WOW realm transfer option

By Ellie Gibson Published 6 July, 2006

Now available to Euro players.

European World of Warcraft players now have the option to move their characters between different realms - just like their American counterparts.

There's a price to pay, though; it costs £14.99 per transfer, or €19.99. The realms you can transfer to are: Altar of Storms, Argent Dawn, Arthas, Dalaran, Demon Soul, Illidan, Magtheridon, Stormrage, Spirestone, Turalyon, Warsong and Zul'jin.

As previously reported, you must be at least level 10 to transfer, and there are limits on the amount of cash you can take with you. And you can only move characters once every six months. So just bear that in mind if you fancy a change...

Picture of Ellie.

About Ellie Gibson

Since joining Eurogamer in the mid 2000s, Ellie has written about subjects as diverse as the fall of Gizmondo, the rise of Hollyoaks actresses in Red Alert games and the noise a bear makes under NSFW circumstances.

Read more articles from Ellie by visiting the Ellie Gibson archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (19) Latest comment 6 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Darkedge #1 6 years ago

    WoW finds another way to gouge it's playerbase and make more money

  • MrAtheist #2 6 years ago

    "We're not just doing this for money... We're doing it for a SHIT LOAD of money!"

  • absolutezero #3 6 years ago

    Why offer the option then?

    And why tag so many shitty things after the money you've paid to move?

  • mentat #4 6 years ago

    it is rather a piss take.

    Not wishing to always compare them to NCSoft - but they offer transfers from the US servers to the EU servers free of charge.

  • jlaakso #5 6 years ago

    Presuming that the transfer takes an amount of hands-on work on behalf of the game's upkeepers, 20€ is quite understandable. Take a moment to reflect on how many players WOW has - they can't offer to handle that kind of workload for nothing.

  • InfiniteFury #6 6 years ago

    Gold farmers and the prevention thereof.

  • Ryuken #7 6 years ago

    Euhm, they already have several in-game limitations to these transfers. No need to ask money for it just to 'prevent' a lot of people from doing it.

  • TheBoyChris #8 6 years ago

    If you don't want to pay, don't do it. Simple as. I'll be giving them £15 and am perfectly happy to do so :)

  • urban #9 6 years ago

    THATS ABSURDLY expensive.

    its not like its going to take somebody 2 hours to move a character over..and its probably all automated.

  • Sko #10 6 years ago

    "No need to ask money for it just to 'prevent' a lot of people from doing it."

    Of course there is! With a, what, six million plus strong customerbase, you don't want every dithering fool requesting a transfer on a whim.

  • dudefella #11 6 years ago

    You can only transfer like once every 6 months, so the goldfarmer/cheater excuse is not really an excuse at all.

    I think it's taking the piss. But fuck it.

  • Laserbream #12 6 years ago

    Err, why can I find no mention of this on the EU website?

  • Royal Fool #13 6 years ago

    its not like its going to take somebody 2 hours to move a character over..and its probably all automated.

    Of course it is.

    1. Type character name into box
    2. Type name of current server
    3. Type name of new server
    4. Hit [Transfer character] button
    5. ?????
    6. PROFIT!

    It's kinda like the scam of selling bottled water and other similar things. Ridiculously easy work, huge amounts of profit.

  • Sko #14 6 years ago

    And still people don't realise why they might not want their servers to be forever swapping character data all over the place... *sigh*

  • Dire #15 6 years ago

    so like where is this option available on the website?

  • Psi #16 6 years ago

    its like asking to move council house and ending up in iraq for christ sake.


    oh please let me pay to be shafted :D

  • Bitkari #17 6 years ago

    Presuming that the transfer takes an amount of hands-on work on behalf of the game's upkeepers, 20€ is quite understandable. Take a moment to reflect on how many players WOW has - they can't offer to handle that kind of workload for nothing.

    I'm fairly sure that it would be a simple enough operation of moving a data record from one system to another, and that it's fully automated.

    I suppose the reasons for the costs are not so much in the work required on the part of Blizzard, but in the fact that they don't want to encourage prolific realm-hopping, do want to maintain a balanced system, and of course they'll charge because some people will pay for it.

    I suspect that many people wishing to move won't be doing so due to overcrowding [which is often the reason for NCSoft MMO players jumping servers...] but more to find a different mix of players, and to join friends from disparate realms.
    Edited by Bitkari at 07/07/06 @ 09:28

  • MrChuckles #18 6 years ago

    Does seem rather excessive tbh, considering it is probably over half the price of the cost of the original game!

    Oh well, i got bored of grinding on it about 8 months ago, so i guess i can't complain as i won't be paying it.

  • kaleii Verified Editor-in-Chief, Country Manager, Eurogamer Sweden #19 6 years ago

    Royal Fool: Haha.... Never underestimate the underpants gnomes... but there were a few steps too many, weren't there?

    1. Transfer
    2. ?????
    3. Profit