These modern MMORPG developers really don't seem to understand one simple thing: People play MMORPGs (and even the MMO-lite stuff with action elements) because they enjoy micromanagement. If you're pruning in an MMO, you're doing things wrong. If a skill has become useless, rework it into something else, but do not remove it.
We want a crapload of skills. We want to open up a spellbook and ruminate over the wide range of spells. We want to make decisions. What we do not want is to be told, through pruning, what to do. Start telling us what to do through linearity and we'll be unhappy and we will stop playing your game.