Breakfast topic: Do PvP servers have casual players?
by David Bowers 
Dec 28th 2007 at 8:00AM
Yesterday's post about summoning stones on PvP servers sparked an interesting discussion with quite a few comments. You all got me thinking about a possible difference in culture between players on PvP servers and those PvE severs. I got the impression that PvP-server players tend to enjoy the more "hardcore" aspects of things, the heightened difficulty, the extra learning that prevents you from just coasting through any part of the game on any sort of autopilot. This isn't to say that PvE players can't be hardcore too (or indeed, very good at PvP) -- it's just that in the regular course of gaming they don't have to worry as much about interruptions from other gamers. I myself have times when I want to get at game rewards with the least amount of effort possible, as well as other times when I wish that the game required a bit more thought on my part in order to make it interesting. Which leads to my question: Are any of you "casual" gamers on PvP servers? Whatever you understand "casual" to mean is up to you, but for me, it's probably someone who spends 10-20 hours playing WoW per week -- if not less than that. If you are a casual player on a PvP server, do you view yourself as both "casual" and "hardcore" at the same time? Do you have characters on a PvP server for times when you want a real challenge, as well as characters on a PvE server for times when you just need to relax?
Filed under: PvP, Breakfast Topics, Leveling
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
J Mar 4th 2008 2:27PM
I'm a bit more what would be considered "hardcore" once I've maxed out my Char's levels, but I'm definately a casual leveler so I'll throw in my comments on this thread (I played in Open Beta and into release on a PVP server, quit for more then a year and a half and recently returned to a different PVP server to be with friends):
I never considered joining anything but a PVP realm - I mean isn't that what games like Oblivion basically are? And you don't have to pay a monthly fee for that. I love the element of danger added by the PVP element. Just last week leveling my newly re-specced Prot Pallie in STV I was jump by a rogue at 20% and had a fun time watching his daggers ding off my armor. And then he tried again! And again!
Two weeks ago I was farming netherweb silk on my 68 frost mage preparing for my frozen shadowweave set in Terrokar when I got into a fight with a 70 arcane mage. I killed him without trouble, then camped him one rez for good measure. The ran across him 30 min later and fought again for a while.
You always remember some of the great ones. Do you remember close calls at the hands of any dungeon boss? Nope, but I remember epic battles recent and long ago. Hell, I still remember leveling my 1st mage back around xmas time just after release and being jumped by a rogue 4 levels higher then me, blinking, and turning around to burn him into the ground. Even better, I still remember wanting the ZG tiger mount horribly and having a running war with a guy in Silithus for a month since he had it on the other side and I felt it was my duty to kill him every time he got to ride it instead of me.
PVP memories stick with you, though it is harder if you don't have friends on that server.
chillis Dec 28th 2007 8:12AM
I'm lucky to get 10hrs of game time a week an I have two 70's on a PvP server. I'm not hardcore at all, just enjoy the competion
Lykaon Dec 28th 2007 8:16AM
I consider myself a casual player, and I'm a member of what I consider a casual guild. All on Eredar, which is an East Coast PVP Server.
World PVP is more of a nuisance than anything as you level, but I would hardly say it's really that much harder than PVE. I could probably count the number of times my leveling has been seriously impacted on two hands.
An occasional corpse run isn't *that* bad though you do occasionally run into the real buttheads who like to camp you and ruin your day. Thankfully, I find that to be pretty rare.
Once you get to the end game, you have the fights at the meeting stones and what-not that can seriously impact raiding. There have been times when our raiding was delayed an hour or more because of it. That's when I actually loathe being on a PVP server.
But what I truly enjoy about it is the sense of camaraderie that it creates. I've played on both PVE and PVP servers, and I find PVP servers to have a stronger knit group. The other Horde have my back, and we have a common enemy. That's fun stuff.
Although I'd undoubtedly get more done on a PVE server with how little I play, I don't find it nearly as fulfilling as I do when I accomplish things on a PVP server.
Also, I find that PVP servers have more of a competitive edge, which helps motivate me to make the best use of my time. It's important for me to get the best gear, because the consequences are more dire than if I have mediocre gear on a PVE server.
Chris Anthony Dec 28th 2007 11:02AM
"An occasional corpse run isn't *that* bad though you do occasionally run into the real buttheads who like to camp you and ruin your day. Thankfully, I find that to be pretty rare."
I wish I had your experience. I play primarily on a PVP server, and I've lost track of the number of times that my class has inexplicably changed from "Holy priest" to "jackass magnet". In fact, I've largely stopped playing that character for the moment because I feel like every time I log in, I get about five minutes of actual play time before I'm being camped by a random Hordie. (It really does seem to be unpredictable who's going to be hounding me for Playing While Alliance, too; there's no recognizable pattern in name, guild, or class, except that I have yet to be ganked by a priest.)
For what it's worth, I play on a PVP server not because I have any interest in PVP (frankly, I'd just as soon leave PVP to battlegrounds and Arenas) but because I prefer to play with my wife, and when she was first starting out, she decided to roll on a PVP server (over my strenuous objections) because several of her friends played there and refused to roll on PVE servers. Now she's 70, I'm 64, and we're both in a guild with a number of friends, so we're reluctant to leave; but at the same time, I spend most of my time in cities these days. (22 days /played at level 64, if that tells you anything.)
Greg Dec 28th 2007 8:20AM
I am a casual player on a PVP server. I think the world PVP element gives everything an edge, you have to keep your eyes open all the time, particularly in known PVP/ganking areas. AH prices seem to be more crazy and irratic, it's easier to sell that uber epic you picked up for like 300G on my PVP server. Players are more aggressive and in your face, but I like this too.
When I play with my wife on a PVE server (she doesn't really like PVP... yet) it feels carebear. That requirement to be constantly alert in case someone is hiding in the trees doesn't exist, the idea of just walking through Hillsbrad or STV without a care in the world just makes me laugh!
So, yeah, I am a casual player on a PVP server and I think it rocks.
UKD Dec 28th 2007 8:20AM
Eh I play when I can... definately less then 10 hrs a week and I play on The Venture Co. Mainly because the only MMORPGS i ever got into were laced with immenent danger (Ultima Online 98-00) here I dont even lose my stuff, so have to keep it exciting. mobs arent exactly cunning.
mcclary Dec 28th 2007 8:29AM
I'm also a casual player on a PVP server. Like Greg said, it keeps you on your toes which is always a bit more involving. Most of the time during leveling I'm not trying to get involved in a big gankfest, so I usually am not the one to start a fight.
Some of my favorite moments in wow have been questing on my shadowpriest and getting ambushed. All of a sudden you have to be on your A-game, and the times I successfully defended myself (once in Arathi against a rogue 2 levels above me stands out the most xD) were the most excited I have been in-game.
/cannabalize rogue
ThorinII Dec 28th 2007 8:32AM
My average play time is less than 10 hrs / week. I do have a couple of Horde toons on a PvP server. I have a couple of RL friends who are also casual players and we play together a few times a week. I do occasionally solo and it can be downright annoying when someone camps your body, but when a Shadow Priest/Mage/Lock run aroun together we normally only get attacked by bored high lvls that kill us once for fun then leave. Most of the time their not on though I play my original toons on a PvE server.
I don't consider myself "hardcore," but I do enjoy the challenge of a PvP server.
Persnickety Dec 28th 2007 8:35AM
I play Alliance on Smolderthorn, a Horde dominated PvP server. I have a lot more fun on that server than I do On my Horde Character on the PVE Server Alexsrtaza... or however you spell it.
I am Far from "Hardcore" But I Find that I have to put more hours in to accomplish the same things that Friends of mine on PVE servers can accomplish rather Quickly.
A Good example of how the cultures different are the economies. Things are much cheaper on PVE servers. Because mats are easier to farm.
p3ngu11 Dec 28th 2007 8:33AM
i have 3 characters on a pvp server, 2 are 70. i do not have any other characters. my guild raids 3 nights a week for 3 hours and we are #2 horde side in progression (3/4 tk and 4/6 ssc). i actually despise pvping and did just enough to get the gems and actually still need a week of arenas for the hunter axe and have not done an arena in over a month. my druid has two pieces of S1 gear for tanking. both are sitting on less than 1000 honor and i only arena to help other people get points when they are down a man.
Silverslide Dec 28th 2007 8:40AM
I'm casual and on a PvP server; the idea of a non pvp server just seemed boring and to be honest I've barely ever got ganked and there's usually a few high levels around willing to spank gankers anyway. A pvp server is a more interesting experience and that's nothing to do with how long you play; I expect some people soley concentrating on end game raiding would prefer a non pvp server.
But seriously wiping an enemy ambush is a great feeling - do try it; the early areas are fairly empty on most servers as far as I can tell anyway.
One word of advice though; check your realm population before joining; I joined some friends on Horde on a server which was majority horde - you might not be so lucky if you choose at random.
Bearskunk Dec 28th 2007 9:22AM
you want more difficulty on a PvE realm? Flag yourself for PvP, other players will take the bait.
peaglemancer Dec 28th 2007 11:02AM
That sort of lacks the spontaneity of PvP servers imo. Making yourself a target isn't the same as random world encounters.
Paw Dec 28th 2007 8:45AM
I am a casual player and I play on PvP servers.
I find that it adds to the game. I am not a big BG or arena player, I just prefer the added twist to the game that only the PvP servers really provide. As Lykaon stated, I can remember only a handful of occassions when questing was severely impacted by ganking. You learn to ork areas like STV a bit differentlythan on a PvE server. If you watch your back and learn the back way to various locations, you can get all ther quests in STV completed with minimal hassle. And that actually gets you to see more of the map. I played for about 8 months on a PvE server before switching, and I had no idea some places even existed because I didn't have to worry about who was playing in the area besides me.
And when you run across a player from the other faction, you are forced to size each other up as opposed to just, from an unflagged state, /rasp or /taunt or /spit or /wave. Sometimes you fight, sometimes you let each other pass, and on occassion you even ally with them for a period...especially when two solo players cross paths on the same questline that might be better tackled with a group.
Michael Zenke Dec 28th 2007 8:46AM
I'm leveling up a character on a PvP server at the moment, and I consider myself a casual player. I'm mostly avoiding world pvp at the moment, and concentrating that part of the game in the Battlegrounds. I've enjoyed the PvP world-element I have participated in, though; it really raises the stakes, makes things a bit more exciting.
Paw Dec 28th 2007 8:48AM
"Horde dominated" may be an understatement. I play on Smolderthorn (Alliance) and I think the ratio is 4 or 5:1 H:A.
Makes it interesting, though. And on your higher level toons, it gives you something to do to go back to Darkshire and confront the gankers camping the roof in town. Always a fun time there.
Paw Dec 28th 2007 8:50AM
Interesting...this comment thing sometimes does not work. I was trying to comment to Persnickety...but it logged itself as a new post.
Olbaido Dec 28th 2007 8:59AM
I've played WoW since the last week of open beta (of the initial release). I started out on Doomhammer (PvE) and played up to about 30ish in a casual fashion. I switched to Shadowmoon, PvP, with in about 3 months of playing and haven't looked back. It took me nearly 9 months to level my very first 60, and now I'm working on my third 70.
As previous posters have noted, world PvP can be a PITA. The way I always approached it was that it made the 'grind' feeling a little weaker. There is always that chance that the red name off on the horizon is not a boar... and it IS coming to get me. I dunno, just adds an extra twist to the game for me.
Previous to WoW, I was a pretty strong Lineage and Lineage II player. I absolutely _hated_ that anyone could kill me. Not only that, but I would randomly drop something from my inventory and lose about 10% experience (can't remember the exact %). That doesn't sound like much until you realize that each level is exponentially higher than the last; eg. level 49 --> 50 was the same amount of xp from 1 --> 49.
The long and short of it is that I love PvP WoW realms because THEY feel like casual PvP games.
Cheers!
Nati Dec 28th 2007 9:06AM
I wouldn't dub myself all that casual in terms of how much I play the game - but definitely casual when it comes to my outlook on it. I play on both PvP and PvE servers, and honestly? If you ignore Strangankthorn Vale, the difference is minimal. It's true that you die a few extra times levelling up, but it's really not a big deal. For the most part, PvP server "world PvP" tends to be very one-sided, with people not attacking unless they have a clear advantage.
I think the greatest difference is in terms of attitude. PvP servers tend to have a greater sense of faction pride to them, but also a greater amount of griefers and immature people. There are exceptions, of course. :)
MartinC Dec 28th 2007 9:06AM
Casual player, used to play on a PvP server, then tried PvE. OMG, PvE is so much better in terms of effective use of time.
I can't tell you how many times when I was on the PvP server, logged in to get some quests done and perhaps level, only to be repeatedly ganked by players 20 levels higher than me. Session usually ends up being a complete waste of time, and end up walking away from the game.
For those that don't want to spend hours on end trying to get simple tasks done, PvE servers are so much better. You can actually start your session with an idea like, "I'm going to finish these 5 quests, level up then train." And be able to do it in a reasonable amount of time. Those of us that are more "casual" want to use our limited time effectively.
As for skill, I have found the average PvE server player to be much more skilled than the average PvP server player. PvP servers seem to foster the idea of "every man for himself", and "If I can kill you I am better than you." These kinds of ideas are horrible when it comes to group and higher level content. No teamplay and coordination. So many players getting an each others throats. I've been in many PVP server groups where people start bitching at each other, then comes the "STFU noob. Come outside and duel me. I'll kick you a$$". Sorry, but dueling someone does not determine your ability to play your class in a group setting.