Personally I think that all of this might be a bit of an overreaction, Tom. I get that you are trying to foster a certain thematic mood here, but to some extent you have to let the players react to it in their own way. You cannot force them to RP desperation, despair and fear, and if you try you're going to generate *actual* despair and also outright anger in the player base.
I disagree, I'd really like to see people openly defying Overlord now. It brings out consequences. I for one would think twice before doing it.
