Don't neglect market requests, though. Fulfilling an easy request gives you three rep points, a medium request five rep points.
Rescuing a captive, in comparison, gives you only one/two rep points, plus another point if you don't accept any reward.
Reputation goes from -50 to +50:
rep>=30: great
10<=rep<30: Positive
-10<rep<10: Neutral
-30<rep<=-10: Bad
rep<=-30: Terrible
To flirt with Maple, you need at least forty rep points.