I probably shouldn't flat out say they'll be removed; there's potential for it to happen, but it hasn't been settled on yet. I'm fairly sure that's how it's going to go though, and if it does it will mean that 1k hats are also going to be discontinued in their current form.

Yes, this would be leading onto a more expansive reward system for guilds and hats will still be involved. I didn't mention that originally because I wanted to see the reaction. It is also good to set your expectations low!