I like games with few planets. just enough for each race to have at least six, while some will have 12-15. How big a galaxy are you playing?
Immense size. I prefer to play with max races, but don't like it when it is getting too crowded. Using those settings for stars and planets, however, was an accident. I wanted to use abundant all, like usual, but by the time I noticed it, it was too late. However, when I saw the Precursor Mine on Iconia, I knew I had to try it.
I thought The Drath had diplomacy almost as good as the Terrans!
They do, and they were using it to ruin my day, even though we hadn't even met yet. My first contact with a major races were the Iconians (again). Shortly after that, they declared war on me. Saying, that they were payed to do so. A few weeks later, they also declared war on the Korx (payed again) and the Thalan (not payed).
A couple months into the war, I got the "War has expanded" event again. The Altarians and Drath declared war on me. Over time the rest of the galaxy followed suit, because the "Yor war machine needed to be stopped." The only races I'm not at war with (yet) are the Drengin, the Akilians, and the Scottlingas.
Well, at least I'm the biggest empire in the galaxy now. I have 8 planets. 3 where colonised by me, 3 are from the Carinoids, and 2 from the Iconians. The second biggest empire are the Altarians. They have 3 of their own, and 3 more from the Korx, who surrendered to them. Everybody else has between two and three planets.