So a ship that, I personally, would otherwise argue as being completely effective, is getting a lower tier, and more points, simply because a flare is placed on it.
I wholeheartedly agree that this would be an undesired effect.
Still, put a flamer in place of the flare what results in a mobula with
Hades, 2 x Artemis, Light Carronade, and a Flamer -> 1.45, Tier 2
which is a loadout arguably as good if not better than
Hades, 2 x Artemis, Light Carronade, and a Flare -> 1.55, Tier 1.
That's exactly the opposite of the desired effect.
The situation, where a fully functional build with a flare doesn't get a better tier level is avoided.
Instead, there's a situation where replacing that flare with a fully functional gun from Tier 3 (it's not important if it's functional, actually) provides better tier instead.
I can fully understand that it's something difficult to balance out and so I'm not offering any particular sort of solution at this point.
However, bringing a 4th tier gun should not be punished
comparing to bringing a 3th tier gun that is arguably more effective.