I am personally pleased with these changes. Is it ideal? Definitely not. But is it a step in the right direction? Absolutely it is! 1500 is a bit on the high end, but then again I know several DPS-only folks who have in the thousands of commendations, so anyone who has been here long enough should be there or close enough.

Commendations are the closest indicator we have in game that someone is willing to help others successfully - it is not without flaws for sure and some people can certainly cheat it if they have way too much time on their hands, but for the majority of people it should be a good indicator.

Only thing I would also add to unlock mentor status is to have the mentor roulette unlocked - why these 2 things are still separate still boggles my mind, and having that extra requirement would ensure that, in addition to the dedication and willingness to help showed by the commendations, someone is also at least somewhat competent. No need for savage clears to be a mentor, but having cleared previous extreme primals shouldn't be an insurmountable wall for anyone.