[Gryphin]

Andy,
"I have got to the point where I have military alliances with everyone. They appear to fight amongst themselves and send me threatening Messages if I continue to be allied to their enemy"
"I of course just ignore all their Messages. They then do nothing and pretend they hadn't sent them...."

That is how I handle it. Meanwhile I:
1) Research as much as possible
2) Try to determine who;
A) Is the most likley to attack me
B) Who I could Asorb / Defeat
C) Make long range preparations to deal with "A" while keeping "B" in mind.
3) Build as few ships as possible since they will become obsolete quickly
During times of relative peace I research "Applyed Research" and other techs that lead to stronger overall foundation to build on.
I use this time to uprade all facilies.
Good time to start researching Intel. It can be a good initial defence when your ships are obsolete.
I hope this makes sence. There is more but overall, "Talk Softly and Research Big Sticks"

[ 03 April 2002: Message edited by: Gryphin ]