[Samoht]

I like the SK scenario most since he's the most likely to get a last hit due to a high damage, instant cast nuke.

An SK works for days on his faction for a city (doesn't matter where - Freeport, FV, Kelethin, Rivervale) and gets it high enough so that it's higher than what yours starts with. He sees you with your unmodified faction sitting next to the guards for their protection.

He attacks you! The guards do not immediately assist.

You decide to fight back. Since he is the aggressor, the guards should not fight you either, right?

You dot him, you turn on auto attack, you start to cast a nuke and then he FD's. Combat ends, but your next tick/swing/cast hits. Suddenly, you're the aggressor, and your faction isn't as good as his.

The guards swarm you.

Assuming they don't insta-gib you, the SK watches and then pops up when you have just a sliver of health left to last-hit you using HT.

You get coined for defending yourself.

If the guards were indiscriminate, they would have defended you outright because the SK attacked. If you fought back, they would have gone after you once the SK was off of their hate list. If the SK feigned in an attempt to steal the last hit, they would have gone after him again, and he would have to wait for FD timer and hope for a second success with guards attacking.

The more I think about it, the more it seems like faction would play no role in that kind of system, which isn't what we're going for at all. There has to be a more sophisticated way to implement it so that three classes don't get a coin-you-at-the-guards-with-guard-help-for-free card, though.