Sevenless wrote: they need to be careful they don't get considered competition.
The world, as of now, is so large, nobody can control a fraction of it. The only competition is for bodies to keep chores done and for trade. Anything else is purely a mental fabrication, much like the fantasy world we play in.
I really don't see the big factions competing for new players to join, and never have. They recruit vets most of the time, and by that point, most vets have made up their mind on which factions they like or don't like. This makes NB a perfect place to recruit players that have developed some experience in game mechanics and working in a village-like setting so they aren't complete noobs. If I were running one of the big factions, I'd be all buddy buddy with NB as long as they don't start stirring the pot like every other major faction ends up doing at some point in the game just so I could recruit skilled farmers, hunters, warriors, and miners. If I got those citizens pissed off at my socialist-pirate state, no way they're going to want to join me unless they become a bit power hungry, too.
Opinions expressed in this statement are the authors alone and in no way reflect on the game development values of the actual developers.