I like BOTF. I just rediscovered this game, started playing Romulans on a medium galaxy with all tech level set at 5. I love using that cloak to ambush.
Anyways, both the Klingons and the Cards declared war on me. I rushed some battle cruisers, and used the cloaks to decimate their small fleets. After a brief foray to conquer independent Angosia, I attempted to move to the Cardassian main planets. However, I still only had one dilithium source, and not enough power for the singularity. I was able to damage, but not take one of their planets (then their intelligence destroyed one of my battle cruisers, grrr)
Fortunately, I discovered the Klingons had the dilithium producing talarians as members. And only one orbital battery for defense. I conquered Talar, seized the dilithium, and started able to produce a proper fleet. Q'uonos and Alpha, two of their main planets, and one of their colonies have no fallen. Only one Klingon planet remains, and it too shall soon fall.
I had a stalemate on the card front for a while, scraping what battlecruisers I could to keep their fleets out of my space. But when i really started killing the Klingons, they made peace, and now even signed an affiliation treaty with me.
As for the Fed's, I have a friendship treaty with them. They signed an alliance with the Klingons when I was in mid-war with them, and moved their fleets to the border. Fortunately, I accepted twice accepted war pacts from them to attack the Ferengi (who were on the other side of the galaxy, I didn't have to worry about them). My relations our cordial with them, and the Klingons will soon be dead. I was hoping to get an alliance out of them though.
As for the Ferengi, they once declared war on me, but I twice declared war on them. After I declared war on them, both times they offered non-aggression treaties and over 7,000 credits if I signed them. Needless to say I accepted.
Things are going well, especially since I'm rusty at this game. What I need to do, and haven't really done, is start at earlier tech levels and on a bigger map. The earliest I've ever started at was at 3. I wonder what 2 or 1 are like.
Oh, and I like flying Federation ships, but I hate how morale is a problem. I can't conduct war without them trying to rebel.
