So the current problem in TE now is it is a lot like SE: Big alliances who cannot be attacked. Also many people get attacked by 3 people at once, making it unfair.
My suggestion: remove alliances completely and make TE a real tournement: At the start of the round, each nation is issued a 'bounty' another nation which they have to attack. The bounty nation will also have you as their target. Nations can only declare war against their bounty, and bounties have to be simillar in terms of NS.
To 'defeat' a nation, you have to put him in anarchy, and you will recieve 1 win. A few days later (maybe 3-5), you will get a new bounty and have to attack them. Nations who have been defeated will have 7 days of recovery before being issued a new bounty. The winner of the round could also be calculated according to victories instead of NS to prevent the last few days of massive warring.
I think this would be better for TE as it would allow more wars without having to worry about being ****ed by other alliance members.
Some other points:
- Even if you have a bounty, you don't have to attack them immediatly, you could develop for a few days before attacking but at the risk that they will attack you first.
- The cost of wonders will probably have to be lowered in order for nations to be able to get them without spending all funds
- Maybe decrease military upkeep and increase the cap for nuke lauches ( maybe 2-3 days) to prevent instant nuke wins.