The Weaponization of AFK Checks on Rizlona

Discussion in 'Time Locked Progression Servers' started by Xanadas, Mar 20, 2021.

  1. Xanadas Augur

    Names will not be mentioned.

    In yet another example of players using petitions as a weapon against players they don't like, a prime example happened to me today.

    I was in Chardok and I called out a group killing in kennels. I (rationally) explained that claiming a camp and then only killing 15 of the 50 mobs there is a waste and that he should take a different camp, like Korocust's room. He got antagonistic with me, so I decided I would just kill whatever was around since his camp wasn't very clearly defined. He was somewhere between kennels and the caves. /shrug. He got irate, called me an a***ole then left. It wasn't an hour later that a GM visited me for an AFK check. The first AFK check I've had in my entire EQ career (~2000).

    It's hard to get irritated with the GMs because all they have to go on is a lie from a player. However, they really should figure out how to identify people who use petitions as a weapon and think about ways to prevent those players from making the same complaints. It's a waste of everyone's time and frankly the leadership of that guy's guild has been one of the most outspoken about the desire for GMs to "leave us alone" on Rizlona - totally counter-productive.
  2. I_Love_My_Bandwidth Mercslayer

    I am confused.

    Were you banned or were you suspended?
  3. Xanadas Augur


    No, and that's not the point. Players are using petitions claiming other players are AFK as a way to harass them for disagreements. It's a lie, it's a waste of GMs time, and it's counter productive towards having a good relationship between players and staff.
  4. I_Love_My_Bandwidth Mercslayer

    That's unfortunate.

    Policing anything will come with its share false reports. Players want and have been asking for GMs to 'do their job'. Now that they are, you take it as an affront against you...BY THE GMs????

    You are misguided. Nothing happened to you. You were checked on and found innocent. Perfect. Move on, Xanadas, and let the GMs and DPG worry about petitioners sending false petitions.
    Karreck and Xhartor like this.
  5. Protagonist Tank

    I can see why you wound up on the wrong side of a tactic people use against someone they dislike.
    Tegila likes this.
  6. Gnothappening Augur

    You are way off on what he said or just willfully misrepresenting it. His complaint is that players are using the petition system to use GMs against other players. He then mentions how this harms the relationship between GMs and players. Yes, nothing happened to him. However, had he been parked afk while taking a dump or something when the GM showed up, he would likely be eating a 7 day break. Even so, he isn't blaming the GM staff, he is talking about players abusing the reporting system.
    NoMoreTLPs likes this.
  7. RaynTheLion Lorekeeper

    This afk check nonsense makes me not even want to play this game. I started unsubbing my accounts and only have been logging in to raid lately.

    I'll probably play more post-pop when the GMs are focused on whatever new TLPs are released...if at all.

    I've got much better things to do than scan a chat box for messages from annoying gms. This isn't the only game in the world to play, but eq sure does ask for a significant time, energy, and even financial investment to play and remain relevant. The fact that all of this can be taken so easily from the players just makes me want to avoid eq.
  8. I_Love_My_Bandwidth Mercslayer

    You want GMs and DPG to use their magical powers and determine, prior to investigating, the validity of a petition against an AFK player?

    Look, harm or not, every petition should be investigated. AFK players aren't going to get suspended. Our fabled hero, Xanadas, wasn't AFK killing so he wasn't punished. AFK killing? Yep, that's grounds for ban or at least suspension. Luckily, Xanadas is not a rulebreaker....right?

    You need a dose of reality. GMs and Players aren't enemies, nor are they friends. GMs are doing a job. And every petition, no matter its veracity, deserves to be investigated. Does this mean some players can "weaponize" the system? Yep. Sure does.

    Xanadas is talking out of both sides of his mouth. He wants GMs to catch the griefers and cheaters whilst also leaving him alone. It doesn't work like that. Nor should it. What he should have done was report the toxic player. Instead he let bygons by bygons and went about his business, then got a visit from a GM. It happens. It's not going to change. Do your best to mitigate it and move on.
  9. taliefer Augur

    so it sounds like someone was camping an area you wanted to camp, only they weren't camping it up to your standards, so you decided to move into their area, and are upset they petitioned you?
    Quasimojo, Karreck, Lejaun and 2 others like this.
  10. brickz Augur

    The concept of an "AFK check" is the dumbest way of policing an online game I have ever seen. It would be preferable to have no GMs at all.
    Xanadas likes this.
  11. Rizloner New Member

    Wonder if I can go back through your post history and find anything excoriating someone with "There's no such thing as camps in Everquest!"

    Further, you do nothing to address the point of the post, simply make an attack on someone.
    NoMoreTLPs likes this.
  12. Gnothappening Augur

    No, what they need is a three strike program. You falsely report three people and you get the ban.
    NoMoreTLPs, Xanadas and yepmetoo like this.
  13. taliefer Augur


    I'm sure you could. doesnt change the fact that steamrolling someone out of a camp is a douchy move, even if its not against the rules.
    Lejaun, Tegila, Xondor and 2 others like this.
  14. Skuz I am become Wrath, the Destroyer of Worlds.

    That could very easily end up punishing people who reported AFKers/botters in good faith.

    Just leave it to the GM to deal with it.
  15. Gnothappening Augur

    Personally I hope they scale the GM program back again. It isn't like they are doing much against the bigger operations on Aradune. If you can't stop someone on a 2 box server from running a raid or farming 10 picks of Siren's Grotto, I don't see much point in the operation as a whole.
    NoMoreTLPs and Metanis like this.
  16. I_Love_My_Bandwidth Mercslayer

    Based on what evidence?

    The only people that know what's happening behind the scenes is DPG. Your observations are ancillary, at best. Are GMs catching every single cheater out there? No, obviously not. Does this fact diminish gameplay for some? Yes. Sometimes acutely so. The GM and anti-cheat software can only do so much without going overboard. So DPG relies on their players to /report and /petition.

    The very best thing you can do if you encounter a cheater, a griefer, or any person otherwise breaking actual rules is /report and /petition. Every. Single. Time. Are you doing that? If not, then complaints really are unfounded because you aren't doing your part. DPG cannot fix it if they don't know it's broken.

    Also remember that cheaters aren't stupid. Many of them are pretty clever and cover their tracks well. Some of them are masters of manipulation and view other players as a threat to their goals. They will actively try to thwart your gameplay so they can proceed on their path. Again, don't be a hero here. Disengage with them and /report /petition. Not only is it the best answer. It is the only correct answer.
  17. Glowerss Augur


    All of the mass 72+ gigga boxers are still in operation. Including some very obvious 24/7 botting of SG. If they can't catch flagrant violations of the 2 box rule to that extent, they're clearly wholly ineffective.
  18. Baldur Augur

    I was petitioned by someone when I was sitting in the Nexus for buffs. And the GM still afk checked me. At least he sent a tell instead of using say.

    It is out of hand. If you happen to go to the bathroom when the GM does his afk check, it's a 7 day suspension for you.
  19. Stix Man Elder

    How is it that so many rizlona people are getting suspended or crying about AFK checks but we still have 5-7 picks of 80-100 robots on Aradune in Sirens Grotto.

    Somehow these people on Aradune have figured out the system on a much "tighter" rules server. How are the people playing on the boxing server getting so much grief. Literally 5+ picks run in sirens grotto 24/7 except the day of patches.

    You want to talk about a waste of resources? The fact they won't come out and tell us to stop reporting boxing on Aradune. It's a complete waste of resources when they pretend like the rules are being enforced and asking us to report and petition. They have 100% proof of 200+ characters warping around.

    If they really cared about the warping, all they need to do is set up 1 GM type character in PoK to scan as people enter/leave PoK. Send everyone to their origin/bind if you were impatient and then just sit back and watch all the pok travelers make their way back.

    The not doing anything about 5-7 picks of sirens grotto is just a slap in the face though. Not a single person actually could be reasonably convinced that those 100 characters in SG are controlled by a "bunch of real people".

    A 6 year old that has never played EQ in their life could figure out what was going on in sirens grotto.

    So, instead, we just keep petitioning and keep bugging GMs who could do something but refuse to. Talk about a waste of resources.
  20. I_Love_My_Bandwidth Mercslayer

    Have you petitioned? Do you continue to petition?

    Every time I have petitioned an AFK group killing, or a large bot team, they disappear. We are talking 8 petitions in the last 6 months. Every single time I have caught someone and reported it, the offenders disappear.

    But, OP is not talking about bot teams or effectiveness of DPG GMs. OP is talking about DPG's petition system being used as a weapon against people not breaking any rules. And I understand it. I really do. Not saying I like it. Not saying it's fair. I am saying it is what it is. When conducting any police action, the governing body has to assume every complaint is legitimate until proven otherwise. So the GM warps in and performs an AFK check. If you are AFK, you are suspended or banned. Those are the rules GMs are given. Those are the rules they enforce. GMs have very narrow parameters within which to work. If criteria A is met, action X is taken. It's not always fair. It's not always just.