What makes an RTS Great? Like StarCraft?

@Element1910 - I like the idea of more permanent buildings, and a world that is a series of maps.  I almost imagine a risk board (but a little more 'squary') where you start out with one map, and once you dominate that, you can start deploying forces to other maps.  And once those are taken, attack other places as well.  All the while, maps you own will be attacked by other forces as well.  If you left a particular map alone, and haven't fortified it, it would be vulnerable.  If you raided your interior maps, to supply boundary maps, and one  gets busted through, then all your interior could be wiped out quickly.  Aided by boundaray maps, but still pretty defenseless to start with.  I think this would be a great addition to Single Player, but tougher in a multiplayer world. (PvP would suck for people just starting with one map, when adjacent maps are backed by dozens of maps of resources)

@Masqueraid - I like the Politics you bring into this.  That's a good point.  A lot of star craft is politics free.  Its war, there is no avoiding politics, why leave out.  I like the idea that even with enemies that you will most likely be fighting at the end, you can still make touchy alliances for resources.  I'd even go so far as to bring up convoys, to send resources back and forth, armed/protected.  If a player were to back out, transferring the convoys would be the best time, because they could take the resources you were sending + keep their trade.  So you would send large squads to protect it from 'outside' forces, and to protect it from your partner.

If a good system were setup, where players could make offers, and select a convoy meetup point, then real players and AI could enjoy the same setup of offers.  I remember in Master of Magic, the politics were often set by the AI's sending you messages, but you could not send them back.  It sounds not too tough to setup either.