#8 - June 8, 2009, 8:53 p.m.
Q u o t e:
Using the character customization my friend and I changed the name of one of his characters so that I could use the name on my account. We tried to time it perfectly so that when he submitted the change, I would grab the name right away. There was little to no lag since I was just waiting to hit the button. However, when he submitted the change the name still came up as unavailable. I tried it again many times last night and still it said the name was unavailable.
When does a name become available after it's been changed using character customization? Is it instant and I just had bad luck with someone taking the name instantly, or is there a delay in the name becoming available?
Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but when a character's name is changed via re-customization, it is very much like using the Paid Character Name Change service. As a result, the name in question will be locked for 90 days until it can be used for a character.
At that time, you can create the character in question, or use the Paid Character Name Change service to acquire it then. Please keep in mind that if a character is transferred or deleted, that its name becomes available immediately.
Here's a FAQ for our Paid Character Re-Customization that provides a bit more detail:
http://us.blizzard.com/support/article.xml?locale=en_US&articleId=25661 Q u o t e:
If I change the character's name, what happens to the old name?
Once the name change is complete, the character's old name will be locked from use on the realm for 90 days. After that time, the old name can be claimed by any player on a first-come, first-served basis. If you want to use the name again, you will have to reclaim it before anyone else does after the 90 days have passed and the name is made available again.
