An additional idea for FP usage: I'm not sure if it's been mentioned/denied/planned/(other) anywhere, but perhaps have a faction point cost per faction-aligned station per time. Because so far we're distributing FPs and not really using them in this economy, just throwing them around like candy (in this discussion, I mean).
If it costs FP to maintain various items - like Fleets and stations (I bet this is planned somewhere, but it should be brought into the discussion as another side to this whole mess) - then there's a reason(ish) behind getting FP for wrecking a fleet - they put FP into it, they didn't just generate *poof* a fleet's worth of FP with their Titan-sized miner and supersized shipyard.
Protection is a neat idea. However, if the enemy gets FP for attacking something YOU PROTECTED, read it all, that you protected to keep it SAFE while you're offline, that voids the purpose. I'm kinda changing my views here, but I thought about it more.
I pay, say, 500 FP to defend my 5K block minercube overnight so that I don't come back tomorrow and find it and its, Idk, million-credit cargo floating in a million particles in space. I will NOT use this if, by merely ATTACKING IT ANYWAY, the jerks of a faction get the FP, and then get to blow the ship anyway cause they shot it all away. That's like trading FP for armor on a ship.
If, however, that protection costs me FP, and the ship is immortal til I return and enter it, and then 499 FP (I was off slightly less than I planned, let's say) is deducted for the cost, where does it go?
A galactic pool seems to be reasonable. This pool is short-term - if I protect a massive area of the galaxy (one-man-faction-army-spacefleet-airforce-supersoldier) so I don't lose it overnight, the FP, at the end of the night when I unlock it all, go into this pool. It stays for, oh, Idk, an hour, until FP are handed out for player activity and area control according to the timer. Then, it is tossed at random (in small packets) to many, many uninhabited, unexplored, unclaimed systems in the galaxy. This gives a bonus to exploration when there are wars going on between established factions. So the new players have SOMEWHERE to go.
Yes, it will take some work and balancing. Don't dismiss it so fast. Yes, that's got problems. But it's a nice idea - think about it, as land is occupied, unoccupied land (or systems, whatever) becomes a premium, and is worth more. Guess what? Space is worth something.
YES! I've proved that VACUUM is valuable!
Another Text Wall by StarWars1981
TL;DR Summary: FP cost per station/fleet/owned planet to add a point to them in the discussed economy.
A reward for breaking said FP-costing things - set upon mass, that defense-offense-mobility point system, block count, whatever.
Protection means item is immortal until A. FP runs out or B. you return and disable the protection. Subtracted FP goes into galactic pool until next FP distribution and is then placed into various uninhabited systems.