Realtime or turnbased tactical combat?

[Suicide Junkie]

Missile dancing is generally a cheap tactic used against the AI in tactical combat.

If you could run in, fire, and then turn and run out of range before the enemy's projectiles reach you... that would be frustratingly annoying.

On the other hand, comparing stats and rolling the dice is tried and true. It has been used since the beginning, and it also means you don't have to worry about the fine details of manouevering in a 200-ship combat zone; only the overall strategies and formations matter.