Server Types

               Choosing a server when you begin playing can make or break how you experience the game. Below you will overviews of the types of servers offered in EQ2, with a larger section devoted to the Time-Locked Expansion servers, due to the unusual approach to game play instituted on those servers. 
*In the past, free-to-play accounts and "silver" accounts were limited to a single server (once called Freeport, now part of the Skyfire server), but this rule was changed to allow population growth to all servers and all players who wished to return to access characters they created in years past.  Those looking to play for free can now create on ''most'' servers. 
:*For a breakdown of account types (free vs. paid membership) and the benefits of paying to  play, see the [[Free-To-Play]] page
*For a list of current servers see the [[:Category:Current servers|Current Servers category page]].
*For live status of servers, see [https://www.daybreakgames.com/status?locale=en_US Official Server Status on Daybreak's website]. 
:*Please note that the time of day/night, special events, or scheduled server downtime can all impact the low/medium/high population status and may not be indicative of each server's typical activity. For example, if an intern trips over the cord and unplugs Skyfire, that server's population may be listed as low, even though it is normally a high population server. New players may want to create an account on the forums to ask for server recommendations based on their desired play style, etc.   
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==Player vs. Player==
*'''Limits based on account type: none.'''
PvP servers are those on which a player may openly attack other players at will. On PvP servers this sort of battle has consequences that go beyond armor repair.
*As interest in PvP is limited and Battlegrounds (instances) were introduced, most PvP servers have merged over the years. 
*''Note: org. author of this page is not a PvP player and PvP servers may have been eliminated - with the exception of the Time-locked option described below.'' Please update this section with any free-for-all-PvP servers that still exist that are ''not'' TLE.
==Player vs. Environment==
*'''Limits based on account type: none.'''
On servers of this type, players can only battle monsters at-will and each other in short, simple, no-consequence duels ''only'' if and when they are willing. 
*This server type is the most popular and the most common.

==Roleplay==
*'''Limits based on account type: none.''' 
[[Roleplay]] is when one or more players acts as if they are the character they are playing in the game world. In short, it is when you write a stroy that suits the Everquest 2 world of Norrath in real-time and over time as you play in the world and interact with others. While EQ2 has RP servers, RP is not strictly enforced as it may be in some other games and you will find non-RP players in the community too. The best way to find fellow RP enthusiasts is to create a character on a RP server and look for guilds who focus on that activity. 
*This server type is not officially designated (policed as RP) but the community for RP is quite strong, making RP servers a place with a steady population, even though there are fewer servers of this type. 
*There are no official RP servers, but as of 2015, [[Antonia Bayle (Server)]] is the most active RP server. 
==Time-Locked==
*'''Limits based on account type: an [[Free-To-Play|All Access]] (paid) account is required.'''
Time-locked servers (TLE servers) differ from all other servers in that players get to choose when content from the expansions unlocks by a vote. As of the launch of these servers, the vote is held in-game in the form of a mailed poll. TLE servers have one PvE and one PvP option.
:'''Due to this difference, it is highly likely that TLE servers may not have the same quests, the same rules for some gameplay aspects like mounts, for world travel and more as other servers as described by this wiki.''' 
*The time-locked servers are '''only''' accessible to players with a [[Free-To-Play|All Access]] (paid) membership.
*These are '''not''' pure legacy servers with all old rulesets in place; rather they offer an experience ''similar'' to "vanilla" EQ2. For example there are ''no'' "corpse runs" and ''no'' crafting subcomponents. Instead, there are no features like Battlegrounds, no veterans bonuses, and mounts have the old speed limitations. The intent is to offer a slow progression through old content for those who have a nostalgia about older content and zone or those who missed it the first time that want to experience it as it is released to the whole server.
*While the Veteran's Rewards accessed with /claim are not included on the TLE servers, the [[Marketplace]] '''is''' a part of these servers.   
===Content Limitations to Unlock=== 
*Exp01: Desert of Flames, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 60, Guild Level Cap Increased to 60
*Exp02: Kingdom of Sky, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 70, Alternate Advancement Subclass Window unlocked with a 50 AA cap, Guild Level Cap Increased to 70
*Exp03: Echoes of Faydwer, AA Class Tree Unlocked, AA Cap is Raised to 100, Tinkering, Transmuting, and Adorning Unlocked
*Exp04: Rise of Kunark, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 80, AA Cap is Raised to 140, Guild Level Cap Increased to 80, Guild Halls
*Exp05: The Shadow Odyssey, AA Shadows Tree Unlocked, AA Cap is Raised to 200
*Exp06: Sentinel's Fate, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 90, AA Cap is Raised to 250, Guild Level Cap Increased to 90
*Exp07: Destiny of Velious, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 92, AA Heroic Tree Unlocked, AA Cap is Raised to 300, Flying, Leaping and Gliding Mounts
*Exp08: Age of Discovery, AA Cap is Raised to 320, Mercenaries, Apprentices, Reforging
*Exp09: Chains of Eternity, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 95, Prestige Window Unlocked, Guild Level Cap Increased to 95
*Exp10: Tears of Veeshan, AA Dragon Tree Unlocked, AA Cap is Raised to 350
*Exp11: Altar of Malice, Adventure, Tradeskill and Guild Level raised to 100, Prestige Class Tree is Unlocked, Guild Level Cap Increased to 100, Legendary, Fabled and Mythical crits
===Time-Locked Differences in Detail=== 
All TLE Servers 
*Only All Access Members will be able to create characters and log into the TLE-Servers.
*There will only be ground mounts and they will have reduced ground speed. The highest mount speed on these servers is set at 29%.
*A new queue system for logging into the servers
*Content will be locked to classic EverQuest 2. Starting areas are Outpost of the Overlord and Queen’s Colony.
*No Veteran Rewards or Veteran experience bonus.
*No Recruit a Friend
*No /claims. Anything you could claim on your normal accounts will not be available on the new TLE-Servers
*Loyalty System and daily quests are locked to Chains of Eternity expansion.
*Legendary, Fabled and Mythical crits will be locked to Altar of Malice Expansion.
*No dungeon finder
*Level agnostic dungeons will be locked to an undetermined expansion feature.
*All races are playable at launch. Players still need to purchase races they don’t own if they’d like to play Aerakyn and Freeblood.
*Beastlords are locked to Age of Discovery and Channeler’s are locked to Tears of Veeshan expansions.
*Re-forging, Mercenaries, and Tradeskill apprentices will be locked to Age of Discovery.
*Mercenaries may or may not return to PvP, this will most likely become a poll in the future.
*Guidhalls and their amenities will be locked to a undetermined expansion. We are still considering this.
*No prestige home portal or home UI will be available.
*Marketplace will be highly restricted and polls will be done to determine what will be available. Experience potions will NOT be available at launch, but we will be adding them in later.
*Experience penalty will be returned to launch levels of experience gain
*Dropped coin has been returned to launch levels of coin gain.
*Adventure packs are linked to the expansion after they were launched.
===PvP Time-Locked Differences===
The PVP server shares all of the same general limitations as the PvE TLE server, [[Stormhold]], but the following will be of special interest to PvP players:  
*PvP server: no battlegrounds EVER!
*PvP server: no prestige housing!
*PvP server: no flying, leaping or gliding EVER!
*PvP server: No more pvp stats on gear. Procs return to items that have them.
*PvP server: Travel bells are restricted.

==Test Servers==
There are two types of servers used to test game content. 
:'''Please inquire about accessing these server while in-game or on the forums as rules for accessing them and the steps to do so may change at any time.''' 
===Public Test===
*'''Limits based on account type: an [[Free-To-Play|All Access]] (paid) account is required.'''
Test is what it sounds like: a server where players test content before it goes live. This is reserved for smaller patches, event content, and (typically) content that is not tied to payment to access it. Large-scale content like expansions or other paid adventure packs are only added to the Beta test server described below. Characters created on Public Test do not count toward you character limits, but bear in mind that this server is more prone to the following:
*Bugs, since new content is tested here on a regular basis
*Changes to introduced/tested content based on player feedback and bug reporting
*A smaller community, due to the conditions above
*A community that '''expects''' its members to be good citizens who take the time to use /bug to report bugs and give feedback both in game and on the Test forums. Only those committed to actually testing should create a character here. As such a few guilds there are designed specifically to this purpose. 
*Extreme inflation '''or''' deflation, as some items are in greater demand there, while others are not in demand at all. For example, you may need to craft all of your own gear and spells there as they may never show up on the broker if they are older gear/spells.
*Public test '''is''' a persistent server, meaning that any character created there will remain there.   
==Beta==
*'''Limits based on account type: an [[Free-To-Play|All Access]] (paid) account is required.'''
:*'''Pre-order purchase of content (like expansions) may be required as well.'''
This server functions in a manner similar to Test, but players are able to (usually) able auto-level a character for the purposes of running content that's added at (typically) higher levels, as well as, the ability to "copy" any of your charcaters over for the purpose of testing content. For example, you may want to test your (already) max Monk in new gear while still having gear you earned previously on a live server. If you created and auto-leveled a ''new'' monk to test the new content, you would ''not'' have any old gear to compare it to, and so on. 
*Beta '''is not''' a persistent server, meaning that all characters copied or created there are "wiped" (deleted) on a regular basis, generally after the new content launches on live servers. 
 
==Other Server Info==
The servers available to you are based on your location and language choice. You can switch which servers you see and access by changing the Language option in the game launcher. Bear in mind that you must also have the appropriate account type etc. to create characters on some servers (like the TLE)
*Over the years some servers were merged to keep the population at active levels that best served the community. Such merges occurred in 2010 and 2015. Should you find yourself returning after ''many'' years away and your character has the letter ''z'' or ''x'' added to the end of your name, you were moved during the 2015 server merges. The same holds true for guilds with duplicate names. See the [https://forums.daybreakgames.com/eq2/index.php?threads/server-consolidation-faq.563270/ Official Daybreak post] on how to rename your character and/or guild after the 2015 merges.
*The Exchange server type (that once allowed use of real-world money to buy/sell items) was retired and those servers were merged with other servers
*A single Prison server, [[Drunder (Server)]], was created to contain misbehaving players who use "bots" and otherwise violate the game rules. As of it's 2015 launch it is a one-way ticket server with zero customer service and it requires a paid account.

==Info Sources==
The info about Time Locked servers on this page was adapted from two official Daybreak announcements:
*The [https://www.everquest2.com/news/time-locked-expansion-server-launch-live TLE (Time-locked expansion) server announcement] 
*The [https://www.everquest2.com/news/time-locked-expansion-server-faq official TLE FAQ at launch]
Info about the Prison server is based on info from [http://eq2wire.com/2015/08/19/the-prison-server-experiment-drunder/ EQ2 Wire's post, The Prison Server Experiment]