EPThttp://us.battle.net/sc2/en/blog/3085760#blog
Everything you need to know is there, but I'd like to discuss it here.
As a brazilian LA player, I am happy, they listenned!!
"In conjunction with the start of Season 3, we’ll be linking the European and Russian StarCraft II communities together; North America and Latin America will also be linked together, as will Korea and Taiwan."
I brought the FAQ here in case you are that lazy (or they block Blizzard wherever you work):
+ Show Spoiler +
Q. What is region linking?
A. Region linking is the process of connecting multiple Battle.net regions to each other for multiplayer matchmaking and communication purposes. The North America and Latin America regions will be linked, Europe and Russia will be linked, and Korea and Taiwan will be linked. In effect, the players within the linked regions will be put together into a single group instead of two separate ones -- benefitting players in these linked regions in a number of ways.
Q. Why are you doing this? What are the benefits of region linking?
A. Having a larger pool of players means the automated matchmaker for ladder games will be faster and more effective at finding opponents at or near your skill level. Similarly, more players means faster queue times for custom games, which benefits both players and map creators.
From a social perspective, players will be able to create character and Real ID friendships with people from the newly linked region, which they couldn’t have before.
Q. When will this happen?
A. The region linking process will happen at the same time as StarCraft II Season 3, which is currently scheduled for the week of July 25.
Q: Will region linking affect which game-client languages I have access to or the payment methods I use?
A: No. The client languages and game-access methods available to you in your region will not change when regions are linked. You will simply be able to play and connect with an even larger group of players.
Q. Do I have to do anything?
A. No -- linking will happen automatically.
Q. Does this mean that the ladders of linked regions will be combined?
A. Yes, players from linked regions will be combined into a single ladder. This means you'll have access to a larger pool of players at all skill levels to play against, which will improve the experience for players no matter what league they play in.
Q. How will this affect my matchmaking rating (MMR)? Will I need additional placement matches?
A. Your MMR will be unaffected by region linking. Placement matches will be handled the same way for the start of Season 3 as they were for Season 2.
Q. Will playing with players from the linked region impact my in-game latency?
A. All players in the linked regions will be connecting and playing through the same data centers that they were using prior to region linking, which is the main reason why linking these regions together is fairly straightforward. There should be no impact on game performance.
Q. I'm a map creator -- do I have to republish my maps or do anything differently?
A. No special action is required. All of your published maps will be retained during the region linking process.
Q: How does region linking affect the Grandmaster league?
A: After region linking, players from linked regions will be combined into a single ladder. This applies to the Grandmaster league as well, and there will only be a single Grandmaster league between the linked regions.
A. Region linking is the process of connecting multiple Battle.net regions to each other for multiplayer matchmaking and communication purposes. The North America and Latin America regions will be linked, Europe and Russia will be linked, and Korea and Taiwan will be linked. In effect, the players within the linked regions will be put together into a single group instead of two separate ones -- benefitting players in these linked regions in a number of ways.
Q. Why are you doing this? What are the benefits of region linking?
A. Having a larger pool of players means the automated matchmaker for ladder games will be faster and more effective at finding opponents at or near your skill level. Similarly, more players means faster queue times for custom games, which benefits both players and map creators.
From a social perspective, players will be able to create character and Real ID friendships with people from the newly linked region, which they couldn’t have before.
Q. When will this happen?
A. The region linking process will happen at the same time as StarCraft II Season 3, which is currently scheduled for the week of July 25.
Q: Will region linking affect which game-client languages I have access to or the payment methods I use?
A: No. The client languages and game-access methods available to you in your region will not change when regions are linked. You will simply be able to play and connect with an even larger group of players.
Q. Do I have to do anything?
A. No -- linking will happen automatically.
Q. Does this mean that the ladders of linked regions will be combined?
A. Yes, players from linked regions will be combined into a single ladder. This means you'll have access to a larger pool of players at all skill levels to play against, which will improve the experience for players no matter what league they play in.
Q. How will this affect my matchmaking rating (MMR)? Will I need additional placement matches?
A. Your MMR will be unaffected by region linking. Placement matches will be handled the same way for the start of Season 3 as they were for Season 2.
Q. Will playing with players from the linked region impact my in-game latency?
A. All players in the linked regions will be connecting and playing through the same data centers that they were using prior to region linking, which is the main reason why linking these regions together is fairly straightforward. There should be no impact on game performance.
Q. I'm a map creator -- do I have to republish my maps or do anything differently?
A. No special action is required. All of your published maps will be retained during the region linking process.
Q: How does region linking affect the Grandmaster league?
A: After region linking, players from linked regions will be combined into a single ladder. This applies to the Grandmaster league as well, and there will only be a single Grandmaster league between the linked regions.
Edit number 10:
Additional information:
NA + LA case:
LA players will be added into NA database, which means that NA players won't have their MMR reset nor nickname/code will suffer anything. However, in the case there is a player with the same nick + code in LA + NA, it is the LA player that will be require to have a new code or nick, LA players will have an additinal (and mandatory) free name change if that happens to them. In the same way, LA players will have their MMR reseted, but NA players won't.
Most likelly the RU server will be the one added into EU server database, and TW server will be the one added into the KR server database, so RU, TW and LA MMR will be reset (and players will have to play their 5 placement matches again). However, their achievments and friends list won't be reset!!
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/mbNn6.png)
, good call at right time
