Why didn’t you just make it so you have to get your bracelet removed, then you can travel to the new island on existing servers. That would’ve actually gave meaning to people getting their bracelets removed and doing existing content in the first place and the community would be happy and not have to start everything over.
I am actually interested in the reasoning. Is it related to hardware limitations on the servers or something?
Maybe it’s a way to allow new players to begin on the newest map available instead of forcing them to get through the older content first.
But your suggest is very interesting and gives me ideas… Beginning on actual map, finish the game and c/c your char appearance on the new map to start a new adventure… as the new map plot begins with you, weak and alone, surviving from a shipwreck ! 
Most new players don’t purchase the DLC addons for a game upon first playing it. Usually people want to play the game first before sinking money into additional content.
My suspicion is because in Unreal Engine, maps are not only self-contained, but a given UE server can only run a single map at a time. Likewise save files are specific to each server, and even contain items and settings specific to individual mods.
I’d wager that creating a whole new infrastructure to handle server transfers (particularly in a game that supports mods) is not only beyond the scope of what Funcom can do, but likely also against their design goal. After all, in a survival game, where’s the challenge if you can simply arrive in a new map at max level and with all your gear?
IMO, it’s more fair for everyone to start off on equal footing as brand new characters. That said, it would be nice if they offered some menu functionality for saving our characters’ appearances locally so that when joining a new server we could simply select an appearance we’d previously configured. (i.e. like the Pippi mod allows with Thespians, and CharEditLite mod allows with Mirrors/Shards)
That is not always the case in online multiplayers games, many of them offer the possibility to skip most of the old content when a new xpac hits.
Players always want what is fresh and new !
And this expansion gives the possibility of a new start, it has even not been presented as a sequel to the base game…
[I’m not a dev]
i suppose it would be the same thing as adding the new content to the same map. As for, if you have player A in a place, player B in another, the server needs to render both places at the same time. The more players in different locations, the more areas the server needs to handle at once
So having one person in Siptah and another in the vanilla exiled lands would still pull the same weight on the game, since it will have to render both locations regardless.
I guess thats part of the reason
There are many much better ways this DLC could have been handled. But first i would like to address that this DLC is NOT an “Expansion” as in a traditional expansion implies a continuation of exitsting content or story. If it were an expansion at least one of the following would apply. The existing character would carry over with 1. an increased lvl cap and applicable attribute points, 2. New abilities attainable through story progression, or 3. A higher tier of gear and structures to attain. By starting anew with no connection to the previous content the DLC is by definition a Standalone Campaign NOT an Expansion. My second concern is that with what ive seen of this DLC is that it specificly caters to PVP players for domination of thrall monopoly. This will significantly deter non-PvP players and further divide a very divisive community. To sum up what im saying ill use this analogy, for the last 2 years the community has been chanting “We want cake!” yet Funcom gives a bucket of ice cream and tells us to pay for it. While ice cream is just as sweet its not in the form we asked for it. I fully understand Funcom has to make money but this is not a good way to treat those whom have been loyal since the beginning and it sort of feels like a slap in the face. These are just my opinions take them as you wish. What we wanted was the next level, what we got was a restart.
It IS an expansion. Just not the ones you are used to. Neverwinter Nights 1&2 both had expansions that had a separate storyline that started from 0. NWN1 Undrentide was a story in a parallel timeline to the original story. Warcraft 3, starcraft 1 and 2 had expansions. Different genres but they also don’t satisfy your classification of expansion yet they are all considered to have expansions not standalone campaigns or dlcs.
We also have seen a small bit of the map and its mechanics. For all we know those thralls are T4 thralls or maybe the surge happens in multiple places? Also why would it deter non-PvP? You walk into a surge, knock out some NPCs and take them home without the worry of having someone kill you and take them. Then again they could just take them when you are fighting other thralls, so that could be an issue if you can’t get them back some how.
Your analogy to cake isn’t right either. It is more like you wanted chocolate frosting but they gave you vanilla. Most of us wanted something new added to the game. Yes many were specific (magic, more area to explore, more story), but in the end they got their cake. It just wasn’t they cake they wanted. I want this vanilla frosted cake. It looks good and I am sure I will enjoy it. Would I like to have the chocolate one too? Of course! I am a fatty so bring it on as well, but we will see. This is all in early access so I am excited to see if they add anything more to this.
Perhaps your right but IMO the type of expasion we got is not the type we wanted. I personally was hoping for a second chapter to continue the story of my existing exile to see events transpire once i have escaped the confines of the barrier. But now ill never know. Intead i have to play a new character or an amnesiac neither of which is a true continuity of the story. Dont get me wrong im happy getting something new but i would have much rather have gotten the expansion of which addendums would have facilitated a profound impact on the time and money i have invested in the base game. For example the DLC’s base LvL set at 60 and raising the lvl cap to 80. So that way for those who cant afford the DLC they can go on with thier current characters and gain the new lvls, att points, and feats. For those who can afford the new DLC get to start their new charater at lvl 60 and explore the new map with everything they have previously learned and endured. That makes things more fair especially for console players who have no access at all to mods. Cause im sure it will take the mod community no time at all to figure out how to transfer their old characters and items into the new map. Creating an unfair advantage to PC players.
Having a higher level area would be nice. I don’t mind the idea of starting the new map at lvl 60 or with a character that decided to leave the exiles earlier and keep the skill and talent points. We do have mind wipe potions so having no skills and talents assigned could be just a symptom of the crash. If the island has a means to tie into the OC that would also be cool. This only applies to the character, not equipment and resources. This island is supposed to be harder to get resources so bringing in an over encumbered player with the inventory maxed out to get a resource boost in the island would be unfair. That being said there is still the engine limitations to consider since most servers will only be able to load one map and its database. The database could possibly have been appended to add the new stuff but the addition of the map, depending on its size, would put a massive strain on the server. Having two servers is more likely a need than a want to be able to handle this.
Even if a modder does this, there’s no cross-play between PCs and consoles (that I know of), so it’s not like PC players on those servers would just be showing up on PS or XBox servers and dominating everyone. The only issue of fair gameplay I can see is if someone creates an external, centralized character repository, and admins enable cross-server transports. If that happens, then servers running such a mod could potentially have quite a number of fairness issues, but that still wouldn’t affect Officials, consoles, those in single-player/coop, or even private servers that refuse to allow character imports.
The way I see it, it’s an issue only if the admin of a particular server decides to open themselves up to it.
Exactly so reguardless you would have to start a new character, HOWEVER if you were to start the new map as lvl 60 you can set the character appearance the same and with the same name and would be a continuation of your previous character you just loose all your stuff in the shipwreck which would be understandable. And with a shortage of resources encumbrance builds wont help you much unless you can find such resources at that point its first come first serve which is fair.
My guess is
l think funcom handled it about as good as they could and we just have to accept the technicalities of it.
I agree. The encumbrance part only applied in the case if you didn’t lose all your stuff in the wreck.
I agree with having to pay for the new map i just believe there should be some consolation for those to unfortunate to afford it. With Covid19 still ongoing alot of people are still unable to return to work. I work as a remodeling contractor which requires me to go into peoples homes which is strictly restricted right now. So no work = no money. So with them saying that everything new is part of the DLC and that said DLC uses a seperate data file, then its my interpretation that unless you pay for the new pack you get absolutely nothing.
Absolutely.
As well “expansion” seems more of:
Accessing new content, being it a new area, new map, a new dungeon, etc with your current character.
Another point is, often a in case of “expansion” we get the following scenarios:
A) The content is set to a range relayed to the level of the player; e.g.: a player level 5 would experience the content in a difficult fit to that level (talking about NPCs/AI) whereas the player level 50 would experience the content matching such a level
B) New area can be accessed only when reaching specific level—again referring to “expansion” of current content
The issue I have, and it might be me being naive in here, is the use of “expansion”. It does feel more like Conan Exiles II rather than an addition/expansion to the current Conan Exiles.
My excitement has faded a lot for this…knowing that that character I spend hours and hours, months and months on it cannot visit the new map and explore it
But then again, the same way there are plenty of games with expansions which don’t fall in the definitions you gave…and can be interpreted as not true expansion. You see double-edged blade…
I hate mentioning names of other games in a specific game forum but for the sake of argumentation–and yes yes comparisons are unfair, pretty aware of that–but
ESO ( Elder Scrolls Online) being playing it for the past 4 years. They do release every year expansions of their map (which is pretty big, even with separate maps which one can access via fast travel) new dungeons, new weapons, new skills etc and you are given the option to:
A) as a veteran to explore the new area/map at your will with your current character progress
B) start a brand new character if you wanted to
That game also adjusts the content difficult (for the sake of simplification) to the players level. So the player at level 10 experiece the content adjusted within a range that includes the player level and so does the max level.
Now quoting another game, yes different style etc but for the argument, The Witcher 3. You get your expansion and one can only access those areas when a specific level is reached.
I understand the tech-limitations… but the term expansion is sort of misleading, if feels more like Conan Exiles II rather than Conan Exiles expansion.
It not that it would cause an imbalance on console what would be unfair would be that PC will have the OPTION to transfer their old characters into the new map. Its bad enough knowing all the other mods they have access to but now they will be able go to a new map and not have to start from scratch also? From console point of view its like we are outside the club freezing cold waiting in line while PC players high five the bouncer then just walk on in.
Sounds like you picked the wrong platform to play the game on 
Starting from scratch is literally the point of the game. I’d actually feel kinda badly for those who do such a thing as their knee-jerk response because they will have just cut short so many of their opportunities for actually enjoying the game.