the sad truth is that sometimes the players really just play a set of the same type with some variation on exactly how they achieve the exact goals they would otherwise.
That's not inherently a defficiency on the players' part. Some people just like playing similar characters: and it is plausible to think a family would have similar personalities.
I have no problem with family feuds, so long as they are not player feuds. What does bother me is family position awarding. I know of several realms where new characters are promptly handed positions because people know the player.
Not to bash a specific realm, but Riombara is particularly bad about this. My current character there, Cyrilos, has been offered support for a
council position after being there barely a month, based on Hireshmont's record, despite the fact that Cyrilos is a creepy, obnoxious, religious ascetic.
On the one hand, my Medieval instinct is very happy with that: characters are treating families as loyalty blocs. On the other hand, the game player in me is very upset with that: seeing how I am handed posts without my characters demonstrating any competence makes me worry about how new players are treated.
