END ESS get out of jail free mechanic

you are missing the point. there isnt a fight. they just keep moving farther out and doing nothing until they filament.
although fighting using the current mechanic outside the activation gate is garbage. unless you have spped advantage you are stuck. you cant send shops out to lock them down because you cant warp to them. you can use other tactics, but mostly it is a waste of time chasing ESS risk averse fleets.