No Premium account required
- You need to upgrade to a Premium account to buy land on the mainland since mainland tier is part of a Premium account's benefits.
- You can remain at a Basic account to rent land on a private estate. This may be preferable if you've found rental land that has a cheaper monthly rate than the Linden tier system and offers other benefits.
If you're on a Premium account and meet other conditions, you can simultaneously own mainland and rent on private estates. It isn't an exclusively "one or the other" choice.
Close-knit community...
Linden Lab offers several Linden Home themes to acquaint you with the variety of what's possible with "themed living" in Second Life.
But that's just a sampler of the spectrum of diversity available here. A landlord may have a lifelong interest and a deep passion for a focused theme. In some cases, they've brought it from their real life as an extension of their identity, and you may be able to strongly relate to those beliefs — which encourages you to be part of the community they're building.
Themes reflect all angles of creativity. To be less abstract, they may involve a certain real-world environment, a fantasy or historical atmosphere, or be specifically tailored to a subculture (goth, furry, steampunk, etc.). If you're into gaming, some of these themes complement roleplaying on the same premises: you could be a cyberpunk courier living across a dystopian skyline, an elite debutante partying it up at your luxury pad, or a seafarin' swashbuckler in search of booty. Over time as Second Life expands, more interests are met and needs are fulfilled. Some tenants graduate to become landlords themselves.
In addition, if you've been age-verified, there are adult-themed communities for your discreet pleasures.
... or start from scratch
If you'd prefer to start from scratch, there's a lot of rental land that's blank and ready to be molded into your vision. What are some advantages over blank mainland? Depending on what the landlord offers, these are some possibilities:
- Greater terraform range - As noted in land limits, most mainland can only be terraformed +/- 4m from its base, which isn't enough to create staggering heights and deep valleys.
- Custom terrain textures - Only the landlord and assistants (estate owner and managers) can change these, but you may be able to request a switch. These affect a lot of what you see, since the ground is often beneath your feet.
- Time of day - It would look odd if a vampires' den was in bright daylight. A landlord can lock the time of day at midnight, then invite tenants who thrive on darkness.
These and more options are shown in the REGION/ESTATE_-_TERRAIN and related controls, and not changeable at-will unless you own or manage an estate.
The personal touch
Some landlords go beyond a financial relationship: they or specially-chosen Residents (estate managers) interact with their tenants frequently, host events, and expand the community based on your feedback. This sort of intimate empowerment to affect change can be very appealing.
That's not all: themed communities may offer on-location stores and other amenities as a convenience. For example, if you rent land in a medieval village, it makes sense to find a shop selling knight's armor and period dresses — and if there's a supernatural aspect, magic wands. If you continue up the street, there could be a banquet hall for dances, a monastery for meditation, and other dwellings used for social events so you can meet-and-greet your likeminded neighbors. This adds to the overall theme and immersion of the community and can add substantial value to your experience.
Customization and negotiation
On the mainland, you can't negotiate your Linden tier fees. Also, if you wanted to make your parcel a tiny bit larger, it's really hard do that: neighbors may be nice but not typically welcoming of subdividing and selling only a sliver of their parcel.
But a sympathetic landlord may hear your pleas. Just like you might with a real-life landlord, you can try negotiating a better deal: perhaps you'll pay a bigger L$ sum upfront covering several months of rent. Or you can explain what your budget is and the landlord will try to connect you with a parcel that meets what you can afford.
