Came across an interesting MMORPG with the types of features I tend to lean to (and most stay far away from). Soft permadeath, unique skill acquisition, open world pvp, skill-based action combat, and sandbox elements all wrapped into one package. Trials of Ascension.
Haven't had time to condense their info into one profile (there's a 40 minute video) I'm going to have to look through to get a better understanding of some of their design decisions but you can get a brief overview on this video and check out their Kickstarter for more details.