Let's first talk about the Reaper faction: I think that people sees it as the "PVP faction2 ONLY but, while PvPrs are surely incentivized to play as Reapers, this doesn't mean you can't use that faction to PvE.
Reaper lets you apply the Grade multiplier to all kind of loot, sell Emissary Flags, see other emissaries at Grade 5; all at the cost of having a beacon on your head. Bigger risks in exchange of bigger rewards, playing PvE as a Reaper is part of the game.
Reaper's lore can be correlated to PvP? Sure, but I am not forced to roleplay my faction nor I am force to act like they won't: if a faction is willing to give me more money and let me have more freedom on how to play I am, as a pirate, gonna take advantage of that.
I personally don't play PvE, I mean... I usually do 1 World Event to get Grade 5 and then hunt for emissaries, but what's wrong about doing just World Events? or even regular voyages? Reapers do not take in just flags or stolen loot, they take in EVERYTHING (but fish), the greatest thing about Reaper is that you can play HOW THE HECK YOU WANT, why put limitation on that or insult other players to enjoy the game the way they like?
Clarified that Reaper is not, objectively and pragmatically, a faction focused on PvP ONLY, let's talk about running.
Why shouldn't a player run from you? I personally take most of the fight, but let's have some example:
If me and my friend are hunting for emissaries and we empty a server we are just going to the next one.
Had many occasions were Grade 1 Reaper chased me, asking me why am I running away. I got grade 5, I want to get my gold by hunting emissaries, you have NOTHING worth of my time on your ship, why should I waste my time on you when I can just server hop away? Specially if I recognize my opponent as being good, I'm just not gonna take the fight because if you are good, whether I'm gonna win or lose, I'm going to waste time and resources for a Grade 1 flag, risking to lose my Grade 5, when I can just server hop to the next server. Same if I have like 1 or 2 chests (like a Repaer Chest), I'mma just drive by the Reaper, sell the chest and get to the next server, not gonna bother fighting you. I don't have to prove you something, if I feel like I just want to fight with someone I'll take the fight, if I just want to farm I won't bother.
Also taking time can sometimes be a strategy, I usually play with a Duo on the sloop and, even tho it's relatively rare, we sometimes find very good crews on brig and galleons, if we know you are as good as us or even more we are not just gonna charge at you, we'll take time to get more resources, we'll wait for an opening or stuff like that. Sometimes we sink, sometimes it's actually funny to sink people who chased you for five minutes calling you a "running reaper".
There's nothing bad about running away in any case, even if you feel you like you are worse than the opponent crew and want to run away and hope, people don't owe you a fight.
Your objective is to fight them? steal their loot? prove you are better? people will have different objectives from you, they can do whatever they like.
Running as a Reaper doesn't change anything, it just marks them on them map, why play as a Reaper if you don't want to fight? because it gives more rewards. Playing Reapers doesn't mean you should have less freedom, it doesn't mean you must fight.
PS:
Little reflection after thinking more about this topic:
I think the real issue is simple, the game is kinda flawed: people who don't want to fight are going to tilt when they'll have to and people who want to fight are going to tilt when they can't.
People used to tilt at other players running before the Reaper was added, now they just use reaper as an excuse to feel entitled to the idea that running away is wrong. When your objective is to fight and the game prevents you from doing so it surely is frustrating but not fault of the player who is running, as when you want to be left alone and have someone chasing you is as much frustrating, but still... not fault of the player chasing you. The issue is when you want to do something that should be part of the game, but the other player wants the same thing which, however, is the opposite. This very rarely happens in other games where usually players have the same objective which requires you to face another player.
I say the system is kinda flawed as one legit objective is wanting to fight as it's legit to want to be left alone, but the issue is one thing prevents the other, a snake eating its own tail.
