Um.. No?
Maybe that's the main reason powergamers don't join religions, but they won't be of any use in an rp-heavy environment anyway.
I personally am not interested in religion right now because it is just another closed club. Much more closed than secular hierarchy.
You can join a realm and become a marshal, lord or at least a trusted courtier pretty soon because many realms actually lack active players.
Religions span across the realms and have enough members in them who just hang there and look bored, shuffling positions and ignoring acolytes. I joined one of the big religions (don't want to name names) and was not contacted by a priest once. Didn't receive even general letters from the clergy.
Your logic is flawed. "Religion is not fun any more and we lack players. Hence we need to force players into religion and it will be fun again." Nope. It's actually the other way around.
Instead of dragging people into religion by force, make your religion interesting and proactive and people will join even if there is zero mechanical relevance. You only need a few very active priests who are willing to rp and proselytize and reinvent a more "horizontal" hierarchy for your church - that would be much much more effective if you want to draw people who are looking for that kind of rp in.
Agreed. You only need look at the Luria religions for this reality. Generally when they are first formed and the creator and first converts are super active, they go through a golden age, recruiting lords etc because they have people engaging in actual religion activities. The problem tends to be when those characters/players leave and you lose that activity. I don't think religions need more people forces into them, they need something which encourages more of the members to be truly active. Of course the same is completely true of realms. How many realms fall into a slumber when a particular ruler or council no longer lead them and activity from the top drops, so if we could solve that particular issue we would really be on to something.
My thoughts are that the more people forced into a structure that is boring, is self reinforcing. When you are part of something where 90% are only their to get the mechanical advantage and do not participate, then that only encourages you to do the same. If you join something were 90% are active and engaging, that only encourages you to participate at that level.
