My idea to solve deathstacks is a bit simpler, and includes using things already in-game as they are.
So there's Nebula right? -50% travel speed through the affected area.
FTL Inhibitors; They draw in fleets from FTL, and debuff retreat time and jump time.
What I'd like to see, is the FTL inhibitors lose the magnet, but gain system wide effect (Preferably to sensor range, much like a nebula.)
For example System A has a Defense Outpost with an FTL inhibitor. Enemy Fleet A (Say, a doomstack) arrives at system A. First- their transition to System A is slowed as soon as they hit sensor range for the system. In the case of Wormholes, they suffer an additional 400% wind-up time to the system. Then, once there, they suffer 400% FTL Windup to leave the system.
Now, you're probably wondering how this would defeat doomstacks?
It doesn't. It's not meant to. The issue isn't weather or not doomstacks need to be gotten rid of, concentration of force, afterall, is a valid tactic. What this change is proposed to do, is encourage a reason to USE anything else than a Doomstack.
For example; 2 empires of relative strength whom each have total coverage of their territory with inhibitors go to war.
Both empires send their fleets to a single place as a doomstack, one side getting annihilated in the process.
What changes is that the empire who was DESTROYED now has breathing room to rebuild, and counter attack due to the massive slow-down of travel from one system to the next.
The empire who WON the deathbrawl may or may-not have to rebuild some, but can use this time to carve into the cloud of inhibitors, with the optimal strategy being to split up their fleet into raiding parties.
With the doom stack split into parties, they can be hunted down individually until the natural reaction is to retreat and gather strength back. It would extend wars and soften that crushing defeat of doomstack vs doomstack.
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