Gah, I hate to make a whole new thread just to ask for the link to another thread. There was a thread not too long ago about a new research plan, which I know sounds very specific. It was about making each tree its own complete pathway, where each has its own cannons, missiles, engines, etc, and also has its own inherit advantages/disadvantages (electrical=speed, bad armor, chemistry=explosions, bad engines; for example). The differences weren't supposed to be so drastic that you would ever need to go into a different branch, but that the research plan you chose was kind of like a doctrine idea. It could be used to pry a specific advantage here, at the cost of a weakness there, but leave both teams fairly balanced. Someone said it was being seriously considered, I think. I've tried search already, don't worry.
http://forums.empiresmod.com/showthread.php?t=8818 It took me literally less time to find it than to type this sentence.
