Hpw does one level the playing field with the AIs?

[Suicide Junkie]

Firstly, play against TDM modpack races.

For additional challenge, I reccommend playing as a Pirate or Nomad under P&N

For the masochistic, try being a P&N Pirate while playing against TDM races .

As a P or N, there are no holds barred: lie, cheat (no codes, obviously), steal, do whatever you can to survive.

You can also try playing as a neutral race:
- no colonizing outside your home system, but feel free to wage war outside your home.
Military alliances and Refuelling Starbases will help a lot.