Combat level is no longer relevant for RS gold the warband system currently in use. Warband players are at risk of being attacked by anyone. Defense is essentially useless for Legacy PKing due to the absence of defense capabilities. Jagex plans to "revitalise the wilderness", but no details have been provided. What are your thoughts on changing your defenses?
Where does all the money that is being spent originates? I'm not an expert in economics, but it seems to me that RuneScape is inherently subject to the effects of inflation. Due to the Grand Exchange the money that is that players spend goes to players. Money earned from other players can be used to purchase quests or buy OSRS gold monsters.