is the matter of Stellar Manipulation and choke points, which can act as a powerful deterrent for any offensive. (Basically the situation you describe. It doesn't happen too often, as you need two players to reach the same position at about the same time ; otherwise, the one without Warp Openers/Closers is slaughtered very quickly.) But it seems like I am digressing here.