I would like to see a train car that has mounted turrets on it that could defend the train running through hotter zones, perhaps even being mountable in front of the lead car as well as a caboose.

To encourage exploration of more of the map and expansion of a players rail system, the creation of randomized map events could be used. Differing events would require progressively harder to acquire technology to reclaim or utilize as well as being defended by reward equivalent enemies/defenses. So...