Exploiting and Gaiscioch members

There is a discussion going on in many forums of Dynamic Events are being exploited because they reset to fast, allowing people to sit for hours, either farming by spamming auto attack or making a simple macro or botting script spamming 1 and racking up thousands of karma and many levels and gold. There are multiple areas where obviosly something is bugged, and some events restart before you can even leave it. With Arenanet being so strict with something as simple as a naming policy, I would not want to be reported or even near these areas when the S hits the fan.

I found one in the Asura Area and was surprised how many were standing around, some auto attacking non stop. Once I realized something was fishy after doing the DE twice I high tailed it out of there, not wanting to have any part of it. The -real- problem is I witnessed a few Gaiscioch members farming or standing there afk for 30+ minutes in a suspecious manner. (perhaps their macro or script bugged) I witness this by returning to the area every 20 mins to check and see if they had left, and they did not. I did take a screen shot of at least one member.

TL:DR

It would not look good for guild members to be around these questionable areas that are bugged. Being there in a legitmate manner because there is an event is one thing, but farming/botting/exploiting with full intention to take advantage of the event is too questionable and can tarnish our rep.

Exploiting is against our code of conduct. Macroing is considered exploiting. If you see a member doing something shady send me a screenshot and I'll send them a warning. This is highly damaging to our reputation and is not something a Gaiscioch should partake in. It causes a whole lot of messes I have to clean up to preserve our reputation.

Considering the good ties we currently have with Arenanet it is something that I'm sure Fog wants to discourage.

» Edited on: 2012-08-29 12:36:20

"...a few Gaiscioch members farming or standing there afk for 30+ minutes in a suspecious manner. (perhaps their macro or script bugged)..." Or perhaps the doorbell rang and they simply went AFK there without even realizing there was any sort of exploit. Directly witnessing someone exploiting is one thing, but seeing someone loitering in the area where others are exploiting is quite another. "Guilt by association" should be as bogus in the game world as in the real world, IMO. For all you know, that could have been someone gathering evidence on those who were exploiting. Then again, the scenario you presented is equally possible. My point being, if they were just standing there, we have no clue what they were truly up to, at least without asking before accusing. If they truly were exploiting, then yeah... kick their butts out. And I know Ben isn't about to take action without getting to the bottom of the situation. But I think a public accusation that Gaiscioch members were exploiting, based on being AFK in the "wrong place" is a bit premature. :)

Let's put it this way. The Gaiscioch does not get approached by Game Developers, Hardware Manufacturers, Gaming Media, and Software Developers because we're known for being cheaters, hackers, griefers, and general blemishes to the gaming world. We're know for our kindness, honorable nature, and ability to report exploits we find in a clear manor so that developers can fix them. ArenaNet approached us 9 months ago to help them make Guild Wars 2 and provide them with feedback accordingly. Trion approached us nearly a year before beta began to do the same. Our reputation is what brings forth opportunities and if you want to benefit from being a Gaiscioch, you need to do everything in your power to protect our home. Lets keep the relationships we have with this industry and continue our prestigious role in the game development industry. If you want to exploit, grief, and ruin people's experience please leave the family and join another "Guild". That is not who we are, or who we will ever be, and you'll save me the trouble of kicking you later. I love this family, and I will stop at nothing to protect our reputation.

I'd suggest remembering "Blades out, not in" If you see questionable behavior please report it to the officers in private and be as specific as possible. Trust them to follow up and handle it. They may have been in the wrong place at the wrong time, AFK for any number of reasons, new to gaming online or very young and not understanding the situation beyond "wow I'm levelling and making money!"

In case it wasn't clear (and I'm guessing it wasn't), that's pretty much what I was trying to say, Twilah. Sometimes I think I must speak an alien language... :)

You were very clear, and I was expressing support for your point of view as a response to the original post :) I claim the alien language!

Thanks for bringing this to our attention Linfang. As always, we investigate all sides of a story before making decisions. A good point to raise so that everyone can be clear on our policy, and there can be no misunderstanding as to what we consider exploiting.

» Edited on: 2012-08-29 14:36:49

As an old person (as in age - not time with the family) I have to support what Tetharel stated also. There are numerous times I will get up and go do "personal business" wink, wink, nudge, nudge... and leave my character logged in - sometimes it takes me longer than I expected - or I will get a phone call from my daughter or a good friend which may last 30 mins to an hour - and the only time I move my character is if I'm getting killed. Now I know I wasn't one of the ones in the screenshot - just because of where it was taken. I am actually sick of the "running of the bulls" but if I am not doing anything I run with them and kill as many as I can - but I don't considering it exploiting since I am running with them - not botting or using auto attack - and the devs have "ran the bulls" way too much through all of the betas and continue to do it now - that dang event is almost constantly going on. I don't go back to the area after I leave it though - just to do it - I just happen to start a lot of Norns and I'm getting ready to do another one since I don't like the way my level 13 hunter looks and want to redo her (yes, I am female - and vain :) looks matter ) So again, standing in the area is not enough proof for me - but as Twilah stated if anyone thinks it (and if you do others may also) give a whisper to an elder and let them talk to the person and get their side of the story. I abhor cheaters and liars - so let them begone - but an old person, who was in the wrong place at the wrong time - with a bladder issue should be let go on their own reconnaissance ;)

» Edited on: 2012-08-29 15:06:21

I took a screen shot but I did not report the person to the guild because I could not prove they were farming/exploiting. They were just standing there for a long time. My point is you don't want to stand around at the scene of a crime because other people could betaking screen shots with GSCH tags. Because it is a guilty until proven innocent mindset for most people and we don't need the negative PR.

As a notorious 'stealth' AFK'er, I know full well how easy it is to leave your character in a safe place and just idle out. This can appear that you are camping a spawn point (as I have been accused of before), or doing other undesirable things, when in actuality you are not even there. :) I have also found the Asura exploit, contacted Don and he walked me through the process of reporting it to ArenaNet. I do not follow their forums very closely and had no idea this was a widely publicized issue. Hopefully it will be fixed soon.

I've been AFK for extended periods within the game. The game will kick you if you are inactive, even in the PvE zones. I'd say it'd be pretty hard to get "accidentally" accused of exploiting in this manner.

So... I too came across an exploit in "The Bloodfields" and didn't understand what was going on either until about the third run through. When I turned on my chat function to show map and local chat (I keep it off, too much flying text) I quickly realized this mob of people were exploiting. I promptly left. I hold the guild values very highly. Heck I've always been a bit of a "purest" when it comes to gaming. So I hope if a GSCH tag is witnessed in an event or sitting idle (I AFK a lot and I don't consider myself old yet... lol) this is looked at subjectively. I agree with those posts above. Please bring to the attention of an Elder and let them address.

There is a place in Gandaran Fields that people are camping. I'm glad this issue came up because I had no idea why 30 people were stacked on one spot just autoattacking thin air.

Well, I will say that I don't stand in the middle of areas - especially where I might get agro - I will run off into a remote corner and usually face into it - as if I'm being punished :). I would still say to report it to an elder and let them speak to the person - that way things get sorted out.

We aren't talking about afk here guys. Today I witnessed one of our members sitting in 1 spot following a macro chain for over 2 hours. Confirmed by more than 1 elder. I removed the person from the family when they would not respond to tells. Botting is not ok and as of the 29th will result in account suspension and eventual permanent ban. Arenanet has made that clear.

If you see an exploiting area, do /bug and fill out a report. The bug reports have a box you can check to state this is an exploit. PLEASE! Do this on every exploit you see like this so Arenanet get the location and screenshot. The location is magically taken and put into the bug report for them and the screen shot is auto taken though you can reangle the camera and take what you think is a better one by clicking the 'Take Screenshot Button'. Explain as best you can what is going on and submit it. ArenaNet IS seriously looking for botters because they know people have been doing it. As per the last thing I saw posted about it, they are starting off with a 72 hour ban from the game just to be sure to weed out what is real botting and what looks like it. There policy however is to PERMANENTLY BAN a botter from the game. Having said that, if I as an elder/officer get proof you are botting, I won't have any qualms kicking you from the guild and reporting you to ArenaNet due to their policy. So definitely bug report as an exploit every dynamic event that you see this happening. Help ArenaNet kick the exploiters in the tush. ;)

At work so I mostly skimmed this, sorry if I'm repeating anything. I personally reported the event brought up in the original post, the spammable asura gate that is triggered by someone talking to the NPC. Those who were exploiting it were clear, they would stand in one spot, aimed at the gate, doing nothing but their spam attack constantly. In between portal spawns, they would be attacking (you can hit 1 and attack without targetting anything, but as far as I know, the games auto attack will not continue if a mob dies). I already knew a few ways I could exploit it, but I'm not posting them in case anyone, both in and out of our family, decides to do it. I just thought it was sad how many people had begun exploiting so early in the game. I found a blog post that said the leveling curve is pretty linear (if you stick to at level content) so I don't even see the need to cheat, is being the first to beat an MMO really more important than the journey now days?

I saw a guild member in a crowd of people that were afk auto attacking at an event and I thought I was bugged because when i tried to contact them it said they were off line and in the guild window it said they were off line, however, I recently found out that there is a feature to appear off line to your friends list/guild. So they were exploiting after all. I didn't report them but I did report the other 10 players.

I'm glad I came upon this post. Two days ago, while at the Kessex hills mines, I saw a non-Gaiscioch thief standing around in the courtyard shooting arrows into the air. I thought maybe they were trying out their skills when a big wave of centaurs hit. After we fought the centaurs off, I noticed this person still standing in the same spot and still shooting arrows into space and wondered how he/she survived without moving around. But I didn't really pay attention, and with all the players in the area and all the commotion, I didn't think too much into it. Then the second wave hit... and this time I did notice they didn't move or die - which was the really weird part. Honestly, I didn't know what to think because who could survive an onslaught of centaurs like that? But, now I know and I WILL observe and report anyone exploiting a game I dearly love. I have no respect for cheaters. Period. Myk

maybe i havent been paying attention, but i havent personally seen a whole lot of this going on..... but heck, im the type of person who would feel disappointed if i got to 80 to fast. GW2 is such a beutifully crafted game, i find more than ever i like to 'stop and smell the roses' you know.... get my moneys worth... even though its f2p :P

Do you guys think using the Mists to get back to Lion's arch is an exploit? I bugged it to Anet but haven't heard anything back, so I am assuming not?

I think the Mists travel is an intended feature. There was no reason to put in the Asura gate, except to go to Lion's Arch. Note that a lot of your skills can be turned to autofire. So just cuz someone's spamming their spike trap or aoe or whatever, that doesn't mean they're botting, they're possibly/likely just autofiring. It's completely possible to use that technique to afk level all the way to 80, using nothing but the built-in interface and a standard qwerty keyboard and mouse. Using the tools they give us can't be by itself bannable. AFK-Farming: Is it a bannable offense from GW2? That's for ArenaNet to adjudicate. Definitely scores high on the cheesy-meter. Please don't be GSCH doing it.

I ran across the asura event not long after rolling my first character, and at the time didn't even know why that many folks were standing around the portal. I think I ran through two-three runs of it, but for me I was at the keyboard the entire time. But I did see what yall saw, folks with autoattack running, swinging at nothing. Yesterday I ran across two botters using teleport hacks/autoattacks along the beach in Gendarian Fields, just going in a loop from one spawn point to another. I bugged it as well as e-mailing ArenaNet (exploits @ arena DOT net) with the offending names/location/info. I sat there semi-afk while eating dinner watching them for about an hour kill a mob, teleport to another location and swing/hit/shoot/cast. Because of the option to autotarget nearest mob when attacking (which usually makes me pull neutral mobs when I'm about dead), these folks are using it to bot. This was just a bit more sophisticated than the standard camping while autoattacking that most of us have seen. Hopefully these two accounts will receive the full justice from ArenaNet, and they can figure out what bug they are exploiting to teleport hack and fix it. I know that may mean they have to put a tracer on them to determine how they are doing it, but eventually once they determine how its being done - they can mass ban all the offenders.