personally, the things I want to see in a server are
1) linear progression (armor, weapons, skills, bots?, accessories, augs, etc)
2) challenges that can be accomplished in 1-2hours with a max of 2-3boxes
One of the weaknesses of several of the servers is that you either have to box more than one account or that you have to be willing to grind for months before you're useful to the existing players.
One of the things I really liked about Stormhaven was the linear progression. One of the things I don't like is that by the time you reach L70-75, you have to box to keep up with content. (If I can figure out why my new computer hates that server, I'll probably try that server again. Haven't been on Emu in months.)
A few more suggestions:
1) crafting is fun when you add no-fail recipes for items that dropped in level appropriate zones to net you new gear
2) use zone loot as a trade-in-quest instead of class/archetype specific armor (even if the loot is armor) drops (it's frustrating to grind for a few hours and see tons of druid and enchanter gear drop that no one can use while waiting on something you really need.)
3) don't be afraid to add spells to equipment to create custom classes. For example, imagine that you want to create two kinds of clerics the Paladin (not to be confused with the EQ version) and the Priest. With a robe that has a level appropriate group heal with reasonable recast your cleric is now a priest; swap in a breastplate that has a proc for defense boost with self heal proc and now you're a paladin. (For that matter, you could make these kinds of extensions to the 4 class base types: priests, mages, hybrids, pure-melee).
4) make sure your custom/required zones work for all clients (EZ server has some problems because they've refused to fully support anything but Titanium)
5) some of the EQ clients use AAs for class skills (Lay Hands and Harm Touch), please support these skills/AAs
6) many people (not me...) have tons of unused AAs on some of the servers, think of a way to let people trade AAs for augs, buffs, heroic stats, skills, etc
Whatever you do, good luck
