It just feels like there should be more interactibles in open space, and I feel an easy one would be a few new NPC’s/structures with various purposes. Some examples are below:
1: Traveling Salesman
The traveling salesman warps in randomly to any sector (including pirate sectors) and sells random items and equipment. When you approach the salesman, an interaction dialogue will appear, showing the item that they are currently offering, along with the price.
The price will typically be some amount of credits, but for rarer items they may include an additional fee of iridium. Items are typically modules or weapons that you would normally find in that sector, but rare seed chips and exclusive modules/weapons may also be offered.
The item offered will change every few minutes, or instantly after an item is purchased.
2: Medic
The medic will warp in to sectors randomly just like the traveling salesman. The medic will be a very simple NPC that will offer to repair your ship for an amount of credits that scales with the amount of healing that you require. For example, 3 credits for every point of hull/shield repair needed. For destroyers, destroyed modules can also be repaired for a flat amount of credits for each. Healing is only offered once every 60 seconds. If you interact with the medic while fully healed, they will also remove any negative effects and give you a brief immunity to them.
3: Mercenary
The mercenary will spawn in to sectors randomly like the above NPC’s, but more frequently in dangerous sectors like pirate and alien sectors. The Mercenary will offer to fight alongside you for a predetermined amount of time, for a set amount of credits. If you accept their offer by interacting, they will be allied to you (green) and any buffs may be shared between you and them. (This will also prevent accidentally damaging them.)
While in your squad, the mercenary’s damage will act as if it came from your ship, letting you benefit from synergy and enemy drops.
After the set time is over, the Mercenary will simply leave the squad and return to their solo fighter AI.
4: Damaged Ship
This NPC can randomly warp in to any sector, and begins broadcasting a distress signal shortly after. (Ping that gets louder as you get closer to them.)
When approaching the stationary flaming ship, it will show the option to heal them (if healing modules/weapons are equipped.)
If you interact with them, your healing module goes on cooldown (or weapon overheats) and they reward you with a random item and fly away with random AI.
5: Trap Ship
This wreckage will warp in and function identically to the Damaged Ship, but are very rare. If you heal this ship, it will immediately call for pirate reinforcements and start attacking you. Destroying this ship yields very good rewards/chips.
6: Anchor Station
These small stations are sometimes constructed in sectors, and can be landed on. Once landed, you can be given various effects/healing, and after a certain amount of time landed, they can become allied to you and function as a respawn point until destroyed. They often have a few small turrets on them as well.
7: Food Van
Already exists in game, but when you get close they should stop and offer you some pizza for a small amount of credits. (No bonus from buying pizza. Pizza is just yummy.)
8: Rogue Pilot
This enemy NPC would spawn very rarely in sectors and be very strong. Almost like a lesser variant of the pirate destroyers. Destroying this ship should yield good drops.
9: Protected Container
This armored cargo compartment seems to have been jettisoned from a carrier in mid-warp. You’ll need to destroy the armored shell before you can see what’s inside! (Usually good loot or lots of credits etc. Sometimes it’s a bomb though.)
10: Docking Collar
These structures are built on to stations in space. Docking is only allowed if you are favored by the faction that owns the station, and yields healing and buffs that you can take with you like the Emperor landing pads. Destroyers may also land on stations, but only if a special destroyer pad is constructed.
11: Alien Invasion Forces (Free Hunter)
This Crystallid will randomly spawn in any sector, and act as a mini-boss like the pirate destroyers. It can call in alien reinforcements and open alien portals nearby that spawn enemies. Great loot when killed.
12: Free Space (suggest more in the comments!)