You have to also consider that I'm probably one of the more notorious "gift whore" Imms that can tend to overdo it with rewards.

I had just returned to the game when Woldrun (whom I had no clue was Twist) was Battle leader and had launched a Thror returns quest which highly involved him, Susubienko and several other characters.

Leader characters are observed, rewarded and scrutinized more than any other character. Have them be long-lived and the rewards might seem like a bit much.