Mjollren (atys)
Best comeback for the ring, as I see it, is for a completely player-run instance, if anyone has the resources.
Not sure what you mean by "player-run instance" but if what you mean is a player running their own Ryzom Ring shard then I have sort of good news for you. We've been trying to get the Ring shard for the Ryzom Core shard running. I'd be glad for any help from people who are interested in getting it up and running.
The Ryzom Core development shard will be an always-on shard with a small and slowly expanding world. It won't really be "fun" to play but the shard and the Ring instance will always be there. Just need some man-power to find out what we're missing and get it running.