Vaneras announces closure of four European servers
by Alex Ziebart 
Aug 31st 2008 at 1:00PM
European CM Vaneras made an interesting announcement just the other day: Four EU realms will be closing entirely with Patch 3.0. The EU realms Molten Core, Shadowmoon, Stonemaul, and Warsong will be closing up shop, and free character transfers will be offered to other, currently unannounced EU realms. The destination options will be announced within the next week.Don't worry, though. These realm closures have nothing to do with any dips in WoW's popularity. It's actually due to the launch of WoW's Russian localization. A vast majority of the players on those particular realms were Russian players, and they migrated to the new Russian servers when they opened up, leaving most everyone else high and dry. The equipment these four servers run off of will likely just be used elsewhere, since Vaneras stated they'll be prepped for Wrath of the Lich King's launch after being taken down. Most likely they'll need to launch a few more realms when Wrath rolls around, but it was just far easier to fold these four into larger communities at this point.
[ Thanks, Swarfy! ]
Filed under: Realm News, Realm Status, Blizzard, News items
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Norventh Aug 31st 2008 1:06PM
I just skimmed over the title and thought it said "Vaneras announces closure of European servers".
Yikes!
Igantinos Aug 31st 2008 1:06PM
I once played on Shadowmoon. Happy it's closing down. To many bad memories...
jrb Sep 1st 2008 9:00AM
heh, yeah, me too. I started out there on release day. iirc, i think it was already highly populated on day #1, and got steadily worse over the course of the first year.. pretty much always greeted by queues of 400+
in a way it's sad to see it closing down, in another i don't care as i transferred off it long ago.
is this the start of the end of WoW? Closing realms? that hasn't happned in a LONG time iirc.
AlexW573 Aug 31st 2008 1:17PM
I wonder what happens to characters who aren't transferred? Or people who are on vacation and can't get to the internet to transfer characters.
Chris Anthony Aug 31st 2008 1:21PM
If memory serves, they're randomly assigned to one of the target servers, unless they're part of a guild-wide transfer.
grazwa Aug 31st 2008 1:57PM
Thank you blizz! I'm on Warsong which was one of the busiest pvp realms available and after the Russians left, the place was totally deserted. There would literally be perhaps one or two characters running between the mailbox and the AH at peak times. I feel sorry for those who have had to pay to jump ship :(
p0nch Aug 31st 2008 1:58PM
OMFG WoW must be losing people....End is nigh!!!
MassivelyFTW Aug 31st 2008 2:17PM
A realm closing doesn't bother it it's wherever the waifs and strays end up that should make you scared.
blkmasta55555 Aug 31st 2008 2:53PM
About Molten Core? Thank GOD. Through no fault of their own, those guys made pvp impossible on our battlegroup thanks to Blizz's genius idea to drop a server with 20 guilds that had killed Illidan into a battlegroup where seein the Warglaives were pretty much a myth unto themselves. If they weren't kicking your arse, you were listening to someone else whining about how they ruined the battlegroup (like you didn't know). So, glad all those guys will be relocated somewhere more suitable at last.
Asteh Aug 31st 2008 3:17PM
Noo.. my main leveled to 60 on Warsong :(
Raze Aug 31st 2008 3:43PM
Why in the fuck do you all care if WoW is still the most popular game or not? What difference does it make? What in the hell is Wowinsider's obsession with WoW being the most popular MMO out there?
/endrant.
Eugene Aug 31st 2008 4:01PM
this is EXACTLY what happened on my server (Hakkar, US) when they opened up Spanish-speaking realms. We had a gaggle of Latin American players, and they all bailed robbing us of a majority of our population. But that wasn't the worst thing.
The Spanish speakers were all Alliance side.
Meaning- Horde now outnumber Alliance 3 to 1 (according to WoW realm stats). In addition, the furthest progressed guild on the server transferred off.
The AH sucks, and it's impossible to find a group for any instance.
Please close our server =(
Discograndpa Aug 31st 2008 7:37PM
Heh, I have a 70 tauren shammy on Hakkar, and it isn't all flowers and sunshine on the Horde side either. After being on a fairly progressed server for a couple years, I went back to it and was surprised at how dead it felt. Pugging kara was pretty much impossible.
IMHO Blizzard needs to do something other than closing servers to fix issues that arise. If the Horde outnumbers Alliance 3 to 1, then give them improved leveling speed, or something to get them to help re-energize the server. Anybody from these servers know if they tried ANYTHING to get people to bring friends to these servers?
Muse Aug 31st 2008 5:55PM
Old news is old. Wowinsider needs more noses on the EU side.
Gubbi Aug 31st 2008 6:10PM
This consolidation is good news for those realms identified, however my concern is that Blizzard is squandering a great opportunity to improve many other realm population imbalances now by not broadening the scope of this move, presumably due to the jitters that a wider consolidation would create with a major competitor just about to launch. I'd suggest that current subscriber satisfaction should trump mainstream perception, so if Blizzard has to shut down/merge more low-pop realms to provide a better subscriber experience then they should be doing that.
People are always griping about something, but playing on a dead server has to be the worst thing you can pay for every month. It's difficult to speak authoritatively on population numbers when Blizzard doesn't release the data, but as a player on just one such realm (Karazhan EU) over the past year I can say with certainty that the Alliance population is in dire straights.
It's been a running joke that there are more Belfs than Alliance on Karazhan EU for as long as I can remember and the Horde have always greatly outnumbered us -- that itself is not the problem, as many of us relish the challenge of being the minority faction on a PvP server. However, over the past six months its gotten to the point where the active Alliance population is now too small to sustain itself. Every player on both factions is acutely aware of this and many representations have been made throughout the year to no reply.
If you'll indulge me some general (and anecdotal) comparison metrics between Karazhan EU and Grim Batol EU (both Alliance side):
- Typical Auctioneer AH page scans: Kara (~65) / GB (~265)
- Number of players outside the bank in IF on a weeknight: Kara (0-4) / GB (30+)
- Number of Alliance guilds in BT/SWP: Kara (0) / GB (many!)
If you like leveling without ever seeing another Alliance player, come to Karazhan. Pugging a daily heroic can sometimes take all night to arrange. Forget about doing lower-level instances unless the lunar cycle is in perfect alignment. If you see more than ten players in any one city other than Shattrath, it's "bustling". The worst thing though is just the continually reinforced feeling of playing in an empty environment.
Our few remaining PvE guilds have all transferred off over the past few months and I believe our current progression stands at three guilds doing SSC/TK. Indeed, if PvE progression acts as a microcosm of realm vitality, then this thread on Karazhan EU says it all: http://forums.wow-europe.com/thread.html?topicId=5640235224&sid=1&pageNo=1
Blizzard has recently made the realm a "Recommended" realm for new rollers looking for an English PvP option and there are now some more low level rollers running around, but to be honest it's difficult to see them persisting with a tortuous and lonely levelling grind and a terrible economy when they can get such a better experience elsewhere. If this had been implemented last year it might have stemmed the tide. Only wholesale infusion will save the realm now. We've been pleading for Blizzard to open up a free transfer to the realm for months, but nada.
And to come back more directly to the topic, Karazhan EU also had a significant Russian presence on the Alliance side, which has just about completely transferred off to the new Russian servers (and I don't blame them!). This has crippled the declining Alliance population at a terrible time.
Blizzard's current policy on this problem (failing any official response -- and their community managers have had ample opportunity to reply) seems to be pushing it under the carpet and hoping the more vocal critics reroll or make a paid transfer, which many have already felt compelled to do. It is frankly appalling that Blizzard have so far failed to address this issue (and not just on Karazhan) and many long-time residents take umbrage at having to pay to flee a now dead realm into which they've invested so much effort. Indeed, many also don't want to flee and make things worse, but fight on in hope that things will improve and yet Blizzard does nothing. This is why this recent announcement is such a kick in the teeth.
It sounds like other EU realms are in a similar position. Buck up, Blizzard!
holypaladin Sep 3rd 2008 4:18PM
no more moulton core....yes!!!!
wohooo!!! haha!! now finally the nightfall battlegroup has a chance to win some bgs!!! thank you blizzard! :D
uncaringbear Aug 31st 2008 7:21PM
This does underscore the problem where many realms have an imbalance of one faction's population. I think it's a mistake to allow each realm's population balance to 'naturally' evolve. Blizzard really needs to take a more active role in addressing faction imbalances, and this is a good example of them doing so. Sometimes the intervention may be painful, but everyone benefits in the long run.
Clbull Aug 31st 2008 7:22PM
I once rolled a character on Warsong EU and I saw how big the Russian population actually was when I entered Stormwind.
Considering the successful launch of the Russian version of WoW, I also noticed how deserted Warsong was after.
patrick Sep 1st 2008 12:53AM
I agree gubbi. It's the same problem on EU-Auchindoun. Was a TBC server with more BELFs than all of Alliance and at times a 5-1 to 3-1 Horde over Alliance ratio. We are in the same BG as Karazhan too, Vindication, and the dominance of Horde meant that the only way to grind honour is to premade or you'd get nailed by much better geared Horde pugs. Horde have it tough too as their queue times are ridiculous.
And I still shudder at world pvp when levelling, especially in STV where any lone Alliance was massacred constantly because the Horde outnumbered Ally so badly they could clear the zone and if any Alliance dared bring some 70s in to protect them, suddenly 50 Horde 70s would arrive in a Zeppelin and send us packing. EU-Auchindoun was basically a Horde pve server and a nightmare for any Alliance leveller.
AND THEN THE RUSSIANS LEFT and now AH prices are stupid, pugs non existant for pve (unless you are in a large guild like mine), anyone below 70 has to skip instancing because there is no-one around, and you see the same faces constantly. We went from 'medium' population to 'recommended' a month ago and it's getting worse as people pay to leave to servers with better populations. It's not so bad on the Horde side but from the forums it's clear they are suffering too.
Whilst WOTLK may (and only may) bring a big influx of players, I think it's best Blizzard stopped being so optimistic about player growth and fold servers into each other and try to get a better Alliance/Horde ratio in the consolidated servers. I mean we pay the same money,we should get the same playing experience and not have to pay to move to a more populous/balanced server.
I vote EU-Karazhan and Auchindoun be merged and all the surplus Horde (especially those Belf losers XD) be shipped off to some server that is short of Horde.
Extremitus Sep 1st 2008 5:50AM
:( Tarren Mill (EU) lost it's 3 top progression guilds horde side when the russians left, now we've lost the next top 2, leaving us with 2 horde guilds that are on BT. Our rpices are crazy, the people left are pretty much 75% awful, or trolls, and it's not as fun as it used to be. I reckon if a realm is low pop for more than a month or two blizz might want to offer migration options.