I’d like to suggest a change to the current way Faction Standings change on completion of Storyline Missions. I propose changing the negative derived modification towards the opposite factions to be reduced by an additional half (from what it is now). My friends and I enjoy working toward NPC Corporation Standing and Faction Standing however the current gameplay makes it overly-difficult to gain standing with the four main Factions (Amarr, Gallente Federation, Minmatar Republic & Caldari State). Maybe the game was originally meant to be this way - whereas you are “tied” to Amarr\Caldar or Gallente\Minmatar…but times change - I think it might be time to change the amount that is negatively derived from missions of the “opposing” factions.
Also, i’d like to propose that when completing distribution missions you also gain a small amount of standing with the NPC corporation you’ve delivered the goods to (say 50% of what you gain from the NPC corporation you are running the mission for).
Consequences for choices are a good thing, even where they appear to be negative.
DMC has a long published standing repair plan, and the inclusion of significant standing penalty to the opposing faction opens up a whole area of play to go about recovering it. That’s additional sources of motivation to go do something.
There are only three ways for a character to identify with any of the factions. In the case of the four Empires, you can be born to a particular group, you can fly its ships, and you can earn standings to reflect your loyalties. As a proud Minmatar who hates the Amarr with a fiery, burning passion, I don’t want them to like me. It makes no sense, when I kill them at every available opportunity, that they would be cool with me hanging out in their space. It pleases me that with every distribution mission I run, they grow to fear me a little more. Leave the standings gains as they are.
Gaining corporation standings with both entities in a distribution mission makes logical sense, but it’s already so easy to grind standings with them that this might be too much of a giveaway.