Requesting feedback on 'Expansion Pack'

[CheshireKatt]

I'm all for an expansion pack -- mostly because the big things I really want would require a LOT of work, and I don't really think that MM should have to do that without a little support from us devoted fans (and I mean of the financial kind, not the praise he gets daily as it is...)

'course, now that I've said that, here's the kinds of things I'm talking about for wanting: (it's a fairly big wishlist -- so don't misconstrue this as my saying I won't buy one if all of this isn't in there...)

More planet options: atmosphere types, gravity types, abnormal planet features (Strong EM Radiation: No shields, Harsh Terrain: ground combat mods, Natives, etc.), the ability to make "special" planets -- one such system per game, say with an Orion-style planet, complete with a defender, several set "gain on colonization" techs, and several "gain on colonization, but randomized from this list" techs. That kind of thing.

Space monsters. Dragons, Amoebas, Crystal Entities, Slugs, Borg Cubes, Dimensional Horrors, Nebula monsters, Space Canolies, the works.

Weapon mounts as researchable tech ('course, it could be done both ways, depending on the tech tree's setup), and multiple mounts marked as stackable with other mounts, or prohibited from stacking with other mounts, as decided by the tech tree's creator (ex. In MOO, you couldn't have Point Defense and Heavy Mount on a gun, but Point Defense and Rapid Fire were acceptable to combine).

Multiple ship pictures per ship class.

Ships that take up more than 1x1 in combat. I want some nice big 3x2 and 3x3 ships, especially for my baseships and big starbases.

Retreating in combat.

Control over starting tech levels.

More racial customization options (though I can't think of anything currently, beyond a way to make the tech tree options more distinct than just "you get a new tree").

Nomad races.

Even more spatial anomalies. Cosmic strings, small (but bigger than 1x1 or full-screen) nebulae, more wormhole types, forcible wormholes (say, one with a blackhole-style "drags target", but automatically warps anything entering that sector somewhere else), derelict ships (high-tech, capturable ships -- sort of an artifact world in ship form), neutral stations (trade stations, that kind of thing)

Heros. They make the Planet / Ship / System (as appropriate) they're on better in some way (potentially multiple abilities per hero, and they gain levels just like ships do, just over time rather than from combat).

Tactical Ground Combat.

Um...I'm out of ideas for now.

--Chesh