I started playing on Warmane when it was introduced two years ago Mop.
Then there were 10,000 players who played on two servers with two queue hours to logging.
If so many people have left this server was certainly not for the presence of the Marketplace but for the lack of content.
If PvP will be a little unbalanced because of donors it will not be a catastrophe because many other people will have the chance to play for free thanks to their donations.
I like the way Stormstout did it. 4-5 weeks and then release of donation gear. That way people can get their weapon first to have a fighting chance.
Its a pretty standard tactic.
1. Farm tons of coins (buy, trade, what ever it takes) throughout the season.
2. Get 3-4 top items from shop + 1 from first week.
3. Consequently be first to get weapon as well.
4. Find some one who has done the same.
5. Dominate 2s and 3s arenas by staying 3-4 weeks ahead of the rest.
6. Stay on top rating and by the end of the season get r1 title to show off :D
7. Profit!
Its been like this for years yea. But the point is, is it the right thing to do, specially when warmane is doing the new "lemme balance this shi.t" thing since last few months?
Food for thought.
Its the right thing to do if they want donations to help pay for lorderon... im sure there would be plenty of donations if prideful were available, plus it was exactly the same with tyrannical and grevious seasons, a lot of people only buy a weapon anyway so not a huge differance.