...it can't possibly be worse that it's now. The current situation is just so ridiculous that I can't but
Limited alliances, with stuff like defending and teaming up on attacks only inside alliance and galaxy... It would solve so many problems right there and then, especialy when combined with random universe... It could both separate the big alliance freeloaders from those with real skill, help break up big blocks (since in-game alliances would be natural units to break away esp in random universe), and help promising newbie alliances to become gradually better (due to limited size and easier membership control by HC), and allow friends to stay logically together even in random universe...
And what are the abuses, that aren't happening already now?