I've been talking to many clans and friends around L2 world, and we all have some ideas for a server, but none of us can just open one (and we all want to play not being admin/gms :P)
Best Rates to get a lot of people and have a stable server ---> x10 (or around that ratio)
Really important and tested features among more than 300 servers:
- Mana potions: Good to have, as a lot of people love them (and even needs them this days). NOT USABLE WHILE FLAGGED/PK (Class balance of game in pvp)
- NPC buffer: The average player of L2 this days, is accustomed to have buffer. A NPC buffer will be fine with buffs ONLY of second class (No cov, cats, CC, dwarfs... improved can be fine and dances/songs only from 2dn class).
- Buff duration: BD and SWS must be a playable char, but there are many lonely wolves that like to be most of the time farming alone so, 6-8-10 min duration on dances will make everyone happy. COV/POW = 3 min more than dances so ---> 9-11-13 min. Cats and Ponys due to the really good buff I'll set them to retail or not max of 3-4min. Other buff to be coherent must be increased up to 30 min and improveds then to 1h.
- Spoil must be retail like (+bonus chance % from server, maybie x8 or even x10) this is NO more than 1 rec/key per mob spoiled and fixed amount of materials in order to not break the economy of the game.
- To make everyone happy, dualbox should be allowed, and the best number is 3 accounts per IP or even 4 max (2 wont be enough for lone wolves, but 3 will)
- Skills autolearn up to lvl 81, Forgotten scrolls lvl 81+ must be adquired as normal (not thoose from improved buffs etc. that's boring as hell). This will be a good moment to talk about donations and events. Thoose scrolls for lazy/solitarie people will be good to be adquired by donation and events.
- About donation system: All servers needs donation, and most of them falls in their own "trap" and just fail cause of donations. Well, donations must be ONLY items and things that other people can make farming/spoiling. Example: Pack of 100 Varnish of Purity = X donation coin, Pack of 1 x Recipe 60%: Sealed Vesper Breastplate + 18 Sealed Vesper Breastplate Piece = X donation coin. Elemental stones and crystals (with average prices), Knight Epaulettes (With average price and in an amount acurate of the Knight Epaulette drop of fortress: If 1 Fortress full farmed gives 40k KE, packs of 35k KE at a decent price). Agations, mounts, accesories, RB cloacks (expensive), Enchants Armor and Weapon (Never blessed) from D to S grade, caradines letter, max level on main + first subclass (yep, only 1 will be fine), Epic quest items: Blooded Fabric x10, Floating Stone, Portal Stone, Tezza Scroll x10... Are premium accounts a good idea increaseing exp gain drop and spoil? no, they're not instead, I'll add in donation list a Tatoo (or another wear item) wich grants bonus PVE damage, so farming and leveling will be much easier with it, this item will be shadow and duration will be 30 days ;-) it may grant maybie 30%? extra damage vs mobs, and 10% vs RaidBosses and 5% vs Epic Bosses.
As you all see, there are many ways to make donations be worth and balanced 100%. Donations must be a way to reward the player that want/can reward/help the server always in the way of making things easier for him, never any advantage upon players that spend a lot of time getting their stuff... we all must think that all players are important for a server and a player can donate a lot and be a bad comunity member, and other maybie cannot donate anything, but supports the server much more than just money.
Theese are only general ideas, but starting a project with'em for sure will end in a really good server with a lot of people and stable for many many time. The combination of things that "new" "lazy" people likes from L2 servers this days with retail features + granting always PvP retail and balanced will always end in a good end.
PS: Quests from classes = NO (they are boring as hell), Quests from Nobless = Yes of course (boring, but it's OK), Quest for subclass = No quest will be good, with class will be good too but if there's an alternative way for people that can't kill RBs.