Toning down the requirements is what most would argue for, not removing them entirely. Some people know lots about the area, most people know squat, and going there can seriously F*** a char. (remember the lich that age died there not long ago?) If there are zero reqs to enter the place, how many power gamers would roll throw aways to learn the area, just so they could then gain a PK advantage with ST gear with future characters?

Per your own post, you still wouldn't explore it, so the PK inequities ST allegedly creates (nice gear is far less scary to me than a competent PKer) would only be more evident against the players who don't go there.

2000 might be a little high with the split off from Role xp, but that's not our call as players. If anything, it makes it all the rarer for people to go there, and then limits even more what people are using from there. Are you worried about the super elite RPers having ST gear? Usually, but not always, great RPers are less than stellar at PK. Giving them high end gear doesn't make them death machines.

From my understanding, even people who know the place die there. A lot. It has a lot of risk, even to experienced players. By making it be accessible to people who have invested in their chars, it means they aren't just running in and farming gear out of there, because they have a lot to lose potentially.

Question is, how does ST really effect you.
Sure, the few chars who have access might get gear.
Kill them, take it. It's just like hell gear.
The easiest way to get it, kill the person who has it.

And the Immpet classification of players?
Come on.
That shows your own bias.
Having Immxp is a function of playing CF, not a function of favoritism. Being any kind of net positive for the game gets you there. Imms don't hide the sort of things they look for or reward. If you choose to ignore all those facets of CF in how you play, that's more on you. It's the assumption by players that it is so blatantly ongoing with some sort of inner circle of players, without any real truth to it, that only furthers the divide between player and staff.

I've never had an issue gaining Imm xp. I know zero Imms. My chars usually have an Imm or three who pretty actively won't like them because of how I play or what I do IC. I've yet to experience any negative consequences IC because an Imm doesn't personally like my chars. I know I've annoyed Baer many times with silly IC stuff, and yet I know for a fact on any char I play going forward, if I had a reason to, I could visit her when she was vis and RP with her without any problems. Every player has equal access to the Imms. If a player refuses to play anything that makes use of that opportunity, but blaming others who do, that is on the player, not the Imm.

Some people see players that talk to Imms as working the system. Go spend an hour RPing with Ysal. Tell me it isn't one of the best experiences you have in CF. That's the reason people want to interact with Imms (a few people that do try to work the system can't be used to label everyone) They are great Rpers that are usually extremely good at the RP/immersion side of CF, that believe it or not, lots of players actually enjoy. I'd rather spend an hour in the Inn RPing with characters and Imms then hunting someone to PK the 1000th time.

And since 99% of the MUD is accessible without Imm xp, I fail to see this as such a blatant problem. How often are people really losing a PK solely because one guy had ST gear and they didn't?