We missed this last week, but the perpetual challenge that is keeping WoW’s servers tethered to their ‘not-too-empty, not-quite-full’ sweet spot continues. Queues for Tichondrius, Illidan, and Stormrage have become untenable, and as such Blizzard are offering free one-way transfers for players with characters on any of them.
“If the size of a realm’s population results in login queues and decreased performance, we conduct an evaluation to determine whether dispersing some of the population to other realms would represent the best means for resolving these issues,” reads Blizzard’s FAQ. “If so, we offer Free Character Migrations.”
You can stop that globe from spinning right now – nobody gets to choose their new home. Rather, Tichondrius players will wind up in Blackrock, Illidan refugees in Mannoroth, and Stormrage types in Trollbane.
Once Blizzard have skimmed the optimum number of players from the top of each Realm, free transfers will close. As such, the dev team recommend coordinating a jump time with your friends or guild to ensure nobody is skewered when the portcullis comes down.
Potential early closures aside, the transfer window will end on Thursday, after which time Realm hopping will be subject to the usual fee.
Start the process here. Are you on an affected Realm? How does it look from the ground?