I am trying to keep character wipes to a bare minimum, unless I really need to clean out the characters due to some structural change like re-organizing the way spells and items were equipped and stored, which is what caused the last wipe.

I certainly understand the time investment and want to allow players to maintain their characters if so desired as we move through the alpha and beta stages. I am still uncertain if I will wipe the characters at all when beta is complete or not, since everyone can delete their characters and start over if they choose.

So I guess the answer would be not in the foreseeable future, unless you uncover some crazy bug that requires me to re-build the character data structures. :)

I agree that wipes are necessary if the situation warrants it, but if at the end of alpha there have been no changes to the core game structure, or if there were no exploits that would give a player an unfair advantage, then a wipe would be unnecessary. As it is now, if we moved into closed beta, there would be no need for a wipe as there haven't been enough fundamental changes to the game design to require one. As you say, it would not be fair for the people like me, that have spent a lot of time developing a character fairly and without exploitation.

Although I'll be realistic, chances are we will find something that will force a player wipe. Just saying that if it isn't needed, don't do it just for the heck of it, even if it means transitioning to another stage of development.