I am also not of the opinion that people should be pampered over much. But most important is that even if a character is to be punished the punishment itself offers a great oppurtunity for RP. So let any punishment be original and fun even for the offender whenever possible. If however a player does not accept a form of punishment (because it renders a long term pc useless) then an alternative form of punishment should be offered. Via tells and OOC of course!
If on the other hand a new player does not UNDERSTAND how the powerstructure of this setting is set then a OOC explaination is in order - just tell him/her that running past a Red Wizard without a sign of devotion could be trouble - if said player refuses to look into things it is better to just ignore him since he there is no use to force RP on such a person. No punishments should be dealt in that case (being ignored can be a harsh punishment in itself though ).
KTA
If on the other hand a new player does not UNDERSTAND how the powerstructure of this setting is set then a OOC explaination is in order - just tell him/her that running past a Red Wizard without a sign of devotion could be trouble - if said player refuses to look into things it is better to just ignore him since he there is no use to force RP on such a person. No punishments should be dealt in that case (being ignored can be a harsh punishment in itself though ).
KTA