[Bashar]

I think the current galaxy setup is fine, so long as the galaxy size is controlled. I don't mean particularly limited, but the galaxy size last round was about right I feel, galaxies of 10-15 are just far too big for the current player base and alliance limit.

In my view, the problem you need to address isn't galaxy setup, it is the exile system, that is the root cause of most problems. If you make exiling far more expensive and less predictable, then you will stop people using it. The exile system is supposed to be a last resort when you cannot make it work with your galaxy, it is supposed to prevent you from being stuck where you really aren't able to have any fun and give you an alternative to quitting the game. At the moment it is being used as a tool to create super-private gals. Consequently, it is obvious that it is far too cheap and easy to control.

Basically, if you make exiling far more expensive, and make subsequent exiles exponentially more expensive, it will stop the attraction of exiling (and it shouldn't be an attractive option, it should be a last resort that is finally done because it is the lesser evil). If you reduce exiling massively and turn it into a last resort, it will force players to try and make it work with new/random players. As long as exiling is so cheap and attractive, people won't even bother to try to work together. When working together with whoever you land with becomes a more attractive option than exiling, that is when people will start to do so.

Exiling is such an anti-social and noob-unfriendly part of the game, it prevents people from giving people a chance and taking the effort to help them get involved. It gives them a selfish "Jack's alright" alternative and lets them throw any idea of proper teamwork out of the window.