[Puke]

i like the original idea best. no planets, just ships with subverters and quantum reactors. dont give them some armor so they can ram each other (hey, why not?) and stipulate that if anyone rams the flag, the game has ended, they loose, victory goes to the Last controlling player. if you want, make the flag a DN packed with organic armor. if someone tries to use the flag to ram, it will probably get caputred by a subverter.

make the game end when peoples ships crumble due to maintainance, and make the flag an expensive ship. if the winner is the Last person to have the flag, so people will want to get it, but they will want to wait to get it until the end of the game so that they will not have to pay the maintainance on it.

you would have to get rid of sensor obscuring nebulae and storms, unless you give the ships sensors. even then, the level 5 nebulae would have to go.

im not sure how to prevent the flag its self from deteriorating due to maintenance, but there must be a way around it somehow. maybe go with the multiple flag idea, where everyone starts with one. that way if one or two are lost, its no big deal.