Every time Blizzard announces their latest batch of realm merges, I always take a look to see which servers were selected. Unlike most of the people in my guild, I'm actually not eager to have Drenden be merged with another realm - I know Drenden has no economy to speak of and a very sparsely-populated world, but I like it that way! I'm comfortable financially (I always maintain you can make money here if you know how) and I like low competition for rare spawns, quest mobs, etc.

No, I always check the merges because I take great amusement out of imagining a literal combination of the lore entities involved. And I don't mean like, "oh look they're combining Rexxar and Misha, that's great!" or "They're merging Khadgar and Alleria! What will Turaylon think??" I mean taking (for example) Rexxar and literally combining him with Misha, to create a vicious half-Mok'Nathal, half-bear hybrid! Or say, Eonar/Velen, for an amazing Titan/draenei elder protector of life, master of both nature and divine magic!

It's funny to picture (and sometimes horrifying (picture the Hydraxis/Terenas hybrid), and I also like it because sometimes it makes me quiz myself about who or what a server is named after - there's some pretty obscure people and places that have had a realm named after them! I mean, my own server, Drenden, is named after a Kirin Tor wizard who shows up very briefly in a few stories, and whose biggest claim to fame is that he wasn't important enough in any story to do anything, or be killed. /golfclap

It works for double location combinations, too! Azjol-Nerub/Khaz Modan? Did the dwarves delve too deep, and end up in the ancient nerubian halls? Area 52/Un'goro (EU servers), for a goblin-industrialized, mechanized jungle?

Of course, the more servers involved, the more bizarre the combinations become. Nesingwary/Vek'nilash/Nazgrel? A...safari hunter, qiraji emperor, commander/advisor to Thrall? Or my personal favorite: a draconic, demonic beast with spider legs and two heads, one troll and one ogre, who's racist against elves.

Yeah. Enjoy that one. (Garithos/Chromaggus/Anub'arak/Smolderthorn/Nathrezim/Crushridge).