Just purchased the game, unable to play with friends.

So I just grabbed the game for PC, already had a bit of a run around on my PS4 and decided to give it another go with some mates.

I now find myself in a position where I'm unable to play the game I've paid for. I can't actually create a character on the same server that my friend already has characters on, Odin. Ergo, I can't play the game with my friend which is the only reason I've purchased this game...

While I understand the reasoning behind this and that it is due to a potentially high influx of players due to a new patch at the same time, I find this somewhat illogical. I don't really know what I'm expected to do.. just sit and wait, whittling away my subscription time? Force my friends to forsake their existing characters and start afresh?
Waste time playing a character I'll probably never touch again once I eventually get onto Odin? Or roll on another realm and pay a further £12 to transfer it to another server despite having just purchased the game.

Your best option is probably to keep checking the Lodestone front page. The top news story is always "Character Creation Restrictions" and is updated every few hours(there's an exact schedule posted on the site). As of the time I'm posting this reply character creation on Odin is open so you should have no trouble. Keep at it and you'll get where you need to be. If you really just want to play now and worry about getting on your friend's server later then yes, you can try to transfer at a later date but be warned that if you're having trouble creating a character on a certain server you may also have trouble transferring to that same server.