I can't disagree. In my experience, having general policies helps, but I'm accustomed to rather strict guidelines, and my world doesn't involve nearly as many variable circumstances as hopping around the universe does. I'd like to think we could arrive at a few general points, but that would bear quite a bit of discussion.

Would you aim to take captives then, or do you mean when we arrive you'll try? If you need back up in the event that they can't be reasoned with, I could tag along.