Increase the decay timer in difficult build zones. (Volcano/Extreme Frozen North).
Hear me out, then rake me over the coals.
Less thralls on a server. Large clans are forced to condense their bases into a more reasonable number/size.
Less thralls = more resources available for the server.
Less bases = more resources available for the server.
More resources available for the server = General Improvement in “lag” related issues.
With these improvements, and the addition of mounts, many old players will return to the game. Keep their interest, and keep them around by giving them a place to call “home” without having to babysit.
Giving players a slightly improved decay timer in difficult zones on the map will benefit your most dedicated players, who intend to stick around, but may not always be able to.
The weeks, or months of work it takes to get a nice castle built in the far north, should be rewarded with a slightly more forgiving stance on decay. Having proven themselves as dedicated players, they are likely (more often than not) a valued resource on their server.
PLEASE, give longer decay timer to retain more casual players, or the hard core games who have a burn-out moment after months of grind. Don’t kick them in their shins needlessly.
Regular decay timers apply to all regions except the extreme north, or the volcano.
I built in the jungle. I think the low decay timer is killing off valuable long term community members after they inevitably lose months and months of grind. Due to RL, or as you said wanting a minor break.
I hate seeing long time players lose all their stuff after 1 week, when they have been a good neighbor for 4 or 5 months. (Maybe longer).
As I said, it happens to everyone eventually, it leaves a sour taste in our mouth. (Usually).
I agree the decay timer is useful for lowbie tier 1 spam in desert area.
But by the time a player is 60, has Flawless Epic, and is fighting it out way up north, give them a break to keep the server populated.
Make it regional, and have requirements attached to it. (Only tier 3 enjoy the longer timer.) Player has to be level 60, or maybe X hours played on server. A prestige sorta thing.
With the lower thrall numbers, defending huge sprawling castles will get harder. Players are already consolidating on my server.
I just want more than 3 - 10 players on at peak hours. (Across many servers, not a select few during prime time.)
I want the player base to grow, and not lose experienced, casual players.