What Is an Altoholic?
An altoholic is a person who creates many different characters, rather than just one or two.
It can also mean a player who creates characters on many different servers in the same game, where the experiences can be different from each other.
That is the simple definition.
In World of Warcraft, an alt is an alternate character. Your main is the character you usually play the most. Your alt is everybody else you keep making because apparently one character is not enough.
The word altoholic is a little joke. It is “alcoholic” with “alt” bolted onto it.
It is not a serious problem.
Unless you have sixty one characters and still think, “I should probably make a warrior.”
Then it might be a little bit of a problem.
Why Do People Make So Many World of Warcraft Characters?
For me, it starts with curiosity.
I watch somebody else playing a class and suddenly I need to understand it. Not just read a guide about it. I want to know what it feels like in my own hands.
A demon hunter double-jumps off a cliff and I think,
“I need to try that.”
A druid changes into a bear, cat, bird, or travel form and I think, “I need to see how all of that works.”
A mage disappears, teleports, and throws glittery magic everywhere. Now I have questions.
The only real way to understand a class is to play it. Reading a guide helps, but it is not the same as leveling the character yourself. You learn where the buttons sit. You learn what the class feels like when you are tired. You learn which abilities you actually remember to use.
Sometimes you also learn that a class looked much easier when somebody else was playing it.
Every Role Feels Like a Different Game
The other big reason to make alts is trying different roles.
I can spend a dungeon as a damage dealer and focus on killing things. Then I can run that same dungeon as a healer and suddenly I am watching everybody’s health bars, wondering who is about to stand in something terrible.
Tank the same dungeon and the whole thing changes again.
Now I am thinking about pulls, positioning, threat, and whether the group is ready to move on. It is the same dungeon, but it feels like a different game.
I like knowing what the other roles are dealing with. It also makes me a little more understanding when a run goes sideways.
A healer might be dealing with five different problems at once. A tank might be trying to hold a pull together while everyone runs in different directions. A damage dealer might be trying to remember a rotation while also avoiding the floor.
Nobody is having the same experience.
Armor Types, Professions, and Other Excuses
There are practical reasons for making alts too.
I like having different armor types covered. Cloth, leather, mail, and plate all have different looks. Sometimes I want to collect a specific set, and sometimes I just want to see how it looks on another character.
Professions can be another reason.
You might make a character with gathering professions so you can collect your own materials. You might want a crafter for gear, potions, or other useful items. You might also just like the idea of being able to make things yourself instead of paying auction house prices.
This is how the excuses begin.
“I am only making this character so I can use this profession.”
Then the character gets a name.
Then the character gets a transmog.
Then the character somehow has a guild and a favorite mount.
Servers and Factions Change the Experience
Making a character on another server can change the experience too.
The guilds are different. The economy is different. The people you meet are different.
The other faction can feel different as well. You see different cities, quest areas, stories, and character options. Even if you already know the game, changing factions can make it feel fresh again.
This is one reason the definition of altoholic includes characters on many different servers. You are not always repeating the exact same experience.
Sometimes you are looking for a new community.
Sometimes you are trying to escape the old auction house prices.
Sometimes you just want to see what is on the other side.
More than a decade of the same realm, and the roster is full in every single screenshot. This is not a recent habit.
That is Antilife, back when the realm was still filling up and before I started naming all my toons “Neav” something.
By Cataclysm everything was parked at the level cap of 85.
Mists brought a monk and a shaman into the family.
Twenty seven names are visible across those screenshots, and that is only the retail side of the collection.
The part that made me laugh is the grouping.
The game has filed my characters into a first string and a second string. I did not do that. The interface did it, unprompted, and it is the most accurate thing a character list has ever said to me.
Every single name still starts with Neav. The naming system has survived another expansion.
Warrior is the one class that has never stuck for me. Not for lack of trying. I roll one every few years, and it never earns a permanent slot the way the others do.
Maybe one day it will. Then this post will be out of date.
The Honest Part About Being an Altoholic
It starts as curiosity.
I have been doing this since 2010. Not one character, not two. A roster that has been rebuilt, rerolled and renamed through every version of the game, including the ones I only played for a month.
You make one character because you want to try the class.
Then it becomes a habit.
You tell yourself, “This one is just for testing.”
Then you level it. You find some gear. You learn the abilities. You join a guild or make friends. Suddenly this temporary experiment has a favorite city and a full quest log.
This is how it happens.
You do not plan to become an altoholic. You just keep finding another question you want to answer.
How to Be an Altoholic Without Burning Out
You do not need to play every character every day.
That is the first rule.
Alternate between characters when you feel like it. Let one character rest while you play another. You do not need to keep your whole roster at the same level.
Do not chase endgame on every character at once.
That sounds obvious, but it is very easy to turn a fun game into a second job. Pick one or two characters for more serious progress. Let the others exist for relaxing, exploring, professions, old quests, or whatever you feel like doing.
Use heirlooms and rested experience when they make sense for your playstyle. They can make leveling alts feel less repetitive, especially when you return to a class you have already played.
If your characters are spread across retail, Classic, and Forever, the trick is not trying to keep all of them moving at once. You also have to be fine with whole versions going untouched for months.
Also, accept that some characters will be parked for six months.
That is fine.
They are not going anywhere. You can log back in when you miss them. You can pick up the character again when a new idea sounds fun.
My World of Warcraft returning player guide has more practical advice for getting back into the game, including addons, class reminders, inventory cleanup, and catching up after time away.
If you want more screenshots from my adventures, visit the World of Warcraft screenshots page.
WoW Is Better When You Can Play Your Way
For me, WoW Forever fits this style of play better than trying to force every character into the same endgame routine.
I like having room to wander.
I like leveling a class because I am curious. I like trying a new role. I like returning to an old character after a break and remembering why I made them in the first place.
Not every character needs to be optimized.
Not every character needs the best gear.
Some of them just need a name, a purpose, and somewhere to stand in Stormwind.
That is enough.
How Many Characters Do You Have?
So, are you an altoholic too?
Do you have one main and a couple of alts? Do you have a full roster of characters you swear you will play soon? Do you make characters on different servers or switch factions when you want a new experience?
Okay. Real number.
Across retail, the Classic versions, and now WoW Forever, I am at about 61 characters.
And no, the warrior still has not earned a permanent slot.
Tell me how many characters you have. This is a supportive roll call, not an intervention.
We are just counting them.
For research. Obviously.
