Here's what I suggest: When a newb first comes into the world, he or she gets a sum of cash, let's say 5k. Along with that cash, that person gets a land allotment, a primitive allotment, and an active-scripted object allotment. I have no idea what these allotments should be set at, but obviously they would have to be set at a level that respects the limits of the servers, etc. The deal with land, imo, is that it should be free...you should be able to use part or all of your land allotment to claim land, and no taxes are assesed. The same thing with primitives, you should be able to set them out, up to your primitive limit, without monetary cost, but you would pay taxes on them as you do now. The deal with scripted objects, I think you should have to pay a sum of cash to put them out, as well as paying a fairly hefty tax upon each actively-scripted object you have out (like the light tax) - as these are the things that are what burden the servers the most.
And now, this is where the fun begins - All of the things I mentioned above, the land, the primitives, the scripts - they all have value. But different people value those things differently, and at different times. To ensure that people have access to the things that they want, a universal marketplace should be established where people can buy, sell, or barter thier respective allotments. If I don't care for scripted objects, I can trade them for more primitives, for example. If I have a tiny plot of land for my shop, which I want to stock with a bunch of scripted objects, I'd trade my unused land allotments for more scripted objects. Or if I have a ton of cash, I could use it for whatever allotments I'd want.
At first glance, all this would probably make life more complicated, but it'd be a whole lot less boring, and it'd encourage people to concentrate on the things they value the most, whether it'd be land, oodles of primitives, or having lots of active-scripts (which is most limited feature of all, as it should be). I also think that this would be a more equitable way to balance the wants and desires of the players against the limitations of the servers....like the cost of claimed land doesn't "cost" the servers anything, but having primitives out does, and scripts even more. Also, with the newbs having a majority of their resources tied up in allotments other than cash, this should encourage greater spending at stores and the like, which would provide greater income for people with things to sell.
What do the rest of you think about my crazy ideas?
J
