the namestealers are never happy are they, always demanding to steal the name of others, if you want it get it b4 anyone else

pretty much... Try coming up with something more original then Chair next time and I am sure it will not be taken. I made 16 characters on this game when I started a few months ago, and not a single one was already taken!

I noticed there is still some names out there that aren't in use anymore, either they dropped their subs completely or they are playing on another server while still maintaining that name on another but aren't currently using it which is just silly.

I'm curious, how do you know they aren't playing? If they've switched to another server I don't think they should lose their names. They might plan on coming back in the future. I know I'd be a little ticked off if I started on another server, then came back only to find my name had been taken....

All of my characters are named after star wars planets, except one. I have coreilla, christophsis, ziost, and velmor. And then there is tungsten.

Neat. I'm surprised the game doesn't block those.

I'm curious, how do you know they aren't playing? If they've switched to another server I don't think they should lose their names. They might plan on coming back in the future. I know I'd be a little ticked off if I started on another server, then came back only to find my name had been taken....

Because I checked to see if the name was still in use by adding the username to my friends list, it's been lvl 33 since last year.

To be honest...why would you want someones old name? Who knows what kind of reputation that person might of had.... No thanks, I will come up with my own

Given that the characters need to be unplayed for an extended period of time on sub-level 30s on f2p accounts, I doubt any of them had much of a reputation, good or bad.

honestly i agree with the OP... i'm not wanting someones old name i'm wanting mine back, the one that i lost in the server transfer... for about 15 years in every MMO i've played i've used Elly for my character name, when i started this game on Sedyn Kyne server i had Elly as my name, when the servers merged, i lost it...

i just want my name back, it feels weird to not have the name i go by in every other game i play/have played... and it's seriously uncool if the name has been taken by someone that doesn't even log in anymore, preventing me from getting it back...

in my opinion they need to come up with a better naming system, like an ID number for your account or something so names can be free for multiple users like in some other games, like the ones used in PSO or STO...

Given that the characters need to be unplayed for an extended period of time on sub-level 30s on f2p accounts, I doubt any of them had much of a reputation, good or bad.

I dunno, I still remember the servers biggest A-holes from EQ1...and that was 10 years ago lol

As has already been pointed out, sometimes it's not so much a case of 'why would you want somebody's old name?' but rather wanting your own old name back.

I lost the name of one of my favourite characters in a server merge an age ago. I'd quite like it back, and will probably try and nab it if it ever becomes free.

Not gonna get all bent out of shape about it like some people do, though. In fact I'm approaching the point where I'll have trouble deciding whether I prefer the 'new' name to the old one, as the new one has been my character's name for a lot longer than the old one ever was.

So you want their name. Maybe that player is coming back and won't because they lost their name. Maybe you take it and cancel in 2 months. Maybe people remember the guy whose name you want and get confused because someone else is now playing under it. Maybe he was well likes, maybe he was a ninja & jerk.

Pick something more original.

honestly i agree with the OP... i'm not wanting someones old name i'm wanting mine back, the one that i lost in the server transfer..

When you play beta, early launch, and get all of your "family" setup, binge play to get legacy unlocked and are finally "settled", step away for a couple months, come back and find all your toons transferred and only your "kick around, meh" character still has his name... it was quite soul crushing. After recently coming back (Thanksgiving), one name was available.

Because I checked to see if the name was still in use by adding the username to my friends list, it's been lvl 33 since last year.

And...so what? I have 11 level 55 characters, a few of which I haven't logged into for over 6 months. And my subscription will be expiring soon. Should you be allowed to take those names?

And...so what? I have 11 level 55 characters, a few of which I haven't logged into for over 6 months. And my subscription will be expiring soon. Should you be allowed to take those names?

Yes

I have lost a few names in the Server transfers back when. Still sad about it. I just use random names and hope the good ones aren't taken. I am unoriginal and generally use names from other mediums. I have a character named Radec from Killzone and Jetfire from Transformers. I have a marvel villain named character, I have Pokemon named character The rest are random generated names.

And...so what? I have 11 level 55 characters, a few of which I haven't logged into for over 6 months. And my subscription will be expiring soon. Should you be allowed to take those names?

Yes. You aren't using it anymore, why shouldn't someone else?

And anyway that isn't how the system works.

And...so what? I have 11 level 55 characters, a few of which I haven't logged into for over 6 months. And my subscription will be expiring soon. Should you be allowed to take those names?

If you look at the way they did the name free-up, exactly zero of your 11 level 55's would lose their names even if you dropped your subscription.

However, if they did another server merge, an active player may get preference over yours if your account is inactive.

honestly i agree with the OP... i'm not wanting someones old name i'm wanting mine back, the one that i lost in the server transfer... for about 15 years in every MMO i've played i've used Elly for my character name, when i started this game on Sedyn Kyne server i had Elly as my name, when the servers merged, i lost it...

i just want my name back, it feels weird to not have the name i go by in every other game i play/have played... and it's seriously uncool if the name has been taken by someone that doesn't even log in anymore, preventing me from getting it back...

in my opinion they need to come up with a better naming system, like an ID number for your account or something so names can be free for multiple users like in some other games, like the ones used in PSO or STO...

Exactly, the server transfer basically screwed alot of us over in the name department including myself, I'm just eager to get my old name back especially since it's not currently being used.

Because I checked to see if the name was still in use by adding the username to my friends list, it's been lvl 33 since last year.

Sorry pal, but that tells you nothing at all, except that the character has not leveled. I have 5 GTN alts of various levels that are active pretty much every day..... but none of them have leveled in more then a year.

There is really no way for players to determine if an character with a name they want IS or IS-NOT part of an active account and in fact in active use. So stop trying.

As to next name purge..... only Bioware knows.

Exactly, the server transfer basically screwed alot of us over in the name department including myself, I'm just eager to get my old name back especially since it's not currently being used.

Still trying to get my Jedi knights name back, that name was why I bought the game...for early access and for the name I used from kotor

Sorry pal, but that tells you nothing at all, except that the character has not leveled. I have 5 GTN alts of various levels that are active pretty much every day..... but none of them have leveled in more then a year.

 

There is really no way for players to determine if an character with a name they want IS or IS-NOT part of an active account and in fact in active use. So stop trying.

 

As to next name purge..... only Bioware knows.

Actually it's telling me quite a bit, especially if the user holding that name isn't being used by a subscriber anymore, or he/she is off on another server, completely ignoring the name while he/she attends their business elsewhere on an entirely different server.

Actually it's telling me quite a bit, especially if the user holding that name isn't being used by a subscriber anymore, or he/she is off on another server, completely ignoring the name while he/she attends their business elsewhere on an entirely different server.

I'm curious again...you can tell if the owner of the name is a subscriber? I'm seriously just asking a question about that, no snark intended.

I will say though that if the player is off on another server that's no reason to lose the name. I have characters on another server I haven't touched for months. But that doesn't mean the names are up for grabs.

food for thought.

I have alts that I don't level, they are there for the luls and or for being crew skill mules. my account is active, just those specific characters never change level.

who is to say the character whose name you want is not like that? last time we had name purge - they didn't even touch subscribers (even if the alt hasn't been touched at all, just sitting there taking up space), and as long as you have logged in on a character within a month as f2p - it didn't matter if they had been the same level for a year or more - they got to keep their name.

just saying that name purge is no guarantee that you'll get the name you want