Some ideas:
Security response times are based on the attack position in that system. So, security response in close proximity to stations, traffic corridors etc are much quicker (and practically instantaneous in high sec close to traffic lanes) than in deep space. This logically simulates how security would need to travel to a distant area, and provides a benefit for traders to stIck to convoy routes in a system (as labelled in the HUD which changes based on where you are). It would also provide a layer of strategy for pirates to attack in certain places- currently response times are flat wherever you are.
This would be helpful in making security faster or slower for player traders and make security more useful since the trader can choose the level of difficulty in their flight path.
Depending on security level, physical location of the interdiction and RNG, be able to bribe security. A bent cop might ask for cargo to look the other way if you are in low sec and far from the nav beacon for example.
If you are hostile in a system make all security focus on you. Currently I can be the most crazed killer alive but have hostile police fly on past. Its unrealistic.
Police awareness of you should be based on the amount of scans they have of you from bounty hunters or other police. A high number will spawn more security every time you drop in that system, making life trickier, whereas if you kill before you can get scanned the police don't have information to track you (just reports of killing). This would then trickle down to the times a bounty hunter intercepts you. Also, to get onto the bounty board you need to be scanned three times to get an ID- so : first scan provides vague ship details, second the name of the ship and the third all details. This then makes clean undetected kills desirable, and sloppy attacks counterproductive. It also has a benefit for Power play where it would be possible to not appear on Powerplay bounty boards (and so your powers attack cannot be pinned down).
Faction rep levels should reflect how much they trust you. So, if you are allied you hardly ever get scanned, while if you are unfriendly you get scanned a great deal. This would work with the police awareness idea above, where being scanned makes it easier for bounty hunters to find you. It also means black marketing is easier- that is, until you are caught where you drop instantly to unfriendly (for abusing trust).
Bounty hunters: people playing pirates or murderers like me don't care about NPC BH chasing them. Make them care! Please make bounty hunters (as well as those BH sent after defectors in Powerplay) some of the hardest NPCs in the game with max G5 Elite engineering akin to Spec Ops CZ ships. Please also make them interesting wings too. If this is a challenge it would then make avoiding scans from security and other bounty hunters essential, and that the game then rewards clean work and penalizes sloppy operators in a logical way.
Expand Interstellar Factors: allow them to (for a considerable fee) pay off any bounty hunters (based on the above) from coming after you. Maybe also allow notoriety scrubbing (although I have not properly thought that one through) below a certain threshold (i.e. above 5 is refused).
Notoriety: high notoriety makes NPCs behave in different ways. Traders literally panic and drop cargo while more combat focused NPCs become wary or attack. Dialogue would change as well- "Its him!" "Its commander <you!>" for example. It could also work in the opposite way, with traders with high notoriety warding off NPC pirates.
Cowards: some high ranking NPCs don't want to die. Pirate lords might offer money or surface co-ordinates to profitable places for letting them live (but you failing the mission). Let a venerable general live and his faction gives you a rep boost with them. With bounty hunters they might offer money to escape alive or you offer money to them to forget you.
Black markets are locked if you are wanted or have notoriety with certain gov types to varying degrees. This would simulate black marketeers not wanting to have attention drawn to them by people being blatantly criminals. So for example:
Democratic gov stations: black market is locked at notoriety of one or any bounty
Corporate: locked at notoriety of three and a bounty exceeding x credits
..
Anarchy: no limits or restrictions
Archon Delaine: all restrictions above do not apply (R5 bonus)
Morally ambiguous missions (i.e. missions that involve killing lawfuls) do not appear to non criminal players, but instead you have to prove your worth. Clean players cannot see or offered any illegal mission (I am assuming FD can use the 'bounties over lifetime' stat, or be able to see your notoriety over time). Instead, once you become friendly with that faction they will instead contact you via messages so they cannot be linked with violence (and a fun way to demonstrate hypocrisy EDs dystopian nature). It would also be a good way to differentiate between 'morally superior' gov types in game like democracy who would outwardly shun violence and stop the logical problem of gov types issuing dodgy missions so openly.
Please properly link rep to superpowers. So, being hostile or -100 with the Feds / Alliance / Imps locks you from any superpower aligned faction. Also make it that you cannot be +100 with everyone. Everyone should start at 33.3% with everyone but as you gain with one you lose with the rest. If you belong to a Power which is not an indie your rep swings even faster- (however this requires this change has to be done with the ethos override laid out here > https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threads/powerplay-proposal.426940/#post6696898 ). The implication being that you cannot hold ranks unless you are actually 'onside' and that it affects what ships you can buy. So a king can't also be an admiral, and so on.
ATR Nemesis: at Notoriety 10 and above a certain threshold of cumulative bounties an ATR ship is sent after you that follows you regardless of where you go. It can appear without warning after a certain amount of time spent in real space, chase you in SC and be a complicating factor to super criminals. The only way to stop it is to remain undetected (i.e. not scanned) for a set number of days, i.e. you lay low in places that have few ships and lower your bounty and / or notoriety. With each tick the ATR Nemesis would then either appear less until it is gone.
Security response times are based on the attack position in that system. So, security response in close proximity to stations, traffic corridors etc are much quicker (and practically instantaneous in high sec close to traffic lanes) than in deep space. This logically simulates how security would need to travel to a distant area, and provides a benefit for traders to stIck to convoy routes in a system (as labelled in the HUD which changes based on where you are). It would also provide a layer of strategy for pirates to attack in certain places- currently response times are flat wherever you are.
This would be helpful in making security faster or slower for player traders and make security more useful since the trader can choose the level of difficulty in their flight path.
Depending on security level, physical location of the interdiction and RNG, be able to bribe security. A bent cop might ask for cargo to look the other way if you are in low sec and far from the nav beacon for example.
If you are hostile in a system make all security focus on you. Currently I can be the most crazed killer alive but have hostile police fly on past. Its unrealistic.
Police awareness of you should be based on the amount of scans they have of you from bounty hunters or other police. A high number will spawn more security every time you drop in that system, making life trickier, whereas if you kill before you can get scanned the police don't have information to track you (just reports of killing). This would then trickle down to the times a bounty hunter intercepts you. Also, to get onto the bounty board you need to be scanned three times to get an ID- so : first scan provides vague ship details, second the name of the ship and the third all details. This then makes clean undetected kills desirable, and sloppy attacks counterproductive. It also has a benefit for Power play where it would be possible to not appear on Powerplay bounty boards (and so your powers attack cannot be pinned down).
Faction rep levels should reflect how much they trust you. So, if you are allied you hardly ever get scanned, while if you are unfriendly you get scanned a great deal. This would work with the police awareness idea above, where being scanned makes it easier for bounty hunters to find you. It also means black marketing is easier- that is, until you are caught where you drop instantly to unfriendly (for abusing trust).
Bounty hunters: people playing pirates or murderers like me don't care about NPC BH chasing them. Make them care! Please make bounty hunters (as well as those BH sent after defectors in Powerplay) some of the hardest NPCs in the game with max G5 Elite engineering akin to Spec Ops CZ ships. Please also make them interesting wings too. If this is a challenge it would then make avoiding scans from security and other bounty hunters essential, and that the game then rewards clean work and penalizes sloppy operators in a logical way.
Expand Interstellar Factors: allow them to (for a considerable fee) pay off any bounty hunters (based on the above) from coming after you. Maybe also allow notoriety scrubbing (although I have not properly thought that one through) below a certain threshold (i.e. above 5 is refused).
Notoriety: high notoriety makes NPCs behave in different ways. Traders literally panic and drop cargo while more combat focused NPCs become wary or attack. Dialogue would change as well- "Its him!" "Its commander <you!>" for example. It could also work in the opposite way, with traders with high notoriety warding off NPC pirates.
Cowards: some high ranking NPCs don't want to die. Pirate lords might offer money or surface co-ordinates to profitable places for letting them live (but you failing the mission). Let a venerable general live and his faction gives you a rep boost with them. With bounty hunters they might offer money to escape alive or you offer money to them to forget you.
Black markets are locked if you are wanted or have notoriety with certain gov types to varying degrees. This would simulate black marketeers not wanting to have attention drawn to them by people being blatantly criminals. So for example:
Democratic gov stations: black market is locked at notoriety of one or any bounty
Corporate: locked at notoriety of three and a bounty exceeding x credits
..
Anarchy: no limits or restrictions
Archon Delaine: all restrictions above do not apply (R5 bonus)
Morally ambiguous missions (i.e. missions that involve killing lawfuls) do not appear to non criminal players, but instead you have to prove your worth. Clean players cannot see or offered any illegal mission (I am assuming FD can use the 'bounties over lifetime' stat, or be able to see your notoriety over time). Instead, once you become friendly with that faction they will instead contact you via messages so they cannot be linked with violence (and a fun way to demonstrate hypocrisy EDs dystopian nature). It would also be a good way to differentiate between 'morally superior' gov types in game like democracy who would outwardly shun violence and stop the logical problem of gov types issuing dodgy missions so openly.
Please properly link rep to superpowers. So, being hostile or -100 with the Feds / Alliance / Imps locks you from any superpower aligned faction. Also make it that you cannot be +100 with everyone. Everyone should start at 33.3% with everyone but as you gain with one you lose with the rest. If you belong to a Power which is not an indie your rep swings even faster- (however this requires this change has to be done with the ethos override laid out here > https://forums.frontier.co.uk/threads/powerplay-proposal.426940/#post6696898 ). The implication being that you cannot hold ranks unless you are actually 'onside' and that it affects what ships you can buy. So a king can't also be an admiral, and so on.
ATR Nemesis: at Notoriety 10 and above a certain threshold of cumulative bounties an ATR ship is sent after you that follows you regardless of where you go. It can appear without warning after a certain amount of time spent in real space, chase you in SC and be a complicating factor to super criminals. The only way to stop it is to remain undetected (i.e. not scanned) for a set number of days, i.e. you lay low in places that have few ships and lower your bounty and / or notoriety. With each tick the ATR Nemesis would then either appear less until it is gone.
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but I like the idea of ships being an outward expression of your power/ superpower leaning- and I also like the idea that you can fly certain ships illegally (just like pirate lords with Corvettes...I mean, how the hell did they get them other than being an admiral gone bad?).