Well as far as indies go, alot are newer players, though quite a few may be experienced and theres abit of a learning curve for them that they still havent played through, learned proper game mannerisms and faction lore.
Communication is key, true, but my experience has shown some factions are on abit of a power trip. Thing with cap ships is, those larger then gunboats, most people will grow bored of them after abit and after they gain more experience in learning whats what in Disco and how to better RP the factions they are representing. Alot of the larger indie caps you see are what I call vigilante vessels, piloted by traders whom use them to get back at pirates for being "harrassed" per sae. And most die to a few fighters / bomber or gunboats that quickly pick them apart, no biggie really there.
I dont think Disco is suffering in participation, most days still quite over 130 people can be seen on during the peak hours. Proper role play, finding your niche within the game just takes some people abit of time.
Being a somewhat close knit game as far as people knowing others goes, has effected some gameplay from what I've seen. Such as in liberty, where some coppers ignore the actions of thier buddies, and foresakeing good RP over friendship. The fact that many vet players belong to multiple factions on both sides the law and play that to thier advantage can be a issue at times.
I started off as an idie for quite sometime, made my share of mistakes, dreamed of owning that big vessels, felt out the various factions, some more difficult to deal with then others, then slipped into my niche within the game, joined a few player factions, which in the end truely makes you a more rounded character, stronger RP grows with the interaction of more experienced players and gives you a good solid basis in which to propel your character from.
I believe that people should communicate the purchase of thier indie vessels to the owning factions, but approval isnt a must and not backed by any rule and would be oppressive in nature for someone to dictate what you can or cannot do in the game. Being tied to a player faction is different , as your aggreeing to abide by their rules. I think the only people really hurt by indie capships is other indies, because most factions when they see a indie cap or one working alone, quickly muster a force to quite the situation.
