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I think it would not be inappropriate to compare most Smaug (or any type) muds to the D&D novels.
The universe is set, there are exsisting guidelines, characters and places. Who here would expect to read a dragonlance book without reading at least one familier name. But it is up to the author to add to those mentioned. While a book can be set entirely in a familier city, it must have something new and unique. For it is the uniqueness that makes the novels and muds enjoyable, no matter how many stock areas.
And are muds not novels in of themselves? The coders construct the universe, and the builders the cities. The players, however useless and annoying they may be, are the very characters whose lives we follow throughout the story. The stock areas are well constructed and decent places for the characters to explore, but if you choose to remove them you face an awesome responsibility. It is up to you to provide them with the areas to continue their adventures. Places descript enough to fully immerse a person into the very reality you (the builder) imagine. It may not be easy, but the end results can be far greater then you might realize.
Having said all this, I must first ask you to pay no heed to me and to second apologize for my insane ramblings. It is now 3:44 am, and I play on an rp-encouraged LPMUD with no stock areas at all.
Krotho
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