I have found that by the time I feel like I am ready to start the main quest, you know a few caravans and a few workshops, 100k in my pocket and still a clan level 2 and already there is a faction that has taken over half the map.
Is this because i collected the parts of the banner and spoke to the non-imperial guy or does this just happen after like 2 years? Not gonna lie, i thought it would remain quite even until I actually did something to upset the balance, but there's a couple of factions just gone.