Whats also important is 99% of the players dont care about politics, they only care about the XP, the gear and their winning chance.
The closest thing to a "roster control" we have on strategus is the leadership of players who encourage, discipline and give a purpose to everyone.
There is also the overall diplomacy: either personal relationships or roster alliances.
A combination of luck, numbers and loyalty.
If those who played aggressively with the Kalmar Union at the beginning of strat 5 felt betrayed by lack of support, there is a strong chance they will return the favor and that is perfectly normal.
It is already happening, I see almost no Kalmar Union, nor Council of Calradia, nor others who were there (sorry if I dont mention your faction) in the recent battles.
Lots of those people stopped playing strat, especially those who invested their utmost in the initial bid for destruction of the UIF by frontal attacks.
Without them, the world continue to live. Without them, the non-UIF is still large enough to provide the common man with XP, gear and winning chance.
If they were to come back, either on the map or in the battles or both, not only we would have a more balanced map, but there would be a stronger chance that the tide can be turned.
Its up to all of us, if we want something bad you just have to do it yourself and be a part of this world.
Strategus has a lot of life like elements and its one of them.