It is more noob friendly but I think it should be even more. That is the only way to attract new players to this mod. Newer games are coming out and every one of them looks better than Warband. Basic game is already hardcore enough, there is no need to add grind on top of that. Also, I think that most veterans are fed up with grind, retiring and want change.
I'll try to explain it with analogy. Old cRPG was like old World of Warcaft, new cRPG is like current WoW. I want to see it changed into Guild Wars. Just builds and player skill, not level advantages.