Possible solutions to low/unbalanced pop servers

[soxyboi]

One of the main problems given by Blizzard on this is character names, tech is something that can be developed, but forcing players to change their long term and much loved character names would indeed cause uproar among the masses.

How would you merge servers and combat name changing issues?

One thought I had would be with merging 2-3 servers at a time giving priority on names to characters with most /played time so placeholder names and seldom played alts would not poach names of players actually adding to communities. Also ex-players that have highest /played on a name would get 30 day notice to claim that name before they lose it to the next highest played character, and so on and so forth.

Then on the other hand is what is probably being developed by Blizzard, and that is the battletag system being used in D3 currently, which is more than likely being developed for use within WoW, making all characters play under your battletag name and can take whatever character name they so choose. Along with this, they may implement a name to be unique to faction and class, so you don't have 50 paladins on one faction called bubbles, but you may encounter a paladin and a priest with the same name on a single server.
GC has stated in the past that heirlooms want a new system that doesn't require mailing and can be account bound not server bound, and also that gold may become server/account wide at some point which also points to a similar system.

Any other ideas? Would you be happy to lose your characters name to a player that used that name more often?

[Pann]

The issue of names could easily be solved by using the original server name as a hidden surname.

[Deleted]

The issue of names could easily be solved by using the original server name as a hidden surname.

If it's hidden it would open the door to impersonations.

[Itisamuh]

There's no name changing issue. If you transfer servers and someone already has the name you want, too bad, you pick another. This isn't difficult. You said the correct solution yourself, whoever has more played time should get the name to avoid placeholders. That's fair. There's literally not a single good reason not to merge lower populated servers with each other, with the extra intent of balancing factions. Blizzard just doesn't want to decrease the amount of servers since, on paper, that makes it look like it's on a decline. That's all it is.

[Deleted]

There's no name changing issue. If you transfer servers and someone already has the name you want, too bad, you pick another. This isn't difficult. You said the correct solution yourself, whoever has more played time should get the name to avoid placeholders. That's fair. There's literally not a single good reason not to merge lower populated servers with each other, with the extra intent of balancing factions. Blizzard just doesn't want to decrease the amount of servers since, on paper, that makes it look like it's on a decline. That's all it is.

Forced name changes due to server merges are inacceptable, no matter what. The shitstorm would be huge, it would dwarf the realid disaster in comparison.

[Deleted]

just mark it up like they do with CRZ but shorten it to a 3 letter code for your original server, so basically you have name-servercode then when people make a new char on a server they have to pick a server code or are randomly given one, this way it makes more names available on one server and still gives a way to differentiate people. also means everyone has these codes on the end of the name so it makes it fair for everyone as everyone is treated the same.