Given that the player base in this game is going to start off at a very low level, I wonder if a mechanic-based system could be replaced by a human one.
Essentially it would be a simplified trial system, presided over by one judge, a GM who could be an employee or a player who has applied for the position.
It would work like a simple version of a real-life court. A player can make an allegation against one or more other players. He would need to put down some sort of security, a deposit of some sort to discourage frivolous allegations. He would submit evidence in the form of chat logs and combat logs. The accused would get a chance to respond to the allegations and either plead guilty or face a trial.
Trials would be scheduled as a world event, in public, and other players could see the evidence and hear the judge's verdict. He or she would decide the guilt or innocence of the accused and be able to levy fines or possibly other forms of punishment, like restrictions from going into particular areas.
Fines would be taken across accounts, rather than against a specific character, if multiple characters are allowed. Players who are unable to pay would have a deficit which would have to be paid off so they would be without any gold until they had earned enough through looting mobs etc.
This would obviously be utterly impossible in a mainstream, mass-market MMO, but if the player base really was growing at around 4,500 a month, I think it might be possible to scale it up as the population grows.
Obviously this sort of system is hard to exploit but not impossible, just like real life. The main question would be setting the laws and finding the personnel to enforce them.
