WoW Rookie: How to choose your realm type
by Michael Gray 
Oct 27th 2011 at 8:00PM
Picking a realm is the first choice you will make after installing World of Warcraft on your computer. Folks have plenty of different opinions about which realm type provides the best WoW experience. It's almost a personal religion for some players. The final decision about what you prefer will, of course, be up to you.
In World of Warcraft, there are four different kind of realms for you to choose from: PVE, PVP, RP and RP-PVP. Confused? Don't worry, that's why we're here to help. You can choose to play all four ream types, if you'd like, although each character can only belong to one realm at a time. Plenty of players have characters on multiple realms; these players go to a PVE realm when they're in that mood and flip over to a PVP realm when they want a tussle.
Player versus Environment (PVE)
On a PVE realm, you are never forced into a player-versus-player situation. If you choose, you can activate your PVP flag, which will allow the opposing faction to attack you. That is strictly optional.
If you are looking to enjoy a leisurely grind and don't want to deal with the war in Warcraft, then roll on this kind of realm. You may still PVP in Battlegrounds, so the PVP aspect of the game is not completely lost -- it is just controlled and tightly focused.
Player versus Player (PVP)
A PVP realm is exactly like a PVE realm in almost every way. Same dungeons, spells, mobs and areas. Even the same Battlegrounds. The only difference? Once you leave territories controlled by your faction, you are fair game for PVP.In the starting areas, you are protected and your PVP flag is off. Once you leave the starting areas, however, you can be attacked anywhere, at any time. To a lot of players, this adds to the excitement of the grind. However, there are some things you should consider.
You will get ganked. A level 35 can kill a level 24 on sight, and it is his right to do so. A level 60 will sneak to a newbie zone and destroy any level 10 who turned on his PVP flag. You will hear the philosophy "if it's red, it's dead" thrown about a bit. Players of the opposing faction have their names in red when flagged for PVP, so if someone sees another player with a red name, they will frequently be killed regardless of level or situation.
Don't ever expect a fair fight. If you are engaged on two mobs, don't expect the other players to show you mercy. If members of the opposing faction sees you in that vulnerable position, they could very well take advantage.
You will get camped. Someone 15 levels above you will sit on your body and kill you again and again. This doesn't happen all the time or even a majority of the time, but it does happen. Is that person being a bit of a jerk? Probably. Is it within the rules of a PVP server? Absolutely. Will you get anywhere by complaining about it in the chat channels or forums? No.
Camping and ganking are all part of the WoW PVP server experience. The guy who is ganking you was probably ganked a thousand times on his way to 60. Don't let that scare you off from a PVP server. Once you get in a guild, you can call some friends to help you when you are being camped.
Roleplay (RP)
These servers are exactly like PVE servers, except there is roleplaying. Actually, the majority of the people on RP servers are there to enhance escapism and avoid the majority of joke names and out-of-game references.These servers are the place to find like-minded roleplayers. If you want to portray a Dwarf during your interactions with others, these are the realms for you. This is where you can tell stories, act in character, and find other players to engage in RP.
Roleplay Player versus Player (RP-PVP)
Finally, we have the most rare choice, the RP-PVP realm. These servers are exactly like a PVP server in every way, except it is also a role playing server. You can both roleplay with other folks and engage in all the exciting action from a PVP realm.
How to choose your specific realm
Once you know what kind of realm you want, choose which specific realm you want. Some realms have been around since launch, have tons of guilds in the high-end raid dungeons and are bursting at the seams with players. Other realms are newer, have fewer raiding guilds and have rather sparse populations. Most realms are somewhere in between. How do you discover which realms are which?
One of the best ways to get started in the very beginning is to let the game itself recommend your first realm. Once there, start looking around the official forums and recruitment spots like The Classifieds. Find guilds and recruiters who are looking for newer players. These are likely your best places to really dig into the game.
As you progress in your expertise and levels, you'll get a more refined idea of what you're after. Don't be afraid to try out different realms and different guilds; eventually, you'll find the right niche for you.
As you progress in your expertise and levels, you'll get a more refined idea of what you're after. Don't be afraid to try out different realms and different guilds; eventually, you'll find the right niche for you.
It is a little footwork
Jumping around realms and guilds definitely involves a little footwork. But, if you do a little research, you will be much happier with your realm choice in the long run.
Good luck starting your WoW life!
Visit the WoW Rookie Guide for links to everything you need to get started as a new player, from how to control your character and camera angles when you're just starting out, to learning how to tank, getting up to speed for heroics and even how to win Tol Barad.
Visit the WoW Rookie Guide for links to everything you need to get started as a new player, from how to control your character and camera angles when you're just starting out, to learning how to tank, getting up to speed for heroics and even how to win Tol Barad.Filed under: WoW Rookie
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 2)
Artificial Oct 27th 2011 9:19PM
*ahem* Wyrmrest Accord :p
Astoreth Oct 27th 2011 9:21PM
I admit I play mostly Horde on Moon Guard. There's always RP going on in Orgrimmar (especially the Valley of Honor) and usually in Thunder Bluff, Aszhara (Gallywix's) and Silvermoon. Additionally I find random RP frequently while questing. There are several active and prosperous RP guilds (including a couple RP-PVP) who host events.
I can say less about Alliance because I've only levelled one character past twenty on MG-
A... but with all respect, the people standing around the Cathedral are doing it wrong. (Standing around waiting for RP to fall in your lap is not going to make for good RP on ANY realm!) On the few occasions I've played Alliance side I've found lots of actual RP out in Darkshore, Darnassus, EPL (of all places) and... that fortress in the Barrens I can't remember the name of now and I'm too lazy to look up. Regardless, it's there. And I find both factions roleplaying in Booty Bay and Dalaran every time I'm there.
Have you actually taken a census of trolls vs roleplayers on Moon Guard? Because my anecdotal experience is essentially the opposite of yours. Yes, we haz trolls; so does everywhere else. But like most realms, turning off Trade and staying out of Goldshire takes care of most of them. Is MG really that unique in that regard?
It's great you've found a home on WRA; I infer from your writing that you had a bad (or at least boring) experience on MG and that's disappointing. Not every realm is for every person. But just because MG wasn't a fit for you doesn't make it a bad fit for someone else, or bad realm overall. Be kind.
Wolfrunner Oct 29th 2011 3:44PM
I play Alliance on Moon Guard. I have two 85s there and am the founder and current officer of a RP-PvP guild on the server (we RP and we smash faces in). Roleplay Alliance side is great and pretty damn near universal. Download an add-on like MyRP and you'll see every second players is flagged. Of course you'll see a lot more if you're in a guild, but there are a lot of very large RP guilds, and more open world RP than on any other sever.
We do have a very high population so it is very diverse. There are of course "badies" and our Goldshire is infamous, but the rest of the server is very nice. Walk around, open up some conversations, you'll be impressed. I was. I also suggest you check out the Realm Forums of a server before you make any commitments.
Marius W. Oct 27th 2011 8:53PM
Wyrmcrest Accord
Awesome Oct 27th 2011 10:33PM
@ Marius
I dunno, it seems pretty empty these days, but then again my experience is rather limited, though the Horde side of WWA and Moon Guard are pretty good.
ladygamertn Oct 27th 2011 11:48PM
I play mostly Alliance. But I do have Horde characters on one realm. I do that because I kep trying to take my Horde toons into Alliance areas too often. I always did a double take when the Stormwind Guards were RED to me. Now with all my Hordies on one realm, I don't do that.
vlad_dracul2k2002 Oct 27th 2011 11:54PM
Or you can choose like I did: Which ones are the people I want to play with most on?
Hih Oct 28th 2011 12:20AM
Mr. Gray makes it sound like PvP realms are terrible places to be where you're never going to hit max level because you're constantly dieing to enemy players.
This is simply not true. You will probably get ganked, sure. But even in a mid-high pop server that's relatively balanced (Frostwolf US), a character of mine may have died to world pvp maybe once or twice on the way to 85. And I have an 85 of each class. A lot of the time, if you see someone else, just give them some distance and they'll leave you alone too. Don't go afk next to them, and do keep an eye on them, but most of the time other players just want to level, same as you.
If you do get ganked, be careful before rezzing. Try to see if he's camping you. If he is, just go take a 5 minute break, he'll get bored and leave. Go the bathroom, grab a snack, it's not a big deal.
What I've found is actually most dangerous is someone a level or two above you that's doing the same quests as you and is intent on killing you every time they see you. In that case, your best bet is to either try questing somewhere else, queue for a BG/random dungeon, take a 5-10 minute break, or just keep on questing anyway.
I find that PvP servers add a lot more excitement to the max level grind, sure there's some frustrations, but there's also a lot of fun times too (like killing that guy 10 levels above you trying to gank you because he's not really taking you seriously).
Sure, they aren't for everybody, but what is? I highly recommend giving them a chance, even if you aren't a huge fan of PvP (I'm not, I hate BGs and arenas, but hey, something about the spontaneity and unknown of PvP servers that I really like).
Shade Oct 28th 2011 12:43AM
It's an unpopular position, but I think new accounts should have to level a toon to 30 before being allowed to roll on a PvP server. Have a max-level enemy faction NPC grief them for a while at multiple random points in the leveling experience, followed by a message like "If you choose to create a character on a PvP server, the series of deaths you just experienced may be a regular part of your questing experience. This is an officially sanctioned practice by Blizzard, but not one that is enjoyable to every player." Then at 30 give the option to server transfer the character for free if the player really wants to play on a PvP realm.
Why 30? It takes a while to grow into the cadence of WoW questing, especially since at early levels your regen is through the roof and the help features hold your hand. It's only when a player can say "Okay, I've got this down" that said player can truly understand how it feels to be griefed.
Having your friend say "Well you might get griefed a few times but we'll be on the same server" is not the same thing as actually knowing first-hand what it's like to get griefed, and for players new to games with open PvP components, it's a completely foreign experience. Level 85 Charizards don't randomly pop up in Viridian Forest in the early Pokemon levels.
Expecting brand new players to fully understand the ramifications of rolling PvP is like expecting a non-English speaker to fully understand a WoW Insider article. Yes, every single word is plainly displayed with nothing withheld, and yes, context may sometimes be gleaned from the header image. The sole point of relevance here is that the person hasn't learned English yet. Turning around and yelling at them when they realize WI isn't (usually) a strategy guide isn't fair because you haven't considered the circumstances under which they arrived.
Slaytanic Oct 28th 2011 1:01AM
Another factor I like to take into consideration is the location of you server to you, to minimize ping. :)
List of server locations:
http://www.wowwiki.com/US_realm_list_by_datacenter
Marcosius Oct 28th 2011 5:24AM
EU or US? Well in any case, the only answer is
Grogos Oct 28th 2011 10:08AM
Only thing I would have added would be research on Time Zones. Its cool to be able to play with people through out the land, but to try and set up raid schedules with people living in 4 time zones can be a headache to say the least.
cuda Oct 28th 2011 6:30PM
It would be nice if on the realm listing , folks could identify what time zones these realms are in.
So someone doesnt have to waste time searching for a realm in there time zone .
thebitterfig Oct 28th 2011 12:34PM
When I played, I pretty much always rolled on RP servers, not so much for the RP but because folks just seemed friendlier than on regular ones. While I never RPed myself, I've never been hostile to it, and the naming restrictions are actually kinda pleasant (they weed out @$$-hat names and make the game on the whole more immersive).
That said, I could have mostly just gotten lucky and picked good ones.
Server economy is probably worse than large PvE ones, but for those of us who don't care so much about gold and who just want a decent spot to play the game, it seems like a decent trade-off.
ZephyrSP Oct 28th 2011 12:50PM
Gentlemen and ladies of means, culture, and gumption roll RP-PVP.
Here's my spiel about PVP servers.
Rolling a PVP server is to embrace the idea of "warring factions" in a more full sense. Alliance and Horde are at war. This is true on every type of server; where they differ is a matter of the nature of that war.
On a PVE server you might call this war a "honorable war." The factions are opposed, but their conflicts are more organized and based on equal combat. Sides must agree to battle, be it BG, arena, or flagging up for wpvp. More paramount is maintaing order, and protecting those who don't want to fight or interact with the other faction. Even when your faction's city is invaded, you can _not_ be forced into combat you don't approve of.
On a PVP server the brutal side of war is embraced. You are at WAR, personally, as a member of a faction. There is little honor in war, and even less mercy. The other faction is despicable, and they will prove that to you. With the exception of Sanctuaries, contact with the other faction can and should result in combat. If you can't compete with the enemy you encounter, you better try to run. Killing an enemy without remorse, even one weaker than you, is completely acceptable because you know if the roles were reversed, the same would be done to you.
Play ruthless. Play smart. Roll with the punches. Punch back. Travel in groups. Have backup. Know your limits. Exploit opportunity.
Expect foul play. Expect taunting. Expect unfair odds. Expect camping. Expect to die, a lot. Expect to kill.
It's a dangerous, unfair world out there. It will make you mad and it will make you HATE the other faction.
And remember, it's what you signed up for.
spamofchaz Oct 28th 2011 1:18PM
Another consideration is timezone. It can be frustrating if you're on the East Coast and your server is West Coast making you play very late. To check the time zones of servers look here http://www.wowrealmstatus.net/timezones.php?t=1
Lyrd Oct 28th 2011 1:17PM
I almost commented a complaint about geographic server location (for ping/latency reasons) not being a subject of mention in the article, but i scrolled up to re-read the title to see if it was warrented. Still, beyond realm type, realm server location is worth considering when choosing where to play. Especially if you plan on serious end game play.