This is a personal request on my part but here goes.
I enjoy some parts of playing the game on the half damage, it feels rewarding running a single ship against entire armadas which would be practically impossible if I was taking full damage. I like how standoffs were common in the early game too and the overall progress, but well, it is unfair. Everything I attack dies too quickly compared to my ship and the same for my allies.
Would it be too difficult to add a toggle to half the damage for everything else too? Sure, it will mess up the balance, but it doesn't need to be turned on by default. Like a little cheat option.