I'm afraid I don't see the gray area as much as you guys do. From the beginning it seemed very obvious to me that the Empire were meant to be the bad guys. Stop the Empire. A couple of them weren't complete dicks, but the rest of them could hang for all I care. I do have a "love to hate" relationship with Vayne, though. That's why I rate him so highly.

How do you rate him as an antagonist, then? Because you don't have to be a villain to be an antagonist and vice versa.