Faction-Change Service in the Works

Nethaera just posted an exciting announcement, It seems Blizzard is in the process of ironing out the details of a faction change service where you can change the race of your character to an equal version of the character in the opposite faction.

You can read the original post after the jump.

Posted by Nethaera here:

We wanted to give everyone a very early heads-up that, in response to player requests, we’re developing a new service for World of Warcraft that will allow players to change their faction from Alliance to Horde or Horde to Alliance. There’s still much work to do and many details to iron out, but the basic idea is that players will be able to use the service to transform an existing character into a roughly equivalent character of the opposing faction on the same realm. Players who ended up creating and leveling up characters on the opposite factions from their friends have been asking for this type of functionality for some time, and we’re pleased to be getting closer to being able to deliver it.

As with all of the features and services we offer, we intend to incorporate the faction-change service in a way that won’t disrupt the gameplay experience on the realms, and there will be some rules involved with when and how the service can be used. The number of variables involved increases the complexity of implementing this service, but we plan to take the time needed to ensure that it lives up to expectations before officially rolling it out. We’ll go into much more detail on all of this here at http://www.WorldofWarcraft.com as development progresses. In the meantime, we wanted to let you know that because this type of functionality requires extensive internal testing well in advance of release, you may be seeing bits and pieces of the service in the test builds we use for the public test realms moving forward.

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love it
# Jun 30 2009 at 6:40 AM Rating: Decent
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881 posts
I can't wait for this to happen. I grew up as Alliance only one level 80 and one level 72ish. Now all of my friends (who have a ton of free time) went to horde on another server. So I made the jump as well but started leveling the same time they did. I am now level 16 and they are sitting at 80. I would love to be able to bring my 80 over from alliance so I can play with my friends again when I have a free 30-60 minutes to jump online once or twice a week.

I simply don't have the time to level another character from 1-80 before the next expansion comes out. Though I can see how this can really ***** the PvP balance....or maybe all of the alliance tards will go to horde and even things out so we have idiots on both sides.
This is nice
# Jun 30 2009 at 2:13 AM Rating: Default
Now if they'd just get rid of the current Blood Elf model....fact replace both Elf models with more appropriate models (think Lord of the Rings; they didn't have antennas for ears). And replace the draenei with The Broken (after all the Elements reached out to The Broken first according to Blizzard's story); WoW would be much more reputable than it has become.
This is nice
# Jun 30 2009 at 1:51 PM Rating: Good
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1,882 posts
How about you go play another game and let me keep my favorite race intact, huh? With all due respect, I like Blood elf models EXACTLY how they are. And I'm sure a majority of us blood elves agree...leave us alone.
This is nice
# Jun 30 2009 at 5:03 AM Rating: Good
Dyner wrote:
Now if they'd just get rid of the current Blood Elf model....fact replace both Elf models with more appropriate models (think Lord of the Rings; they didn't have antennas for ears). And replace the draenei with The Broken (after all the Elements reached out to The Broken first according to Blizzard's story); WoW would be much more reputable than it has become.

No! They should replace the current elf model with the elves from manga, where the ears stick straight out to the sides... and give humans the option of having kitty ears on top of their heads, so they can cosplay a furry, too. Since you are a LotR fanboy, how about you play there instead of here?
McYar! with fries and stuff..
# Jun 29 2009 at 8:41 PM Rating: Default
More likely, your character's class will be the limiter on choices..

Have a nelf druid and want a hordie? Tauren is your choice.

Have a Draenie shaman? Luck is with you since you now have multiple choices :)

Have a Belf pally and want an Ally? Umm, hard luck.. hummie or dwarf?

LOL, not likely to be many belf hunters changing to dwarven hunters..
Personally, most dwarven hunters I have played with exeplify all that gives hunters a bad name.

On another note, this will probably be the same price as the re-customization or server move, making it pointless mostly (except for the few willing to pay to try someong else). Why choose to change side, when you can move that alt to another server thats dominated by your side, or just plain busier?

I play an alt on demonsoul.. it's almost dead ally side.
The AH is neglible to get gear to gear up, but good for profiteering.

Thats is a perfect example or the usefullness of switching sides...
Change sides for activity on the server.. or move servers? (or reroll elsewhere :P)
McYar! with fries and stuff..
# Jun 29 2009 at 10:03 PM Rating: Good
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267 posts
Quote:
Why choose to change side, when you can move that alt to another server thats dominated by your side, or just plain busier?


Server imbalance isn't the only issue. For people like me who started playing one faction and now play almost exclusively the other faction there is great appeal. I like my horde toons but it's so long since I played horde regularly that most of the people I played with have moved on. I'd quite like to be able to get my orc joining the people I play with on the alliance side. I really don't want him to stop being an orc though since it really wouldn't seem like the same character. The defection questline that someone talked about in everquest intrigues me.
#REDACTED, Posted: Jun 29 2009 at 7:26 PM, Rating: Sub-Default, (Expand Post) HA! it would seem that Blizzard is actually starting to get concerned with a shrinking player base in WoW.
Issues
# Jun 29 2009 at 7:17 PM Rating: Decent
If the faction is automatically chosen, I'm guessing the changes will be:
Night elf ↔ Undead
Human ↔ Orc
Gnome ↔ Tauren
Dwarf ↔ Troll
Draenei ↔ Blood elf

One of the main game-related issues I can see is the characters mounts.
I think it will take them quite a while to come up with the coding to change the mount spells over.
Unless they wish to allow taurens to ride mechanostriders.

I believe they will let people choose which faction they wish to be (within class restrictions).
Issues
# Jun 29 2009 at 8:07 PM Rating: Decent
I'm guessing that class will also play an issue when this bit of fluff goes live, (IF it does)

If it is purely by race, there are going to be class/race combos you can't get creating a character normally
Night elf ↔ Undead (Mage, Hunter, Druid, Warlock)
Human ↔ Orc (Mage, Paladin, Shaman)
Gnome ↔ Tauren (hunter, druid, mage, rogue)
Dwarf ↔ Troll (shaman, Paladin & mage)
Draenei ↔ Blood elf (Shaman & Warlock)

Issues
# Jun 29 2009 at 8:09 PM Rating: Default
add rogue and warrior to the class inequity mix for draenei & blood elf
hmm
# Jun 29 2009 at 6:39 PM Rating: Good
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I could see me using this service assuming its around the same cost as the other similar service. Whats bad is I can also see people who are sick of losing (insert Wintergrasp or Battleground here) because they are always outnumbered being the first to transfer making the servers even less balanced.
____________________________
Hi
What... the... faction.... (A.K.A. WTF)
# Jun 29 2009 at 6:13 PM Rating: Decent
I have horde guys and I have Alliance guys... I have no reason to change one horde/alliance character to the opposite side...

This is bullcrap for me. I see no reason to allow this unless they are talking about letting horde/alliance characters 'defect' to the other side without losing their actual race, but I don't think this is what Blizzard means... I think they mean If you have a high level Orc Warrior you can change him to a high level Human Warrior and so on... as long as the race they "move" to is roughly equivalent to what they came from.

I would rather see inter-faction race changing before this... as in... making my crappy looking L.70 Blood Elf Rogue into a much better looking L.70 Troll Rogue.

What... the... faction.... (A.K.A. WTF)
# Jun 29 2009 at 8:58 PM Rating: Decent
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381 posts
PentUpAnger the Irrelevant wrote:
I have horde guys and I have Alliance guys... I have no reason to change one horde/alliance character to the opposite side...

This is bullcrap for me. I see no reason to allow this unless they are talking about letting horde/alliance characters 'defect' to the other side without losing their actual race, but I don't think this is what Blizzard means... I think they mean If you have a high level Orc Warrior you can change him to a high level Human Warrior and so on... as long as the race they "move" to is roughly equivalent to what they came from.

I would rather see inter-faction race changing before this... as in... making my crappy looking L.70 Blood Elf Rogue into a much better looking L.70 Troll Rogue.



I'm with you here. I'd rather see same faction race changes AND the ability to defect from one side to another.

I was an old school Horde player, pre BC. The only reason I play Alliance now is because I really, really love playing a Draenei. I'd love to betray my own faction and go over to the Horde with her! And maybe my troll lady would like to become a felweed vendor to the Alliance...you get the idea. Everquest II had this, you could take your character through a questline to betray their original faction and switch sides (if I remember correctly, in the later stages of the questline you even fought your faction's leader, got your a** handed to you by them, and then got booted out of your faction for it, LOL). It not beyond the realm of possibility, if you think about it--every war has had its share of defectors going over to the other side. (In fact, I think it would be more realistic IF the game had people who switched sides).
What... the... faction.... (A.K.A. WTF)
# Jun 30 2009 at 6:41 AM Rating: Decent
I agree here. To a lot of people (myself included), race is more important than class, be it purely aesthetics, the rich lore of the people, the ease of relating to/getting "in character", or what have you.

Long before I had started playing WoW, when I just saw bits and pieces floating in pop culture, I fell in love with the Taurens and swore if I ever started playing, I would be a noble cow. I was very, VERY lucky to find that my IRL friends who convinced me to play just happened to be Horde, because I told my boyfriend that I was going to play a Tauren regardless of where he and all his friends and family were. They all just happen to love Undead, how fortunate is that?

But what if they had been Alliance? I would've still played my cow, but I would've been very lonely. Or I would've given up on my bovine dream and grudgingly played a Dranei, hating the toon and trying to convince myself it was "close enough" just because it had horns and hooves.

I'm babbling, forgive me. All I'm saying is that allowing all races access to either faction would be much more profitable and well-received. Even if these "traitors" could only play a single class! Make a traitor class with a shifty Rogue-like air of deceit, or a DK-like mantle of distrust and disgust. As I said before, race means more to a lot of people than class; I think a lot of people would be willing to sacrifice class versatility in order to have their long-desired Troll Ally or Gnome Hoardie, you know?
Mixed feelings
# Jun 29 2009 at 6:12 PM Rating: Decent
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267 posts
Wow. I don't know what to think about this. My first toon was horde but then I became GM of an alliance guild and really don't have time to play horde anymore. I miss my horde warlock and have often lamented that I wish I could make him alliance, make him part of my ally guild etc. I was never serious about that though. Part of me does with he was an ally toon now but I never really thought it would be a good idea to actually make that possible. I can just see a lot of issues with the idea and can't think of any good way of resolving them. Oh well. If it happens my orc will no longer be an orc. Just won't be the same somehow though. It will be like he's permanently stuck in caverns of time.
What about faction specific stuff.....?
# Jun 29 2009 at 5:35 PM Rating: Good
will this allow faction specific achievements to be completely achieved? For the Horde, For the Alliance.... and what about getting both a red and blue dragon hawks.

do you lose your rep, and mounts for your original faction.

Could be interesting
What about faction specific stuff.....?
# Jul 01 2009 at 10:27 AM Rating: Decent
No way Blizzard would do something like that, it'd be a huge middle finger to almost everyone who wanted to try the service. I know that I'm not willing to sacrifice my achievements and I doubt anyone else is... they'll figure out a way to keep achievements, trust me.
cautiously excited
# Jun 29 2009 at 3:57 PM Rating: Good
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1,882 posts
I have to agree. I'm excited. But I hope my blood elf stays a blood elf. If this means completely changing the race of my character chances are I'll decline...

Then again keeping your current race would cause some pretty huge issues...then again there are always such things as turncoats.

The flipside would be at least a minimal ironing of out perceived PvP imbalances due to racials. If both sides could potentially be using the racials there would be, possibly, less QQ about one side being "over powered".
Amazing news
# Jun 29 2009 at 3:14 PM Rating: Decent
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132 posts
I'm trying to contain my enthusiasm simply because this is "We know we said we had a replacement in the works for Riding Crop, but we were lying those 6 months" Blizzard, but this would be a very welcome service.

Right now I have 2 high level horde toons that I no longer play because my group of friends quit playing. I now have a bunch of alliance toons. To be able to convert my hunter an rogue to join my paladin and DK would be a great boon.
YES
# Jun 29 2009 at 2:04 PM Rating: Good
THE biggest single announcement since PVP transfer's

I hope this isn't a joke, going to read now

I wonder how many alliance are going to be stuck in undercity all the time lol

I also wonder how this will impact bg's...maybe no one else is as excited as I am but I'm changing the second i'm allowed, most likely on 2 or 3 characters
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