I'm fine (as a trader) with a Destroyer sitting a few k away while a bomber/VHF/GB robs me blind. To have a trader go "you can't touch me" to the pirates is metagaming, powergaming and extremely ooRP. Now, if that cap vessel opens fire I am going to be pissed. my char on the other hand will probably die from fright.
And that's how it should be. Traders should fear pirates because they don't know if the pirate is going to let them sail on by or turn their ship into billions of pieces without a word. -Knowing- that the pirate has to make a demand before blowing you up is ooRP knowledge, and while we all use that knowledge from time to time it should effect ingame decisions as little as possible.
I would love to sit at a TL as a pirate and simply glare at a trader that I've brought out of the TL. Unfortunatly EVERY SINGLE one of them will either laugh at me for being "weak" or they will call out my position anyway. So few traders RP, it's sad.
Now, going back to the issue at hand; I would telll the cruiser to be VERY careful. if they shoot anywhere near the trader, that's against the rules. And I know one guy has been sanctioned (reported by me) because he was in a dessie and pulled me out of the TL. He fired on me also, but Hood said that the act of pulling me out of the TL was enough.
