No Automated/Unintended Game-play.....

Soooo, what is being said is automating your boxes is ok, as long as you are at keyboard attending to them. This is what I am reading?

That's basically correct. I mean, you can do that with pets and mercs anyway.

It's not a bad rule because it creates a hard delineation between OK and not OK behavior. Trying to define what is acceptable at-keyboard behavior and what isn't is much harder.

The official stance:

Sadly, there exist an "unofficial stance", that may or may not get you into trouble...

That "unofficial stance" was Holly's stance, and has not been confirmed to be shared by Jchan...

"unofficial stances" may change without notice...

It has been stated by devs in the past that some 'unattended' gameplay is allowed.
e.g.
skilling up swimming by sticking your head in a corner of a pond and turning on autorun.
bards skilling up by continuously singing one song or using /melody.
I believe (could be wrong) that using autocombine to make multiple tradeskill items is allowed.

Traders and buyers are technically 'unattented gameply' but obviously they are allowed.

Going to a low level zone and letting your pet slaugher mindlessly a few mobs that auto aggro on you for old tradeskill items is an example. Legal probably not. Enforced very rarely. Usually only if somebody complains.

Wife, "I thought you said you weren't going to to play EverQuest today."

Me, "Well, I hadn't intended to."

*Dreamweaver reaches for the hammer*

I realize that is what you want it to mean but that is not what it means. I can say hello means goodbye but that doesn't change it's actual meaning.

Definition of unintended. : not planned as a purpose or goal : not deliberate or intended an unintended consequence/effect an unintended pregnancy.

There are many ways people can play the game or do things that may not be intended by the DBG that are not cheating.

It seems to be you are trying to say there no game play is allowed that was not the intended way to play by DPG but that is not what you actually say and to be honest its a very convoluted way of saying it.


P.S.

I like your intent but I think what you actually said was very unclear when you are describing cheating an unintended gameplay.

Absolutely No Automated/Unintended Game-play, any incident of automated gameplay is immediate suspension.


Let me fill in the blanks I guess.

Automated: to run or operate (something, such as a factory or system "OR BOT") by using machines, computers, "Software", etc., instead of people to do the work

Doesn't sound like automation is legal.

So,...
No /melody ?
No autoskill ?
No autocombine for tradeskills ?
No skilling up swimming in a pond in PoK ?

I'm sure others could add to this list that needs clarification from someone official.

I am sure if it is part of the EQ software and not third party then it is intended automation. Clarification would be nice.

So, having 3 players and 3 mercs in a group and letting the mercs kill grey con mobs for tradeskill drops should be allowed ?

Because that is simply using EQ software but it has been stated, in the past, that that is NOT allowed.

referring to unintended gameplay:
You know what it means.
It means dont cheat, and it is purposely written broadly so you cant game the definition.

That being said - why does the rule need being stated specially for the new server when that is actually the rule for all servers?

No, we don't "know what it means", that is entirely the problem.

There are some things that, using their own definition, should not be allowed, e.g. /afk /melody bards, the entire bazaar, etc that are "unattended, automated gameplay", which are allowed.

There are also things that are not allowed, which use no 3rd party resources, e.g. having a pet/merc in a camp of low level mobs to farm tradeskill components.

But, even with these examples, DBG/DPG/whoever will not give an official answer.

All we have are random comments by random devs over the years.
E.g. saying that it's ok to skill up your swimming skill by using autorun in a pond in PoK.

But there is nothing official, so there is nothing stopping some random GM (if one ever happened to log into a live server) from banning someone they see swimming in the pond.

Having aggressive mercs/pets in lowlevel zones, has the potential to bother newbies trying to quest in that zone. Your other examples can all be performed in non-combat zones, and won't bother anyone.

I guess that is the difference.

1. dont kill for loot, faction, or xp unattended.

You're right there. They wont. That doesnt mean you cant keep asking over and over on and on forever.

Ok, so if it would have no impact on other players, then it's ok ?

That would put fishing/foraging into the 'allowed' list.
Just need someone at DPG to respond.

If it is done with no third-party tools, in non-combat areas and has no impact on other players, then I would think it is ok.
A fishing/forage spot doesn't block other players. Afk-picking mushrooms in kaladim(or other groundspawns) with a bot for weeks, does block other players who needs those.

Disallowing AFK-automation/botting, ensures that a natural rotation among players will occur at the contested spots and to keep supply limited(as everyone needs sleep and biobreaks and to keep their sanity ).

If DPG wanted you to AFK-fish/forage, they would have provided that functionality in-game.The fact that it isn't there should imho be enough of an answer. Designing a game-mechanic to be overly tedious is also a way of making specific components rare/expensive, I assume that it is intentional...

Im not DPG though, so my opinion doesn't count for much.

And just playing devil's advocate here, DPG HAS provided the functionality in-game for AFK killing. Yet that is "against the rules".

And that is the problem.
There are things that the players can do that require no 'third party software' (if you want to get picky then windows is 3rd party software, now try playing EQ without it.) but are against the rules.

And then there are other cases that are not.

And the big problem is noone knows which is which!
Enforcement of these unwritten rules is entirely down to individual interpretation.

Bob could be doing something and noone cares and then Tim could be doing exactly the same thing and get suspended.

Nobody is that nitpicky, besides DPG explicitly allow windows. It is written on the game-box and on the page where system requirements are stated...


I think this is all we get:

I wouldn't mind a session where we could submit questions to a faq, that DPG were forced to answer clearly, though.

I would hope saner heads prevail here. All of these should be allowed.

• /melody or /Spam1KeyboardMacro autocasting to skill up
• Spamming known Tradeskill recipes with autocombine
• Autorunning for fishing
• Trader/Buyers
• Foraging
• Fishing
• Merc/Pet killing in a single spot[/list[
  
  If it’s a function I can do in game by having a fan rotate and press down a key every 10 seconds, with a single button press, or simply by just sitting AFK at a single spot.
  
  Thing that should be banned is the full automation of a group that handles the pulling to cap, tanking, DPS, Healing etc.
  
  But killing a bunch of level 5 gnolls in Blackburrow with a Merc/Pet or foraging in Shards Landing isn’t even close to comparable and should be allowed.