07/10 - Realms and Migration

Previous thread: http://forums.wow-europe.com/thread.html?topicId=11030734679

New Player realms
Normal/PvE: Darkspear
PvP: Xavius
RP: The Sha'tar
RP PvP: Scarshield Legion

Free Character Migration (FCM)
The below FCM is available until October 13. All migrations are faction restricted to improve ratios on involved realms, thus your faction is currently the less populated one on the destination realm.

Alliance only:
From: Burning Legion, Frostmane, Grim Batol, Ravencrest and Sylvanas
To: Burning Steppes, Magtheridon, Mazrigos and Vek'nilash

Horde only:
From: Al'Akir, Kazzak, Magtheridon, Outland and Stormscale
To: Neptulon and Trollbane


Please note: FCM is opened based on realm population tracking and analysis, not by request. If you're looking for a specific migration (from realm A to realm B), you are in most cases better off using Paid Character Transfer, or you could end up waiting for a very long time.

Paid Character Transfers (PCT)
All English realms follow the regular PCT rules, found here:
http://www.wow-europe.com/en/info/faq/paidcharactertransfer.html

Q u o t e:
they dont block it, because they wont force you to stay or go away.
nothing to do with money

What this gentleman says.

Creation of new characters and transfers of characters to a realm is something we choose not to block because we don't want to stop players from playing where they wish to play. One major consideration going into this is that a player should be able to join old or new friends or guilds wherever they are - now also if the player discovers that they play the opposite faction.

Free migration is simply an open offer for players to move elsewhere if they feel an offered destination realm will suit them better than their current one, thus also freeing up space on a highly populated realm - a win-win situation, really. Blocking character creation or transfers to the realm is a win-lose situation, typically supported only by the scenario's would-be-winners.

Q u o t e:
That's all well and good. But, the issue of mass exodus of already dying factions was raised. It's even on the original Q&A

http://forums.wow-europe.com/thread.html?topicId=9895129741&sid=1


But, you've just said that you don't limit either service to allow people to "go where they want to go". Is that really what could be termed as "great care"?

I know it's only a few realms that are plagued by this problem. But maybe you really do need to think of alternative measures. Either a sweeter incentive to get people to move to/from the faction/realm combination in need, or you need to limit the paid function to/from these troubled realms.

And before someone comes along and calls me out on Blizz bashing. I'm not calling them names, I'm just pointing out that when you say one thing, then do another - people might become somewhat cynical about future dealings with you.

Please remember that those who can now switch from a lower populated faction to the other faction on their realm could earlier just move to another realm with a perceived/reputed better ratio. That this particular new service would make faction ratios worse is a valid concern, but one that we already had in mind when working on the faction change service. We closely and continually monitor the faction ratios and the use of the faction change. That is part of the great care we mentioned. And for now we have seen no indication of any faction exodus.

Q u o t e:
Why isnt there ever FCM from low populated server to medium populated servers?

Because that would just amplify the population differences, while our goal is to even it out.

Q u o t e:
Why is Blizzard always trying to transfer ppl to servers to which none is willig to transfer

But people are willing to transfer. Maybe not in numbers that will tip the scales in a single week or two, or that might be clearly noticed by anyone and everyone on the involved realms. But enough to actually make a difference.

Q u o t e:
Only answer most of ppl on xavius would give is that we serve as trap for those players and for Blizzard to cache in on another PCM.

If that is really how you feel, I don't think there's much we can say to appease you. You seem already bent on viewing everything as total black and us as the great evil, and any solution other than the one you propose as proof we have no care for you and others. There's little discussing with such a view, I'm afraid.

Q u o t e:
in the end i think Blizzard should stick to this one "Customer is always right"

No, the customer is not always right. (Omg, I must be crazy to say that! I'll take away everyone's free speech next! ;) ) But we always keep the players in mind and do what we feel is right in the long term for everyone. In this case that is - in our opinion in the best interest for the players of WoW - to encourage and enable (but not force) an evening out of the realm population across existing realms.

Q u o t e:
If you are really geniue in willingness to discuss this issues with me -please present your plan of solving Xavius allaince issues and timeframe in which you are going to implement that.And ofc if that plan doesnt work in tha ttime frame are you willing to do some drastical change on your policies so far-like merging that server with other one or closeing it down by offering FCM to any server of players choseing?

The plan: continue to monitor all World of Warcraft realms closely and use the tools available to even out the population across the realms.

Realm management is an ongoing task in which we consider all realms and address matters across all of them. We do not make specific plan for individual realms over other realms, but incorporate them all into the overall picture. Of course, like other elements of running a game of this type, we continually evaluate how we do things, and may decide to change some of them; you yourself have commented on some of our changes to FCM, in which we have lately addressed faction differences in addition to population differences - which has led to few opportunities to migrate to Xavius in the recent months. However, such changes will not be done in the way of "if by this date we do not see that number we will change those things". For that, there are simply too many elements to consider.

Q u o t e:
"In this case that is - in our opinion in the best interest for the players of WoW - to encourage and enable (but not force) an evening out of the realm population across existing realms. "
Just to clarify-does enable in that sentence refers to stuff like PCM or not?

I was referring to the realm tags and Free Character Migration. However, the automatic locking of Paid Character Transfers (which I guess is what you meant) to realms with too high queues could also be considered a factor in this. So I guess the answer to that is "kinda, in some way, but not really". ;-)

Q u o t e:
Also do you have char on such a realm and would you personally or who ever is in charge of making those disssions(maybe whole team in charge of it) start to play on Xavius to experience our server problems in first hand and then maybe you would be feal differently about solving issues on our and similar servers

That's really a question constructed solely to devalue or discredit somebody's input - "you don't know/care, because you don't experience it personally!" ;-)

Why would you want anybody to feel differently about addressing realm population concerns? If after our exchange here you still think we're not on the same side on that matter, then I at least hope a few others gained a new understanding. That we don't implement your suggestions doesn't mean we disagree on the concern, only that we have many other elements to consider and we arrive at a different conclusion.