In games such as Everquest the normal case is that one force is going to be substantially stronger than their competitors due to how easy it is to monopolize content. Most people who play MMO's are interested in character development and when that is completely shut down for them the vast majority will quit.
I feel like automated simulated repops every 5-10 days would be a lot more important then variance. Variance adds a new mechanic where the best option to compete for end game content is to sit idle and do nothing for an extended period of time. The main way this could potentially reward lesser parties is that the dominant guild get so bored with sitting around that they choose not to do this. I can't imagine that it's going to be easier to motivate a large group of people who are most likely going to lose to perform this same taxing task in hopes of sniping a mob. Given a period of limited success I feel like the will to compete is going to fizzle out and all you've accomplished is introducing another tedious element to the game.
Simulated repops on the other hand will offer a chance for people to compete while still playing the game of Everquest (You know, killing mobs/people and what not) given how extremely hard it would be for a guild to lock down ALL content given that the server is still in a somewhat healthy state. In theory this allows the dominant force to still pick and choose what they want and get the lions share of the loot while still allowing other forces to get something out of it and giving them a reason to stick around in hopes of getting more.
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