Ideal Server Population

[Anti-Static Foam Cleaner]

1000+

Anything else is pointless.

[Sarin]

On low population, WoE are completely different. On high population, it is mostly about organizing the guild, setting precast, and specialized builds. It is mostly about skill of guildmaster to organize and of course about patience of people to level up and get equip you need.

Low population WoE are, on the other hand, about skill of players and their ability to adapt to the situation. I've been outnumbered and outgeared sometimes, yet I won. There were times when with just a few friends we totally decimated defending guild that had several times more players. Personally, I consider low population WoE better, because they show more personal skills than just time spent leveling and getting gear.

[Tira]

and let's face it, on anything less than a 250 pop. server, WoE is a joke.

Not at all, Tira. I've played on a server with less than 25 players average and the WoE was great. Even with the 2 guilds, the competition was fierce. All it needs is an inovative owner and a good WoE system. (Prontera castles only).

@Topic.

To me, I'd rather play on a server with 15 - 50 players. Reasons has been stated by my fellow forumers.

Still can't agree with this. I've played on more than my fair share of servers, with wildly differing populations - and one thing that did stand out was the lack of competition on the smaller of the bunch. Even with four castles open per WoE, if you're looking at a population of < 100 split between these four castles, I really can't consider things fun (for comparison's sake, I have four castles open on a server that generally peaks out at 1,000 active non-vend connections for WoE, and this is just about the right level of competition in my eyes). I think a lot of this comes down to personal circumstances and preference, though - I've never started on a server alone, and used to move around with a guild of 50+ active players; and if this subsequently amounts to 50% of the total WoE population, it generally doesn't end well (I was actually banned from a server once for "taking all the castles", no joke). I was never too keen on iRO-style WoE (since it generally came down to whomever lagged the least won the most), but provided you don't have so many players rammed into an Emp room that it's impossible to attempt any level of organisation and strategy whatsoever, it's all good.

In my experience, small servers are also generally much more prone to cliqué-syndrome and ridiculous drama - again, this is just based on what I've seen in the past, but it seems to be a rule of sorts that the more players there are, the less server-wide drama you're likely to get. Pretty much inevitable in any everybody-knows-everybody community, I think, but it's not the kind of environment I particularly enjoy.

(Poison Wolf: 1) You are the worst troll I've ever seen; 2) It was much funnier when it was $1000, please try to learn to be funny.)

[Descent]

Nobody really has an "ideal" population in the end anyways, Tira is right in saying that it's basically down to personal preference.

Some people like having four-digit player counts, some(like a couple in this thread) enjoy small servers.

No real right, wrong, agreement, disagreement.

[Orange]

My current server has major difference in peak/offpeak

There can be as little as me and 3 other people on during the night/morning, then in the afternoon as many as 30 will come on :/

As long as there is a few people to talk to, And can get a party sometimes and a great woe, any pop is fine but i prefer 20-100 online at a time,

[Loki]

All 5 castles didn't open at once so you have to rush in and try to get past the guild that's defending before time runs out. That's why the WoE was active in that server.

Well everyone has their own opinion of what an ideal server is so it can't all be the same.

[Lookkidsitsme]

personally i prefer high population servers with around 600+ people but then again it mean that most of the people are allready settled and made there friends and you are just seen as an outcast and often times you things solo which really blows. As a owner of a server myself i know that the smaller the community the better the chance you get to have fun because the GMs and Admins put an effort into getting new people.  I have to confess that i have greeted 100% of all my players since my server just opened recently and they have bonded and are doing things together during events and mvp hunts.

[undercover]

You can have great WoEs on servers with any kind of population be it 200 or 2000.

200: http://files.filefront.com/Ragnawest+WoE+Feburary+14hmp4/;13294194;/fileinfo.html



2000: http://files.filefront.com/eRO+11009mp4/;12934289;/fileinfo.html

As long as WoE is fun and intense, it'll work for me.

http://i40.tinypic.com/2z9e5nt.jpg

[Dean Stark]

Any server that could be 500ish or so... I mean 200-300+ active players and not dual client salves; 20-30+ active dual client slaves; rest goes to autotraders. I've been on Eternity and man... SO CROWDED... i can't even see the NPC's at times and i spent minutes on locating the Job Changer NPC only to find out there was none >_>.

[bleu]

I like a population of about 200-300 real players - not including afk merchants and also hope that these 200-300 players are active. Not those who logs in 2 hours per week for WOE. Hi/ Bye type. They level, party together, guild events, VP, farm items, server events, woe, pvp, hugel mini games, buy/sell etc...


If a server is too small (say for example: 25 players)
- the economy really sucks. You end up having to hunt for most of the items you want. Unless you donate.
- its hard to find parties.
- WOE gets dominated by a few key players/guilds - which have a tendency to ally themselves and the WOE atmosphere is ONE BIG ALLIANCE vs everyone else on the server.
- Leveling maps/town feels empty. Except perhaps the Main Town.


If a server is too big (say for example: 3000 players)
- It's hard to get to know nice people. Very lost. Lost of the personal feel. You can go to Prontera and shout "Novice lvl1 need advice on Assassin Built". Nobody will answer you. They don't need any extra Noobs!
- People tend to be in cliques. I will only party my Guild members. Sorry, I cannot buff you, you are not in my guild.
- More Dramas

[Aris]

depends on the rates for me. if its a high rate server with 99/70 levels (like mastela ro or ziga ro) then i'm fine with 100-300 pop because most people there tend to love pvp and woe so. if its a low rate like legacy or eternity then id want a huge population like what lrov2 had. or something above 1k+.

[Life]

depends on the rates for me. if its a high rate server with 99/70 levels (like mastela ro or ziga ro) then i'm fine with 100-300 pop because most people there tend to love pvp and woe so. if its a low rate like legacy or eternity then id want a huge population like what lrov2 had. or something above 1k+.

that's true. In low rate server, try to do something with a low population with 1 castle. Is like a competence of LK's or Cross with speed potion, to break the emperium in less time...

is better playing with all the castles of 1 city, with 10-15 guilds of 50-60 assitence of all

[Ravenous]

Starting a server with 200 - 300 waiting people will be good. If its advertised and been prepared, that amount of based player is not too far to happen even now.

So that doesn't count the players to come. I expect mine to have 1000 + players and I have a strong feeling I will achieve it.

[Loki]

Good luck achieving 1k pop.

[mahawirasd]

I swear I've seen this topic before... Anyways, ideal server population? The more the better since it means your server is great.  Of course, some individual players prefer small servers as it's less hectic and problematic.

i bet you do ;
OOT: what do you call yourself in that "other forum" dear sir?


as i said on the first line of my first post, what i'm asking here is your personal opinion, don't be afraid about "right" or "wrong" coz there is none, it's about preference...

well anyway, i've read very good posts about low pop and high pop and why they like it. Basically i would have to agree that WOE (although i don't WOE i have been to several WOE situations and i've seen how it goes) tend to require more personal skill when there is less ppl doing it. To me it seems when there is more tha 80 people in a castle, more than half is just waiting half of the time... The way WOE is set up, there are enough choke points to really only require several skilled players to defend properly... 20 vs 20 seem to  be an "effective" number for me... but that's just me. I value and respect all posts in this thread, thank you for taking the time to post and discuss things properly.


-w-