Most of the changes mentioned so far were never experienced as changes for me. They were already in place when I joined, and so are just part of the game for me; I've never known any different. The "balance tax", or balance freeze, for example, is not something I like, but for me, it's just part of the way the game is, like there being creatures attacking you everywhere you go. That's just the way things are. I don't have the intense, extreme, undying hatred of it the way that some older exiles apparently do.
One change that I *have* experienced, and one which has not been mentioned so far: Agratis (demo) characters being allowed to be in the same world as the other player characters. To me, this is one of the biggest and most important changes ever in Clan Lord.
My memories of Agratis, the land, are still relatively fresh, more so than most other players, probably. It's hard to understate how appalling it was. It's astonishing to me that it lasted for about 4 years. Many buildings and gateways were walled off with stones--work on them apparently abandoned, since there was never any change nor any indication of ongoing construction. It was usually completely deserted (other than NPCs), or at best, there would be only one other equally clueless and bewildered Agratis character running around. One could see the other players on and hear sunstone messages, but could not communicate in any way, let alone see or meet them. Even going on the tour was unrewarding. First, a series of landscapes--interesting to look at, no doubt, but postcards are nothing compared to actual visits. Next, the hitchhiker's tour, a complete gamble: one might get someone friendly who would give a brief tour or chat and answer questions--or one might get someone sleeping, inattentive, or otherwise unhelpful. Finally, the tour would be ended, inevitably leaving one feeling unsatisfied.
Having the demo world become the same, full world, instead of being an empty, separate, abandoned ghost town, is a huge change, possible the biggest and best ever. Suddenly, curious people can now see so much more of the Clan Lord world. The social interaction, where the conversation between players is more, way more, so much more than in many other games. The richness of the environment via places such as the bakery, brewery, monastery, language school, raffle house, court, wedding chapel, gift shop, clothing store, hair salon, shoe shop, and more--and that's just in town. Outside of town (and with help), actual visits to the places of the tour 'postcards'--the myrm hive, Ash Island, and the others, and many more, of course.
One interesting (and I have to admit, somewhat unexpected) response to this change is how, a lot of the time, people are treating Agratis characters as though they were new exiles in town (rather than the throwaway demo characters that everyone knows they are). Agratis characters are being given tours and advice, they are taken on hunts, and when they fall, sunstone messages go out about their plight, and healers make the effort to find and raise them.
Whether or not this change made for a rise in the number or rate of new accounts following its implementation, I don't know, and it's a separate matter anyway, but whatever its results, disappearing the land of Agratis and letting their residents mingle with the other exiles was undeniably one of the most significant changes ever to occur.
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