I also like HiTech's theme, with the riffs contributed by Lute, Slap, and Pluck.
ENY was unpopular because it struck to the core of gameplay, directly limiting what you could fly in this FLYING game. These proposals, on the other hand, leave full choice of planes...so you can still fly what you want. Instead, these ideas turn things that are purely gameplay negatives (the side imbalances, difficulty focusing play with small arena numbers) and turns them into strategic elements.
Here's a suggestion to tie these threads together, and maybe even add more depth to the strategic components of the game.
1. Use the existing zone lines for capturable blocks, as well as for repair/resupply. Only bases inside an eligible zone enter the pool for capturable bases, and the entire zone must be captured before another zone opens up. The zone base must be the last one taken.
2. A balancing formula would adjust both the number of bases vulnerable to capture, and to lesser degree the hardness of the town buildings. I suspect varying troop requirements would be far to difficult to accomodate on a mission, and hangars are too easy to bypass when the swarm has 10x more vulchers than they need for CAP.
I'd suggest the formula compare force ratios between country PAIRS rather than the overall arena. That way the group with 50 has a practical incentive to attack the side with 35 (1.5 ratio) instead of the one with 5 (10.0 ratio).
3. Vulnerable bases would be marked for both attackers and defenders. Random assignment might help diffuse the attackers, but since it also diffuses defenders -- and there are fewer of them -- it would likely be counterproductive. Instead, make thinking ahead MORE important by using the current "board" to determine the next base available. Add the ranges from enemy bases to friendly ones; whatever base has the lowest sum is vulnerable. Predictable effects reward planning.
4. Town building hardness would vary only by 50% either way. So, at the worst, the Goliath horde would need 1.5 times normal ammo, and the few Davids would see buildings drop with half the usual.
So how would this work out?
Others have pointed out how the fighting would be concentrated, so the defenders would know where they needed to be. But, they'd also have to choose...if they tried to draw off enemies by attacking elsewhere, they'd weaken their defense. If they attacked, it would be easier and faster to take a base than now.
Taking bases would shift the vulnerable one, by altering the distance lines in a predictable way...so planning, rather than hording, gets favored.
The zone base could be a fizzle...or, occasionally, might be The Mother of All Battles. Although surrounded, the other bases are easier to pork since they dint have friendly strat to resupply...
I think this has a lot of potential, both to deal with the balance in new arenas, add to strategic depth, and maybe even to replace the ENY
