Ok, thanks for the input
I tried typing things I "know" are not possible, hoping that it can be done.
If it could be done perfectly, I would have 9 vasari beams (modified) circling the planet in a stargate formation, or a grid of 5x5 with the center on the planet, so that their ranges overlap exactly, and after the attack is over, they slowly re-deploy destroyed units.
Since I made a new frigate based on the Sova missile platform, I can ramp up the range to cover the entire gravity well, without ruining the balance of the game overall.
(I could modify the Sova to do it, but doing it by hand is so tedious
Someone said they messed with the velocity of construction units and they just kept circling their destination. I could use that to make an "Orbital Sova Satellite" that poops out defense platforms, in a circular formation that is more evenly spaced than the pirates get...
I'm also trying to redesign local militias to more closely resemble the Lysians from Startrek (conundrum episode), because the local militias could have huge fleets of little ships you can cut through if you have more than one battleship. Unfortunately the game doesn't spawn any planet modules from the galaxy file for the start of the game, unless you remake them into frigates (which works fine)...