World of Warcraft developer Blizzard is seeking legal action against yet another WoW private server, accusing the creators of Ascension WoW of copyright infringement, racketeering, and having earned millions of dollars illegally.
In a court document submitted on June 12 in California, Blizzard cited many of the same offenses it used against the creators of Turtle WoW in a lawsuit last year. Blizzard alleges the makers of Project Ascension have infringed on its WoW copyright on a “massive scale” by distributing illegal copies of the game, using copyrighted materials, and accepting donations, in effect operating an entire business built on the “large scale, egregious, and ongoing infringement” of Blizzard’s intellectual property.
“Through Project Ascension, Defendants have found a lucrative way to exploit and profit from the popularity of the WoW game experience,” the document states.
Blizzard alleges the creators of Project Ascension are well aware of their illegal activities, and have taken “extraordinary steps” to conceal their identities and safeguard against takedown notices or court judgements. The document states Blizzard believes Project Ascension’s servers are hosted by the Russia-based Aeza Group, an organization that, according to the US Department of the Treasury, is known for “enabling cybercriminals and technology theft” and was sanctioned by the US government in 2025. Blizzard notes that Project Ascension’s choice to work with such a “criminal enterprise” signals “intent to engage in unlawful activity.”
Unlike in its case against Turtle WoW, many of the named defendants in Blizzard’s lawsuit against Project Ascension reside in the US, but have allegedly masked their involvement through multiple shell companies that have no offices or employees. These companies are used to hide assets in an effort to avoid US tax liability, Blizzard alleges. The lawsuit goes on to state Blizzard is “informed and believes” Project Ascension has earned the two main people behind the private server, Derek Powell and Bryan Thomas Mannion, millions of dollars.
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