Why start with no ships instead of accepting an initial fleet and expanding it?
Short answerThe harder start allows more historically plausible player designs and avoids keeping strange AI-generated ships.
NotesStarting without an automatically generated fleet makes the campaign more difficult because usable hulls must be designed and built before a war begins. The payoff is control over the force's technical logic and historical plausibility. The choice accepts that early vulnerability to avoid operating ships judged implausible. It also prevents unusual AI designs from remaining embedded in the fleet.