Bob
We still plan on getting to factions eventually, and there are some light aspects of it that would at least have to be considered when we get to the Deities feature toward the end of the original road map.

The full plan for factions involves having to build up faction points, and switching between factions is supposed to have consequences that would make faction-hopping problematic. Of course, companies are intended to have similar consequences, something we plan to look at when we re-introduce max influence.

harneloot
I really like Smitty's idea of a craftable *something* (maybe working off the current Camp mechanics?) that enables people to alter the security level of a hex for a short time. This would give people more *to do* on a day to day basis that was not tied to Settlement Management, which we need much more of in the game.

I also like Harad's idea of involving monster mobs from nearby escalations somehow in holding raids and captures to make the process more interesting and dynamic.

Finally, I'd like to put forward a motion for adding Spreading of Escalations back into the game, even if at a much reduced rate of spread. The map felt so much more alive and dynamic when the escalations use to spread and interact with each other. Have the spreading escalation affect the holdings in those hexes by becoming the raiding mob type instead of the default bandits or ogres. This might force people out to defend more often and hopefully increase chances for player interaction.

Edam
Given that the PvP window is only a couple of hours a day several days a week I do not think its a real biggie either way. People wanting to avoid bandits will just log in at some other time.

By the way I am pretty certain Keepers only made our closer hexes hisec and left our remote stuff at lower security. At least that is the way we have usually done it in the past.

Flari-Merchant
One thing that I have never liked is that the base escalation spreads to a hex and remains(itself) at full strength. That allows it to spread to other hexes much more rapidly. Maybe spreading should cause it to reduce a bit and have to regrow strength before it can spread again.