here's some ideas i was kicking around in my head. you know what i've never seen on another shard... a monster kill counter.
kind of like the token ledger it keeps track of the monsters you kill while being on this shard. do you know how cool and prestigious it would be to say....'after 2 years i've killed 380k zombies' or whatever. would be interesting to know how many monster's you killed to level your weapon to 100 or tie the ledger in with the vet reward. personally this is how the vet reward imo should be rewarded, and not by time. should also maybe include crafted items. in other words there's more to being a vet than just being on a shard for over a year. this system would reward people for actually doing something.
i'm not a programmer so i don't know how hard this would be to script, but would be interesting to see. could also tie it into a database and link a website for it. kind of a tally.

here's some rewards (you chose *year or kills*):
any small bod.
+10 level deed (for 1 year or more only allowed 1-3 per year)
decos (after 1 month)
house add-ons (6 months)
spell channeling deed (after 6 months)
dye tubs (after 1 month)
powder of fort (we all love em)
skull of enlightenment (only can chose 1 time per 9 months)<---it so everyone has a chance to go.
crafted by staff deed (after 3 years)
crafted by player deed (after 1.5 years)
ethy mounths 1 slot (depending on how many months)
monster silhouettes (depending on how many months)
pet spawners (after 6 months)
banners (after 6 months)
held banner (after 2 years)
party arrangements with +Nyx (after 9 months *9 months just in case you want to party for your year being here)
organics (1-5k after 6 months)
charger of the fallen (1 year)
-1 to pet control slot only for ethy pets (after 3 years *there is a charger why not others at 0 slot*)
sandles of excelsior (6 months-1 year)
personal teleporter (1.5 years-2 years)
this can be rewarded by years or totals of monsters etc..
if you have any other ideas people please post! this helps the staff know what the people would like to see. this helps not only the vet reward but event rewards too. of course they won't do stuff like -1 pet controler slot for a prize gotta be realistic; that's why i put that after 3 years.