How many (main) characters are too many (main) characters?

Most people have one or two 'mains' and then a few 'toons.' An staggering amount of work goes into creating a main. Leveling up is time consuming, fitting out a character with appropriate gear is both expensive and time consuming and then there's the 5 professions to level up too. A well rounded high-level character takes months to years in the making for casual gamers and is a serious creation.

How many mains depend on the number of hours invested weekly in game play. If you work full-time and/or plenty of over-time and have any life outside of Azeroth, there will never be time to have many. With one, leveling up within months is doable, with two, you may be looking at years. However, this assumes that as well as leveling up, you will also spend time enjoying the scenery, exploring the regions and paying attention to your professions, i.e. no power leveling to be found here. It also assumes that you will be making money for your mount at Level 40 (around 100 gold) by auctioning unwanted items. The auction house eats up time at an alarming rate. If you simply grind, farm or quest your way up, you could probably fit in one, maybe even two mains. In order for a character to really be a main character, it has to be said that you will need to play that character for at least a few times during the week, otherwise you loose the feel for it.

Start up as many as you want. Blizzard allows a total of 50 characters on an account and 10 characters on a realm, so use it. There is no law stating that you simply have to level up to the top, or that you have to do it as fast as possible. The reason why casual gamers flock to Azeroth is the sheer volume of activities. You can be a clothier or a weapon smith, a professional lock-picker or a fisherman. However, if you don't enjoy the hunt, don't bother. Most of your time will be spent killing things in the manner of your choosing.

If you find a play style that suits you well, you will probably never want to have more than one main character. If you are a little indecisive or learn through experience, you will probably test drive all the different classes before committing to a single main. If you are a casual gamer, i.e. someone who has a a full-time job and commitments who plays as a hobby, there will never be enough time to all the things that you want to do and be all the things you want to be. Choose one character and you will get to shape and mould him/her into something equating an excellent car, or maybe more like growing a second skin. Through your characters' eyes, you will be able to engage in a great many different types of activities to satisfy any mood that you happen to be in when you play.

The choice of how many has a simply solution - quality or quantity. Have one and you will have time to customize, develop and individualize it. Have many and your play will be superficial, but varied. Depth or variety. Or possibly, a happy comprise of 3 - 4 mains that are leveled up slowly. The choice is yours.