Sounds very promising!
@Panopticon
I'm alright with micro-management.
Planetary assaults? That could be another question. What does it that all entail?
An example from my current campaign: My Celestials had been harassed by the Eredenn since within five years of the campaign's start. Using a fleet of pickets at jump points I determined their home system and launched an attack when the battle fleet was finally complete & trained. This was 2055, about 30 years in. Expecting an epic battle against the aggressors, I arrive to find nothing but wrecks. Seems another NPR was pissed at the Eredenn and had beat me to the punch. The homeworld remained, nuked clean of any industry whatsoever. In the wrecks in-system, I found a damaged ship of the aggressor NPR and chased it towards a jump point. Got a bearing on his course home and destroyed him. Found the other NPR two jumps away as I landed ground troops on the Eredenn homeworld. No resistance; I was saviour, not conqueror as intended. So, my major NPR home system assault turned into a minor skirmish with an eerie, 'Aliens'-kind of feeling, sorting through the remains of the fallen.
Five years later, the other NPR has launched attacks on the claimed Eredenn system with 30kton+ warships (against the 15kton vessels of my fleet). I am building a generation of new ships to attack his home system. His system, named Junction, is quadrinary and contains no less than 9 colony cost 4 or less worlds, and his ships are faster than mine. This time, I think I'll get my epic home system struggle.
Fun part about Aurora is, I'm not really concerned with fighting his home fleet when I arrive. What really concerns me is, when I show up,
his system will be full of wrecks . . .