How about starting a settlement in one of the free-to-play servers so the group can level up and accumulate some decent gear in relative peace, then sending out small expeditions to found new colonies elsewhere in the more dangerous regions?
That sounds like a good idea. However, Judging by how things are going we may end up staying in one of the free servers. They're just as dangerous as premium servers, but I suppose they'd have lower quality items in general.
So, this is what we have so far:
~No complaints about PvP, so it looks like the Epic Cluster is the way to go.
~Some people comfortable with premium, some not. We'll probably just go with one of the free epic servers, which is either desertion or serenity. There won't be much PvP there as both are home areas, but it will still be reasonably dangerous.
~Few to no players with high stats/good items. May be a good idea for everyone who already plays to simply start a new character to make the entire experience equal for everyone.
So, if everyone is happy with free/premium combined servers, we can either choose between Desertion, the home of Mel-Rohan, or Serenity, the home of Jenn-Kellon.
Once we decide on these, we'd need to hash out what kind of area we'd be looking to settle. Centralized with easy access to other villages, or remote, relying only on ourselves? Do we want a heavily forested area or clear plains? Mountains or Oceans?
If you could all post the type of terrain you'd like to colonize, I'll combine them and find as accurate an area as possible.
We'd also need a name for our area. We can decide now, or we can wait until we see what the area we're going to is like and decide then.
Once we've done that, all we need to do is log on and begin the epic adventure.
While I'm here, how does the game compare with pre-W5 H&H? I used to spend craploads of time there. In Wurm I only played for about an hour since I managed to stumble into somewhere with lots of settlements everywhere, with the only unclaimed piece of land being an almost diagonal slope and ragequit after attempting to level it out.
I don't know what W5 H&H is, so I couldn't really help you there.
Wurm is the kind of game you need to be pretty careful and about, always being aware of your surroundings. You can easily get lost, even on a main road with signs AND the map open in front of you.