User talk:Gaile Gray/Archive Support Issues/Apr - Jun 2009

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Long-Term Botter Report

→ moved from User Talk:Gaile Gray

how many months will it take until it's banned? it's a bot goddamnit. --Cursed Angel 16:57, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

it is in FA for ages.... Very disturbing, and not great for the teammates... |Cyan LightLive!| 18:01, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

I've never seen that one (I also haven't done Aspenwood in a while), but it was reported on the botwatch page back in late December. Maybe start making duplicate reports there with date and time. --Falseprophet 18:36, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

Done. I hope they ban him/her/it fast... |Cyan LightLive!| 19:04, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

According to the team, this issue was addressed just today. Thanks for your patience. -- Gaile 23:09, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

Am I reading that right? Six months of botting infamy from that account finally removed permanently from Fort Aspenwood??? :D -- WarBlade 02:04, 2 April 2009 (UTC)\

Wooooo! Finally anet got him! great work :D Sweet Escape 03:50, 2 April 2009 (UTC)

6 months of botting... wasted. -- Alaris 13:39, 2 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Hi Gaile, Please extend a note of gratitude to the GMs who reviewed the evidence and made the call on this one. It evidently took some doing, but I've been watching the responses in Fort Aspenwood outposts lately and can honestly say that there are quite a large number of legitimate players who really appreciate the improvement brought about by the removal of the offending account from Guild Wars. Thanks. -- WarBlade 00:21, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

WarBlade, I'm sorry, I totally missed this note. It's really nice of you to write, and I'm glad that players noticed that...err... removal. ;) We've been discussing the whole situation at our Live Team meetings. The team is definitely sensitive to the concerns and hopes to have solutions in the future. -- Gaile 05:47, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Issues with sending in support ticket

Hi Gaile! I've been having some problems with the new NCsoft website. I kinda forgot my password and my secret question, so I decided to open a ticket. It stated that if my email address was not recognised when sending in the ticket, I would have to register that address. Since I did remember the email attached to my plaync account, I entered that and then send in the ticket. But it directed me to a registration page, asking me to register my email address. Weird, I thought, my address should already be in the database. I tried re registering the address, only to find out "it was already in the database". So now I can't log in and can't contact support. Help me Support team, you are my only hope! ^^

PlasticBlue 08:04, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

Hay, PB, could you do me a fave? Drop me a note through the "email this user" on this page and give me your email address (and user name, if you don't mind -- NOT password, of course ;) ) in the email, so I can ask the team to start a ticket and contact you. Sound good? -- Gaile 23:26, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

Gwen-chan camera bug

Not sure where to tell this. When in first person mode, the camera appears to look through the ground with a somewhat messed up view. Otherwise, thanks for the fun! 76.30.79.54 13:38, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

It's only gonna be a 24 hour bug, so it will get fixed when the gwen-chan thing reverts to normal. -- Salome 13:50, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, I know. That's why I didn't bother mentioning it to main support. Maybe it can be dealt with for future mini-sized avatars. Imagine playing an Asuran in GW2, or some other yet to be known smallish race. 76.30.79.54 17:01, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

By the way Gaile, love the Gwen Chan April fools thingy. --Burning Freebies 17:48, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

I agree -- it's a great prank! :) Oh, and I will let the team know about the camera for future reference. Thanks. -- Gaile 18:21, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

Please, please, please, please, tell them to make Gwen-chan into a tonic aswell. --MageMontu 18:26, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm with you on that! -- Gaile 22:30, 1 April 2009 (UTC)

Linsey said in-game they knew about the issue with the camera, but the only way to fix it would be making gwen-chan bigger, and the bigger she gets the creepier she looks, so they decided to leave it in. ¬ Wizårdbõÿ777(talk) 13:58, 2 April 2009 (UTC)

Gaile,i need help!!!

Account Terminated for RMT

hello Dear Gaile!It said my guild wars account was terminated for using a bot or other 3rd-party program.I swear never use other programs, and I dont know what happened . Please verify carefully. thank you.why u guys sure i used an illegal third party program.i only long times online plays the game.i dont know what i do let GM think about that.im a consumer and player , never undermine the rules.Reference(090402-000175)--Black cat 03:40, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

Dear Gaile!I swear!My network is not RMT,I did not use the 3rd-party program!--Black cat 10:29, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

Please contact support with your appeal; I will not intercede in this issue. -- Gaile 02:27, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

can i get banned for...

Selling (other) game access key for Guild Wars Gold

Selling an unused Call of Duty 5 cdkey I got for in game gold? It's like reverse RMT i guess. I'm too lazy to ebay the game it so i thought i might as well sell the key for $GW. is that bannable tho? --adrin 04:49, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, I think you could be considered a RMT here, because you're trading an in-game item for what is, essentially, a real world commodity. Or vice versa. :) I have a meeting with our Legal Counsel tomorrow, and I could ask him, but everything in my mind points to this being disallowed, just as selling a GW Buddy Key is strictly disallowed. -- Gaile 04:52, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

yeah i just didn't know if it was vice versa since it's not even a gw key. i just hate dealing with ebay =\ maybe i'll craigslist it. --adrin 04:55, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

It's an odd one as it depends on if the cd key can be considered to be a real world commodity or a virtual commodity. As if its the latter you are trading one virtual commodity for another virtual commodity, however that being said its also for a different game so that brings in more considerations. Personally I would be very cautious about this as I think it could quite easily be bannable. -- Salome 21:09, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

I know people who offer to trade Guild Wars accounts for [XYZ Game] or [ABC other-game commodity] are considered in breach of the User Agreement, so I think this would be a no-no. I completely forgot to ask during the meeting, and I do apologize. I'll check and post an answer as soon as I hear back. -- Gaile 03:20, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

I would say this is just a item which is buyed ingame for ingame money but its a real life product which makes that it is real life money based product which makes it no legal to buy it. For example this would allow people to buy reallife games on ebay so that they can trade it for ingame gold. And thats kind of the same as just buying reallife money. But then throw first buying a game and then trading this game for the Item. 145.53.242.142 06:02, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Basic rule: if real money or goods are involved, it's not allowed. Easy to remember. 145.94.74.23 05:57, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Meh, so it is actually bannable when I give treats to my friends who don't GW anymore to give me their accounts. Pika Fan 07:39, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Quick Question...

What telephone number should I use?

I'm makeing an NCSoft Master acount, so I can buy the bonus mission pack. Problem is, I don't have a phone number. What do I put, my Mom's? (555)-555-5555?--Unendingfear 14:22, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

My guess would be any number they could contact you at, should the need arise. So something like a home phone or a parents cell phone (with their permission) should work. -- Wandering Traveler 15:55, 3 April 2009 (UTC)

Please feel free to use a telephone number at which you could be contacted (even with a relayed message through a relative) in the event that there was such a need, just as WT said. (It's very seldom needed, but it's something they need to have; in fact a credit card purchase may actually require that info, I'm not sure.)

And after dealing with lost account issues for a few folks, I'd recommend that you use one that you can remember if, some time down the road, you need help from Support. A phone number isn't "proof of ownership," but it's one point of data that may help establish that an account does indeed belong to the person contacting us. Oh, and I'd also add, using fake information is really bad. I'm working with a guy this week who doesn't have access keys, can't remember the account name, forgot the password, and just doesn't recall much critical info about the account itself, either. Basically, "I had a Guild Wars account, don't know anything about it, can you find it for me?" (Answer: We'd like to, but probably not. :( )

So if I can use this as a soap box: Always use real information with signing up for NCsoft and Guild Wars accounts. The information is kept confidential, and it's to your best interests to have real info associated with your account! :) -- Gaile 01:59, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Gaile please help me

Account Terminated for RMT

Hi dear Gaile,sorry to distrub you,because my guild wars account was blocked for an account issue,I sent many letters to GM but haven't response,my friend said u can help me.The day before my account blocked ,it was very lag and I have reboot my modem three or four more times. My IP have changed cause of that.Because network operator provide the dynamic IP address here.So my IP address variation perhaps made my account suspect.Maybe GM thought I was sold my account.Perhaps there were some Gold-Sellers and who sell the gold or his account for real-money,but I swear it was not my case.I never want to sell my valuable account.So I promise you dear Gaile,please help me.Thank you very very very much. Reference(090328-000530)--Fanglei613 12:12, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

Please contact support with your appeal; I will not intercede in this issue. -- Gaile 02:26, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Account blocked

Dear, loved and wonderfull Gaile, I am innocent. I swear I never intended to do anything bad when I connected to Billy Joe Mac Diamond' H@XxORs site ! I must leave now cause my computer is bloated with malwares but plllleeease, unblock my account ! I swear I will stop using third party programms on that account. You are beautifull and your favorite color is also my favorite color. YsEr@N ( my other name is Invincible Black Shadowz Of The Death That Kill 'til you'r Dead 2000 XXX plus, SF ftw )- 81.251.148.200 12:11, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

My spidey sense is tingling! I'm sensing someone is taking the mickey. -- Salome 12:16, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

I have a problem when someone says "I never intended to do anything bad when I connected to a hack site". The sole reason to go to a hack site is to find a way to cheat. Sugar coating it with sweet talk is just insulting Gaile's intelligence. If I were you, I would resign myself to kissing that account goodbye. -- Wyn 12:21, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

If it wasnt a joke I would not forget to tell him to stop posting on gaile page for no reason. YsEr@..err..i mean Yseron - 81.251.148.200 12:25, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

Begging only works if you stand at the right intersection at the right time, when gullible rich people drive by. Then you can go home and not have to work for the rest of the day. When was the last time some molester was let out of jail just because he swore he'll never do it again and that he didn't intend anything bad to that kid in the first place? What's done is done. Begging in GW or on the wiki never gets you anything more than annoyed ST*U's. except offers to cyber for ectos if you're a female ele Rose Of Kali 18:16, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

Guys, your intellect is scaring me there. You understood that my account have never been blocked, did you ? Yseron - 86.209.68.7 18:56, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

Then why is the topic titles "Account blocked" and you're begging them to "plllleeease" unblock it? Your writing skills are scaring me there. O_o Rose Of Kali 21:17, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

Because the original poster is not Yseron and the post is (rather obviously...) a joke? ¬ Wizårdbõÿ777(talk) 21:51, 4 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, my bad, then. I guess I haven't been here long enough to see through such "obvious" jokes. :/ I have no clue who Yseron is, and I've come across plenty of people who actually would make posts like these in all seriousness. ^_^ Rose Of Kali 04:17, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

ROFL, I was wondering why you were all answering seriously. It's clearly a parody of the number of requests which keep turning up on Gailes page, with people asking for their accounts to be saved depite them being numpties and breaking a whole host of rulesm thus why I said someone is taking the mickey. Guys at times, humour > serious post. -- Salome 12:56, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Lol... I'm also non-native to English, and have no clue what "taking the mickey" means. :P Wyn also seemed quite serious there. Hate it when I miss culturally-dependent jokes. ^_^ Rose Of Kali 17:20, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm a native english speaker and I have no idea what "taking the mickey" means, either :P ¬ Wizårdbõÿ777(talk) 18:12, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh bugger is "taking the mickey" another british slang term? Please see the article on wikipedia which can be found here -- Salome 21:19, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Please save my guildwars account

→ moved from User talk:Hmhjyf

Dear Gaile,I am sorry to distrub you but I need your help for my guildwars account. It has been banned with the reason that i have used the illegale third party program. I have sent serveral letters to GM but the responses were always the same. I have never used this kind of program and before the termination of my account, I have just played UW SC run with other players for a whole day because I want to learn more about UW SC and different area. I think perhaps that's the reason which make my account suspect. Could you help to get my account back? My reference is #090324-000332 and my account is <removed> thank you in advance --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:Hmhjyf (talk).

Please contact support with your appeal; I will not intercede in this issue. -- Gaile 02:27, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Wee suggestion

Hello Gaile, after reading through this page, their seems to be a rather disturbing trend emerging, in that increasingly people seem to be thinking that they can circumvent supports decisions by going directly to you on your talk page and requesting you look into it. Now although I understand that you are the kinda person who likes to help people, I can also see that this could get out of hand quite quickly for you with your page beig inundated by people who want their bans lifted. Now although it is very nice of you to be going out of your way to help people in this manner and if you are happy to do so, thats great too, however I would respectfully suggest that maybe you should think about asking people to stop posting appeals on your page, as your work load if is already big enough, without people constantly pestering you on the wiki to lift bans after support has told them no repeatedly. Maybe adapt your welcome message to include a wee bit of blurb directing people with appeal concerns to request the matter be elevated via support following the correct line of management. -- Salome 13:09, 5 April 2009 (UTC)

71 Hour Ban, First Offense-- Is this normal?

I was temporarily suspended for spamming on the trade channel today. This was not a mistake at all. I've played Guild Wars off and on with a few friends for a long while, but I've never really used the trade channel much (or even said much in general chats for that matter). Today, I decided to sell an extra minipet I had and went kind of crazy with posting. It was my mistake; I stupidly tried to keep up with the fast moving chat.

My suspension, though, is for 71 hours. I was reading elsewhere that suspensions vary, with only a few hours for spam. Is 71 hours normal for a first offense (especially for someone who really only uses guild chats)?

I don't want my ban to be lifted, nor am I begging for it to be shortened. I accept that I made a mistake (a mistake that I'll be sure to not make again after this). I'm just curious. --LetoAtreides 03:22, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

What exactly were you spamming? If you were not spamming messages related to trade, then you probably deserved it. The trade channel is for trade, everything else goes in local.72.71.218.222 03:25, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I was posting two things (forgot about the bow). The first said "WTS Mini Pet | Whiptail Devourer (Unded) |." The other said pretty much the same thing about the bow. I think I posted in local a few times to see, but nowhere near a lot. I'm not arguing the suspension. Just wondering out of curiousity if 71 hours is the norm for a first offense. --LetoAtreides 03:34, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

You spammed local? that's why.96.233.2.149 01:16, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

The article on bans here says that "The length of a ban is based on the severity of the the offense, and the past behavior of a player. As an example: A farming bot would be blocked forever, while a ban for spamming in towns (namely trade spam in local chat) would only be a few hours." Three days seems to be more than a few hours. --LetoAtreides 04:54, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, LetoAtreides, that is the normal period of suspension for a first-time block, or for a block after all other account marks have expired. In the initial months after release of Guild Wars (Prophecies), Support sometimes placed a shorter block, one that lasted 24 hours. But what we learned was that a lot of people were not even noticing they had been blocked at all, and the intention of a block is to impose a consequence that also serves as a warning about unacceptable behavior. So yes, the block duration that you mention would be standard for the first mark. I might suggest that the wording in the article on spamming should be amended accordingly. Please let me know if you have any additional questions. -- Gaile 06:40, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I've corrected the ban article based on your statement. -- Gordon Ecker (talk) 06:54, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

No, that's all. Thanks for your help. That article kind of threw me off.--LetoAtreides 14:33, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

I substantially rewrote the article on bans several days ago, but I guess I forgot to mention that here. :) I hope the updated article is helpful. -- Gaile 02:25, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Hang in there

Wow, I've been reading through earlier posts in this page, it's like "I did someth wrong and was banned, but i dont want to be banned, do someth or i'll say you suck, this game sucks and...". Sheesh. Hang in there! There are nice people in the world who can actually understand that there are rules, and there are consequences, and the people in charge of keeping them are not evil monsters from outer space :) 189.33.71.178 19:30, 6 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for the note. You made me smile. :) -- Gaile 02:39, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, might I ask something

Terminated Account Question

→ moved from User Talk:Gaile Gray

Can you please look into my ticket 090407-000166, I just filed it today. I logged in to find I have been perma-banned 045. I believe this is in error. 000.00.00.00 02:26, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

As I say above and on my User Page under What's a Support Liaison?, I am not the first route of appeal for any player. In fact quite honestly, I'm generally not a route of appeal at all. For the most part, I get involved after Support has asked me to do so, or in the rare case where something needs another review as pointed out by the player or for larger policy reviews. It appears you posted this instantly upon filing a ticket, and the team has not even had a chance to respond to you. Please allow this issue to move through the process, as intended. -- Gaile 02:40, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

My apologises. 000.00.00.00 02:48, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Not a problem. When someone is stressed -- and I know an account block or ban is stressful -- it's natural to reach out for help. I will be happy to offer help if it's necessary. But I have confidence that the team can assist you, and it's best to have them do so. Thanks for understanding. -- Gaile 03:21, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

I found out what went wrong, there was a recent discussion I looked over on your page in regards to running two versions of Guild Wars at the same time. I explained the situation in my email (though I really upset, more than one probably should in this situation) could you/someone try to make the gray area with third party programs a lot more defined. I used a GWx2 ( based on a comment you made in the topic about running two versions at the same time) under the impression it was as long as it didn't give an advantage "Well, if it doesn't give an advantage in gameplay, the general rule has been you'd not have a mark placed on your account for doing so. Just keep in mind that there are risks associated with it and watch for fourth-party "add ins" (like keyloggers) on your third-party program."

Clearly, I must have used it in a manner that gave me an advantage, I don't believe I have but that's what happens when you base actions on gray area statements (no, that's not a dig at Gaile Gray). The rules regardless of what we read on the wiki or forums say "You agree not to use any hardware or software, including but not limited to third party tools, or any other method of support which may in any way influence or advantage your use of the Service". I hope that other people who took part in the conversation I only watched take not that it can get you in trouble by using it.

I accept that I used a program, I did it believing I wasn't doing anything to put myself at an advantage and I accept the outcome. I feel really crap right now, that was almost 2 years and so many hours. You can read what I sent to them, Gaile, I especially mean my closing paragraph: this is not a pleasant experience and I wouldn't wish it on anyone else.

Thanks for your time. 000.00.00.00 23:02, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Errr... I hope their is more to this than that, as almost everyone I know has used GWx2 at some point or another. I don't see how necessitating people to log onto multiple machines is in anyway different from logging onto multiple accounts on one machine. I really do think this needs clarified properly so I can inform my allaince, as currently people have been using gwx2 under the belief that its a handy tool which gives them no advantage as all it does is allows you to access 2 accounts at once. Which as you own 2 accounts, is your right to do so. All it changes is on what machine you are doing this. -- Salome 23:15, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

As a general rule, we do not block for the use of that program. We do block for botting. I will research this more fully tomorrow, but early research does not show this to be a block for playing two accounts, but for playing two accounts in an exploitative manner. Again, I won't say that is the cause until I know more. -- Gaile 23:46, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

I appreciate the effort in looking into this, it is appreciated regardless of the outcome. 000.00.00.00 23:56, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) I am happy to try to help, but I will move this over to the Support Issues page, where it more properly belongs. Discussion can continue there, of course. -- Gaile 01:47, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Dear Gaile!My computer also has GWx2!It said my guild wars account was terminated for using a bot or other 3rd-party program.I swear never use other programs, and I dont know what happened .i only long times online plays the game.Reference#(090402-000175),My apologises. Disturb you!!!:(--Black cat 06:53, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

No, Black Cat, your computer runs a bot. I have seen the proof. Do not ask me to assist you again. -- Gaile 07:30, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Just popping in to say gl 0. You seem like a cool guy from Wiki, know you wouldn't bot. Hope you get this sorted out! :) DarkNecrid 08:18, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

Wow, this is very unfortunate, I hope this gets sorted out. I know someone who uses 2 accounts to 600/smite farm, is that "legal?" He controls both account by himself, no bots. If not, I'd like to know so I can tell him to stop before he loses his account, he plays with both of his kids and is a very helpful and nice player, and it would really suck if he got banned... Rose Of Kali 08:43, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

He could achieve the same thing using a hero, except for the fact that he gets twice the drops if he uses a secondary account. And that sounds like an advantage to me...145.94.74.23 13:54, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

I hope you get unbanned =)--Unendingfear 16:07, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

No, I believe I worked out what I did wrong. >.< Funnily enough Support didn't actually give me a straight answer as to what I did wrong exactly just that I did something wrong: absolutely no explaination or justification just "you used an illegal third party program" we went through our processes etc and so on but not actually saying what I did (where or how etc), which is weird, but I believe I know what I did to cause this but I do find the whole thing extremely frustating. I know I got some people up in arms over this. I apologise to all for that.

I do wish Support actually came out and said "look, you've done this wrong" and stated what exactly I wouldn't have gone "What?!?!?!?!". They still haven't. Also, I don't think it's worth a perma-ban, but according to the last email I got it's justified. [shrugs]

[sighs] What a mess. I could go into but I kick myself for being a dork, I should have known better. Oh, well, it's only a game. Good luck people. ^_^ Nice knowing ye' all ^_^ 000.00.00.00 17:32, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

What did you do?--Unendingfear 17:58, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

drunk bot maybe? -- Salome 18:50, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

A bot? Hell no, every mouse click, button press used on my account was used under my own power, I take great pride in any instance anyone thought/thinks I was a bot (though never been accused of it, but still ^_^ ) but have friends comment on my ability to repeat trivial ingame tasks with machine-like effiency (though I'm especially critical of myself, especially on farming runs, when I have to repeat steps that usually involve one run through more than once >.< It irritates me greatly.). OOO is good at repeating patterns ^_^. I like to work with effiency.

Anywooo, I've emailed Support back to get the hard word on what the actual ban is for beyond what I already know (oddly enough I've gotten more as to a reason from Gaile which actually made the gears in my head click over) than Support thus far. 000.00.00.00 19:03, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

It would be nice if we could get some clarification on the gray areas when it comes to something like GWX2. I know of many people, myself included who use it, based on the premise that Gaile stated something along the lines of 'if it doesn't give you an advantage, then its probably ok'. This also raises interesting questions regarding two copies of GW running on two separate machines and whether or not policy would differ between that and GWX2.--118.90.27.74 19:53, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

That is a good question. The friend that I mentioned above uses 2 accounts on 2 different machines, and controls them both when farming. Technically, I don't see anything specifically against the rules there, because no software other that GW is involved, but would be nice to know for sure. I've also used my mule acct when I needed to run one of my new characters through the beginning of Prophecies to LA so I can get heroes first. Is that allowed? Rose Of Kali 20:19, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Ok, my ban got lifted. There are several people I want to kiss right now, not in a weird way obviously... O.o stop looking at me like that. Anywoooooooo (lets move away from that as fast as we can), the issue with me is that I was exhibiting bot-like behaviour (believe I was using a bot-program to farm because that's the only thing I've been doing for the last few days), I would just like to repeat I have never used a bot, nor will ever. But, now I'm interested with this whole GWx2 or just running two accounts on two computers, but that's for another topic I believe. But for the moment [runs out of room] WOOOOTTT!!!!!! 000.00.00.00 22:26, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm really glad that it sorted out for you. :)

If you feel we should have a discussion about multi-use, we can sure do that, but that isn't what raised the flags. Good heavens, I play two accounts on two computers all the time -- how else am I supposed to keep my 4289 mule tidy? Our policy about multiple accounts has not changed. I'd say you just need to "take a break" as the game nags gently suggests. :D -- Gaile 03:31, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Good to hear you got your account back 0. Also good to know that the issue wasn't GWX2 related. The only answer I am really curious about is the one that Kali and the 145 IP mentioned above. I would imagine you would never condone this, but is it against the rules to use a program like GWX2 to 600/smite, effectively gaining double the loot? And how about using a second account via GWX2 to use 6 heroes? Thanks in advance for any answer you are able to provide Gaile.--118.90.27.74 07:03, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm glad it sorted out too, obviously ^_^ [bounces up and down in his chair]. Though, I never used a bot when the flags went up, all that recent activity was all me, but I'm iffy about the whole GWx2 thing, multiple accounts thing being used, even multiple accounts on two pcs. Got a second pc that could be used for my second account, and just got my third account tonight [again bounces up and down "Woot for storage!"], but I do like GWx2 for the space it saves etc and so on. Is it possible if we could get some rules as to what's aloud and not aloud when it comes to GWx2 and with one user using two accounts on two computers, the only differences is one setup has two machines yet can still function in the same capacity. 3rd programs are not aloud according to the rules but we're got the word that GWx2 is tolerable within reason. I'd myself love to know what can or can't be done in a multi-pc or Gwx2 situation.

I hope that made sense, I actually feel quite sick right now and not sure if I'm making sense 000.00.00.00 07:28, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Using 2 GW Accounts at Once

I decided to start a new topic based on the previous and summarize the questions a bit. I tried to be as specific as possible, and the questions are basically "Will I get banned for this, or no?"

1. Is it ok to use GWx2 to open 2 GW accounts and use both in the same instance for farming, instead of recruiting heroes and missing out on the loot?
2. Is it ok to use 2 separate machines with 2 GW accounts running, both owned and controlled by you, for farming in order to get loot for both characters, instead of losing half of it to heroes?
3. Is it ok to use GWx2 to open 2 GW accounts, borrow 3 heroes from the second account, for a total of 6 heroes, and make the second character leave, so you are alone in the zone with 6 heroes? (By extension, is this ok if a friend substitutes the 2nd account and lets you borrow his heroes and leaves?)
4. Is it ok to use 2 separate machines for any "outdoors" activities where the second account is not used actively, and is "afk" or leaves the instance, such as for running the second character places, or using his heroes and having him leave the area so the heroes follow you?
5. Is it ok to use GWx2 to open 2 GW accounts for any kind of farming or playing activity outside of towns, with you controlling both accounts?
6. Is it ok to use 2 separate accounts (GWx2 or on separate machines) with one acting as a "gate monkey?"
7. Is it ok to uwe GWx2 to simply transfer things between accounts (muling)?
8. Is it ok to use 2 separate machines to simply transfer things between accounts (muling)?

• None of the above assumes use of any kind of software other than Guild Wars and/or GWx2 to play, so no bots of any kind.

I think in these 8 questions I covered everything previously asked, and then some. Feel free to add to the bottom of the list if it's a question related to GWx2 or opening 2 accounts on different machines. I know what has been said about "gaining in-game advantage" etc, but sometimes the areas are a little "fuzzy" and it would be nice if you could look at each question and answer it, to let us know for sure. In general, all of the above is "legal" if the accounts are owned and controlled by different people (in the case of 2 machines), but what about the owner being the same person, and what if he is using one machine instead of 2? Thanks in advance. Rose Of Kali 19:01, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for the excellent breakdown of questions related to the use of dual-account systems or programs such as GWx2. I can tell you that the 8th question, regarding using two separate machines for muling between separate accounts is definite allowed. I do it personally and I asked years ago about its permissability, so there's no question in my mind it's ok. As for each of the other questions, I must get an official answer for you.

I hope that we will be able to shed some light on this very soon. I want to interject that I know the team is working very hard on the April build, and that means that they may not feel that it's possible to answer these questions until after that build is released. I hope that we'll have an answer before that date, but due to time constraints and focus, we may need to wait until afterward the build. -- Gaile 21:15, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I hope you not only look at GWx2 but also alternative methods like killing the mutant yourself with a enhanced task manager + that you clearly state what is allowed. I also hope that you realize that when I go on the internet with 2 pc's they both got the same IP address. Just like when I dual-account to trade between my mules. 80.200.86.253 14:32, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

My pc's don't have the same IP, the last digit always varies. And take your time, Gaile, I'll be curious to read it once it's answered. Rose Of Kali 17:07, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm so looking forward to reading the official word on this. 000.00.00.00 02:03, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

I too would like an answer as I would like to be sure using this program is totally legit 04:25:30, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

There are various other ways to use 2 accounts or more on a PC without this GWx2 Thing aswell.Wild 05:42, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

This topic is starting to become a burning question on the GW Auctions (thankfully now an official GW Fansite) website as clearly many people have mutiple acccounts and are very worried that their use of 2 (or even more) Accounts is legitimate. -- Bearz 16:43, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Any word on this yet? 000.00.00.00 22:53, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh, Triple Oh, I'm sorry, nothing yet. The Live Team is super busy with the April build, but I will ask again after that date, and I will try to get all those answers for you. Thanks for your patience! -- Gaile 06:04, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Triple Oh? hehehe 000.00.00.00 23:15, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Also looking forward to the answers. Because all I ever tried to do is nr.8 because I know thats not against ze rules :).Qaletaqa 23:05, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I have resubmitted my request for official responses and hope to have something soon. I am sorry that we were unable to answer these earlier but now that you've seen the anniversary update, I'm sure you understand how busy everyone has been. -- Gaile 02:50, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Not to bug u, but I'm really curious about this and was wondering if there's any news after a couple weeks. Thanks!--adrin 10:53, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) So... how you doing? How's the weather? It's raining here, not very good for my washing. Any news on this? Woo-hoo, I just got mail about something I don't want. ^_^ This is still a matter of huge discussion within my Guild Wars circle, not to bug you but if you can poke the answer givers in the arm for us that'd be sweet. or in a more extreme manner I can do a recording for a repeating sound sequence of people going: "But-but-but-but-but-but-but-but-owwwwwwwww" 000.00.00.00 21:53, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

*bump* --Shadowphoenix 18:54, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

How can you bump something that dosen't move? ^_^ --Star Weaver 19:32, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

I bump into non moving objects all the time, really not hard. // HeavenMonkey 14:27, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Here is the general answer: We do not support the use of third-party programs for Guild Wars. This includes programs that allow a player to simultaneously play multiple Guild Wars accounts on a single computer. However, we do not take action against those who do so as long as they do not engage in cheats, exploits, or other breaches of the User Agreement or Rules of Conduct. Keep in mind that the use of third-party programs is strongly discouraged and we cannot offer support if you develop problems as a result of their use.

However, I know that you have a set of specific questions, and I've pinged the Live Team again to see if they can review the proposed answers, after which I can give them to you. Please accept my apologies for the delay in getting you the info -- everyone is super busy and it's taking longer than we would like! -- Gaile 21:53, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm glad we're starting to get some kind of answer on this. I've been looking into doing more research on pet evolution for the wiki, but it requires me to be on two accounts simultaniously. Since I have access to only one computer, I've been waiting until we get the word back on GWx2. I just don't want to risk getting my accounts banned simply for trying to do some pet research. Blood Red Giant 21:36, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm a little confused, maybe it's all the legal text I just read that, I can honestly say, I read it as if someone was talking in one incredible long sentence, moving from topic to topic, it was really quite hyponitic. ( ^_^ )

The thing that gets me is I would say GWx2 breaches only paragraph 9 of the Rules of Conduct and maybe rule 18: "9.You may not modify any part of the Guild Wars Client, Server, or any part of the official Guild Wars websites.", but then again I'm not sure how GWx2 works. GWx2 doesn't expliot the game as defined in the Rules of Conduct, rule 22 doesn't seem to fit with GWx2 either as it doesn't "automate gameplay functions" it allows for multiple instances.

There's not much that, as far as I can see, that stops the player from playing two accounts at the same time with two computers (I mean, there's absolutely nothing in the rules that I can see that even remotely says you can't) and the only thing that stops say GWx2 is Rule 9 of the Rules of Conduct, but if the Guild Wars client isn't modified then that wouldn't apply. (on second thought 21 might not sure)

Say, going 600/Smite you not really cheating or exploiting anything, you're still doing all the work to get all the reward [shrugs]. I mean, there's nothing in there that says you can't use two computers to do something like that, you just have own/hold the license to use your account.

Really, I'm probably talking out of the left side of my head, legal text really does my head in this early in the morning >.< ^_^ 000.00.00.00 22:43, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

Account ban just before event weekend

Hi Gaile. Just received a code 045 telling me my account has been permanently banned for botting or use of a third party programme. I didn't use a bot or a third party programme. I opened a lot of chests today because I'm working on Treasure Hunter title. I opened more than usual today as this weekend was coming up and motivated me to make as much progress on this title this weekend as I could, especially as I wasn't working today. Support ticket reference: 090409-001940. Really, really want this nightmare resolved as soon as possible. :( Also reference: 090406-000484 I've now been told "in this case the incident was witnessed by a games moderator, who can confirm a third-party program was being used. Due to this we will not be reversing the decision as we feel that this was a fair judgment in this case." I don't understand this as I wasn't using a third party program so I don't see how anyone can confirm I was. I kept talking to Kilroy to go into the dungeon, ran to the chest, opened it, picked up my loot and resigned. That's it. Guess anyone else thinking of using that dungeon to work on Treasure Hunter needs to watch out. :(Pandora Mac 21:33, 9 April 2009 (UTC)

I have not seen such a comment before, and that indicates that the team feels there is little room to doubt the use of such a program. I respect what you have said about not using third party programs and about abiding by the rules so carefully. So I truly do not mean to argue with you, or dispute what you've said. But support has access to a lot of data, and in reviewing that data, there's a relatively lengthy period during which it appears you were not present, were not personally making chest runs, but appear, in fact, to have been using a bot program of some sort to do so. I am not making a judgment, I am merely passing along how it appears.

If you have information that would shed more light on the matter, you are welcome to send that to Support or comment here. -- Gaile 00:46, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't think Mac would know HOW to use 3rd party programs lol. But it is heart breaking for us - a LOT of us - in her current Guild and Clan to see her so lost about this. Mac, as a long time and very respected member of DVDF alliance and member of the Angel Sharks Guild, has many people supporting her and hoping this problem is resolved as soon as possible. I just wish that "Support" would be more precise in their correspondence with players - instead of the guessing game over "what do they think I did to warrant a ban?" - it would help people in Mac's position try to provide the real explanation instead of having to splatter gun Support with imagined scenario explanations. I hope this is resolved positively for Mac - we miss her!! --Friday 18:09, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Out of curiosity, has aNet identified any non-bot applications that could in some way impact their bot detection or interfere with their monitoring? I'm wondering because I run a lot of background applications - iTunes, Trillian, Amazon download client, Eve Online (I mine in Eve while playing GW somewhat often), Media Center, Premiere, video transcoding software and several Java clients used for work related things - while playing and don't want this sort of thing to happen to me. Pkohler01 18:32, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

If there is any player who does not deserve to be banned, it would be Mac. Ever friendly and respectful to rules, she does not use third party programs. If applying such a severe punishment, the support team should at least give an *extensive* explanation. It doesn't go to tell someone : "hey your account has been banned for using a TPP or a bot" without including any proof. It's a unilateral decision and the innocent victim, which Mac is, is left in the dark about what she is supposedly to be having done wrong. Looks a lot like a death sentence without a trial... Gaile, I sure do hope you will be looking into this. Greetz. Mia April, 15 2009

"I kept talking to Kilroy to go into the dungeon, ran to the chest, opened it, picked up my loot and resigned. That's it. Guess anyone else thinking of using that dungeon to work on Treasure Hunter needs to watch out"... Out of curiosity, how many hours was spent doing this repeditive action? I've heard another story of a player who went 24+ hrs straight of doing this (or a similar action on another chest) and he also claimed not to use a bot. I can neither confirm or deny either case, jsut curious 192.203.160.241 15:07, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, I've never posted here before so please correct me if I've not done it properly. I am the current Angel Sharks Guild Leader, of which, Mac has been an upstanding member for many years now. The majority of us have known her and played with her over the duration of that time, and we stand behind her in that she doesn't, nor ever has been a bot, or used any such bot program. Mac has obtained and gone through so many titles on her characters over the years, through hard work, effort, and with the assistance of her friends. I sent you a message privately about this on GWO when it happened, but I don't think you ever read it. When this happened, she was talking to all of us, we even have screenshots of this to back it up. She even zoned to our guild hall, moments before to trade some items. Treasure and Wisdom was some of the last titles she had to accomplish, and as such over the course of the month she'd been running chests a couple hours a day for a daily quota. With 10,000 chests to open I hardly think a daily quota of running a few hours a day, equaling, 30+ chests is a bad thing. I hardly think that warrents a banning, and as such I'd like to know what prerequisits there are in determining a regular player is a bot. Is it from not saying anything while playing? Is it from rezoning over the course of an hour or so? Is it using the resign macro? All of these things do not prove that Mac used a bot. We are a smaller sized, international guild so there are often many hours where individuals wouldn't of been online or busy, therefore Mac wouldn't of been chatting, and it would of been in that timeframe where a good bit of her chest running would of been done, because she'd have some free time. We are all greatly upset with what has happened to her, and we very much hope our dear friend will return. She is no more a bot than you are Gaile. A huge mistake has been made on the part of support and I am extremely disappointed in this company.Aranel Selari 16:08, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Seconded. Mac is a valued guild member and I trusted friend. She says she didn't use a bot, so I believe her. I don't think she'd know HOW to, I know I don't. There is a huge difference between exhibiting behaviour similar to that of a bot through farming, and actually installing third party software to do it for you. I would have expected a permanent ban on anyone if they had indeed cheated. But I'd also have expected that it would have been demonstrated beyond doubt that this was the case, not just assumed that third party software had been used "because it looks like it". Is that what has happened? In my opinion, such a dedicated and supportive long term player deserves more explanation than she appears to have received. Mac's guild, a guild made up of long term dedicated players is heart-broken. I'm personally completely demoralised.(Aeryen 17:11, 19 April 2009 (UTC))

It's cool that y'all are coming to the defense of your friend, but don't you think it is slightly wrong to give preferential treatment to someone, in the eyes of the law, just because you think they are a pretty cool guy who doesn't afraid of anything? The rules of the game ought to apply equally to everyone, no matter who they are, what their standing in the community is, if they are popular or not, how much fame they have, etc etc. Otherwise you end up with situations like the (alleged) preferential treatment of Rawr. The question is whether or not this person broke the rules, not if they are "a valued guild member and a trusted friend". Vili >8< 22:50, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

It could be a mistake...there was a person banned for botting due to using heroes. I'm sorry to say, but support can make mistakes. Normally a bot will complain on Gaile's page, but they go away the moment Gaile posts the facts, but this, with people really concerned about a guildie, with so many people coming to this person's defense, I think there should be some solid investigating, just in case.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 22:58, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm not saying I agree or disagree with Support's decision, one way or another. Support seems very decided in this case; yet there have been some interesting facts posted that would seem to exonerate the "victim". Nevertheless, it just saddens me that not everyone wrongly banned can have this much of a defense. If all it takes to re-open an investigation is much noise and ado, that speaks poorly of the "stewards of the commnuity", who ought to be equally accomodating to those with fan clubs and those without. That is the nature of fair and impartial justice, is it not? Vili >8< 23:18, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Its like petitioning...either you can be agressive yourself, or people can fight for you. Noise and much ado are the best ways to attempt to fight a situation like this--especially if its wrong. In most cases, the guilty aren't so vocal. Just like with Adrin and Shard, when they're wrong, I don't fight on their behalf as I do when I feel its unjustified. And I wouldn't call them stewards exactly, but I love them both.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 23:22, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

First -- let's clear up a several errors. Noise and aggression truly are never the right way to go about an appeal. Experience shows that the guilty are usually as vocal, if not more so, than the innocent. The "squeaky wheel gets the grease" doesn't apply here, and there's absolutely no reason for unpleasantness. Support doesn't gauge whether to ban someone -- or whether to uphold a ban -- based on a player's friends, guild, longevity, gender, age, national origin, or any other factor other than what appears to be the right and proper answer for that individual case. And each case is individual. To the best of their ability, and after careful review, the team makes a decision -- often consulting with several team members -- about each individual block, ban, appeal, and so forth.

Secondly -- Mac: The team continues to review this issue; we'll have more to share with you in the near future, perhaps as soon as tomorrow. I am sorry for the delay, but really, the delay means that extra levels of research are being done to try very hard to disconnect the appearance of botting from the data that was retrieved on the account. (I hope that makes sense, and thank you for your patience. :) ) -- Gaile 00:19, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Perhaps I didn't choose my words as well as I should have Gaile. I did not mean "noise" as in angry, threatening, violent--I meant it as in persistant to follow up with the situation, agressive as in not folding to the first response you recieve on the issue. I meant it as in contesting something that person feels they are innocent of.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 00:43, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Fair enough, I understand what you've said, and I appreciate the details. At some point, though, it's pointless to argue, and a decision truly is final, after a lot of careful review. I don't think we're there yet with this issue, but sometimes... you know... people carry on for months, and the answer won't change. -- Gaile 04:23, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Here's a question that it might be prudent to consider. How will banned accounts interact with Guild Wars 2? In other words, if Pandora Mac's permanent ban stands, and she chooses to play Guild Wars 2, will her account and Hall of Monuments register at all? This extends to anyone who (rightly or wrongly) receives a permanent ban on an account with Eye of the North yet chooses to play Guild Wars 2. Felix Omni 15:16, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Pandora Mac -- Have you gotten any word on this in the last several hours? :) -- Gaile 00:15, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you Gaile for looking into this. Thank you to my friends that supported me. Thank you to support for reviewing the case and unblocking me!

I took a break from anything GW related for a few days as I was quite down about all of this and spending a lot of time with this stuff going around my head - even went back to the gym! Checked my email today and I'm unblocked. I've emailed support saying thank you and continuing to insist I didn't break the rules. I'm I do appreciate the rules and what the people behind the rules are trying to achieve. I like that the people behind GW are trying to tackle bots etc.
I will be varying my play style a bit more and not overdosing on GW each time the school holidays hit and I'm released from work (<-- teacher *runs and hides*) so that it's more obvious I'm a person (*cough* GW addict *cough*) and not anything else. Treasure title will be much slower this way but it's WAY better than no GW. Pandora Mac 14:07, 19 April 2009 (UTC) (p.s. apologies for too many words but I am SO relieved and glad to be back - plus, like all teachers, I talk too much)

Thank you to Support and to Gaile. We are so happy to have Mac back "in the land of the GW living". Heartfelt thanks to those who went to all the work and trouble of reviewing this case - we know how heavy your workload is and do appreciate the extra effort taken. --Friday 14:35, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

It is a bit ironic that with all the emphasis the game places on titles lately, when somebody really goes for it they get blocked for being too much like a machine. :) Biscuits 14:46, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you to Support and to Gaile and welcome back Mac! My faith is restored. Thank you to all the people that took the time and effort to look into this - its much appreciated (Aeryen 17:11, 19 April 2009 (UTC))

Chapeau! I've not commented here before because I didn't think I had much to add, but as one of Mac's former guildies I've firmly believed in her innocence the whole way- she's one of very few people in GW I'd believe instantly if they said they were unfairly banned. So I've watched this closely and I'm glad everything turned out alright. Just adding to the chorus of thank-yous here for looking into this and setting right a grievous wrong. :) -- Elv 17:33, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

It's great that Pandora Mac was unbanned. I would still appreciate an answer to my question about banned accounts interacting with GW2, though- I think there are a good many cases still where it could matter. Felix Omni 19:56, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you to both Gaile in investigating this issue and Support for unbanning Mac. I know that you must put up with so much nonsense on a daily basis, but I am truly appreciative that you could be of such assistance. :-) Aranel Selari 14:15, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm super happy that this sorted out. Things like this make my week. :D And I'm grateful to you all for having such a positive and understanding attitude. No "But you should all hang for what you did!?" Not a one? ;) I can tell Mac and her friends are exceptionally dedicated players, but that they also care about the game a great deal, as in the "Big Picture" view. So I greatly appreciate the tolerance and the understanding that you have shown towards the fact that we need to handle botters, and that sometimes -- and always with great regret -- someone gets caught in the crossfire. But, as you can see, we do listen, we do respond, and more importantly, we do care.

Oh, and speaking of crossfire, in this case, I checked Mac, and the backside of one shoulder needed a little buffing, but a bit of armour polish and a dust-off and she was on her way. :) -- Gaile 05:57, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Naming Policy update

Hey Gaile, I have a quick question. I have a character which name I was previously forced to alter. Reading the new policy, I have a feeling it might still not be an acceptable name. Is their a possibility I can turn myself in without getting my name randomized, as this would be a second time offence? If not, I realise it is my own fault and I hope I'd get a nice random name. HeavenMonkey 13:14, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for asking, HeavenMonkey. Please go ahead and contact support and they'll give you a hand. Generally, when someone "self-reports," we help out with a change without placing a penalty on the account. That's up to the team to decide, but I am certain that your letting us know about the name, rather than having it reported, will be the best way to go. By the way, the team cannot do "name changes by request," but can only assist with names that breach the User Agreement or the Naming Policy. -- Gaile 23:35, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks Gaile, I'll go ahead and contact support. HeavenMonkey 17:28, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

The issue was resolved the same day I submitted a ticket. I was allowed to rename my character without further penalty (that I know of anyway :p ). Thanks again for your reply. HeavenMonkey 21:34, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, allowed is the wrong word. More like forced, but at my own request. So I'm not sure what the appropriate term would be. Not that it really matters of course ^^ HeavenMonkey 21:36, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm glad it sorted out for your, HeavenMonkey. We have a generous policy about this, in that we'd rather someone let us know they have an offensive name so it can be addressed, rather than wait until it's reported or observed. So folks who have an offensive name -- and I don't mean a name that they want to change, but one that's going to get blocked -- should contact Support to arrange for a similar "kind and gentle" resolution.

Or, face the Wrath of Balthazar. ;) -- Gaile 06:06, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Guild Name Policy

Is it possible to have an internal discussion at Anet about the Guild Naming Policy? Specifically I don't mean the rules those are fine, but the inherent punishment attached to it. For most guilds, a lot of the members have nothing to do with the name of the guild, yet in a Guild Ban, every member is punished with a permanent (technically) irreversible guild ban that prevents the Guild from growing in any way, forcing a reform in most cases. Specifically, how about applying the Character Naming policy in a way? First offense you get a free rename, second offense you get a random name? But they keep ladder position, can still recruit, etc. Still keep the strictness of the rules themselves, but punish people less for it because the rules themselves are strict and not nearly as game breaking as botting or something is. (I'm not sure if this is the right section, sorry if it isn't! :( ) In some cases, a ban could prevent guilds from being able to participate in mAT's because they can't invite guests etc, which seems quite harsh really. TY for any response you can give. DarkNecrid 21:46, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Saw Regina's post on Guru, thanks anyways! :P DarkNecrid 04:56, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Just to let you know: Until very recently (a couple of weeks ago) we did not have the ability to un-censor a guild. The only way to deal with an offensive name was to block the guild, which meant it wasn't able to participate in the ATS and required the whole guild to start over. It's a heavy penalty, we know, but the technology for renaming guilds doesn't exist now and given the other things on the "to do" list, and the modest number of times the need arises, spending dev time to add that tool is not a high priority. With a glitch in the system, the two guild tags in the current discussion were fixed as a sort of "work around." But that's a temporary situation -- a bug, actually -- and the team will soon lose that work-around for tags. (We have to fix the bug, though, so that a guild that is blocked in error will not get stuck with the "ban" tag.)

I have asked team members at ArenaNet how they would like the Support Team to address offensive guild names and tags. All direction comes from ArenaNet; the Support Teams await their instructions. Names that are borderline are sent to ArenaNet for review. Heck, Regina and I discuss several names a week (and find ourselves in agreement about 100% of the time, btw). Lastly, all of the ArenaNet folks who reviewed the recent blocks agreed with the blocks. We all know it's never a fun thing to block a name or to be blocked; everyone wants care used with each block. In the end, the teams try to react as discretely and moderately as possible, but offensive names and words really cannot be left in place. -- Gaile 23:16, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Maybe guild tags are discussed in the same manner? Like ? --Silverleaf Don't assume, Know! 00:32, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

We're concerned about character names, guild names, and guild tags. After all, no filter setting will block those, so we take extra care with names. And call me naive, I don't see how that name/tag is offensive. -- Gaile 06:08, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Um.. Gaile, he's flipping you off in the tag. o-O is the eyes and the other is the finger. Blood Red Giant 06:40, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

*rolls eyes* I don't believe that's offensive. More like silly. :) -- Gaile 02:35, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

I believe the finger is offensive. — Poki#3 00:18, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

The middle finger means "fuck you." How is that not offensive? ~Shard 21:02, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

The "middle finger" in that imagine is just bizarre. It's a bunch of letters and symbols that someone squinted at sideways, while wearing his granny's glasses, drinking half a dozen shots, and looking through the bottom of a coke bottle and said "Yea, that really looks like eyes and a middle finger." I'm sorry, you go ahead and "see it." I don't. Wrong placement, wrong proportions, just silliness. And you know what, I don't think most people do see that as offensive without someone have to explain it to them, after which is because another lame internet joke.

I could say "Oh goshie darn, I just put the letters XYQ together and it clearly shows an offensive body part!!1!" but does it, really? I tell you what: As I often do, I'll refer this matter for a review by the entire Support Team. A bunch of people will be shown this symbol without any predisposition to what it "means." If they find it offensive, they'll take action. If not, they won't. That seems fair enough to me. -- Gaile 21:14, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Then why do you ban people for 卍? It looks like a ninja star to me. ~Shard 23:25, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Its actually supposed to be a budhist symbol or something, and its not the swastika rotates, that roates in the other direction, so how IS it offensive? --→Darklɘs McChaosmongɘr 00:30, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

I was going to save that point until Gaile dug the support team a bigger hole of lies, but thanks for bringing that out now. ~Shard 05:51, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset Indent)[1] 卍 <----Is a peace symbol. It is offensive to people that don't understand it and/or are simple minded enough to think that anything that looks like that is related to Hitler and genocide. It is an ancient sign of Hindu and Buddhist law. “Swasti” is Sanskrit for well-being, and the angular, clockwise-spinning arms are an auspicious sign of peace, luck, and protection on doorways, signs, gates, and the front of vehicles. Click on the swastika to see what wiki has to say about it. About the guild tag. If their intent was to have it look like somebody giving you the finger then I think it should be changed because you are not allowed to name a character or guild anything that might offend anybody, and since the finger is aparantly offensive to people. Its not just about the image or what it says, it is also about their intent. Drogo Boffin 13:36, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

True, but unfortunately we live in a post-WWII world, where that symbol is still heavily stigmatized, and outright baned in some countries. Shame that one incident ruined a 5000 year old symbol, but you can't just ignore it. — Poki#3 15:23, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

I have to agree with Gaile on this one... I don't see a middle finger there anywhere... If anything i see a cart (the eyes) next to a temple! I think all of you who see that as offensive are reading much too much into it. Jamesthetigger 20:33, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Here is a screen of a conversation with the guild leader. The tag is cleary against the Policy based on his intent when the guild was created and should be changed. Drogo Boffin 23:33, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

^ good enough proof?...and @ poki, if it is such a bad symbol, why isnt it banned in gw? nvm ur talking about swastica --→Darklɘs McChaosmongɘr 23:11, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Forgot to sign earlier Drogo Boffin 23:33, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) The symbol in question is, as I have said many times, not at all a harmful or hateful symbol. The manner in which it is used is, often, both intended to harm and based on instincts of hate. What earthly reason would someone use that symbol in normal conversation? Why spam lines of that in chat, except to alarm and offend? So the bottom line is: Reports are viewed to try to get a feel for the intention, and in the vase majority of cases, the person is blocked not for using the symbol but for the underlying reasons behind the use. And yes, it is often very clear to see intention.

I have run the guild symbol by the entire team. Two members who have an encyclopedic knowledge of offensive language and symbols both felt that the use was obscure, at best, and that anyone who could tell what the symbol meant would most likely not be offended by it.

We all sense a lot of trivial "pot stirring," and we're not going to be drawn into endless debates while folks who can't play the game -- due to unacceptable behavior -- try to "play the wiki." Wiki Admins: Please address these continued intrusions, breaches of the NPA rules, trivial "reports," and verbal offenses as you see fit. -- Gaile 21:18, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Ban

→ moved from User Talk:Gaile Gray

Please ban every single person at ANet. You named a boss "Asshole the Mighty" and this is very offending to me. If you ban a guild with the tag [SuKa] because it means bitch in Polish you should ban yourself and change that name aswell. If not, you are hypocrites.

Thank you! Mini Me 14:54, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Also, your name offends me. Mini Me 15:01, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

SuKa is quite clearly an abbreviation of the first two words of their guild name and the tag is capitalized as such with it being fairly obvious there was no intent for it to be a cuss word in a random language none of them even speak. Also apparently Regina's name is offensive and she should be banned: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?page=2&term=Regina (third description, slang). DarkNecrid 15:45, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

There is a difference between an 'urban dictionary' and a dictionary... but I do aggree with the whole naming of the boss thing... now that it is identified as a problem change the bosses name and this double standard problem vanishes in an instant... as for the guilds name and it's ban I'm wondering if theres not a page in the story missing... name issues usualy get the option of a renaming don't they? 192.203.160.241 15:51, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Player names yes, Guild Names keep their name but get a tag called [ban] and can't do Guild functions anymore, with no possible option of renaming. This is a guild of good people who made an innocent tag that is an abbreviation of their guild name (like a lot of tags) that by pure circumstance is a bad word if you don't use the capitalization that makes it obvious that it is an abbreviation. There's too many languages that you could go through ArenaNet's own game and find words that could be offensive (Mind you, Suka in Russian is actually spelt Cyka, so it isn't even correct). DarkNecrid 15:56, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

A further note is that the guy who reported them knew they didn't mean it this way but has a grudge against their guild and openly bragged about reporting them on QQ forums just to grief them even though he knew it didn't mean that word. DarkNecrid 15:58, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

I also think this is a stupid ban. The tag SuKa is quite obviously the first two letters of Super Kaon. Surely it must be clear from the way the trahg is writtten that this was the intention, and not the polish word. Do you really expect players to know every possible connotation for a word in all different languages? 87.75.167.60 16:11, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Great day in the morning, ok now with this extra information I'm offended at people who are easily offended... Looking up other definitions of SuKa in other languages it means everything from Sugar to Vinegar... (I also learned alot about "Kaon"!) I don't think the tag is offensive in passing or after review... now if it was a polish guild or a guild who constantly and intentionaly goes to the polish to aggrovate them then go ahead with a ban... but sheesh... Their full name is Super Kaon Action Team... or Skat... did you know that sCat (note the excange of K for a C) can mean Faeces in english (a waste product produced in the digestive tract) ohh dear! 192.203.160.241 16:26, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Same as the guild the name is based on, Seppo Hovi Action Team [SHAT] (also just an abbreviation of their guild name, and harmless). Also, not only does suka mean nice stuff in certain languages, it's also the name of an instrument: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suka. DarkNecrid 16:27, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

It's been fixed, although their tag is still Ban (I thought vibe got their tag fixed when they were banned)...nice to see ArenaNet pull through because this was pretty ridiculous of support. Gaile, you should make sure Martin gets some a hug or something, he rules. DarkNecrid 17:00, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset Indent)I really can't believe this, first [dodo], I personally thought it was a clever name and in no way offesnive. But some people find bodily functions offensive, cool. But now they were banned because it means "Bitch" in POLISH? Really? Yet at the same time it's a compliment in other languages, it's an instrument and it's quite clearly an abbreviation. Anet get your head out of your asses and quit coddling to every butt hurt person who gets rejected from a guild. --Ryuujinx/Dazra

Sorry but I laughed so hard looking at some of those Urban dictionary definations. lol. Well, I suppose if you're making a game that has an international audience you're going to be finding someone is going to be offended by something. I laugh at some of the NPC names, they are generally swear words from some of the lesser known languages. ^_^ 000.00.00.00 08:03, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) The guild chose a tag that happens to be offensive in a language that is supported within the game. It's unfortunate, and yes, it can be entirely accidental and yet have some pretty significant (and necessary) outcomes. I got a letter suggesting that we should only take action if a word or name is offensive in English. Sorry, no. We're a global game, and we have to ensure that respect is shown to folks who speak as many languages as we support in the game, at the very least. (And yes, we do support Russian.)

Sometimes, a bad choice is truly an accident. I believe it was here. But obviously, not all bad names are chose innocently. I've seen a few this week alone that were clearly chosen because someone with a gutter-level sense of humour thought it would be amusing to try to slip by crude language, inappropriate sexual or scatological references, etc. We had a discussion this afternoon about one such name. It turns out that there was a communication gap, but it'll be addressed. And hey, really, does it matter if a word or handle means "hummingbird" in Latvian, or "12th Century monk" in Upper Lower Moldavianish? If it's offensive as a name or tag in any of the several languages supported in the game, it really has to be handled. After all, names cannot be blocked by any filter settings, so it's doubly important to deal with those that cross the line.

There's a suggestion I'd like to share (and one that Linsey brought up recently, too): Players creating a guild (or a character) could take advantage of one of the online translators (AltaVista, Google, etc.) and check out a name or acronym. Yes, it takes a minute or two, but why not? After all, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The company -- in policy -- and the team -- in practice -- try to take a reasonable and fair approach to all names. The blocks are placed when necessary, and out of respect for our international player base. Your understanding and support of that would be appreciated. -- Gaile 09:02, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Hi there Gaile. There are roughly speaking (wry smile) 6500 spoken languages in the world. Perhaps the player should check the offensiveness of the chosen character or guild name plus acronym for every language? I found myself speechless reading that SuKa required a ban in the first place because it was complained about for being offensive in, perhaps, one language out of 6500. Should not the name stand as long as the name or acronym is not offensive in the language(s) of the creator of the character or guild? ArenaNet cannot be the moral guardian of every possible word or acronym used in the whole wide world as potential offensiveness is a measure of the diversity of humankind and not the measure of how people choose to be deliberately or inadvertently offensive.

Bans in any case are unnecesary as measure of first resort as ArenaNet could (?) simply notify the character or guild creator of the complaint having been made and provide warning and facility to change the character or guild name at next login. Failure to change the name would be the real and deliberate act of offensiveness and barred login would then be appropriate.-- Bearz 10:33, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

They can't offer guild name changes for one reason or another. Just censoring the guild tag (but allowing the guild to still invite, etc, y'know, breathe) is good enough I think. DarkNecrid 11:03, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh lol, really? So now I'm expected go sit there and translate my name into tons of other languages just because it might be offensive in another language? That's flat out ridiculous. It's bad enough you guys went all carebear and ruined the PvP, now we have to put up with retarded naming policies too. Expecting your users to use external means to research means that you're system is flawed. You never have to alt/tab from GW if you don't want to. You might be more effecient, but it has never been required. There are almost 7,000 languages spoken in the world, are we expected to go through all of them to make sure that "Taco" doesn't mean "Whore" in some language? That is moronic. GW2 better make me pass out from it's awesomeness because I'm not sure I want to support a company with retarded policies like this. --Ryuujinx/Dazra

Sorry, this just seems relevant.--Dunyas 14:27, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Granted Anet is the authority on making this as policy... but credit must be given to players who can then point out the flaw when a boss falls under the same naming problem yet no change is made... 192.203.160.241 15:00, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

There are 6000-7000 languages in the world sure, but most names aren't likely to be offensive in any of them, and if you're not sure, you probably only need to check the most common five or ten or so. (Or you can just not bother and cross fingers it isn't a problem; because it probably isn't. You're not expected to go checking translators, after all; it's a suggestion, not a recommendation.) Not sure how many languages Guild Wars has but it's definitely not thousands or even hundreds... -- Sirius (talk) 15:47, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Guild Wars is presented in 10 languages, all of which are offered in the language translators that I have used. Let's not continue this antagonistic "How dare you?" tone here. We "dare" because we must. We're stewards of the community, and as such, we monitor and take action upon offensive names. Cries of "But there's a boss that's [whatever]!" are decidedly not the point, but certainly if you have concerns about something of that nature, send it to support and we'll look into it. (We have addressed such issues in the past, and I can assure you no one has "snuck in" offensive names to see what we can get by with, for goodness sake!)

I offered a suggestion that several of us thought might be helpful. Take it or leave it -- it's just a thought. We will continue to make reviews of and take action on offensive words and names; smart people can avoid making an innocent error if they wish. -- Gaile 15:59, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Well I'm a Steward of the Luxons, so puh!

Also I'm totally going to send a ticket about the asshole. Mini Me 19:35, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

So then Anet not only expects it's users to spend time outside the game to research if their NAME is appropriate (Really, can you say that to yourself and not think it's stupid?), is hypocritical by having bosses named as such, and bans as a first resort. Awesome, glad to know I wasted a few hundred dollars on you guys. You know what else is an international game? FFXI. I will continue this "how dare you" tone because it is an unneeded, silly and completely retarded policy. Fine, some jackass finds it offensive. Well you know what, I think I'll go find every person with some variant of the word "naruto" and report them because I might work for Viz and think it's offensive that they're using our copyrighted name. You certainly can't prove me wrong. The fact that if I really want to I can invent a reason and get someone else banned... well I'm sure glad I hardly leave my guild hall nowadays. Further, let's be fair here - this game is rated T. That means that some innuendo and some moderate swearing is not only allowed by the ESRB, but almost EXPECTED. let's take the PG-13 movies Austin Powers and some of the names they have here. They have someone named "Fat Bastard" and this is a perfectly acceptable name as found by the MPAA, that same name would get me banned faster then I could say "Unfair". Quit coddling to 5 year olds who should not be playing. --Ryuujinx/Dazra

You become more awesome every time you post. Mini Me 19:51, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Come one guys, don't assume that anyone is 100% right or wrong. Anet is wrong about Dupek, and so far hasn't done anything about it. But SuKa, no matter what letters are capitalized or not, when seen as a simple tag next to a name, is actually extremely offensive to any Russian or Eastern-European. It's an unfortunate coincidence, but nevertheless, there is no way of knowing what the guild name is without asking the member what Su Ka syllables stand for, all you see is the 4-letter word spelled in leet-speak. If english equivalents of this word were used in game, it would have to be rated R in the USA, and Russian and Polish happen to be supported languages in this game, so let it go. A guild name of "Awesome Super Smiters" would in no way deserve an acronym, no matter how innocent the guild name is. However, I will also submit a ticket about Dupek, because even though it cracked me up every time I did the SS/LB farm, it's still inappropriate, because again, Polish is supported in this game, and it sounds nasty in Polish. I don't believe that rules should be read literally 100% of the time, but that they need to be used as guidelines, and ultimately, common sense should decide. So far, I see very little common sense in most of this discussion... Rose Of Kali 20:54, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Incorrect, offensive language is within the scope of T per ESRB as long as it is infrequent (and one guild out of every few thousand is infrequent), I'm too lazy to look up MPAA's ratings but I'm pretty sure that it would be rated PG-13. --Dazra/Ryuujinx 21:06, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

What if they became popular, like LaZy? All of a sudden your guild's popularity decides whether they are subject to censoring or not? As long as there is the possibility, that's enough. Ooh, and I submitted my dupek ticket, got a reply that they are "escalating your ticket to our Guild Wars senior staff members" woo! Rose Of Kali 21:54, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, your responses here are bordering insanity. You're expecting people in a video game to spend literally hours googling their guild name and tag in multiple languages to make sure it doesn't offend someone? Seriously?
Reality check, honey. You're off the deep end on that one. It isn't helpful advice to tell someone to do that, it's bad advice. Being helpful in this case would be releasing a complete list of banned words, so people can just ctrl-f and make sure their guild isn't "offensive." You can't honestly expect anyone to do any more than that in the name of political correctness.
You (possibly) have a legal responsibility to make sure people aren't offended while playing your game. I respect that. However, telling people to spend time googling as to not offend carebears is not the way to go about things. For your players, Guild Wars is simply a video game - something they do in their spare time. If you honestly want to be remotely helpful in this case, release a list of banned words (or possibly extend your pre-creation screening to cover everything that will get someone banned, if you're that intent on keeping your list hidden). -Auron >8< 22:07, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

plz ban me, I have an inappropriate username, as the official ANet wiki my name could be considered offensive to 1 or 2 people and you have to enforce your rules SuKa 22:21, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) No "full and complete" list will be offered, ever. For one thing, that list would need to be changed frequently, as language evolves. And for another, the instant a list was published, some antagonistic person would find a word that wasn't on the list, make a name, and inform us that it is his legal, moral, ethical, and cultural right to use the offensive name. So sorry, a list won't be offered. Not even if you call me "honey." ;)

It would take, oh, 3 or 4 minutes to check the name, not hours, days, weeks, or years. Name check: use it, or not -- your choice. Most names and words would obviously not even need a check, and no one "expects" you to do so. The idea is offered as a friendly "suggestion" for those who want to take it.

I have searched my emails, and I reported the name Dupek in August and November of 2007. I was assured it would be blocked on November 30, 2007. Sadly, the name fell through the cracks, and we accept responsibility for that and regret any discomfort, offense, or irritation that the name caused. We will be addressing this as soon as possible, although I'm told it may not make the April build due to time constraints. -- Gaile 22:40, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

I reported dupek today, and just got this reply: "The Development Team has been notified to review the NPC's name for inappropriateness. Thank you for showing your concern and keeping Guild Wars a positive environment for all to enjoy." So maybe they'll do something about it this time. I'm sorry about all these pathetic idiots here trying to say that SuKa deserved to stay or whatever... WTB common sense pls! Rose Of Kali 22:48, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, Andrew Patrick was going to add it to the official Bug List, and it will be addressed. We just do not have a timeframe for that yet. -- Gaile 00:23, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

You know, calling most users in this discussion "pathetic idiots" is probably more insulting or offensive than some guild tags which happen to be swear words in another language. Common sense would be nice, yes, but not only selectively. -- Brains12 \ talk 00:39, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Political correctness and language filters can easily go too far. A word in itself has no offensive content. For example a suka is also a musical instrument, but We Like To Play The [Suka] is apparently inappropriate. I have a friend who plays from London, he was quite disheartened when Frosty The Cockney was a disallowed user name because it contained the word "Cock". Perhaps some reasonableness needs to be excercised when censoring. While intentionally naming your guild Conglomerate Under No Tyrant with a rather obvious guild tag is rather obvious, it is literally possible to offend someone in the world with anything. You are almost encouraging people to report strange and obscure things as offensive to troll Arenanet with your current path. Good luck with that. By the way, Merkin and w:Merkin, might want to look into that one. Misery 23:19, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

I can't remember what language it was, but I think someone once told me the swear filter blocked out my real name--Eva--and that it was a swear word is some Eastern European language.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 23:26, 15 April 2009 (UTC)

1. Captain Quimang is censored by your in-game filter, fix pls
2. Damned Clerics offend me, please remove them from the game --71.246.218.44 00:12, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Please remove all skills with the word "bite" in their names since it means something obscene in French while you're at it. (end sarcasm) 71.181.0.93 01:28, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

This double standard is pretty absurd gaile. IP 2 posts above me is completely right about the names. If I can't type it in chat with the filter on, it should not be an arenanet created enemy name. i got a 3 day ban for butthole, but damn is ok. --adrin 02:33, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, that's right. Would you like me to explain that damn / body part thing to you? I mean, I can go off on the whole linguistic differences between derivations of the word "doom" and references to body parts, but I don't imagine you really need the education. :) -- Gaile 03:16, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Players creating a guild (or a character) could take advantage of one of the online translators (AltaVista, Google, etc.) and check out a name or acronym.

I have a better idea. How about YOU go look up every curse word in every language and add them to the list of names Guild Wars doesn't let players make? Yeah, it's so unfortunate that a random selection of letters from the ~30 symbols on western keyboards probably is a curse word in one of the world's thousands of languages. You can't expect players to become linguistic experts on all the world's languages and religions whenever they want to make a new character. This is the most unrealistic thing I've ever seen a game company ask its players to do. ~Shard 03:17, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Already "suggested." Already answered. -- Gaile 03:19, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Clearly, we're getting into a circular discussion. If there is new information to relay, it will be passed along through the normal channels. Dealing with offensive names is, as the saying goes, "a tough job, but somebody's got to do it." And somebody has to do it for a lot of good reasons. I'm truly saddened when situations arise with name blocks, but I don't think anyone (in his right mind) would suggest a "no filter / no block" policy. So, the team does what is has to do, and that can cause distress, which I know we all -- community and company -- regret. I think that's pretty much all I can say on the subject. Thanks for understanding. -- Gaile 03:29, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, quite clearly ANET is a bunch of idiots. And yes, it is quite apparently EXPECTED. Not suggested. Suggestion means that you aren't going to be punished for it. For an example in the situation you were using it from, you could say it is suggested you are not to shoot someone in the face with a shotgun. This is not suggested, this is expected and if you don't you will be put in jail/death sentanced. Similar, if you don't and your name happens to mean "asshole" in polish or something, you will be banned, with no warning. Also, it isn't exactly intelligent of a person who represents anet to talk down to us and insinuate at our intelligence. Nor is it intelligent for you to go around banning without warning. The EULA stated that you must be 13 or 14 to play (I can't remember tbh) and quite honestly, you should stick by that. The word "Bitch" regardless if it's in polish or in english is not going to scar a 13 year old forever. They probably hear infinitely worse at school anyway. So I will ask this directly as it's been ignored - why are you catering to 5 year olds? As it is the only explanation I can come up with ANET's behavior in this matter. --Dazra/Ryuujinx 04:12, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I was gonna say something REALLY funny in response to that, but I don't want to get a 3 month ban, so I'll just laugh it out. Hahaha. ~Shard 04:09, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

@IP: I would say you crossed the GWW:NPA line multiple times in one comment, watch it, and keep yourself in check please.

@Shard: Good call. — Jon Lupen 04:11, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

And having clearly reached the end of any useful discussion, for the thread that started nasty and never really found a decent stride, it's archive time. -- Gaile 04:14, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Archived Topic

http://wiki.guildwars.com/index.php?title=User_talk%3AGaile_Gray%2FSupport_Issues&diff=1427623&oldid=1427621

That section was an active discussion and is governed by GWW guidelines. Please restore the discussion. --75.71.67.5 07:14, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Feel free to submit your request for arbitration by a SysOp or Bureaucrat. I have always willingly abided by their direction and leadership. However, as far as I can ascertain, an archive was entirely appropriate under the following considerations:

• Removal of clear vandalism and spam
• Removal of material prohibited by policy in a manner as ascribed by policy, such as GWW:NPA and GWW:COPYRIGHT.

Again, I will be happy to accept the direction of a site administrator, but until I have that, you -- whomever you are -- and I can agree to disagree on the appropriateness of the archiving and I will politely decline to move back to an "active discussion" a conversation that contained -- nay, focused -- on the aforementioned wiki-unacceptable type of content. -- Gaile 07:22, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I support Gaile's action in archiving that "discussion" that was full of thinly veiled as well as blatant violations of GWW:NPA. There is no reason any member of this community has to accept that kind of abuse. -- Wyn 07:47, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Updated deceptive link. --75.71.67.5 07:53, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, I don't. Enough for me to stop lurking and post. The discussion itself was about the flawed name filtering system, the NPA and shrewd comments could have been filtered out separately and still kept the discussion going. I like you Gaile, but how some of us see it is you were trying to end the discussion.... --Shadowphoenix 14:53, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

The point of an archive is to hold topics that no longer fit on the main page. This is why one generally archives the entire page once it's getting full. (Of course, with a page as popular as this, "full" here means something different than "full" elsewhere.) The point of an archive is not to stop a topic in its tracks, as you so clearly did. General rule of thumb is to archive things after they've been dead for a week or so, not once the user is bored of the conversation.

As your talk page is the specific place to bring up issues like this to you, you'll have a job convincing people that the content is "wiki-unacceptable". The only thing that might have been unacceptable would have been Shard's comment that he didn't actually say. Everyone else was just pissed off because of ANet's double standards, and you happen to be (one of) ANet's main point(s) of communication with the outside world. (One could argue that there was a huge amount of "unacceptable language" in that thread, but we don't have a language filter.)

Guess what? Not everyone in the world is going to like you. There are high school kids that recognize and accept that. If you don't want to take the brunt of the community feedback, take it up with NCSoft and their policies of how the devs communicate with the outside world. (And while you're at it, I wish you luck trying to convince people to talk to Lindsey or Regina when you were their first point of communication for so long and are still the favorite of many.)

Also, *whoever. Not that you ought be caring in the first place.

69.109.165.33 15:09, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Wow, you people just don't give up when you should. THAT topic was full of QQ and rants about 5 year olds and the thousands of languages in this world, while name enforcement only occurs if it's offensive in one of the game supported languages, nothing about any thousands there. Archiving was the best way to get that tidal wave of idiocy out of people's faces. And so what that they were made to change their name? OMG! BIG F*IN DEAL! NOBODY got permanently banned! It's a suspension, not a ban, figure out the difference for yourself. You're acting like every member of that guild was perma-banned! Also, if you want to reopen a topic, ffs, have something to say, instead of wasting everyone's time with nonsense. People found Dupek and swarmed over him like bees over honey "DOUBLE STANDARDS!! WAAA!!!" That doesn't mean Anet needs to completely stop enforcing any rules. Rose Of Kali 18:05, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm not really a frequest user of the wiki, but I feel I should say something here anyway. I am the one who made the guild [SuKa]. First off I'd like to point out that what you are saying is wrong. Guild bans are supposed to be permanent, and support has claimed many times that guilds cannot be unbanned. Apparently our guild can get unbanned though, because that is what happened. Our tag will change to [ban], which is ok with me since we can still fully use the guild.

Next time I make a guild, I will check if it's offensive in any of the supported languages. However, I am not convinced that every offensive slang is listed on easily found places on the internet (not to mention that it is easy to make things offensive without offensive words). I am also convinced that there won't be many tags left when everything is offensive. The current system where one report=ban means that players have to be very careful choosing tags, which just cannot be expected. This is also why I think that Gaile's suggestion doesnt help much. Support should take context (guildname) into consideration, to prevent handing out random bans.

Don't even get me started on the fact that one single player can get a whole guild banned... 86.90.30.175 19:07, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

But just to clarify (and not to reopen the topic, which really needs a new thread) it was not the report that caused the block, it was the name. (And with all respect, it wasn't a random ban. :-/ ) If the name was not offensive, the guild would not have been tagged in any way whatsoever, not even with a thousand reports. The team couldn't say "Well, this guy submitting the report seems to be trying to get the guild in trouble so we should ignore the offensiveness of the name" or "the guild is active and we should be nice to them and ignore the fact the name is offensive in one of our game-supported languages." The word "bit**" is blocked in English or in any other language in which it's found. (Whether it should be blocked is, please, another topic for another thread.)

If the policy is that offensive names are actioned, and it is, then offensive names must be actioned. While it would be nice to be able to take context as a guide, using context doesn't work when the name or tag is offensive. Context doesn't justify or forgive offensiveness. We're not going to leave a word meaning defecation in the game because someone (apparently) played with words to "justify" the tag. Logic like "Oh, their name is 'Felons Under Considerable Konflict' so we must leave that tag in the game" is way, way off. Honestly, think about it! :)

The report may have been sent over to try to grief the guild. But the report pointed out a name issue, and that had to be addressed. I'm really sorry that all this happened, but I don't see any other way to deal with it. I am sure that everyone will get more information on this subject from Community Team members. I just wanted to clarify policy and process from a Support perspective, to make it clear that malicious reports would not prompt the blocking of an inoffensive name. -- Gaile 20:21, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Please note that guidelines are guidelines. I'm not generally fond of quick-archiving except as a last resort, but it's not disallowed. - Tanetris 18:19, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

If you feel the need to have a discussion regarding appropriate names and reasonable steps that ArenaNet Support can take when considering a ban feel free to start a new topic. The one that was archived was nothing more than a series of rants and contained multiple violations of GWW:NPA. As such, Gaile could have simply deleted all of the offending posts as if they had never happened, but she chose instead to archive the discussion. -- Wyn 21:26, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Racial slurs??

→ moved from User Talk:Gaile Gray

I got a 167 hour ban for "racial slurs?" How is this possible? I have not said anything in local chat or pm that I would be reported for. If anet is reading my chat logs, then this is unfair targeting against me. They need to read every player's log and ban everybody who makes a crude joke. --adrin 21:05, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I got a response from NCsoft and logs of my racial slurs. Thing is, they were in whisper chat. Why is my whisper chat being spied on? I'm sure I'm not the only one who jokes in whisper chat. I smell corruption. --adrin 22:04, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

The rules apply to all in-game chat variants... poke | talk 22:15, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

Errh, and why can't I blame myself? Ɲoɕʈɋɽɕɧ 22:19, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

poke: i know it applies to all game varients, but i'm asking why is my whisper chat being spied on? the logs they gave for whispers were from a week ago. usually when someone is reported, it'll go through in a day or two, seems to me like they have been watching me specifically. --adrin 22:25, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

If I understand you correctly, you admit to using racial slurs in whispers, and have seen the log that shows you doing so. You are aware that it is against the rules whether in local or whisper. I don't see you ruling out the possibility that it was reported because of who the other person was, so am I to take it the person you were whispering either was offended by it or you don't know them well enough to be sure one way or the other? And your complaint is that someone has it in for you, for banning you for something you did do that is against the rules?

Have you considered that the other person just didn't report you right away? Or someone else reported about a more recent, more borderline case so they decided to look back through your recent history? Or that support's had a busy week with higher-priority things to do and just now got around to reviewing the report on you?

Also, why would it take longer for support to ban you if they were actively "spying" on you than if someone reported you? - Tanetris 22:43, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

The people i pm'ed with the racial jokes were buddies of mine and they would not report me as they joke with me too, strange they did not get banned. The only log that could have been reportable was when i said the f word in local. It wasn't aimed at anyone, i'm sure it was just in the wrong window since i don't say that in local, for this very reason. I highly doubt anyone even reported me. Even that being the reason for the ban, however, the ban was for racial slurs. I feel the live team has a problem with me, mostly due to some things I've said on the wiki, so they were waiting for any kind of reason for a ban, and when the local chat mistake came up, they jumped on me and threw in other non-related infringements they dug out of whisper. i whisper for a reason, so noone gets offended, and it is not aimed as hate to the person i whisper. anet was just waiting for the chance, building up ammo. the only local chat violation was on 4-16, but the recial slurs that they dug up were from 4-11, and they were not reported. --adrin 22:52, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

He wasn't reported by a guildie. Trust me, this person he pm'd is paying $300 to fly across the country to come to our wedding ceremony at the end of the month and says worse things back and forth to Adrin. --*Yasmin Parvaneh* 22:58, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

On a similar note, I just found out my account has been banned for "EULA violations," even though I have done absolutely nothing wrong in many, many months. I already submitted a support ticket (090416-001722), but I expect to hear mostly bullshit from support, since the only thing they seem to be good at is banning people who play the game.

You will be losing more than three customers from this. If I have to, I will make sure every gamer on the planet knows how ArenaNet works. Singling out and prejudicing against customers is not only unethical, it is also highly illegal, and I will make sure the BBB hears about not only this incident, but also about the conversations I've had with many, MANY people (including people working at arenanet) indicating arenanet has been discriminating against us specifically. ~Shard 23:02, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I just found out about Shard's ban. When we're both 2 of the known people on the s**tlist of anet, it's quite a coincidence that we both got banned on the exact same day isn't it? His was for "violations of the EULA". Couldn't think of a good enough reason? --adrin 23:07, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I guess my only question is... are you seriously this surprised? After your months of ArenaNet hate mongering here do you really think no one noticed? Do you think they are not going to pay particular attention to people who have been verbally abusive to their staff unendingly for months and months? My only surprise is that it seriously took this long for it to happen. -- Wyn 23:45, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

If my ban was due to my bad attitude towards anet ont he wiki, why am I banned in game and not from the wiki Wyn? --adrin 23:58, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I was unaware that singling out customers was legal...oh wait, that's because it's not. I'd expect blocks on wiki for stuff I do on wiki (which I got). I have done nothing wrong in game, so I would expect to not get banned in game for something completely unrelated. I say nigger in vent all the time, should I get a penalty for that too? You know what, izzy said "fuck" when he invited me to his vent, maybe I should report him to anet for inappropriate language. In fact, regina quoted some of my curse words on the wiki, I should report her too.

Anet's singling out of people and favoratism of others is not a new thing, it's been going on for a very long time. I'm not really angry that my main is banned, I'm just pissed that I got banend for nothing, whereas other people who admit to RMT and scamming get no punishment whatsoever. It's even more infuriating that they didn't give me a reason for my ban. They gave Adrin a reason. It was a bullshit reason, but at least they made one up. ~Shard 23:59, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

I didn't say your ban was due to activities here on the wiki, I said that your activities here on the wiki only put a spotlight on you for scrutiny. I have no idea how you behave in game, but I guess I would have to assume it's much like you've behaved here since you are you, so since you can't seem to play nice with others here and follow the rules, you probably don't play nice with others and follow the rules in game. -- Wyn 00:01, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) As I always say, please do speak with support if you have questions about this sort of situation. They can answer your questions about a block or termination involving your Guild Wars account. I will tell you that I've seen situations arise where, when researching a report, the team becomes aware of other issues. For instance, a certain percentage of name reports turn up additional offensive names when the first is reviewed. Someone writing for help with an account may cause the team to discover that his account was hacked/stolen, even though the player simply thought he had a password issue. Occasionally a spamming report exposes scamming, or racist chat, or harassment. Or vice versa on any of these examples.

Sometimes, a report two days ago reveals very little to object to then, but some really objectionable, rules-breaking issues the previous week. Breaches of the UA don't really have a shelf life, and if discovered, they'll be handled. As will helping players with issues. For example, I just worked with a player whose "password issue," which he wrote us about last week, was actually a case of the account being taken over by a "friend" nearly a year ago. We worked with the owner to regain access, of course.

Anyway, Support will give you the information that you seek. -- Gaile 00:08, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Hijacking a bit the discussion, but on a related note, are breaches in the rules of conduct counted when they ocurr here in the wiki instead of in-game? You guys never gave us an answer about if the wiki is a "Guild Wars website" for that purpose.--Fighterdoken 00:14, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Hi, Felix. That's a fair question, and I can only answer it from my perspective: I have never known a member of any of the Support Teams to take action on a game account for issues related to behavior on the Guild Wars Wiki. I am unsure whom you asked earlier, but does that information help at all? -- Gaile 00:20, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

I think it was Regina who we asked eons ago, but the question was probably lost in the "to find the answer" tank. Still, it would be better to know that "it will/wont be done" than knowing that "it has not" :).--Fighterdoken 00:31, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

How about reassigning ALL GMs to work on game balance. It doesn't matter that they have no experience in game balance whatsoever, random balancing would be better than the broken metagame that exists now. Oh, and WTB less QQ from Anet and more pewpew. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 72.64.14.52 (talk • contribs) at 00:38, 17 April 2009 (UTC).

Gaile, I'm curious to know about the Support Team's stance on issues like adrin's above. Assuming that adrin is telling the truth and whispers such language back and forth between friends who also use similar language, is this a bannable offense? It would seem like if two friends are whispering such comments to each other, however offensive an outsider might see it, it would mean it is taking place in private, away from other eyes and ears, and shouldn't warrant a ban on either party's side. Of course, if he had been whispering such thing to random people to cause a ruckus, then I would understand, but as far as I can tell, he's only done it between friends, which would seem quite unfair. If someone reprots him for something totally unrelated, and Support happens to notice his comments, but doesn't look to see that it was a private whisper to someone who was also using such language, will they issue a ban for this? Just curious. --★KOKUOU★ 03:23, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

I find the implications disturbing as well. God knows how many, ah, "inappropriate" comments I've made in PMs to friends, guild chat, alliance chat, etc. Some could certainly be ban-worthy. Maybe it's a mistake on the players' side to assume that non-public chat is "private" and therefore safe as long as no one is offended/reports? *Big Brother senses tingling* Vili >8< 03:27, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Adrin -- it wasn't just whispers, there were violations in All Chat.

Shard -- you have a long list of violations on your account, including 3 previous marks for racist language (in All Chat), 2 for offensive language (in All Chat), several offensive names, and some other violations as well. So whatever happened today -- and I think it was the 4th incident of racist chat that was the trigger -- the "Breach of the User Agreement" message probably refers to the fact that there are so many marks on the account which can lead to actions "up to and including account termination." I think that most players would agree that the only prejudice shown here is a natural and understandable prejudice against players who continue to breach the rules. I don't know of any other game company that would give a player so many "second chances."

Guys who are asking -- the team doesn't make a habit of checking private messages, and unless someone or some incident is reported, I don't see where they would. Now, if an incident is reported then the research on that incident may glean other information, too. Still, my instinct is that if the only thing that was exposed in a review was whispered chat, and if the other people involved (like the target of the whispers, other people in Party Chat, etc.) didn't report it, action wouldn't be taken on the account. Edit to add: Like Poke (above), I believe that the User Agreement would allow action to be taken in any variant, and I am not making a guarantee that action will not be taken. I am speaking casually here and don't want to give the impression I'm stating official policy or practice.. (Thanks for understanding that.)

And seriously, if anyone has information on people who are admitting to RMT or scamming, I hope they will report to support as well. -- Gaile 04:32, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

"Adrin -- it wasn't just whispers, there were violations in All Chat" I asked for game logs. There was no racial slurs in all chat given. all i was provided with by support was when i said the f-word in global chat. that's not why i was banned, nor was reported for. it's just very coincidental that 2 of the players on the anet s**tlist get blocks. --adrin 06:05, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

It's even more coincidental that one of them isn't given a reason, then the reason you make up is "you got banned because you got banned before." ~Shard 06:12, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm surprised they actually give reasons for their bans, they're not obliged to. (Terra Xin 08:19, 17 April 2009 (UTC))

(Reset indent) I'm sorry for the wall and consider this closed if you do as well Gaile. I dont see this going any farther on the wiki, just in circles.--adrin 08:26, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Moral of the story: Anet censors every bit of common chitter-chatter between friends in PRIVATE messaging. Start speaking formal and do not even use loose insults on anyone you see.Pika Fan 08:27, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Note to other people anet singles out for bans: Don't use in game chat at all. It's evident Anet doesn't want anyone to play their game. Should have saved myself time and quit when nightfall came out. ~Shard 08:31, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Is Anet now run by the same stooges that run Neopets dual wielding ban hammers?71.174.21.121 20:19, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

is this real i know poeple with more ingame violations then shard that are still playing this all seems like there trying to censor shards voice --Aura 13:14, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

If you know people with a large number of in-game violations who are still playing the game, hopefully they will have straightened out and decided not to continue whatever they were doing. Otherwise, it may be only a matter of time until they get tagged with "Repeated Violation" and removed from the game.

Some people -- not many, but a noticeable few -- use enforcement of the Rules of Conduct like a revolving door. You know the sort, the ones who make a career of breaching the rules with hate speech, harassment, scamming, unacceptable name use, RMT activity... In the interests of improving the game experience for the vast majority of players, repeated violators can and will be removed. That policy is reasonable, and I'm sure it isn't a surprise to anyone. -- Gaile 18:56, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Chat violations are minor. Anet GMs need to focus on banning RMT and botters instead of wasting time nitpicking on minor rule violations. Go balance the game. Spend time improving your skills. Go get a job at Blizzard. Go do something PRODUCTIVE with your lives instead of sitting behind a desk all day clicking the ban button like a bot. It's obvious why Anet doesn't have any resources left, they squander them all in stupid ways like this. No one should EVER be permanently banned for chat violations unless

they are advertising RMT or hacksites. I'm not offended easily, and I expect everyone else to have the same tolerance. This game is rated T for Teen, not C for Carebear. Carebears can go to neopets for all I care. If you don't like someone's bad language, pr0t1p: use teh ignore list.

This topic ends here. Once said I would do anything I can to defend, protect and rectify Shard and Adrin's actions, however, this situation has gone too far to where even I can't smooth over the bumps, and my association with them has put my own moral values in question. This is something both of them have brought upon themselves, and regardless of what brought them under the microscope, who was wronging who or if they are guilty or innocent of the circumstances of the ban is completely irrelevant. They broke a rule, they used language deemed a violation by Anet and as such, they are to be punished as Anet sees fit. This statement is not an appeal to their ban, but rather a white flag of truce that their punishment is, in some ways fitting.

While I do not personally feel Shard and Adrin purposely or intentionally "harass" other players or staff...I can clearly see how their actions and attitude can be viewed that way without delving deeply into what they say, dissecting each word in detail...which no one would actually do, and is unreasonable to require. I can say, with due honesty, that their behavior on the wiki can and does make them appear "capable" of harassment...particularly towards Izzy Cartwright, Kim Chase and Regina B. Shard and Adrin have made their disdain clear from the start in regard to how the game has been managed and handled. And while many players mimic their sense of outrage, Auron particularly, the issue, as Auron has said to me, is the "verbiage" the boys choose, and the lack of precision in which they formulate their ideas into words. I can see how their actions on the wiki can make Anet staff members "uncomfortable" and how this can violate the EULA as it relates to treatment of the company staff, which makes no difference if the wiki is in game or not.

What the boys consider a "joke" or see as “sarcasm” others do not take lightly and see as cruel, mean or insulting. The lack of consideration and care utilized by them for their arguments is obviously a major problem. I have called them both "radicals" in the past, comparatively to the Jane Fonda "Hanoi Jane" archetype--where being strident and shrill in your desire to create reform can harm you without self control…it is evident and reasonable to feel that the way you say something is just as important as whether it is right or wrong, and considering that issues of balance are a "Nixon's Blacklist" topic, and them being over the top in their approach of the issue has earned them a deserved spot on that type of list. Shard and Adrin's aggressive manner was not intended to be personal towards you Gaile, or Izzy, Kim and Regina, it was intended to make the point that, for whatever reason, they felt that the customer was being disregarded, that they game was being ruined, that no one cared or listened and they took it upon themselves make their feelings known as loudly as they could, in anyway possible that would draw attention, even if that meant not professional, tactful or respectful in their arguments--this manner of activity built them both a very negative reputation on the wiki, in game and apparently to the staff at Arena Net.

That being said, I am big enough to admit both defeat and accountability, even if they do not. Thank you for your time Gaile.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 23:07, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Anyone who QQs over mere insults and well-earned sarcasm/satire needs to go play neopets. If I get insulted, I go offline or "do not disturb". If it's really a problem I use the ignore list. Permanent bans should only be handed out in severe rule violations, not as revenge. What's happened to Shard is not "punishment for rule violations." It's clearly "Vengeful Was Anet" acting like a bunch of 10 year old kids starting fights over insults. Anyway, this is making Anet look incredibly unprofessional. I will most certainly NOT be purchasing any products from them until they show a lot of improvement.72.71.232.80 04:46, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm sorry, I may be missing a point here, but when I see something like this: "3 previous marks for racist language (in All Chat), 2 for offensive language (in All Chat), several offensive names, and some other violations as well. ", I know a perma-ban is coming. If one does not realize after five bans for offensive/racist language, maybe they should not be on the game. A blunt perspective, but its been bothering me for a while. -- Wandering Traveler 05:03, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Perhaps that works on a forum, but Build Wars is... well I think it was SUPPOSED to be a game but I can't tell anymore... but it's not a forum. On a game, you don't ban people for bad language, instead you ban players that jerk the guild ladder around, you ban botters, you ban RMTs, and you ban people that impersonate the staff.

I'm sorry, but I have not received that many bans/warnings. In fact, the email I got from support said I have 11 violations (which i know is not true). So Gaile said I have 5 plus "other violations", the email said 11, but in real life I've had 4. I know accounts that have a lot of bans can get permanently blocked, but 4 is not that many, and I did not think "hell yeah" in all chat warranted a ban (that's what support said I got banned for). ~Shard 05:32, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Permabans are not warranted for anything less than harassment with previous warning in terms of chatting with people. Not basing this on opinion but basing this on the general policy of freedom of speech. Yeah yeah, it doesn't necessarily apply when you have EULAs and Policies set blah blah blah. But be warned if support actually is going to nit pick bs like this. I'll go ahead and put in tickets for every legitimate offense I can find, so that Guild Wars and this wiki are better suited for the masses. Oh wait! The masses curse, use racial slurs, and say things that are offensive in jest all the time. Darn I guess ANet will run out of people to play their game(s) with all these multi-day bans and permabans going around (some of which are based on postings on the wiki, which is not violating game rules). Guess we'll all have to find a company besides NCSoft who accepts the way people talk, jest, and give out reasonable bans for chat offenses. If your willing to throw away accounts that are as old as the game people are willing to do the same to you.~>Sins WDB 05:41, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Shard -- We seem to have some issues with misinformation. Support's? Yours? Mine? I'm not sure, but I'm willing to help sort it out. I ask -- consider it a challenge -- to see the Support response that tells you you were blocked for saying, "hell yeah." Because in fact you were blocked for using a racial epithet in All Chat. Several times. :( And I am going to boldly state that you were told that, by the very topic that you chose to use in starting this thread.

If you argue you have not been blocked 11 times -- which is the number I see, too -- I could have an explanation: If you're blocked for, say, 72 hours, but you don't try logging in for a week, you might not even know you've been blocked. But Shard, you have to know about the name blocks, because you were required to rename those characters. I just disbelieve that you honestly think you've only have 4 marks on your account.

Sins -- That is precisely what happened. Therefore, you have no room for objection on any of the grounds you cite, or any reasonable grounds whatsoever. -- Gaile 05:48, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Time to start being a jackass in game then by reporting people for such minor infractions, yes I would be the jackass for reporting people and not the people I am reporting. Though some of them might warrant being called jackasses. I expect everyone including myself to be banned for days on end and eventually permabanned for chat infractions. Enjoy your slowly dwindling numbers and lowering in reputation as a whole. NOW THAT is conspiring against you, not what shard and adrin do.~>Sins WDB 06:01, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Hyperbole is dangerous when used in excess. You sound just like Shard or Adrin now...how disappointing. Vili >8< 06:04, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Crucifixion is more disappointing~>Sins WDB 06:16, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

For the love of Jesus, please don't martyr yourself. --Riddle 06:23, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Not exactly what I meant. People have already been crucified on this wiki, I wouldn't be surprised if I get added to the list. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:The Sins We Die By (talk).

Yasmin, I've seldom read a more well-written and thoughtful post. If everyone expressed him- or herself so clearly, and with such fairness -- and I do not mean by the position taken, but simply by the clarity and the even and informative tone used -- we could make great strides towards better and more reasonable communication. I'm glad you added your comments. -- Gaile 05:55, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

I consider it more of a challenge to find out why I'm being persecuted and others are being favored. I'm still having too much fun with the support tickets to reveal them right now. ~Shard 20:18, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

I gotta admit, adrin seems pretty hard done by... Naturally, when judgement is to be executed, it is incredibly stupid to use someone's reputation as a means of punishing them for an incredibly minor infraction (here I am talking about adrin; this is also relevant to Shard's issue [I thought account marks were removed after sometime? Obviously not]). Of course, then, if that occurs, punishments are then going to be handed out on the basis (not wholly, but with a large influence) of how much someone is liked (or, rather, disliked). This has already been mentioned previously, but wiki crimes should have no bearing on the GW law, and vice versa. If that starts to happen (which it seems it has, based on how Yasmin explained to us that it was Shard and adrin's reputation that put the final nail in the coffin, so to speak), then some licensing agreements need to be rewritten concerning issues that arising here and now: actions on the wiki can affect your GW account.

I am not saying their actions on the wiki were the sole reason, but as I said earlier, the reputation they have built up on the wiki seems to have played a big part in influencing Support's decision, which shouldn't happen. Then we begin to play favourites.King Neoterikos 23:43, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Support's decision and the reason for monitoring the two of them and their in game chat logs, I am inclined to believe, is not because of their wiki reputation per se, but rather that they have a reputation of "harrassing" staff members of Anet through the wiki with the past use of, what has been considered, "innapropriate comments", "attacks", and "verbal abuse" particularly towards Regina, Izzy and Kim Chase. I apoligize for not making that clear in my earlier post, I merely implied it as the comment was more meant for Gaile and Regina than anyone else...particularly in the last few weeks I could tell Regina was growing somewhat distraut by the two of them being "rude" on her page. As soon as Regina made a that comment about them being disrespectful to her, I had a feeling the banstick was in the air, and I made it clear to Shard and Adrin to be on their best behavior, and bless their hearts they tried...Adrin in particular, who even attempted to make a formal apology to Regina via email. Though the "harassment" I feel was not intentional and a misunderstanding, as I stated above, none the less, it certainly made Adrin and Shard an issue for staff members, and I can understand Anets concerns and discomfort with the two of them still playing the game. While wiki reputation should be dealt with only on the wiki, the matter of staff members feeling threatened I can see as a viable EULA issue and a trigger to watch their in game behavior to see if they act similarly in game.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 00:46, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

I can see how the wiki can project Shard and me as aggressive against staff members of anet. Regina has made that to me very clearly, stating that she has, "Tolerated my crap for a long time." I'm sorry but that's a little offensive to me as well, but I didn't call out the lack of professionalism, as if a customer was giving me a hard time, I would take it. That's her job, to deal with the community's praise and frustration. I have not called her a retarded zoo monkey or anything, but the time for tact was gone after Izzy left. You should not judge us by how we act here, and then assume that we are harassing people in game. The wiki and Guild Wars are 2 entirely different mediums for conversation. We are not harassing towards players. Stating that Shard has 11 marks on his account is just trying to make people think that he has been banned so many times, that he deserves the ban. No, he has been banned 4 times, none for harassment. I understand that you are trying to explain his violations in detail, but giving out that kind of information about his account is borderline on his privacy, and should have been taken to a more secure place. My frustration, Gaile, is that the people I made those pm's to pm the same type of material and the same words back to me, and that they are my guild members alliance members and friends, and if such an investigation was going to be taken on my account, it should have also shown that these players are on my friends lists, in my guild/alliance, and how much time I spend grouping with them. Plus, they should also look at conversations we have that are not using those words and are quite friendly. One of the violation examples I was given was when I said, "That a**hole f**ked up your tux order again at the store." If they only read a few lines farther they would see that this person is coming to my freakin wedding! Why would I harass that person? The other person I was apparently harassing, will talk with me in friendly conversations. Also, some of the whispers were between Shard and me. If the wiki conversations are going to hold influence in our banned, can you seriously think that I would harass Shard??? They need to read the context if they are going to use bans like this. It feels suspicious that Shard and I were the only ones banned and only our side of the conversations were taken into consideration. The other person who was saying the same stuff back to me was not included in the consideration of bans. I'm sorry if this isn't as kindly written as my wife's but you should know this by now. It's not anger, it's frustration. Those are 2 different emotions. --adrin 21:51, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

I ask you, Gaile, in the spirit of fairness, why haven't you banned everyone else who's said "hell" in all chat? Go to Heroes' Ascent, international district 1, get a piece of paper and a pencil, then start taking notes on how many people use four letter words in all chat, including hell and damn. You wouldn't have to be there longer than ten minutes to get twenty names. It would be far more productive than stalking specific individuals for things they say in guild chat to people who don't mind when they curse. I'd also ask you to fix the game and actually deal with non-imaginary problems, but you've been avoiding that for the past four years so I won't bother. ~Shard 22:00, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't think Gaile deserves ANY of the abuse leveled at her. She is here only to try to help, she is one of Anet's faces, not one of its heads. Also, she is not responsible for improving GW1, that's (poor overworked) Linsey's job. I think some of the folks here should be blocked from wiki. I know that in the old (unofficial) wiki, people were blocked for far less. I'm disappointed to see the lack of respect here. It's a game, folks, it's a GAME. It is not the "Global Commission on Alternative Energy Sources", or the "Foreign Commission on Nuclear Proliferation". Find another game, and have fun darn it. :) Otherwise what should be a pleasant pastime becomes a dangerous obssession that consumes your life. 189.33.64.191 14:56, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Normally I wouldn't have a problem with Gaile, but you don't know enough details about this situation to understand peoples frustration. We know "its a game" and bans happen. The bigger issue is that people are being made example of because they question and ANet's actions. Not just that they question them but how vocal they are about it. Following policies leads to incredibly slow progression in changes that need to be made. Saying something once and expecting it to be dealt with is just naive. Saying something in a carebear fashion pointing it out to be a major issue that is being overlooked and expecting it to be taken care of is also naive. Being blunt, direct and assertive gets the point across. Also it's not the fact that it's a game that is the problem, it's the fact that it's a game where time spent can't (feasibly) be reimbursed. Adrin's ban is more of a warning to shut up, while shard is viewed as the source of the problem. So they permaban him and tempban adrin, for what? Saying how they feel and coming across as disrespectful? Permaban is the most extreme punishment in the realm of online gaming, take the real world most etreme punishment. Would you apply that for being disrespectful? It's the principle that is being argued here not the fact that they can't and haven't already moved on to other games. By the way Gaile is not perfect nor is Linsey, they at least communicate with the community here though which is awesome, but they are both open to be scrutinized for their own mistakes as well as those they represent.~>Sins WDB 18:27, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

So lemme get this traight. It's just a game, but you're comparing bans to real world extreme punishment (i'd imagine you're thinking of life imprisonment or death penalty). You say you don't have a problem with Gaile but you harass and insult her. Your argument is basically that you need to be rude in order to get anything done. Really? Well, I don't think so sorry. Not only is it a game, it's ANET's game, and in their view, these fellas have broken rules. You break a rule, you get punished. If they don't agree, they can stop playing - that is the most extreme thing THEY can do - they can punish Anet for not being customers anymore. They can conceivably try to convince others to do the same. Me? I like the game a lot and I understand gw1 is more or less done with. I'll wait for gw2 with patience and optimism. 189.33.64.191 19:55, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

IP you really don't get the issue Shard and I have with this, you're just trying to argue with us. If you read the whole wall and see the real message, then you can throw in some comments but please don't start this into something negative again thank you. --adrin 20:24, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Right, I did read the entire wall so I'll throw in some comments. It IS ANet's game. You did break the EULA. You got punished. The best way to get something done is NOT to be rude but to be polite. I have had some minor issues with ANet in the past, one of which was justified. I accepted the punishment and sent polite appeals about the other and in all cases ANet resolved the issue. Maybe the entire problem you got now is because of your view you have to be rude to get things done. I'm sorry but that's not the way the world works. If ANet is trying to get rid of you the question is not "Can they do that?", the question is "Why do they want to do that?". Yes, they can do it and it seems rather obvious to me why they would want it. Even so, I do not even for a second think Gaile would lie about the amount of account marks on Shard's account and that he simply had it coming. I do not agree with every bit of ANet policy but it's your own fault you can't work things out with ANet after the way you treated them. HeavenMonkey 20:52, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm not going to continue this with anyone other than the person to whom is was intended to. Gaile I hope you can look at my previous statement and give me a response. Thanks --adrin 21:44, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

You clearly did not, because if you did, you would have known that they broke the EULA chatting with people they know and are friendly with. Context also should matter when considering for bans; lots of people shit talk their friends, strange but true. It's their way of showing their affection and most aren't offended because they aren't petty like you. Flipping through your past contributions show the exact same ignorance, be it commenting on topics you didn't read properly, or trying to stick your finger into pies way past your league. Either wise up, or don't post at all. Pika Fan 21:47, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for your honest opinion Pika Fan, but Gaile clearly stated they were banned / suspended for using inappropriate in All Chat which may or may not have included friends but doesn't exclude the rest of the people in the outpost. I'm not a fan of the "inappropriate language" policy but it's still policy and they broke it. My main point however was that you should not be rude to get across your points since it simply doesn't work. If you disagree that's your right but I would appreciate you not dictate me what my league is. // HeavenMonkey 22:17, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Using All chat in the comfort of your own guild hall is also All chat. Also, complicated things like this are clearly way past your league, and it's dictated by yourself, not others. "Okay, bite my head of, but I think gold sellers are good for Guild Wars IF, and only if, they get banned. I wouldn't expect gold sellers to stop so they have to buy a new account, which fills Arenanet's treasury. As long as they keep getting banned and get new accounts, they could pay a (relatively) large percentage of the expenses. HeavenMonkey 19:15, 26 March 2009 (UTC)" I really hoped you were joking there, but apparently not, because you seem convinced that you are cleverer than you think you are. Pika Fan 22:31, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

That doesn't relate to this topic and you're just using it for a cheap shot. Cut that out sir. 99.144.234.76 22:49, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Unfortunately, it matters. If the poster is a perpetual fool, I have every right to point out logic leaps in whatever he says. Pika Fan 02:43, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Way to go offtopic. I'll gladly have an in-depth analasys about that comment on my talk page. However, as I said, my main point was not to be rude to get what you want. And you're absolutely right All chat can be in a Guild Hall. If that's the case the support staff will know. As I said the ANet staff has always resolved issues I had with them in a satisfactory manner. If they are not doing it for another person then I trust they have a good reason for it. Being rude to get what you want won't help anyway. Now since that's what I was saying I would appreciate if you comment on that and not on my cleverness and/or league. // HeavenMonkey 23:00, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Excuse me? Please actually read what has been posted here. Anet has a history of "targetting" people they don't like. They are also known to NOT even remember what was written in the EULA or in-game policies, as seen from an SS about a GM not correctly stating how dishonor works. Also, it has been clearly stated that Shard + Adrin have been banned for shit talking to their friends. Being retarded just to fan flames in a topic you basically tl;dr is, as earlier stated, retarded. Yasmin has a record of being one of the most reasonable person on this site, and unlike you, an anet fanboi who thinks that support in every game are fair and unbiased. If you can't post with a single shred of common sense, don't. You are just provoking flames and escalating the issue.Pika Fan 02:43, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Just for clarification, and I am going off the emails from NSSoft, which I was given copies of by the boys...Shard's ban was for "global chat" and he said "hell yeah" in our Guild Hall and something about "every shitty player has a tiger now" or something to that effect, I know this because the chat log contained whole conversation between him and myself minus my pieces of the conversation. The other portion for Shard was 3 whispers to Adrin where he called Adrin a bad word 3 times in all caps when they were playing in pre-sear together farming alcohol for me from Nicholas & Yakkington. Adrin's was for racial slurs, and the chat logs were from discussions he had with 3 friends on 3 different days--the 10th, 11 and 14th. One of the friends involved was Pm'd on 3 different character names, but its the same person, one was Shard and was the same chat that Shard was banned for, and one to another friend. the email said "The infraction was reported and substantiated through our logs"...this statement is why the boys feel targeted.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 23:03, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

HeavenMonkey and anyone else who wants to know some more about the situation can look at this. And ANet devs need to watch Gran Torino and see how many people talk to each other.~>Sins WDB 02:34, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Don't bother. Anet fanboys like HeavenMonkey won't believe anything that paints anet as the one at fault, not even with concrete evidence. Pika Fan 02:47, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Heaven, I did not break the EULA for this most recent ban. Thanks for trying though. ~Shard 03:59, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Pika, if you actually read what I said you may have seen I was disagreeing with the philosophy of being rude to get what you want. Besides that I also jumped to the conclusion it's Shard's and Arin's own fault for not being able to work things out with ANet. If they were explicitly being monitored that is a strange story but I would start with the question why ANet felt the need to monitor them. I'm sorry if you think I'm insane for thinking ANet is actually a fair company. Again, I don't agree with all of ANet policy and profanity between friends isn't something I would ban for. It just doesn't sound surprising to me a company would be less inclined to work out issues with persons insulting members of their staff. // HeavenMonkey 13:28, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Nice try at damage control and doing a 180 degree turnaround from what you originally said. You did break the EULA. You got punished. HeavenMonkey Nowhere on this page were shard and adrin specifically rude, the closest you can claim "rude behaviour" is their frustrated tone, and if you were being unfairly targetted by anet you would probably do the same. Pika Fan 01:23, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

It's amazing that permabans are such a hot topic right now. Half of gaile's pages seem like they are about bans. This header alone takes up at least a fifth of her page at this moment in time. Wonder why they are so ban happy all of the sudden, and if it's bad now imagine how it will get after they get people's money for storage tabs (actually character slots and accounts bcs anyone who thinks can see getting those is a better value).~>Sins WDB 18:10, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Storage tabs are not about value, but about convenience, and getting Anet some fresh $ flow. It's been a while since they released anything new you had to pay for. Rose Of Kali 18:46, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

(WAY OFF-TOPIC AND PURE CONJECTURE ENSUES)They could be bot banning due to the free storage promotion. The storage promotion may involve getting "X" item from "Y" Monster, which has a (too small of a percentage to be expressed in billionths) chance of dropping. Preemptively ban the bots to ensure everyone has a fair chance. --Riddle 04:36, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm a tad bit late to this, but I've been banned quite a few times for ridiculous reasons. I don't particularly mind being banned, as I can spend less time actually playing the game, but my problem stems from the length of the bans. Honestly, 340 hours for language? Or racial slurs? I DIDN'T USE A SINGLE SLUR. I used a Buddhist symbol that resembles a swastika in a Japanese RA district, and I was banned for racism. Then my second ban was for abusive language. I'm sorry, but Anet is really dropping the ball with its customer care lately. I'm really debating on quitting Guild Wars now. If a game that I've invested hundreds upon hundreds of hours in, not to mention spent hundreds of dollars on, bans me for something this...well stupid, then I must do something. Either unban me or give me a fucking refund. I may only be an IP, but I do have a face. Here I am. Thank you and fuck whoever said I should be banned at the Anet offices. 99.53.160.225 15:23, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Additionally, why have a language filter in a video game, where you can still be banned for inappropriate language? Isn't that a tad contradictory? 99.53.160.225 15:28, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

A few things you got wrong:

1: Their customer care hasn't been failing lately - that's just how it usually is.

2: Typing anything on your keyboard is a racial slur to somebody on the planet, and you can get banned for it.

3: The language filter isn't meant to be used, that's why they put it in the game. ~Shard 04:49, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Suggestions:

1: Send the support for Build Wars to India or something.

2: Let's all type in gobbledygook. Sort of like this: "bdgrtjkojkavdfsbhkluiuopads,.cvx jmasdffg" Anet obviously approves of it since that's how they come up with their boss names.

3: Smiter's Boon and For Great Justice aren't meant to be used, that's why they are in the game.

The thing I do find funny about this thread is that it's gunna go longer than my ban which is up in 8 hours lol --adrin 17:12, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Mine still hasn't been lifted, so I'll probably qq here for a while. Also why'd my IP get banned for vandalism? I haven't been near this site since my last post. 99.53.160.225 17:19, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

@Adrin: It turned into an issue about both of our bans.

@IP: IP addresses are not unique, someone else probably vandalized on that IP. ~Shard 04:27, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

Is anyone at support looking into this? I've been emailing them asking for legitimate reasons for my ban, but they haven't come up with any. If you can convince people that using profanities with only my friends present is somehow harming people I never talk to, I will accept the ban and fly away on a winged pig. ~Shard 03:33, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Breaking a wall of text as this is going on for an age and a half. Tell me, Gaile, since when did people get jailed for life for shit talking their friends, as their friends are fine with it? It's a teen rated game, for christs sakes. Isn't it about time you guys at Arenanet dropped the carebear attitude and accepted that the freaking swear filter is in the game for a reason? Seriously, manhours should be put into banning botters, not people that can easily be sorted with an optional chat filter and the ignore list. Seriously, its getting ridiculous. Oh, I guess I'm now on ANet's shitlist of 'next critic to be banned'. Shard, Adrin, I recommend you both make a huge stink on all of the major guild wars fansites. This bias has gone on for too long. 82.34.128.19 14:54, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Naming Policy

First of all I want to say that I created this thread so that we could have a civil discussion and address the flaws in the current naming policy. Flaming and blatant violations of GWW:NPA are not going to help you get your point across, so don't do it. I understand Gaile's point, this is an international game and things like this have to be dealt with so that no one is offended, which is fine. One of the main flaws that I see in the current policy is the lack of warning that guilds receive when something like this happens. Often times, offensive guild tags or names are intentional and I can see why the ordeal with [SuKa] may have been considered intentional. I am not arguing that the guild tag [SuKa] shouldn't have been censored, because it should have been censored. However, when this happens I do not think that ArenaNet should jump to conclusions and automatically assume that the tag and/or name was intentional. They should censor the tag and/or name and notify the guild leader of the problem and request that it is changed in a certain amount of time (I would think 48 - 72 hours would be a good window), if the guild does not comply within the set amount of time, then they should ban all guild operations and do what they are doing now. I think that this avenue would work for situations such as this. Any thoughts? --Shadowphoenix 20:44, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

Guild leaders do not have the ability to rename or re-tag a guild. GMs do not have the ability to rename or re-tag guilds. The only option is to block the guild and have them reform. We would like to have tools to improve that, but there is no timeline for the addition, testing, and roll-out of such tools. I cannot say even that they will be developed, only that they have been requested.

In the meantime, we do not have a "warning" system, because warnings are meaningless when the name and tag cannot be changed. We do not have a warning system for character names because we feel it is addressed with the current Support practices, as explained in the Conduct Beaches and Outcomes document. -- Gaile 20:54, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

May I ask if notification is sent out explaining why the guild tag and/or name has been censored and explaining that the guild needs to be reformed? --Shadowphoenix 21:07, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

An in-game notification is provided, and the guild leader is welcome to (I believe actually invited to) contact Support if he/she has concerns or questions. Support does not proactively send out information about the blocks and bans in our game -- the sheer volume (when you consider hundreds of RMT blocks a week, etc.) would be ponderous and would take away from time better used in other ways. However, the team is always more than happy to respond to questions that may arise. (That is policy with the majority of games with which I am familiar, btw.) -- Gaile 21:12, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

I really appreciate the quick and lengthy responses. With any hope, a way will be developed to change guild names and tags. Hopefully this will be a feature in Guild Wars 2. Thank you for your time :) --Shadowphoenix 23:40, 17 April 2009 (UTC)

You're very welcome, and thanks for asking questions that I'm sure a lot of people want to know more about. I'm up for any discussion about our policies and practices, and am happy to explain how things function from a Support standpoint. I'm up for suggestions, too, and wishes for future features that would help us make Support even better. I just ask that -- as you suggested at the outset -- we keep it civil and productive. When that's the case, it's a win/win, and I'm more than happy to participate. Even, often, on my own time. :) -- Gaile 05:22, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) I'd like to ask something. I know there's a list of words that are banned when creating characters. Does this list work when creating guilds? And does the list contain only English words? — Poki#3 01:42, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Or how about making English the official language of Build Wars and everyone has to conform to that standard?72.71.232.80 04:42, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Forcing your chinese players to learn a language of little use to them in order to play is not a good marketing strategy. ¬ Wizårdbõÿ777(talk) 05:28, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Most accounts that log in from China are probably bots or RMTs anyway.72.64.14.203 14:29, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, let's ban China... not. Let's not continue this and get back to my original question. — Poki#3 16:37, 18 April 2009 (UTC)

Why not? It would get rid of most of the RMT, bots, and gold spammers that plague the game.

While we're at it, let's ban all of Europe too, for being terrible at PvP. Vili >8< 22:26, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Just France and Germany should do it. 99.142.42.232 23:16, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Recent Unjust Ban Code 045

Hi Gaile I hope I've done this correct never have been on here before and never thought I would..on Friday morning I was playing my account and got kicked figuring it was just my junk server but uppon relogging I got a code 045 message something that I didn't know before friday, anyways it said that I was terminated for using a bot and/or third party program, now I don't know what the heck they are talking but I've been playing this game for 3 yrs and have never needed or wanted to use anything like this all I do is farm and greenie hunt mostly. I do my missions and all when the hunting slacks off so that it reset the areas that I am in all the time, I've made it a goal of mine to get all greenies from the Kourna area and have been hitting the Estate pretty hard trying to get that last greenie from the Hacket Boss and of course no luck I've been getting all the other boss greenies....but as I was saying I don't need that stuff to get what I want I have recently become handicapped meaning I have alot of time on my hands and primise ya I'm the one playing not some bot or anything else from what I've read here on your page that ppl do...Heck it took me 2 yrs lol to relize that a warrior has to be more then just a warrior. I've also made it a goal to have greenie weapons on all my heroes and that's what started my greenie hunting(Tho wish there were better swords droped) With out Vamp on them...anyhow can you plz help me resolve this matter because I truely don't know what I've done to deserve this I don't talk to many ppl(ppl I do talk to are family and guild members) so don't think I did anything that way. Thx Gorball --The preceding unsigned comment was added by 12.175.230.38 (talk).

She can't help you unless she knows who you are (submit a support ticket to NCSoft first). ~Shard 03:50, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh ok I did that already wasn't sure if I was to place it here or not ...but thx for setting me striaght

Question Reference #090418-000055 Thx again Gorball Warrior God

I'm sorry to hear about your handicap. I hope this gets resolved justly. Rose Of Kali 19:00, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

Thx but it's just one of those things...work hard and play hard all your life and it'll catch ya in your later yrs..I hope so too cuz I'll be danged if I know what they are referring to I'm too old to be learning those new tricks, tho I would like to know how your suppose to detect these things like they keep asking for ppl to report them heck I wouldn't know one to see one lol Thx Gorball

I didn't post here during the time I was reviewing this, but I know the team took another look and I am happy to see that everything sorted out just fine for you, Gorball. :) -- Gaile 02:59, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Banned since Easter weekend. Please help.

On Easter monday, i was logged into GW, running a mission when i was suddenly Disconnected.

On trying to relog in i recieved and error code=45. your account has been banned for using a bot or other third party program.

I've been through support, and there only reply to me was that due to the depth of analys my case would remain closed, i tried responding again, with a plea to please just look into my account actions, that they would surely find that i am innocent of the charges against me, and they flatly refuse.

I have Never used a bot or third party program, ive been a member of Guild wars for over a year, i have all the campains, i have bought extra character slots, and the bonus mission pack.

I have 15k armor on all my characters and most of them have completed the game.

one day while buying armor for one of my character i saw someone with a title, "people know me" and i asked my boyfriend what that title was from, and we looked it up. from that moment on, it was a hard drive for me and him to get god walking amongst mere mortals.

Ive been off work for months now due to medical problems, and my only outlet really has been GuildWars. id play mornings and evenings with my boyfriend, maxing out titles, doing missions, vanuishing,and farm while watching tv and talking to him on msn while he was at work, til he came home and we'd get back to missions, and we finally made it to 23 titles. i finally realized, that to get that specific title maxed i was going to have to go for sugar or party animal. and lo and behold this special drop weekend came up, where sugar points would drop. I farmed hard while i had the chance.

during the weekend we put missions aside, and all i did was farm, when he got home from work he joined me, and we farmed together as a team taking turns running into the raptor pit and chatting on skype til bedtime, waking up the next day and doing it all again til the weekend was over, all in all i made enough sugar points , plus the ones he got he gave me, to get me almost halfway to the title, and i used the rest of the money id been saving from vanquishing to buy as much as i could til i was broke, exausted and half blind.

the next morning, we logged back in to go finish the last few missions we had left to do for legendary guardian, and i was clicking my eggs out in the field, when i got the log out screen.

I guess what this is, is an appeal for you to just look into my actions, My keystrokes, my chat log, anything you can do if possible to see that i am innocent, not a bot, just a very dedicated player, who gets excited and plays too hard.

I know that support has said this case is closed, its just a bitter pill to swallow after putting so much work into something thats become to mean so much to me, and have it taken away in a flash, with no apeal, no recourse, no mercy.

Thank you for anything you can do, if anything. my support ticket is Reference #090413-001726 and my boyfriends support ticket number is Incident: 090418-001257

Edited to add... yeah im an idiot, i dont know why this post made wierd boxes and the page so wide :( im sorry, can someone fix it for me? --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:Katy (talk).

Those boxes were caused by putting a space at the start of every line. Looks like Wizardboy777 has fixed it for you. :-) Good luck with your appeal, sounds like a nightmare! Biscuits 07:49, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Reading all these appeals makes me scared. I've invested a lot of time and money into GW, and I too go into "bot-mode" often because of my remaining titles. I never used any programs, not even TexMod for cartographer, which I already maxed. But hearing all these reports makes me scared now... I better not use my sweets all at once or sit in town clicking an ale every minute for hours on end... :( I hope your case gets resolved fairly. Rose Of Kali 18:19, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

It is a disturbing trend that more and more permanent bans are being made on the basis of superficial behavior. Or perhaps it's always been that way, but more people know who to complain to now? 99.144.234.76 18:26, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

When they realize it starts affecting their sales they might start to change things. Or maybe NC Soft will step in and straighten them out before that happens.~>Sins WDB 18:31, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

NCSoft is the entity that hands out the bans. 99.144.234.76 18:32, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

NC Soft hands out the bans on the reports they recieve. How ANet presents that information sways whether people are banned or not.~>Sins WDB 18:39, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

Also yes people know who to complain to now. Which means they are more under the microscope from the player base and should act as such. Right now their rep looks incredibly bad bcs of people who are getting their accounts banned unjustly, it's their own fault.~>Sins WDB 18:37, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

RI. Reading all these complaints about being banned unjustly makes me worry about the upcoming GW birthday celebrations. Whenever there is an event, I tend to farm constantly without taking a break for many many hours on end. I am starting to get scared that I would want to log on the 3rd day of the bday celebrations only to find out my acc banned for botting >_<. I would never use any of those programs, simply because I think it's cheating, and because it'll get your acc banned. Stupidest thing to do IMHO. Anyways, just a bit concerned here that making a difference between hardcore players and bots is obviously difficult. :( -- Minami Kaori

Is that what this bot thing is that they are talking abt ppl that farm for many hrs? cuz if so that's bull, how else are you to make enough gold points to by the over inflated elite armors that are out there...Like Vabbi and Obsidian one at 191K and other well over 253K when you add Mats and gold and I was saving up for my next toon to get Vabbi and my Derv Ancient :( this sucks if that's the case what you have to take a break everytime they send you that ever so anoying message telling you that you've been playing for 2 or 3 plz take a break hmmmm....Gorball

zkeys say hi -Auron 06:13, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

From XTH? 130k/mo is was nice. But it really doesn't compare to what people make farming during event weekends. 15k per person (5 paying people) per run (~an hour) for Shards of Orr? Win. I wonder if it's possible to bot that... Not that, y'know, I would ever consider that. Raine - talk 07:22, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

130 per account per month. That's plenty of money for "the over inflated elite armors that are out there...Like Vabbi and Obsidian one at 191K and other well over 253K when you add Mats and gold." -Auron 09:01, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

I failed to consider multiple accounts, which was a silly mistake. :( Raine - talk 11:07, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

In the down time while we've been waiting for this to be looked into and resolved, I've grown more curious about the process used to discover who is a bot and who is not. Is it all automated, or is it based off of people using the /report feature of the game? The reason I wonder is that I've been playing with Katy here since the day I talked her into downloading Guild Wars, we've done all the same things as a team, but I've never been suspected of botting. We're both a little anti-social at times so we avoid large groups when we can, usually just playing with eachother and our heroes, but we've beaten the stuffing out of this game together, everything from the northern wall to duncan the black. Farming is a chore, but needed if you want to own the nicer things in the game without having to spend a year saving up funds from normal play. I have a problem with my attention span that won't let me do it endlessly, but I can still put in a good several hours before all the other shiny things around me distract me and drag me off in a random direction.

I imagine it can't have much to do with the time spent online, as I've had the warning flash across my screen before that I have been playing for two days and to please take a break, lol. Granted, a lot of the hours in those instances were spent passed out getting waffle face from my keyboard, but I've still spent days on end without logging out before. I also imagine it can't be a lack of chat, because yeah I am anti-social at the best of times and have gone weeks before without typing a single thing to anyone in this game. At times I turn off all the chats while I play just to keep from getting spammed by all the WTB and emote pollution.

I guess what I am getting at is, after this is resolved and we start playing again, how can we safeguard against this mistake ever happening again? Are there things we could do to show we aren't bots while we game? Do we have to make random chat remarks every time we come into town to empty our bags? Should we take leeches with us when we farm so we aren't just running in and out solo? Should we break into random /dance in the field after defeating the broodmother and getting her green claws for the millionth time? What things can a player do that a bot wouldn't, that would keep us safe from being flagged? It's a slow process getting these things cleared up once they do happen, and as tense and depressing as this down time has been, I know I never want to have it happen again, either to her or myself. So how can we make sure that nobody ever again doubts our humanity while we play? Oscuro 15:05, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

Oscuro, you've asked a very hard question to answer. In an ideal world, I could give you all the information that you seek! I would truly love to do that. Because so many times, that discussion can end up making things clearer on both sides. But what if I said, "We use A, B, C, D, and E, and we weight A heavier than B, and C and D, together, will override an E every time?" Then you can be sure that every RMT company in the world would say "Ok, so we're going to cut back on (this thing) but we're ok to do (that other thing) because they don't appear to monitor that as closely."

It's frustrating to you to not be told the facts. I know that; I truly sympathize with that. It's hard to say "You did it, we know you did it, but due to our own needs, we cannot tell you too much about it." But I also know that giving those facts would be extremely harmful to the game economy as a whole, and that would affect a lot of players.

Here's a real-life example: I was watching a news report about a really horrible crime. As the reporters were talking, I wondered how they'd caught the perpetrator. Darned if the news didn't say "Oh, and Interpol and the FBI caught his person by..." (I forget the particulars.) The point is, how or why is the public's "need to know" so great that the media gave away the secrets, thus revealing a means of catching criminals? I actually said to the folks watching with me, "That is information I wish I didn't have because now every #(*%&# now knows to avoid doing whatever that guy did as another way to avoid getting caught!" (I was pretty angry at the news people, actually.)

Anyway, I ramble. :) I just checked the tickets, and I see that you're awaiting a response. Frankly, judging from the research notes, the team remains pretty convinced that they must uphold the initial block. However, I will check with them to see if there are any points of data that they might reconsider. They do a good job, and they're better than I am at analysis because of their greater familiarity. Yet I do want to see if I can learn more. I will do so, and please bear with me because with the weekend it may take a bit of time. -- Gaile 05:00, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

As a mostly unrelated question, there's something I've always wondered... you guys ban several hundred bot accounts each week, right? How do the RMT companies possibly continue to make money if they have to pay $40.00 (or more) for each new account, but (after checking the prices on a few RMT sites) a million gold only hovers around 50-70 USD? I'm not seeing where the profit comes from, especially since PayPal and many other companies are keen on refunding customers if they commit an illegal transaction (saying you had no idea it wasn't allowed probably helps in that process...). Unless every account makes several million gold before it's caught (this seems unlikely), it seems like the profit margin would be... minimal, at best. Could you offer some insight into this? Why haven't they just given up? --Jette 05:18, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

RMTs retain their profitability because they seldom actually buy accounts. They steal them. :( They play on people's trust, and they connive to get accounts by, for instance, offering fantastic payoffs for a buddy key. You've seen the messages: "Paying 300K for Prophecies Key; 200K for Buddy Key" shouted in nearly every outpost in the game. The player thinks "Heck, yeah, I'll sell you my extra buddy key for 100 Ectos (or 200K, or whatever)!" And he contacts the RMT agent. That agent then says "Well, you'll get in trouble with ArenaNet if you sell it to me, so let's keep it between us. Just give me your main account's credentials and I'll place the gold right on your account."

When I first became aware of this situation, I thought, "That can't be right. Who would fall for that line?" But I've seen the tickets, I've tracked the access points, I've called the players, and yep, it's happening. In fact, a surprising number of people fall for that line (or something similar) every single day of the week. :( Others aren't selling buddy keys, they're trying to sell a secondary account they bought, the account of a family member who isn't playing any longer, the friend's account they were given. But they all get stung in similar ways.

Sometimes, a thief will try impersonation to get the goods. See the "impersonation" message currently on the log-in screen: That's something I wrote up as the result of Support identifying a guy phishing for accounts and succeeding in stealing them through the sort of interaction that I would have thought no one would fall victim to. (Word to the wise: If someone messages you in the game and says "I'm with ArenaNet or NCsoft," say "Prove it!")

RMTs employ people for a few dollars a day to work 12+ hours shifts harvesting items and gold. But perhaps the more profitable and certainly more tragic harvesting happens when the RMT steals the accounts of real players. And as long as players allow that to happen, RMTs will continue to be profitable. -- Gaile 05:46, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Oh, I see. Well, that's certainly disappointing, and it must be infuriating for the individuals whose accounts are stolen. Why hasn't anything been done against the companies themselves? When I picture RMT companies I imagine a bunch of badly-treated people sitting at a computer in a sweatshop somewhere in the Far East, under a supervisor with a whip and a long, thin moustache -- you know the type, you've seen them in cheesy cartoons tying women up to railroad tracks. My point, though, is that I can't picture anyone bothering to go to the trouble of tax evasion and hiding operations from the government to earn money off an online game, Saturday morning cartoon malice aside. If they wanted to do that they'd sell cocaine or something. Since what they're doing has got to be illegal (intellectual property and all that), why doesn't the government shut them down? --Jette 06:41, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I understand about not being able to share the information about what is tracked, no worries. I was just hoping there was something we could do in the future to keep from being flagged since there was never any bot usage, and if this is cleared up we'll both be cutting back on farming to prevent it from happening again. Katy is just too addicted for her own good and once she gets a goal in her mind, like the chaos gloves she bought for her wammo the morning she was banned, she'll sit and grind with total focus until she earns enough to buy the materials and pay for the item. I thank you for saying you'll have them check into a few more points for us, we've been fearing that everyone would just say 'no appeals will be heard' again. It's frustrating when you know that no wrong was committed, and you feel like nobody will even listen to you, so for listening alone I thank you, it's nice to know people can still be reached sometimes. As for the time it will take, don't worry, we both know you have a lot on your plate and we are patient. Well, I am patient, I can't really speak for kate on that, she's been going crazy since the day it happened but I can't blame her. Anything the team can do to find the proof that she was indeed sitting at her desk doing the farming herself, or the item spamming if it was indeed the bunnies she was using in town or the eggs she was using in the mission, would be truly appreciated, and we're hoping against hope that they can find it. If you need anything else from either of us, please let us know and we will gladly give it. Again, thank you for hearing us, and we hope this can have a happy turnout. Oscuro 07:16, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you so much Gaile, it's been a pretty hard week and a half for me since i got the log out screen. I do understand you have alot of responsibilities right now, with the weekend and your family, i just truly appreciate that you're willing to look into it for me. I'ts been a very emotional week, i go from, "i'm sure they can see that i cant be a bot, im too random when i play", and confident that it will be resolved.. to "what if its never resolved, and i just stay banned!" and depressed and cranky. At this point i've been through so many emotions that closure on this , either way would be nice. If i may id like to make a public apology to Oscuro for being so moody, and for dragging him on the emotional roller coaster with me, and thank him for putting up with me through it all, it cant have been very much fun for him. and thank you again Gaile, it feels really, really good, to have someone willing to just look into it for you when you feel all hope is lost. Katy 15:03, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Listen Katy (btw, nice name ^^), last year after GW 3rd birthday weekend, I got a permaban due to a suspected keylogger (as I found out later). ME, miss I want to work at ArenaNet. I was shocked, horrified, and driving my parents crazier than normal because I was convinced the world was ending. Only thing that kept me sane was knowing one thing, I did nothing wrong, and if support looks into it, they will know that too. The trick I have found with support is to give all info up front because I noticed that, and Gaile might be able to confirm me on this, sometimes its not the same guy looking at your ticket and they want you to resend the info again. So I just send all my keys and any other info at once. Don't worry, there is hope. And if you make it out alive, look me up, you won't be anti social afterwords. Katherinezoltin 13:41, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for the words of encouragment Katherine :) I do keep hoping it gets resolved, waiting can be sooo hard, although i am learning alot about patience in the meantime *lol* I Do have faith, as yes i know i did nothing wrong, and that does help in the downtime, but at the same time it's hard not to worry. (stares at her ragged and chewed fingernails) :P It's really nice though to hear of similar cases of bannings and hearing happy outcomes, that helps alot, so thank you again for adding your post, and definatly if i do make it back in i'll look you up and say hi :) Katy 16:23, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

thanks to everyone who helped work on my problem, i found out this morning that my account has been unblocked and im back in!! (yayyyz) Thank you Gaile for your time and Nc soft for looking into it a little deeper for me. and thank's to everyone who replied/helped me through the longest two weeks of my life. I am off to play :)Katy 14:30, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm just happy I got my kate back, that really was the longest two weeks ever :) Oscuro 16:38, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Very glad that everything worked out as it should. I spoke with the team lead this week and we're making a couple of tiny tweaks that should cut down on such situations. The numbers really were very small, but we're always hoping for zero "false positives." Welcome back to the game. :) -- Gaile 03:01, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Dear Gods, and I thought one weekend was hellish. Ah well, look me up please, username should be on my wiki. Glad it got solved, but now you have to wait till Dragon Festival to kick Gaile's butt at Dragon's Nest in revenge for those 2 long weeks. Joking, you will never beat Gaile. ^^" Katherinezoltin 08:52, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh, Kate, I may love Dragon Nest, but I'm not sure I'm that good at it. I think Oscuro can challenge me with a very good chance of victory. :) -- Gaile 01:51, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Beyond Rediculous

Disconnects while AFKing

Gaile, I apologise for bringing this to you, but the general consensus appears to be that you are the single employee at ArenaNet that appears to actually care.

This is getting far beyond a joke, I'm afraid; I'm beginning to feel not just harassed but victimised by ArenaNet. I have emailed your customer support, but anecdotal evidence and word of mouth suggests that at best I'll be ignored and at worst lied to by either poorly informed or uncaring support agents. The fact remains, however, that my complaint is now at least a matter of record. I was just kicked from my instance with a "Network Error" and not even given the option to reconnect, for a change I was in the house and near the computer so I would have had a chance to save my session by reconnecting, but apparently AN had other ideas.

This is idiocy, I would have finished my title and stopped having to do these hideous AFK death-leveling sessions weeks ago now if I didn't loose loads of them to these ridiculous disconnects which seem to occur while I'm sleeping, while I'm at work, while I'm at college, when I go out to eat my breakfast, practically any time I turn my back another gets sprung on me. The fault does not lie with my internet connection or firewall, I am extremely sure having consulted my router logs (my internet connection hasn't dropped any time in the last 53 hours which was the last time I reset it) my firewall logs and having been connected to the internet doing other things on this same connection during most of the disconnects, I've had games of Diablo 2, Starcraft, Counterstrike:Source and other online games uninterrupted while Guild Wars disconnects me from the server. My only conclusion can be that the fault does not lie with me or my computer systems, but at the other end of the connection, with ArenaNet.

Frankly, as it stands, Guild Wars will be my first and last ArenaNet or NCsoft game as any confidence or patience I had has been eroded by my terrible game-experience.

This isn't just costing me any emotional investment I might have as well as patience and time, but also money; leaving a high performance computer on all day every day while I try to get this done does actually cost money, surprisingly enough, and the longer I have to do so for the more it costs. Not just that but this session has wasted the time and electricity of an American friend of mine who volunteered to help speed things up by giving the Charr a second target to kill - for all I know he's still in there now, wasting more of his time while he sleeps, now that I have been forcibly ejected. I find it extremely unlikely that I'll get my costs, or my lost experience points, or even my apology, I doubt too that support is capable of offering me at least a reasonably coherent explanation, or anything other than a "go away" smokescreen; as the single employee of AN who anyone I've spoken to has even a shred of faith in or respect for I was wondering if you could offer me something to cling to to convince me that the large amounts of money I've given to ArenaNet might not have been better spent flushed down the toilet. Poobah 11:36, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

I know it must suck to have a deathleveling session cut off after taking so long, but you have to realize that your connection isn't a direct one to Guild Wars' servers. There are several gateways your connection travels between to get to their server, and it might be that somewhere along the line, there's a bad connection, in which case it wouldn't be your fault nor ArenaNet's fault. The fact that many, many players are able to do these sessions, coupled with the fact that players like me can leave GW running and leave the house for several hours at a time, only to return to my character still logged in and standing where he was, is more proof that the problem you're having might actually be somewhere between you and ArenaNet. Other games you have might not disconnect simply because their servers are located in different locations, and the route it takes to get to them is different than the one travelled for Guild Wars.

As for the electricity, it's really your choice to leave your computer running in the first place, so it's not fair for you to complain about any electricity you have had to pay for or wasted. Anyone that attempts the LDoA title is aware that disconnects can happen, and you have to be prepared for it.

Just my $0.02. --★KOKUOU★ 12:02, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

I agree with Kokuou, your problem seems to reside somewhere inbetween. I finished my LDOA just recently, and was deathleveling basically 24/7 for about 2 months, restarting my PC only about once a week for updates, etc. In those 2 months, I had only a few disconnects (5-10 somewhere), which is to be expected, but nothing remotely like what you speak of. And I did see a small increase in my electric bill, but that is a choice. Turning off the monitor while you leave helps, as well as minimizing the game, to reduce the load from your graphics card and processor, and thus the cooling fans.

I don't know how this works or if this would help at all, but you can try changing districts to european or asian, or even changing your region for the time being, to see if this changes your connection path, it might not, but it's worth a shot. But all I can tell you is that it's not directly ArenaNet's fault, and they would not be able to help you with this, even if they wanted to. Rose Of Kali 16:51, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

It's incredibly incredibly frustrating to be so close and to have the very design of the game working against me. I have had many very successful death leveling sessions or I'd have never gotten so far, but the worst thing for me is that these disconnects never happen 2 hours in to a session or even 8, but 20 or more, when I'm almost done so I loose an entire day or more. I see the nicely leveled charr and am just waiting for that one extra group to level, then I loose them all. I feel like I'm running a marathon and it just keeps getting longer and longer, to see the finish post and then to have it get further away instead of closer is at best annoying/frustrating and at worst soul-destroyingly infuriating. Poobah 17:03, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

When I was death-leveling, as soon as I saw a group get to my level (usually within 6-8 hours), I killed them to let the rest level. This way, you get the XP from them without fear of losing it entirely while waiting some more, and the other groups actually start leveling faster. Rose Of Kali 17:22, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Also, the fact that you mentioned 20 hours worries me. The game usually automatically disconnects you after being in for 24 hours. I always restarted the game client completely before starting a new death-level, and a single session never took me more than about 15 hours - I usually got through 2 sessions in a 24 hour period. Your problem may be that you are waiting too long. XP earned/Time invested ratio goes down dramatically once the charr get more than 1 level above you, so it's not worth waiting for them to level higher. Kill them no later than 1 level above yours (unless you came back to find them higher, of course). As I mentioned before, I killed mine when they were the same level as me, usually, and that is the best XP return for the time spent, because beyond that point, they need more XP to level up, and get less from killing you, so each subsequent level takes longer and longer. Might as well start a new deathlevel from scratch. Also, charr share XP, so if you are waiting for a lower group to level up, it is in your best interest to kill the higher ones, because then the lower ones will get more XP from kills and level faster. I usually pulled 3 or more groups, and when there was only one group left, I just waited for them to get high enough to give me 16XP per kill, and killed them and started a new session. The only way I'd let the last group level longer was if it had hunters, because then they actually have enough firepower to still kill me fast, but this was rare, as the last group was usually the caster one. Hope these tips from my own experience help you get your title. Best of luck. Rose Of Kali 17:41, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

I do not think it's the game that disconnects you (as some of my 9 rings sessions lasted 2~3 days), it's probably more your ISP, especially if you are on DHCP. Jaxom 20:16, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

He already mentioned that he checked his ISP and it did not seem to be the problem. And I usually cannot stay logged in on the same character for more than 24 hours, keyword being "usually." I often get disconnected and simply have to log back in, but for safety, I always restarted the client for deathleveling for that reason. But, I HAVE had the client open for more than a week before: You have been playing for 1 week. Please take a break. -- Yes, thank you, game, I think I'd be dead by then... Rose Of Kali 21:11, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Wait, is this a QQ post because an AFKleveling attempt failed? Wow.-- anguard 01:19, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) I am sorry that you're having connectivity problems, but you should know that well over 95% of the time when people blame the game or our servers, there are no issues whatsoever with Guild Wars, ArenaNet, NCsoft, or any other area of our service. But there are a lot of points of connection between your house and the game server and we cannot control your ISP, your hardware, your software, the Internet backbone, etc. So short answer: This is a Technical Support issue; ask to be referred to them and work with the team on this. You've done some good checking there, and that's great, but please let them get in on that and see what they learn, too, ok?

I can't help but smile a bit here because I don't see too many instances of people complaining to us that they're upset because they can't reliably not play the game. Maybe the difference between the other games you cite and Guild Wars is that with the other games, you're really there, playing. (I don't know anyone who tries to AFK in StarCraft or Diablo.) There may have a difference in the way your ISP perceives and provides your service. I mention this particularly because when I was actively playing SC -- I mean hours a day -- if a match lasted over an hour, I was disconnected by my ISP. It was their "policy" -- which I only learned about a few weeks of persistent (but courteous, I promise you :) ) research on my part -- to ping their customers every 60 minutes for activity; they did not read gameplay as "activity" so boom, there when my connection. I was appalled; I switched ISPs immediately.

AFKing is not something that we actively support and I don't see us making a bunch of new tools to help people not play our game -- but we will research and correct any issue that is within our area of purview. Now, if Support tells you the problem is not within our servers or is not something upon which we can take action, please do not consider yourself "harassed" or "victimized," and please don't leap to the conclusion that Support is indifferent! The team will work hard to correct any issue within our control and they'll tell you honestly if they cannot assist. Yes, I care (as do a lot of others); let me know what you find out, ok? -- Gaile 04:39, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

A bit contradicting to state that ya'll don't support AFKing while playing, but still introduced the LdoA title. Funny.-- anguard 19:37, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

But must you be AFK to acquire the title? :) I know of players who are actively in the game as they acquire the title. The fact that it can be acquired by AFKing doesn't mean it must be, or even should be. What people can do and what we feel we must support as a viable form of gameplay can be two different things, so I don't think there's a contradiction here.

@ Poobah -- Incidentally, I talked to the lead of the Technical Support Team today about this matter, and he would like to hear from you so he can gather data about the issue and possibly help you resolve it or at least figure out its source. You can get that referral to TS directly within your ticket. -- Gaile 19:43, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

You state people don't have to, but they generally do. It'd be boring not to.-- anguard 19:49, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Hum? I thought that after some level it was impossible to get any more experience in pre-searing and the only way to reach lvl20 way was to get it from the char withdeath levelling them, something which would be an awfull (and boring) thing to look at (not to mention to listen to) for hours and hours and hours...

And 9 rings and rings of Fortune? What to you expect from us while standing on the rings all day long starring at the screen? Sure, I do come back to my PC sometime, and when some guildies or alliance members are online we do socialize, I also sometime talk with fellow 'ringers', eat candies and drink booze but I would not do that for an entire 3-days event... Jaxom 19:57, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

I totally understand what you guys are saying. I'm trying to make a fine distinction here: What you choose to do, and what our teams (development, support) are required to support can be two different things. We don't have sneaky code that disconnects AFKers, but nor are we obliged to spend resources developing, for example, "The Super Mighty Reconnector of AFKing Wonderfulness(tm)." :)

If you choose to AFK, so be it. And as I said, we don't intentionally try to stop that. However, if it takes team time to support something, we're going to support, improve, or expand the game as designed, and not the... I don't know... non-mainstream mechanics of the game that some players use. I hope that's clearer, and I'm sorry if what I said was, or is, confusing. -- Gaile 20:19, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Meh, all that aside I'm still a bit on your side of the fence, As I think it's stupid for complaining about losing connection because you were persuing a luxury.-- anguard 20:39, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, I apologise if my tone was offensive earlier, but I hope you can understand my increasing frustration with disconnects as I progress slowly with this title, especially now I'm running down the final straight only to find the metaphorical finishing post move further away. I know that it is possible to stay in game, but the worst thing about this is that I was actually sitting at my PC when this disconnect happened, however, I do not think that anyone has attended the full 700-1000 hours necessary to complete this title especially given the nature of death levelling sessions which even with a very high death rate (in the region of 3.33-3.6 deaths per minute) and with only a single charr group getting all the kills will take at least 5-6 hours. Few people have that much time available in a single block except at weekends.

Rose of Kali, I favour longer sessions with large numbers of charr, typically a full 25 charr (minus all bar one shaman) pull because of the increased killspeed they offer. I will kill 1 charr from a group when it reaches my level which will typically allow another group to get in on the kills and level while still taking advantage of the excellent amount of damage the other charr are providing. I find this rather more efficient than using multiple small sessions, but your mileage may (and it seems does) vary.

I have received some messages from Technical Support and they have requested I update my grapics drivers before going any further (I was able to find the version for windows vista 64 bit of the driver I was linked to), I am unable to do this until my current death levelling session is either completed or goes horribly wrong because multiple restarts of the computer will be needed, once my drivers have been updated I'll resubmit the technical data, likely somewhat later in this evening. Thank you. Poobah 21:03, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for the update, Poobah. (And for your courtesy -- I appreciate that.) Just to let you know, in the year I've been in this role I've learned more and more about the weird and sometimes entirely (to my mind's eye) inexplicable connections between different components, drivers, servers, software, hardware, ISPs, builds, rutabagas, badminton shuttlecocks... I think that updating the drivers may be unrelated, but it wouldn't surprise me to learn a driver issue actually was causing some sort of behind-the-scenes issue after all. And in any case, with the update, you'll have things aligned in such a way TS can continue to give you a hand.

As I said, the team lead (super nice and smart guy) was more than willing to work with you on this, and I hope it sorts out well. You obviously have a more technically savvy head on your shoulders than I do, but I feel as if, every now and then, I should get the word out that downloading the thingies, updating the whozits, or sending them the whatyacallits is definitely worthwhile. ;)

I will look forward to your update. -- Gaile 23:52, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

I am just curious, Poobah. When you are afk-deathleveling, do you "minimize" the game, or keep it maximized on screen? I couldn't find a mention to this on your messages.

The resources consumption of the game while minimized appears to cause issues when there is lot of activity on screen (ie. getting killed by lots of skills).--Fighterdoken 00:01, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh i did that tons and tons of times, but my comp buddy suggested using the taskmanager to put gw at live priority, and whooho no more midnight d/c's. Ctr+alt+delete applications right click set priority. Siadina 00:24, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Poobah, I understand your frustration. Being practically next door to the Texas servers (located in Austin), I would expect to get excellent connectivity. Sadly, I'm at the mercy of Comcast, which for some Abaddonic reason bounces my signal cross-country through Los Angeles. Needless to say, my little connection indicator in GW rarely gets to stay green. And believe me, Comcast does not have the best performance, no matter what mis-info they try to feed the media. It gets especially maddening, when my DHCP is up for refresh. Lags in the 10s of thousands, i.e. several seconds, are not uncommon. Bottomline, it's not your computer, not the GW server. It's probably your fine ISP.

Hey, and if you want to save on energy: use a laptop for those AFK sessions. Example: My Thinkpad T40 performs graphically better than my GeForce 4 desktop. I can't explain it, perhaps the Radeon chipset makes better use of borrowed system memory than the nvidia builtin RAM. It's only a fraction of the energy cost though. 76.30.79.54 09:15, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Trade buddy key for gold

I have noticed that many people are proposing a trade by which you procure them with a buddy key or expansion key in return for x amount of gold.

I was wandering if this is legal, because it feels unsafe and weird to me , I would assume this type of trade is illegal. Am I correct or am I just paranoid ?

It's 100% illegal. -- Minami

I'd wait for an official reponse first --adrin 16:34, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Buddy keys were created to be given to buddies for (OMG!) free to try the game, that is what they were intended for. Selling them for in-game gold or items is illegal, be they buddy keys or full game keys, and RMT is illegal no matter what you're trading. Yes, this can be considered RMT, because the full game keys can be purchased at a store, and are thus worth real life money, and as such cannot be traded for in-game goods. The only "legal" way to trade keys is if you resell the full game key as a game online or at a store, which is frequently being done with CE's - people buy them, hoard them for a while, and resell for ridiculous prices (try buying US version Prophecies CE - that'll cost you a crappy car). But again, as far as buddy keys go, they are supposed to be free, no matter how you trade them. Rose Of Kali 17:17, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

"The rules are all pretty basic: ... Don't buy or sell in-game items for real-world cash or buy or sell accounts or access keys for in-game or real-world currency." ~ from GW.com -- Wyn 05:23, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

That is correct. The exchange of a Buddy Key for in-game gold is strictly prohibited and such an exchange can result in action on an account, up to and including account termination. Also, be aware, most of the "people" advertising to "buy" the keys will try to get access to your real account and take the buddy key and the game account. If you read the in-game messages on the log-in screen, you'll know what I'm talking about. -- Gaile 05:43, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

O_O Oh wow...

04/22/2009 When I was trying to log into my account a messaged popped up saying my account was blocked and I needed to contact support. So I did. Reference #090422-001408

They said that my account has been temporarily suspended for 'account sharing.'

They gave me 336 hours suspension... Is this really necessary to give me that many hours? That is like 2 weeks. lol. This is my 2nd suspension. The first suspension wasn't really my fault, since I knew nothing about it. This was on 05/14/2008. Reference #080514-001518. For that they only gave me 65 hours for it.

I also have another question about 'Account Sharing'. I know that my boyfriend have mentioned me in one of your talk posts earlier in this. If I use his computer to play Guild Wars with my account... will I be able to do so? Will that get me suspended again?? (Apparently they iP ban my bf from logging. :/ Don't know how that's going to work anymore...) I have been using his computer on and off a couple of times to play Guild Wars with my account. There were times when my laptop wouldn't even run the game anymore because of lag. So I used his computer to do some dungeon runs from time to time. Also... how would you know if someone is 'account sharing?' Wouldn't the 2 accounts have the same iP address if both were using the same computer or the same connection? W a f f l e z 09:01, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

Play NC Account and Support Case

Gaile, I submitted case 090421-001627 this evening in response to... well, you can check it out. Anyway, while submitting the case I realized that I have no idea what my PlayNC account is. I know I have one though. How do I go about finding that out so that I can reply to case updates when needed? Pkohler01 00:19, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Try the "I forgot my XXX" feature, you may be able to track it down by your Email address, if you have a guess at which one you used (most likely the same address as you use to log into GW). Rose Of Kali 00:49, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks I'll give this a try Pkohler01 01:21, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

No dice, can't figure it out. I even checked my GW ingame store receipts. 24.188.207.20 22:55, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Sorry for the constant remarks, Gaile. I mentioned this to support on that same ticket, they're going to forward me to the right people after they tend to the initial support issue. Please consider this matter closed for now. Pkohler01 03:15, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Ban Appeal

Hello, Gaile. Please, I beg you, reconsider/help this decision.

Incident: 090421-001622 And beforehand, I just want to say THANK YOU so much for your help in the matter... You have no idea how depressed I am over this right now. --Uchiha Lena 00:56, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Personal Update / Personal Plea

I've been out of the state for several days dealing with issues related to a relative who is in the hospital and who may possibly never get out. I want to tell you that up front as an explanation for my absence but also to ask for your forgiveness if I answer various posts here with what might be uncustomarily direct (blunt?) and short responses.

Perhaps to lessen the terse answer I may give, I can give you some general information that relates to recent posts and threads:

• Every day, I get someone saying "I was banned for saying 'poo poo.'" And, while I want to leap in to help that "poor player" and sometimes it's the right to do that, most of the time I read the chat log and see enough @(%^&@(*^$&#*T^$ sort of language to shame a Marine. (With no disrepect to Marines. :) ) So don't say "I was banned for 'poo poo'" unless you're willing to face my calling you on it if you're not.

• I get cries of "I was blocked for the name "Pussy Cat" and I find out "Pussy Cat" is not banned, but the characters on that same account with real, genuine, and even obvious offensive names are blocked. Can the person who is filing an appeal really not know? I'd say at least 90% know darn well which name was blocked -- and it wasn't Pussy Cat! -- but I'm working on getting a tool that tells people, "You were banned for the name #@*%^ #*%&*#*" and that'll leave no question.

• Do those things mean people sometimes lie? Yes, it does. Does it mean they're sometimes mistaken, and don't really know why or how they were banned? Yes, it does. Does this mean I'll stop giving every situation a review? Nope, I will look, and I will try to help, but you have to know I'm going to probably make it clear if you're filling this page with bogus claims or inappropriate banning, so beware! :)

• Important Note: Nobody is ban happy these days. We have not increased our actions on offensive names, inappropriate chat, scamming, botting, RMT, harassment, or anything else. If you had an offensive name and you had it for four years and you just got caught -- well, surprise! -- you chose an offensive name and you finally got caught. If you use cutsie "Oh, it's not really offensive" excuses, or "I deny that's creative spelling for a disallowed word" or some lame comment that says "I'm not trying to get around the rules, really!" the Team is (and I am) very likely to see through that and you're going to keep the name block or the time-out for offensive chat. And, consider: If you get enough of those suspensions, you may end up with an account termination.

• Also, bans and suspensions given in the game are related to behavior in the game. By that, I mean no one is given a mark in the game for his/her wiki behavior or for being rude to staff if we meet at a trade show, or for posting on a forum saying mean things. (And to one recent point: no one has been blocked for the use of the word "hell." Come on -- we have Hell's Precipice in the game! Protects of innocence should be based on truth.)

I will get to the notes here, but it'll take me time. I have more than a full day's work every day without the requests, but I promise you I take every personal request seriously, and I will treat every player with respect, as I have been doing for 8+ years. But I ask that you hold tight and give me some time. And as I start trying to review these -- in between team meetings, emails, phone calls, support ticket reviews, and a dozen other things -- I'm going to ask that each of you please stop, think about your suspension or ban, consider what the team is telling you, and then make sure that you really, really need my help. Please don't look on me as a way to get by with misbehavior, the person who's going to let a slimey name pass or give a scammer another chance to hurt an innocent player. Because that's not who I am; that's not what I do.

Please, let me deal with the real issues, for the good of the game. I will do that as quickly and as fairly as I can. Thank you for understanding. -- Gaile 05:38, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Hey, Gaile, this might also be pretty useful in some sort of FAQ at the top of the page. It pretty much covers what you want to be the ground rules for this page. King Neoterikos 07:07, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

I agree with Neoterikos... I wish the best and lots of strength for you, your family, and your relative who's in the hospital. *HUGS* --Minami Kaori

That is very kind of you, Minami. She is doing much better. Recovery will be a slow process, but we are all hopeful she will be able to make a full recovery. Thank you for your considerate thoughts. :) -- Gaile 04:41, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Account Bans

Account Ban * iP Ban + banned my girlfriend for "sharing accounts"

Hello, Gaile.

I just like to show you this previous comment from support and I would like to have your thoughts about it.

Thank you for your time, as well as everyone else's on the support team.

I could not honestly be more happier right now, I have already decided to escalate this issue to the proper people since I have learned some NEW interesting facts about this matter. I've already called a few numbers from Arena.Net and I am pending a call back from them with further information. It has come to my attention, though, that not only was MY account blocked, but, my girlfriend's account AND several others (just because they were linked to knowing me, which, makes it a personal hate-case). You, Arena.Net, have made this particular cased a biased one and, and, that brings it to an entirely new level from what I was originally reporteded/suspended for when I told "We Rock Like Aesop" to blow off. I am sorry, but, this is no longer a "we are just doing our job/upholding the EULA policy", but rather, as forementioned, simply an excuse for terminating my account to fulfill your "duties" without looking at reason.

As proof that your support team has been overzealous and has been STALKING ME, they have been watching my every chat log session between my girlfriend/guildies and I. I have compliments to Gaile Gray (she sent me emails of chat logs from events of which were completely random and from not reports that were made by anyone what so ever) as proof that you have been harrassing/stalking my chat logs when I was in SECLUDED/SHUT OFF areas with my guildies/girlfriend (e.g., my Guild Hall and even in explorable areas such as Dungeons) on Guild Wars, trying to find an excuse to ban me.

More proof is as follows: my previous attempts of reporting people whom swear at me, curse me out, spam me, verbally abuse me, ect, were ALL shot down as of late due to "mutual confrontation" when they were no way in the sort "mutual confrontation". Once more, I have been singled out.

If you deny any of the accusations I have just now mentioned about my reporting people and being denied then please refer to support ticket number 090421-001470 from a name I found repulsive, "Tramp Ollin", That was NOT found as inappropriate even though "tramp" means "a sexually promiscuous woman; prostitute" (taken right off of dinctionary.com).

Here's another innocent report of mine that was shot down due to "mutual confrontation": 090330-000322. The excuse of denying my report, in short, was this: "I've been reviewing your account, violations, and reports that you have made. You have eight violations over the last year and are on a final warning. You are aware of this yet you continue to draw attention to yourself and report other players. When we look into your logs, it's clear that you instigate and troll most of the responses."

Basicly, he se is saying "I have looked at your account and because you have previous marks against your account we can safely assume that you caused this to happen." This person clearly verbally abused/spammed me for over 3 hours! If this GM had truely looked at the logs AND screen shots submitted he would see I did NOT reply to anything this person said to me so this could NOT be construed as "mutual confrontation".

If you are not aware of what I am mentioning right now then please reffer to my last 2-3 reports against people that were shot down for extremely biased and singled-out reasons.

Overall, I just wanted to say that I have plenty of proof for my accusations and those reasons will be given to your team once I get everything sorted out in my records when I take this even higher.

I very much appreciate all of your time, and, thank you again for your time and have an amazing day!

Jonathan T******

p.s.

---

By the way, I would just like to point out that one of the reasons you are trying to suspend me for, saying the word "gay", is way quite redundant. The way I used it was NOT used derogatively in any way, shape, or form. Also, a heads up, whenever you say the word "gay" with the chat filter set to MAX, it isn't even blocked out with those cute little hyphons. If you do not believe me, please test it yourself. ^^

p.s.s.

---

Ah, my girlfriend has just now informed me that you removed her perma ban and gave her a 336 hours suspension for letting me log onto her account, more descriptively, you told her "sharing" accounts. FURTHERMORE, you have blocked my iP from logging onto her account (I tested it on a friends account to see if my iP was banned altogether) and have threatened my girlfriend with a permanant ban if it is logged on from any other iP address. This is MORE proof of singling me and anyone I am affiliated with out!

Here is what they told her:

Response (GM Cykor) 04/22/2009 06:57 PM Greetings,

Your account has been temporarily suspended for account sharing, which is a major violation of our Rules of Conduct and User Agreement. As section 4 of the User Agreement states:

"Only one person may use an Account. The registered user of an Account may use the Account or may choose instead to permit a minor child of the registered user to use the Account. You are liable for all activities conducted through your Account, and parents or guardians are liable for all activities of their minor child conducted through the Account." Link: http://www.guildwars.com/support/legal/users-agreement.php

Once the suspension has elapsed you will be free to log in and play again. Any further account sharing will likely result in a permanent account ban.

GM Cykor The Guild Wars Support Team

How can they PROVE I was on her account? What is she is a TRAVELLER and uses multiple iP's?? What if they live at multiple locations? This all looks like a load of bullshit... --Uchiha Lena 00:33, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Here's another one that I found funny.

Hello,

Your account was permanently closed due to repeated violations of the Rules of Conduct and User Agreement. This account has been blocked twice for inappropriate language and is related to other accounts that are continually violating our rules.

Protests regarding the termination of your Guild Wars game account will not be addressed or entertained. We will not accept appeals in cases such as this because of the depth of the analysis prior to the block. We regret the necessity of terminating any game account, but we will continue to take all necessary actions to protect the Guild Wars community and to assure that players are abiding by our User Agreement.

Please keep in mind that Guild Wars is a global game with hundreds of thousands of players. This means that standards of behavior must be upheld. For your convenience, you can obtain more information about our rules at the addresses listed below.

- User Agreement: http://www.guildwars.com/support//legal/users-agreement.php - Rules of Conduct: http://www.guildwars.com/support/legal/rulesofconduct.php - Conduct Breaches & Outcomes: http://www.guildwars.com/support/legal/conduct_breaches_and_outcomes.php

Regards,

GM Cykor The Guild Wars Support Team

Here was the reply:

Related? So because you accuse me of being "related" to another account that means I will recieve a permanant ban after only 1 suspension? LOL! You cannot be serious. Basicly you are saying since I know a drug dealer that means I am in fact an associate of his, making ME a drug dealer?? Is that your logic? That is so flawwed. :\ Why are you abusing your "rights", Cykor? I want this forwarded to someone whom is not power crazed, please. This is rediculous and so communistic!

Amazing... --Uchiha Lena 00:35, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

well deserved regardless of the terms -FireFox 01:04, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I think you meant dictatorial, not communistic. My bigger question is that there are a lot of married couples who play this game and lots of siblings who share accounts. If a woman were to type "Hi Guidies, this is just Janice saying hello!" through her husbands account while he's logged in, does that count as account sharing too? I've been wondering a lot recently if maybe all of these rules would be best enforced when it becomes a problem and not just because it happened. Either way, I wish both you and aNet the best of luck. Pkohler01 01:09, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I personally don't find any of their responses unusual, or in any way violating their policies as spelled out in the RoC and EULA. As for monitoring chat logs, well, they are free to view ANY in game chat, regardless of what your location is in the game, or who you are talking to. If you want to say things to people that you know are violations of the Guild Wars rules, you should say them in your vent, ts, or im not in game. As for bringing yourself to their attention by continually reporting people, again, the report feature is there to deal with real violations, not for pay backs or because you don't like someone. Using it too much on things that are frivolous like barely offensive names (Tramp is offensive? give me a break!) is considered abuse of the system. Each mark against your account raises the amount of scrutiny support is going to place your account under, and they don't have to limit it to current activities, they can pull chat logs of every single thing you have said since you started playing guild wars to determine a pattern of behavior. Your comparison of the treatment of friends of drug dealers is really very apt, since most people who hang out with drug dealers are probably also involved in drugs, and would warrant scrutiny by law enforcement. So you kinda shot yourself in the foot with that one. -- Wyn 01:19, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) If you feel that you must continue to pursue this, please continue to discuss this with Support via your ticket. That is the only means through which NCsoft or ArenaNet will respond to you. -- Gaile 01:54, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Hey, Gaile. Yes, I know, I have already been talking to them and have already talked to a few different people from Arena.Net via telephone, but, they (the online support have been taking their time more and more with each response. Hell, they've already blocked my ip, lol(but no problem, I can change my iP at will ;P)! Anyways... It doesn't really matter, Ms. Gray, I've decided to quit GW now because of the crappy support team they have working for them. I must admit, though, communists are so strict. :(

Actually, your phone call was referred to me, but the studio doesn't offer phone support and, as I said, you need to discuss the issue with our Support Team. -- Gaile 05:34, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

@ Wyn, uhmmmm... I expected no less from someone who is a sysop for aNet themselves on their wiki. :\ So since I know a drug dealer (whom wasn't one back in High School but is one now) in real life that makes ME "probably also involved in drugs"? Wow... Last I checked I havn't done drugs my whole life. Personally, I think adding the word "probally" in that sentence is extremely biased as it is. :\ --Uchiha Lena 02:14, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Arrogance, ignorance and the maturity level of a pre-teen... you're quite the package aren't you?

p.s.

------

Look into spell check, please. -FireFox 02:47, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

@firefox - cute. coming from the guy who just said "well deserved regardless of the terms" without any punctuation. quite the statement! 2-faced contradictive, and failed flaming all in one... "you're quite the package", as well. ;). --Uchiha Lena 02:53, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Spelling /= Grammar. Good one. King Neoterikos 05:28, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Uchina, as you can probably tell from the "Racial Slurs???" section above, Gaile isn't supposed to respond to cases where anet bans people because they feel like it. The only thing you can do is sue (which costs more money than you'd make) or just convince people to not buy anet products (which anet is already doing well at). ~Shard 04:29, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Firstly, ArenaNet and NCsoft never take action on an account "because we feel like it." We don't take action in the game for activities on the wiki. We don't say "Let's take out that anti-ArenaNet guy," or "Let's see if we can entrap that other person because, well, we just don't like him." Accounts are suspended and terminated only for in-game breaches of the User Agreement, the Rules of Conduct, or the Naming Policy. Action is taken because of reports, because of observed bad behavior, because, in some cases, a player is put on warning. And it is probably important to say that a warning means something, that we're not going to simply wring our hands in an agony of "What will we do?" if someone is approaching termination due to repeated violations. When you walk on the knife's edge, sometimes you get cut.

Secondly, I'm "allowed" to respond to any appeal that comes my way. However, I may or may not choose to do so, based on the individual case and the circumstances around it. Sure, I will take a look, that's only fair. But when I can see that the action has already been explained, then whether I lay out chapter and verse in explaining what happened is entirely at my discretion. If there is a question, if there is doubt, if I want to know more or see if I can help, I will certainly do so.

In cases that clearly do not involve a Support Issue -- where I can confirm there was no error and the account block or termination was clearly documented and logically decided upon -- then I really seldom need to get involved. For instance, I get a few RMT appeals a week. (For some reason, RMTs think that if they write me, or wave my name in front of the Support Team, they'll get that fabled "Get Out of Jail Free" card.) I used to painstakingly respond, but nowadays I'm more likely to give a brief "Please continue to discuss with Support" response to those who appeal for that sort of block. I do the same with others where there are no errors and where the suspension or termination is clearly, and provably, deserved. -- Gaile 05:29, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, Ms. Gray, I think this is the most unorthidox type of ban to have even been issued (and I've heard of so, so, SO many different types with different cased, might I add [as well as I am sure you have also). The thing that concerns me SO much is how they were literally stalking my chat logs between me and my gf and my guildies when nobody even reported me to have them do so in the first place-- not to mention the fact they (support) used against me that I said the word "gay" in an underogative manner.

"2009-04-19 02:56:47.000 Lena The Saint wow that is the ghayest thing ever"

1) I am 100% sure this is not inappropriate. To be "ghay" (gay) can be construed as exactly how I used it: Showing or characterized by cheerfulness and lighthearted excitement; merry. I did not use this as aperosnal assault at anyone seeeing as how my younger sibling is a homosexual and I do *NOT* have anything against "the gays". I will not and have no ever used such a simple word in any bad shape of context. Ultimately, I used this as an oxymoron. I literally stated "wow that is the 'happiest/exciting' thing ever". Obviously what happened was NOT that thrilling, hence the oxymoron useage. "2009-04-19 02:56:47.000 Lena The Saint wow that is the ghayest thing ever"

I think it's unfair that I blew a guy off (with words that were not exactly what I would classify as "inapproriate" who verbally-sexually harrassed my girlfriend and I am the one to recieve a "that's the last straw" suspension -> perma ban. :( -

In my opinion this overzealous ban to "just get him out of the way" was highly uncalled for and I will always stick to that. I know support has a job to do but on my case I CAN say they did it biasedly and I have an extremely huge amount of facts to back it up if you ever would like to inquire on them via personal email. I mean... heck.. they perma banned others just because they were "related to my account". lolwut? C'mon.... That's so.... BLEH! *but thank god they got their perma removed-- just to be given a 2 week suspension when their ban was lifted and only given the reason "for breaching the EULA" as an excuse on their log in screen* :\

I dunno, I guess I would feel way more comfortable if they at least had me allowable for an appeal after X amount of weeks (whereas X would = single digits, not double. <_<) like they've done for some dupers/botters I've known throughout my GW career. :( -Uchiha Lena 06:08, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Seriously spell check. That many grammatical errors will only hinder your cause. Anyways I'm still for ArenaNet holding a company party where they all watch Gran Torino. I'd like to see an audience recording of the thing too. That way we could see how people start to break down and cry from how people actually talk to each other. ^.^ --> O.O --> Q.Q ~>Sins WDB 17:48, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

:ODD, another one of those "omg spell check!!!!" QQ'ers. Let me point out, that, your sentence, "Anyways I'm still for ArenaNet holding a company party where they all watch Gran Torino. I'd like to see an audience recording of the thing too.", could DEFINATELY use some work. If you are incapable to spot the mistakes at a FIRST glance, then, I truely pity you for saying "go use spell check". Less flamming more contructive remarks-- gogo!! --66.190.90.130 18:14, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

This conversation has degraded to the point where it is no longer constructive. Pkohler01 18:34, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

DEFINITELY*, of spotting the mistakes*, truly*, flaming*, constructive*, and, adding, random, commas, doesn't, make, you, seem, intelligent. -FireFox 22:12, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes, I agree. This is complimented in large part to wiki trollers. I simply want Gailes response on the matter and/or her help, not everyone else's opinion. :\ --Uchiha Lena 18:57, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

We don't take action in the game for activities on the wiki.

That's cute. ~Shard 04:29, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

Character Slots

Gaile, has there been any talk about allowing more character slots per account? I've maxed out and would prefer to continue adding slots to my primary account as opposed to going with a separate account. Pkohler01 23:14, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Okay, slight update here... I had 34 slots but, just bought another to see what would happen. I now have 35 slots and the online store looks like it will let me buy more - the option isn't grayed out. With 8 slots from campaigns, 1 from the NF pre-release and 26 bought from the store, I should be at the max now. What happens if I try to buy more? Pkohler01 03:28, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I think if you have the max number, you will simply be prevented from buying more. As for whether we will be adding the option to add more -- "raising the cap" on the number you can add -- I will need to ask the Live Team about that. After the April update. :) -- Gaile 05:31, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you Gaile! Pkohler01 18:31, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Gail Grays Left Egg

Offensive name report

If you goes by this name in alliance battles you lost the battle aginst us. If you dont, Gail Grays Left Egg lost the battle against us ;) Yseron - 90.15.182.163 19:37, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

...because one person can win an entire match, ay?-- anguard 20:15, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Of course he did not loose alone :) Yseron - 90.15.182.163 20:18, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Then why does it matter if it really was Gaile Grey (which I doubt) and lost? Employees can only be so good at their own game, y'know?-- anguard 20:19, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Because she might be interested in character naming policy :) ? Yseron - 90.15.182.163 20:21, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I have no idea what the guild is. I'm not a member, never seen them, never played with them. I'm far, far too busy today to be in the game playing a match. :) -- Gaile 20:26, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Dont worry, I was playing with the usual "I'm going to show them gw wiki nubs who I am" users while waiting for a battle to begin. However it was probably a pvp only char that must have been deleted by now. Yseron - 90.15.182.163 20:30, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Character Slots

Gaile, has there been any talk about allowing more character slots per account? I've maxed out and would prefer to continue adding slots to my primary account as opposed to going with a separate account. Pkohler01 23:14, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Okay, slight update here... I had 34 slots but, just bought another to see what would happen. I now have 35 slots and the online store looks like it will let me buy more - the option isn't grayed out. With 8 slots from campaigns, 1 from the NF pre-release and 26 bought from the store, I should be at the max now. What happens if I try to buy more? Pkohler01 03:28, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I think if you have the max number, you will simply be prevented from buying more. As for whether we will be adding the option to add more -- "raising the cap" on the number you can add -- I will need to ask the Live Team about that. After the April update. :) -- Gaile 05:31, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you Gaile! Pkohler01 18:31, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Gambling

Is in-game gambling allowed if the gambling is for items or gold and relates directly to something in-game whether it's /roll or "I bet you 10g that Joe's gonna get killed by them grawl!" ? Pkohler01 01:12, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

don't quote me on this but i 'think' (keyword: think)gambling is NOT allowed in GW. --Uchiha Lena 02:54, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Nothing's stopping you, but you're basing your trust on people you may not know, and hence may not pay up if you win (likewise, that means you won't have to pay up if you lose). It's about as precarious as asking for/giving runs. Do it at your own in-game risk. King Neoterikos 05:25, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Coming from a runner, there's a hell of a lot of scammers out there. Probably not worth the risk to gamble. Blood Red Giant 06:31, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Gamble with friends. Just like you should in real life.--71.176.42.55 19:04, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Considering that we have Rings of Fortune and Nine Rings, and rock/paper/scissors with the NPC in LA, as well as more obscure gambling such as opening PvE or Zaishen chests, I don't think Anet would care one way or the other, just don't go crying to them that you got scammed or something. If you win and don't get paid, it's only your problem, and nobody else's. Running is a gamble for both parties, and so far Anet does not seem to have anything against it (other than putting up all those closed gates in Factions >_<). Rose Of Kali 19:54, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Good input. I was really asking because I was talking with some friend about playing "dice" for garbage drops (I guess the idea there is to lose lol). /roll 6 and I unload a plague idol. I lack the ambition to gamble for anything more valuable than a steel ingot. Pkohler01 23:05, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

There is a /roll in the game, and I'm sure that players fairly using the system would not cause concern. The concern arises when players try to scam others, or when arguments break out. At that time, I believe Support would tell the parties involved that their use of the system is not supported, and that they would have to resolve the issues on their own. We simply do not have the capacity (or the will) to arbitrate personal arguments. -- Gaile 21:10, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I believe most in-game gambling got squished a few weeks after GW came out when /roll was banned in town due to gambling games all over LA. Those were amusing but I never took part. I was broke (in-game) back then. ^^" Katherinezoltin 13:17, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

With the April Build, /roll is removed from PvP, so teams cannot cheese the system by "deciding" a match through a toss of the dice. Yes, I'm aware some players are using yet another means to cheese, and I'll be discussing that with the Live Team. In the meantime, the one is addressed. -- Gaile 21:24, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Support question

→ moved from User Talk:Gaile Gray

If this should be in the support issues section, please move it there. I put it here because it doesn't actually relate to an open ticket. I have noticed recently that people are claiming to have received chat logs relating to their block. In many instances this has lead them to determine the events surrounding that log, who was present and who could have heard it. They have been claiming that these people would not report them for it, now they can't know that for certain and they can't be sure if they made the comments in Guild Chat that there was no one on appear offline or anything, but my concern is that in other circumstances, other reporters could be identified as the person who filed a report from the chat logs and face harassment and persecution as a result. I'm all for the idea of banned parties having a route for appeal and having access to information to understand why they were banned, but not really at the cost of the rights of reporters.

Are you able to explain under what circumstances chat logs are released and are efforts made to protect reporters? For example is specific effort made to not release chat logs that could be used to determine the original reporter? Naturally releasing a full chat log from Kamadan AD1 during a busy period is not much of an issue, but releasing even a partial chat log from comments made in team chat in a 4 man area could often make a reporter easily identifiable.

I know the policy in the past has been to not release any chat log information but this policy appears to have changed and with it brought a few concerns and I personally think it is important that reporters know what they could be exposing themselves to. This is the internet after all, trolling is commonplace, in game accounts are often associated with accounts in other places, such as on this wiki and ArenaNet cannot even begin to police them all even if they had the power. Misery 07:50, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

The only things on the top of my head is the privacy clause (if they have one) and the no-obligation they hold in releasing any information related to discrepancies like this.(Terra Xin 17:14, 23 April 2009 (UTC))

Review of chat logs is not limited to reports for a particular area, but also reviewed overall to determine patterns of behavior if I understand things correctly anyway. So while someone you pm with something bad may not report you, support may still use that pm chat as evidence against you as proof of a pattern of behavior in game. -- Wyn 17:59, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) First, you should know that full chat logs are not released. A few lines of chat may occasionally be provided to someone who has been in breach of the UA or RoC, to establish why their account was suspended or terminated. And the back-and-forth of conversation may be seen by the Support team member reviewing the records. However, the two-way conversation records are not given to the person charged with the infraction. Only the lines that he/she spoke will be exposed. And, at that, generally only a few lines are provided, where we may have many, many more in the full chat records.

We feel that when players are being suspended or are having their account terminated, it's appropriate for them to understand why. And, quite frankly, being able to provide lines of chat is usually helpful in making it very clear that "I didn't do it" or "I meant [rude word] in an entirely different way" just doesn't cut it. The Support Team is careful about what they release but I will share your comments with the team and discuss the matter with them at depth. -- Gaile 18:42, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks Gaile, I think you understood what I meant. Terra and Wyn seemed to have missed my point and query slightly. I just mean that if I called one person a stupid bitch and then that gets used in evidence against me, I'm pretty sure I would remember who I said that to and I don't make so many violations, so it would be unlikely that someone else would have reported me and I got picked up for both, so I think I would have a pretty good idea who reported me in that hypothetical situation. Knowing something like that could make me hesitant to report someone. Not trying to make an argument against using chat matter unrelated to original reports or anything, but I wanted some more information about under what circumstances chat logs are released. I could easily imagine someone being very, very pissed off at someone if they felt that person were responsible for an account termination. Misery 18:56, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I understand, Misery. And thanks for your comments. I want to emphasize that the CS Team does not rely on tickets or in-game reports for all that they do. There are many occasions when we observe an issue or notice a breach without a report being involved. For instance, I used to spend a couple of hours a weekend bot-watching in different outposts. Nobody reported those botters; I found and actioned them myself.

Players who are on warning, who are close to the line of a permanent termination for "Repeated Violations," will likely be monitored or randomly checked for compliance with the rules. If they are given a warning, by the way, is a courtesy -- it is not required, it is not something that any player should expect. A "Repeated Violation" termination can happen without warning. But I hardly need to mention that those people facing such a termination have to be well and fully aware of how close they are to getting the boot. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that multiple breaches can result in account termination -- in fact, the Conducts Breaches and Outcomes document makes that very clear, as does the User Agreement!

Anyway, as I said, I will discuss your concerns with the team. But I think it's unlikely that someone will be targeted by a player whose account is terminated because, more than likely, that player has been on watch, has been reported multiple times, and may have amassed a dozen infractions in a single day. So if just one is shared in a small chat snippet, it would be foolish for someone to leap to the assumption "I know who reported me," and even more foolish to try to "get back" at that person. -- Gaile 20:51, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I discussed this with the team at the lead / manager / director level, and we are comfortable with the processes in place for sharing chat clips. Two things of note: they are clips and not actual full logs and we don't share the clips all that often. But changing our policies to give team members discretion in doing so has been a good thing. It gives players greater transparency into the Support process and allows us to stem the back-and-forth discussions and address player's questions, arguments, and inaccurate protestations of innocence.

I'm not saying that errors are never made, but when you see most clips, there's nothing else for the person to say but "Ooops." :) -- Gaile 23:28, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

I was just wondering, if a player gets reported for something that doesn't call for a time out/ban right away, does the player get some sort of flag on their account and after so many they get a time out/ban? Also does support ever contact a player to let them know that they might be getting close to a time out/ban? I was jsut wondering because your statement about "players on warning" and that made me wonder if support actually sends something to players so that they would know that they are doing things that could get them a perma ban. Not that I'm worried about ever getting reported or a time out/ban, I was just curious of how things like that worked and its ok if you can't answer for any reason.--BabyJ 13:31, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

We generally do not give warnings. The short suspension that players get is considered a form of warning, as explained in the Conducts Breaches and Outcomes document. This means that players who get the first suspension better shape up or they'll get a longer block and, possibly, an account termination for repeated violations. We feel it is best to have our team focused on addressing issues, not hand-holding people who are close to the edge and are facing a ban.

Despite what they try to tell in support tickets -- and believe me, we see a lot of attempts at creative excuse writing -- most people really do know when they've messed up, and they really do know when they're close to the line. -- Gaile 21:31, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Game Keys and Support Question

→ moved from User Talk:Gaile Gray

Gaile, would someone from an NCsoft e-mail address ever ask me for my GW key when trying to find my play nc account info? Pkohler01 21:07, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

That sounds weird to me. PlayNC is not just GW, it's for all NCSoft games, and your account is created separately from any games you have, until you specifically link them (right? I'm not sure, but I think that's how this works, especially if you use different Emails to register the account and the game login). I don't see how just giving them the possible Email addresses you may have used wouldn't be enough, and what new info the key would give them that's going to help locate your NCS account. But I would like to see Gaile's answer on this one... Rose Of Kali 21:18, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

As weird as it is, they do, in fact, ask for account keys for certain account related issues. Any question you ask via the NCSoft online system should also be answered there, whereas an email copy of their response is sent to you. If the request for account keys was not made via the official NCSoft online support (which keeps a record of all correspondence), then you have a problem.

Remember, always respond only through the online system, so there is a record! 76.30.79.54 22:16, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

That's part of the problem, I need my play nc account info to respond through the online system. I've had to handle this thus far through the e-mail system. The e-mail is coming from an ncsoft.com email address and fits the exact format of all other mail I've received from them for support issues and I'm pretty sure I've spoken with this support rep in the past as well. Pkohler01 23:01, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Hold on just a bit, because I think there may be a mixup. There are two kinds of NCsoft Accounts: The NCsoft Master Account (formerly the PlayNC account) and the NCsoft Support Account. If you think about it, it would be strange to require that you know your master account info in order to... get your master account info. :)

Take a look at that email and see if there's something called an "Incident Number" on it. I can look it up and verify you're in the clear. What may look like an email may be, in fact, an actual support ticket. I'm happy to help you figure out if that's what you're seeing. -- Gaile 23:10, 23 April 2009 (UTC)

Okay, I didn't know that. The incident number is 090421-001627. Zach, the Guild Wars Account Support person, worked with me on this. I've retained the entire e-mail thread and can forward it to you upon request. Zach was able to get me back into my account. I think it was the Master Account, not the support account. Pkohler01 00:26, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

Hey there, Pkohler. I see that all worked out, and yes, that message that you received were absolutely legitimate. I think the best thing to keep in mind is that since you initiated the contact, there would be little chance a "phisher" could get access to the incident number involved. If I got an email out of the blue saying, "Hey, give me your account credentials," I'd be suspicious, too! But since you initiated the contact, the verification that it was coming to you from us would lie in that incident number and in the fact that the entire thread would be forwarded to you, including your initial contact.

I hope that info helps, and I'm glad everything worked out OK for you. -- Gaile 04:34, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you, Gaile! The people who helped me were unbelievably helpful. It was an excellent support experience. I appreciate you checking up on it for me. I need to be more careful methinks. Pkohler01 06:45, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I had to submit a ticket in hopes of recovering my account information. I didn't have the majority of the information they asked for. All I had was a mis-matched set of serial keys for three accounts; unknown as to what keys belong to what accounts, the correct street address, and three email addresses used to register the game with Anet. I hope I have as good of luck as you did Pkohler01. --Drakora 07:00, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Best of luck with it. I was fortunate in that I had marked many of my keys with the account they belonged to but, I couldn't find the original key I registered my primary account under. Fortunately support accepted another key that I had registered on that account, my NF collector key. If you had purchased anything from the in-game store on the account in question, keep the receipt they email you as it's another thing they might be able to use to identify the account and to confirm your identity. All in all, I had my account information in about 16 hours which is more than 12 hours longer than it would have taken if I didn't wander away from my desk for more than half a day. Something else that you might want to ask support about if you cant find your key is registering a new Master Account (whatever, the NC Soft account) and associating it with your GW account. It looked like their system would let you do that when I did the free storage pane signup. Pkohler01 03:20, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

@Drakora -- You'd be amazed at what the team can piece together. We've had the exact same situation before: A bunch of random access keys, several emails, etc. But in the end, the team is able to sort it out. Obviously, something like this takes more time. But I wonder, have you had a resolution yet?

@Pkohler -- Yes, the team can help with creating a Master Account, or can get things organized on that account. It's certainly worth asking about! -- Gaile 02:01, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Trouble Loading NCSfot Web Page

→ moved from User Talk:Gaile Gray

Hi Gaile. I am currently trying to create an NCSoft account so that I can access the free storage thing but it keeps loading REALLY slow for me. I then get to the image catch thing and the image expires before it even loads. I don't have this problem with other pages, including secure banking pages. 122.111.96.166 17:08, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

Pretty sure everyone's having that problem right now (I know I am). I'd give it a few hours, maybe even a day or two for the traffic to die down, then you should be able to get in. You've got plenty of time before the offer expires. Freedom Bound 17:14, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

It's true the site is super busy, and that's causing delays. We're sorry about that! I can tell you that the NCsoft Team is adding servers even as we speak, and we expect that will help address the issue. One tip: You might try later in the evening or in the earlier morning hours to see if that speeds things up. Now, does that mean "late evening US or Europe?" I mean, one is quite opposite from the other, eh? :) Still, I would guesstimate the busiest times would be from, say, 9:00 AM Pacific time (17:00 GMT) to about, oh, 9:00 PM Pacific (05:00 GMT). So give the offer page a try outside that hours, if you wish. And don't worry, the offer isn't going to expire right away! -- Gaile 20:25, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

Just adding my two cents in, tried getting the free pane last night, kept getting an "image has expired" error while trying to make a NCsoft master account, (happened during the personal information section). I know you're not tech support for the website, but I'm just letting you know that it's currently impossible to do, and that if this happens all week and i can't get my free pane, i'm gonna cry -_- Deltaalphanova

It seems I'm not the only one being consistantly ripped off. Hell, NCsoft isn't even sending my the account activation code.-- anguard 14:11, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Next to Gaile ..Regina answered this in her journal too;

quote:The NCsoft team is doing the following to correct the issues and help improve and restore responsiveness:

*Old database hardware was replaced with new/faster hardware.

*They've upgraded a database used to manage web sessions, and they're rolling out an improved session manage

*There are rolling out new webservers very soon. The servers are being tested before coming online.

The team is very aware of the issues and they're continuing to work on them. We apologize for the slow load times and errors that some are experiencing. end quote.

--Silverleaf Don't assume, Know! 16:02, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Buying Updates

Hi Gaile

A few users I've been playing with have expressed concern that the latest update is for sale. The reason I'm here is I figure a middleman might achieve more than a few I.P.s roari caps locking the odds.

The first thing they were angry about was paying for the extra Xunlai slots. Now, frankly, I'm rather inclined to liken them to character slots, and thus charging for them is something I can readily understand.

Another thing is that they find... unreasonable ? is that there's a charge for the makeovers, and... well, I'm sorry, I can certainly understand their point here. Charging for changing not adding to Guild Wars content is sorta where I'd personally draw the line. However, again I don't totally side with my friends on this, but I'm more neutral than on NCSoft's side with this one.

Now, changing the appearance of your character is one thing... but as understandable as charging for it may well be... charging for changing a name is, in my view, going that little bit too far. I ignored people who asked what kind of thank you etc. GW:EN was when we had to pay for it, as it was a game. But... I certainly wonder why we're paying for this.

I'll be the first to say this is all / mostly a matter of judgement; one perfect example is plenty of people probably judge a character's looks to be less worthy of a charge than the name. I just felt I'd try to draw your attention to this, as while I doubt decisions will be changed, little harm will come from ArenaNet / NCSoft getting feedback while the feedback is as respectful as possible.

I'm sorry if you resent me posting here; I've always felt you're a very reasonable, helpful person, and I suppose it's nice having a person you're talking to instead of just throwing a message out into the void.

I also apologise for this... somehow... being inexplicably longer than I expected. Consider I'm talking about three points, it's left me rather amazed that I ended up with such a WoT.

I did try to err on the side of being respectful and did my utmost to appear polite, and indeed more to the point; fair. Mostly as I don't doubt you'll do that so I wanted to return the favour... um... in advance. So thanks very much for reading my unholy-lenght-WoT, and if you have any thoughts I'd be delighted to hear them, be they similar or differing to my own.

Thanks again. --> A F K When Needed 18:49, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

I was excited about the new surprise in-store items until I saw the prices. I think the regular 5 makeover credits are "ok" at $10 for 5, but the extreme makeover should be no more than $5, storage panes should be no more than $5. What really threw me was the $15 for a name change... I'm just wondering what possessed the whomever to decide that $15 for a SINGLE name change was fair, especially since offensive names get changed for free, after a small suspension. I don't mean to be rude or anything, I'm just very curious why so much... In my mind, I see all these upgrades being $5USD at most. In fact, if they were cheaper, I think people would buy more of them, and provide you with more income for the same amount of initial coding invested. I know you guys on the Live team don't decide the prices, but do you happen to know what the reasoning was for these rather high amounts?

On the other hand, I really really love what you guys did with Zaishen quests and the new items from the collectors, and almost filled my menagerie already (the moss spider might be a little problematic ^_^). Good job. Rose Of Kali 20:55, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

You know you guys are free to post here any time. Normally, in a case like this, I'd probably ask you to share your concerns with the Community Team, since they're part of Marketing, and things like what to sell and how much to charge for it come from that area of the company. And you can sure share your thoughts with those folks, by all means!

But interestingly, what you've asked about is actually a potential support issue! One of the concerns that the Support Team has is ensuring that abusive players cannot hide from getting caught. If such players could freely change their character name(s), they could keep all their achievements but Support would have difficulty tracking them down. Most importantly, players build a reputation in the game -- good or bad -- and if they've gone on the path of The Dark Side(tm) for a while, it doesn't seem fair to have them rename to avoid their own history.

On the other hand, players legitimately might want to rename. For instance, I had someone write me last week asking to rename because he accidentally misspelled a word in his name. If it's important to him, now he can. But while we allow him to do so, we make it come at cost, so that people don't frivolously rename (every rename has associated costs to us, really) or rename to hide out. The price right now will probably prevent people from churning character names while allowing legitimate renames to move forward.

Does that make sense to you? :) -- Gaile 02:27, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Are you saying you have no way of keeping track of a character's history if the name is changed? That doesn't even make sense. It's still the same account. 99.151.149.75 04:33, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh, no, not at all! We can track identity, of course, it just takes a bit more time. If you think about it, you can see we can track across names by the fact that armor customized for a certain characters is still usable by that character even after a rename. So yes, the issue isn't with our team members tracking players. The issue is players being able to issue reports that are easily and quickly resolved and with players being able to identify people with whom they may have had issues in the past.

And again, the cost of the name changing service isn't solely predicated on potential support issues. As I mentioned, that is only one consideration. As with all things in business, there are many elements factored into every decision. -- Gaile 04:39, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

@ Rose - thank you! After previous... um... differences of view over on the other wiki, I was amazed and rather touched you were the first one here and "taking my side" so it were :-)

@ Gaile - thank you, too. I can understand the concern, but... it doesn't need to be uncapped. If Tolkano could change character names and account names (once every 30 days per name) then that'd solve the problem. I realize that'd also hit the cash flow, I'm just throwing ideas around.

If you'll forgive one more point... I know people with multiple accounts (largely for the Xunlai Tournament house) I fail to see how names changes for $15 is sufficiently different (although useful, if the same person is contstantly buying name changes, you know who to keep an eye on =]) --> A F K When Needed 10:41, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Hmm... I didn't connect your name with anyone I previously knew, just voiced my feelings on the matter. But I think I have a hunch about who you are. :) Rose Of Kali 18:33, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

There are costs associated with designing, implementing, and supporting new features. There is no plan to offer free character name changes. -- Gaile 21:08, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I've a Necromancer called Da Neck Row Man Sir. He once had Shing Jea armor. :P --> A F K When Needed 21:10, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Not that my 2 cents is worth anything but, I felt paying to change a character is a premium addition. Although I wish the character name change was good for more than one use, I have no problem with paying for it and would gladly pay again. As a matter of fact, I wish they'd offer more premium features in the store including new CE keys. I really don't feel this is any different from buying any other sort of expansion pack. 24.188.207.20 03:14, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Gaile has explained that.

The CE is ONLY for people who bought the game when it was new, and believed in ArenaNet enough to do so. Gaile went all the way to the top of the company and was told no, ArenaNet will NOT sell something which is exclusive to their first customers who had faith in them. And in many ways... depsite I simply hadn't heard of the game back then so obviously don't have a CE... I have to admit I admire them for it. --> A F K When Needed 11:12, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Rainbow Phoenix tameable by heroes - bug?

I'm hearing that if you have heroes with you and for the first time submit the rainbow phoenix to the menagerie, one will spawn in the area, and one hero is then able to tame it. Once you leave, this opportunity is lost forever. I don't know if this is the right place to post, but this sounds like a big bug to me, please make sure this is handled soon, and that any heroes who were able to tame one lose it or have it replaced with another pet. That, or make it available to heroes altogether. Thanks. Rose Of Kali 21:25, 24 April 2009 (UTC)

The team is aware of this issue. I do not know how they will resolve it, but yes, it definitely will be taken care of in a future build. Thanks, Rose. :) -- Gaile 02:28, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you. :) Rose Of Kali 04:35, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Fixed April 28th. -- Gaile 00:21, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Almost. I hear the ones that were already tamed by heroes due to the bug have not been removed yet. Rose Of Kali 03:02, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

NCsoft master account?

Hey there Gaile :) I, like many others, am still trying to get that storage upgrade :P. The problem the majority of people I've spoken to are having is well... none of us know what our account names are! :O Would be nice if we had some sort of function other than "Forgot your password?" which requires you to know your username anyway >.> -FireFox 15:19, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I agree that this would be very handy. I noticed it myself yesterday when working with the store. While it wouldn't be possible to "plumb" this for the current offer, I will make this suggestion so that in the future this is more easily addressed by players, thereby allowing Support to focus on other issues that really require their intervention. I'm sure that would be of benefit to everyone. -- Gaile 21:05, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

If you look under where you put your username on the forgot password page, there is a link to contact support. They will help you find your username. NCSoft and PlayNC have the best support I have ever dealt with. I guarantee you they will have your problem fixed in a day or less. Drogo Boffin 23:39, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

This is excellent advice and it worked for me. It was a painless process. Pkohler01 03:20, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I am simply appalled with the NCsoft support system. My recent experience like many others I have seen posted or have talked to in game, illustrates how very little NCsoft values its customers. I regret that this experience has led me to the decision to never again purchase an NCsoft product, this includes GW2. Although I have had customer interaction with ANET support without incident and find this to be singularly an issue that NCsoft needs to address. Its a shame that such a wonderful game should be marred by such a horrific customer service. Oldtimer

{{ri}I have to add my two cents to this also. i have submitted 2 tickets both said you will have a reply in 24 hours. the first ticket has not been responded to in 4 days and the second has now entered the 2nd day. both are the same problem that we have had for some time.

We need NcSoft to add a simple button to the game. once you log into your accout they could add a button that lets you email to your game account address the user name for the account as recorded by NcSoft on the servers they use. I know that they should be able to do that God knows if i wanted to spend 30$ on stuff for my game account they could find the correct account to put it on. why they can not find this information i have no clue. i have totaly given up on ever getting an answer from them and am sure that the answer will be something like "its all your fault for not recording bla bla bla..." on a personal level if this is the support we can expect from them for future games i may take a pass and just go to a differant game company.

Gaile you have been an awesome contact and i have enjoyed time both in game and via forums etc with you. lol i wish you were in charge of the support people at ncsoft then things would be getting addressed much quicker or at least we would know that you were trying with all your talent and not have to sweat this. Rockweaver 14:01, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Sorry for the double post but i have a 2nd dumb question. why do i need a differant log in for support than i do for my account at ncsoft? for support i need my email address but if i need anything else its accout based. why not the same for both this would fix the issue of trying to get our account names fixed.

also i tried to look up my first support ticket and can not find it..

Question Reference #090425-007409

Summary: i need help with my account and NC SOFT

Product Level 1: Guild Wars

Date Created: 04/25/2009 03:42 PM

Last Updated: 04/25/2009 03:42 PM

Status: Unresolved

Department: Game Support

i tried to use the link and could not log in it said "The login ID and password combination you provided is invalid or your account has been disabled. If you believe you may have mistyped either value, use the browser Back button to return to the login page and try again. If you believe you have forgotten your password, use the browser Back button to return to the login page and request that your password be emailed to you." yet this is the same email and password that "works" on my other support ticket i am beginning to think more than we know is broken at NcSoft. Rockweaver 14:19, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

NCSoft. Again.

→ moved from User Talk:Gaile Gray

I'm getting this error;
"The specified account is already linked to another NCsoft account. Please contact Customer Support if you require additional help".
I never MADE an NCSoft account ever. So how do I go about getting my stolen account name back?-- anguard 15:16, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

If you created an account in the Guild Wars In-Game Store (which is a must if you want to purchase from there) you automatically created an NCsoft account. --MageMontu 15:20, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Okay, thanks. But damn I don't remember the account. I'm sure it has a "forgot?" section.-- anguard 16:12, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

It doesn't. Damn.-- anguard 16:15, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

ive made an acount before and cant remember name or pass is there anyway to get back --Nick123 16:48, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Vanguard just click on forgot password. Below where you put in your account name it says contact support. Click that and they will help you. Drogo Boffin 16:52, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I had the same prob, to get my info I've posted a ticket. After confirming it's your account (asking for your personal details and a scan of the keys of each game on that account) they will send you your username. For the password, just use the username they give you with the 'Forgot Password' option. --MageMontu 16:54, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't see any account options. All I see is all the upgrades, and on the top is "Checkout, View Cart, Exit". That's it.-- anguard 16:58, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I've meant submit a ticket on the NCsoft website. Tell them you forgot the details of your NCsoft Master Account. Give them your personal details (name, surname, address, DoB) and give them a scan of your game keys. --MageMontu 17:03, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Guh. That's not worth the trouble. Everything about the site seems bent on being against the users. I went to the "Forget password?" on the website and it wants my account name. I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS. Therefore, no free storage pane for me. I'll manage.-- anguard 17:08, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Actually it's not as difficult as you think, and as I said before if you submit a ticket requesting your NCsoft Master Account details, they'll give you your username with no trouble, after confirming it's the rightful owner of the account that is. Only takes like 5 minutes or less to fill a ticket. --MageMontu 17:11, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I'd rather not bother.-- anguard 19:41, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Xiena's Hell... Continued

Well Gaile, I got the NC account I told you about active to the point to be able to play around with it. Now I'm logging into it, I go to the store, following the steps for the buy. and it comes back that my GW's account is already linked to another NC account. Now this is where the issue is. So I try to access the old NC account. I put in the Name, but since it was many years ago, I no longer know the password. So I ask for it to be sent. Well that fails because I fail the question part. To be honest even if it did work, the email account that pass may of been sent out to, may of also been updated over the years. *I'm not sure 100% about that. But I can't get a new pass to access the Master account now for this GW's account.. I sent all this to NC service, and still have heard nothing today from them... My thoughts at this time are.. My GW's account works, but will Never be able to be linked to NC ever again.. If the GW's gods where around, my simple question would be, Hey GW's God, can you just link this email to the dang' store please.. and poof ! have it done! But Life is not as easy as all that.. The real truth is the system needs to get off second party servers with the store automatically linked to the active accounts, to get rid of human errors that happen as time passes, Updates in email accounts, ect are a normal part of the Internet, as are the points of people moving from city to city, with the loss of needed codes/ info ect.. On a bigger note, I think what your starting to see here with others, as well as myself. Is a bigger Issue happening, One NC and GWs never thought about. With the older players having lost info due to all the store flip flopping through the years, Topped off with User inter phase, loss of info needed to gain access, I think the NC system needs to be wiped, and reconnected to the active GW's accounts *some how.. Again So sorry Gaile for tossing this in your direction.. Your a great Helper !, But I feel now that this is such a mess that I'll never get the accounts linked up again... Incident: 090424-003309 NC-support

Xiena UPDATE

GW's Service contact 02:00am (EST) David has informed me that my Issue is being moved to the NC Europe. They tell me to log into the NC site in Europe / and look under my stuff, and I should see it there now.. Not on the US server. Well, that's just not possible. After I log into the NC account I have active. ( I see my log in name up on top ) As soon as I hit the Support Tab, It logs me out! Then when I hit my stuff it prompts me for an ID again, and fails to work. I really hate how bad this site is set up.. It also try's to send me back to the US server.. Gaile if you know these ppl, lets just deal with it through email.. Unless you have a better answer, The account is owned by Christina & Michael in case that gives anyone more confusion. That's my update on this for now. I will keep you informed.. Xiena 06:12, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Xiena UPDATE 2

NC-Service contact 03:00 )EST) Shaun Replied with a request for Account Info.& Details I replied with all possible detail I could give. Also added, If this was not good enough, to reply & I would give a good time to call, and make direct contact.. Xiena 09:34, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Please look at the contact information I have provided above. You may telephone about this matter if you desire. Keep in mind, many people have issues every day, and they are resolved in a satisfactory manner. I would prefer not to have an hourly update on these pages. Let me know if you have not heard in 48 hours. That is not an unreasonable amount of time to give, give this is the weekend, we're in the midst of a major update and a new offering, and the team has already been in contact with you multiple times. -- Gaile 19:47, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Almost fixed 4/29

Well, The Super Support Team worked very hard with me, and so far we have half the problem fixed. I resubmitted a ticket Yesterday, Due to simple Password Issues. I know they are backed up with issues, and the new updates. I feel they will get this fixed in due time now. If not, I'll give them a ring. Thanks Gaile for all you've done so far ! Xiena 11:34, 29 April 2009 (UTC)

5/01 Master Account Info given, Password still no response from Support on return

ticket sent 04/28 and another sent 04/30. I have pretty much given up on ever having the account linked to the store now. It's becoming more trouble than it's worth. The UK Team of support told me to update through the NC log in, in the area of Mystuff, since they moved it to the UK, I found that very funny since I can't get into that account to do such an action. On the start of this I did make clear there where 2 issues, the Main account name, as well as the password. Well, seeing as I got a How did we do report request from NC, ( that I did not fill out) and had just sent a return request ticket for the pass. I'm guessing Support thought the issue closed.

oh well Gaile sorry I've upset you with my lack of understanding of wikki, or the badly set up NC site.. It's not your fault. nor was it my point to reflect myself in this manner, So sorry again. I won't take up anymore of your time, good day Xiena 02:58, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

It's no trouble at all, Xiena. I know the team will continue to work with you. One of the problems could be that they've received multiple tickets about this issue, and even if there are two issues, they will probably need to merge the tickets into one -- usually the first ticket -- and then let the player know that they've done so. If the player continues to respond to both tickets, it gets really muddled, so if you could please update on your first ticket, I think it will go more smoothly. I do hope this will soon be resolved. -- Gaile 02:07, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, I had been using the same ticket all along, till May 1st when I received 0 reply from NC Support for a number of days. That I gave up and launched my last attempt to GW's Support. I received a response from that ticket, [Incident: 090502-000491] telling me they where moving it to a lead support person, that was on May 3rd. I have yet to hear a word since. I am tracking this now on my page. This is my very last attempt, Thanks for your time and understanding Gaile !, Your a good soul !, The system is a bad soul ! Xiena 19:35, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) A thought: there should be an option in your GW game client to "unlink" that account from any NCsoft accounts (and delete the unlinked account as well), so that it can be re-linked to a new one. A GM confirmation or a waiting period before the change could be implemented to prevent this becoming a problem with stolen accounts. This may or may not be feasible, but would surely help people like Xiena. Another option is to retrieve your linked NC account info through your GW client. I myself forgot I had an NCsoft account until I saw the message that my GW account was already linked, but had the luck of figuring out what it was, since there are only a few choices I ever use for account names and passwords. Now only to update all that 3+ year old info... Rose Of Kali 20:12, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I have the same problem, I seemed to have linked it to a NCsoft account before but can't remember my account name :/ I do hope they can do something about this before this expires InfestedHydralisk 11:46, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I don't even remember what email address i used.QQ.--207.172.193.204 19:02, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

This is really going to work out, guys. I appreciate you want the free storage panel right away, but the offer runs for a month and more beyong today. :) Please give Support time to respond -- they're handling many tickets, but they're handling them quickly and they will get to yours as soon as they are able.

There is no option to unlink your account, and that is not planned. The Support Team can and will help you with your credentials. -- Gaile 19:47, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Account Ban-NCsoft store

Hi Gaile, I tried to take advantage of the new makeover option yesterday and when I woke up this morning my account had been perma banned for payment fraud. My support ticket #090425-005192. Can you please look into this for me so that I don't have to miss the entire event. I would appreciate any help you give me. Thank you.

Carolyn Brust --75.72.218.34 16:30, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

I am sorry, but I do not have the tools to review credit card issues and I would not be able to assist you. Clearly you've submitted a ticket to the proper team members who will assist you, so please continue to work with Support to address this issue. -- Gaile 21:03, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for your answer Gaile, Cari is soooo upset about this. -- Wyn 21:39, 25 April 2009 (UTC)

This happened to me when I added an EOTN key through the store to one of my accounts. I called the NCSoft support phone number on their website and they had it resolved in a matter of minutes. I thought maybe I had typoed my card number or something but, they said I hadn't when I confirmed my card number. It was an odd thing but, they took resolving it for me very seriously. I think I was locked out of my account for a total of 90 minutes. Pkohler01 03:19, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I said it above but I will say it again NCSoft has the best customer support I have ever dealt with. Anybody that says they dont care about their players has never actually talked to anybody that works for NCSoft or Anet. Drogo Boffin 03:29, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

i lol'd hard drogo -Auron 03:37, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Good for you Bro or Brah, I hope you feel better. Drogo Boffin 03:42, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Carolyn -- I just had dinner with some of the Support Team members, and they told me a very, very tiny number of players were hit with a "payment fraud" issue. Looking at your ticket, I do not think you have yet had a response. I will try to expedite this for you. -- Gaile 04:31, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Carolyn -- Can you please confirm that your account has been reinstated and that all is well? -- Gaile 22:28, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for fixing this for me, I appreciate your helping me get this all taken care of. All fixed now. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Carolyn (talk • contribs) at 18:31, 5 May 2009 (UTC).

UP DATE or gift for leeching

"The one thing that I had hope for was too see something done about the leeching prob" and yes the update did something there is now even more of it going on with the Zan quest wen if ever will a/net do something about this prob that benerfits the players and not the leechers?

There is no perfect fix for this. Anet is aware of this issue all the time, and are doing their best to keep it down, but I don't think it's technically possible to eradicate it entirely. Rose Of Kali 22:33, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm really sorry, but I don't know how to respond, or won't know until I know where what quote is from.

Every week, I bring up three problems I believe relate to this issue: leeching and botting in Jade Quarry, Fort Aspenwood, Alliance Battles, and other key areas as well as the problems related to having a less-than-robust /report system. I mention that at present, good players who want to help, and who use /report, may be penalized, and the person who deserves to be blocked may not get a single mark because of the system that we have in place. We are keenly aware of this problem -- no denial, no "brush under the carpet." I cannot say exactly when this will be addressed, but I can tell you that the whole team knows of the problems that players are experiencing, and all of us are committed to improving both how we address players who exploit or abuse the system as well as the way we support those who help us by reporting. -- Gaile 02:04, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

I say just give those who've received the Dishonor hex more than a certain number of times a very loooooong time out. Then maybe I'll be able to win in JQ. Le sigh. :D --★KOKUOU★ 08:31, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, I'm glad you're considering a way to improve the anti-leech system, but I'm not sure if you're aware that Alliance Battles are probably one of the least afflicted arenas in PvP. The two that suffer the most are probably Fort Aspenwood and the Jade Quarry, to the point that many players have given up on playing at those arenas entirely because of how bad the leeching is. I understand you're busy, I just wanted to point out that AB isn't the only place where leeches gather. --Jette 09:34, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Sorry, Jette -- you're absolutely right! I used AB incorrectly: I meant to say JQ/FA! I will amend my post, and thanks for pointing that out. -- Gaile 20:41, 29 April 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, has the support team tried salt? I here that gets rid of leeches fairly quickly.  ;) --Shadowphoenix 15:45, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

Another common practice for removing leeches is to apply a hot coal to them... a new method must be devised however when a coal of sufficient size would be more harmful to the person than to the leech >< MrPaladin 16:03, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

I use salt on the horrendous, frighteningly huge Pacific Northwest slugs that infest this area of the world. But I had forgotten about the application of salt to remove leeches. (Shame on me: The African Queen -- that classic movie -- has a great leech/salt scene!) Anyway, I will be sure to tell the Support Team about this possible use. Also, Marketing may be interested. You never know, perhaps we can get some sort of cross promotion with Morton Salt. Maybe someday you'll hear, "When it rains, it pours... and you can hear the cries of dissolving leeches all over Tyria."  ;) -- Gaile 02:24, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

How Legal is My Macro?

Hi Gaile, I recently received my new mouse, the Microsoft SIDEWINDER X5, and its got 2 programmable buttons that I can set up macros for. So I set up the Maintain Shadow Form chain and another to goto Budger to get bombs then drop 26 of them and to wait inbetween getting the bomb and dropping it. All I do is press a button and it does both of those things, I still have to run around and get aggro and stuff, but it is legal to do that? or am I breaching a rule? A little light would go a long way! Thanks! -Stu DarthD 07:57, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I recommend that you stop doing it until you get a response to be safe. -- Gordon Ecker (talk) 08:11, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

See these responses to similar questions: Macros and G15 Keyboard. (Short version: ANet doesn't condone macros (risk of malware) and in any case would never be able to bless any specific macro (keep bot-makers guessing).) Your example also sounds like it gives your characters a significant advantage over other players' chars, something specifically addressed in the EULA (see section 7). Tennessee Ernie Ford 09:25, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I have it set up so it doesn't drop 26 at once, but in sequence like you would spamming space+b(my drop item button), I guess you could say its mimicking a user doing it, I mean its not like I just go off and sit watching tv while my character runs ins and outs of this area farming these without me there, I manually control everything besides from casting sf and dropping bombs124.178.139.111 17:33, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

Didn't log in sorry DarthD 17:39, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

It is still an advantage, and a big one. If you do it manually, you have the risk of casting shadowform too late, or forgetting the glyph, or whatever, and the macro removes that possibility completely. The Budger clicking is not as "offensive" but still gives you the advantage of just watching it happen, instead of bashing on your keyboard to make it happen manually and getting calluses and carpal tunnel (/joke). Having keyboard/mouse button shortcuts to certain game functions from the Control menu is perfectly fine, but setting up elaborate macros of combinations of these shortcuts is not, in my mind at least. You get an advantage over anyone who does not have a macro-capable mouse. This is basically small-scale wanna-be botting: you do part of the work, while the macro does the rest for you. A bot is nothing more than a very elaborate macro that does not require human input beyond logging in, going to the right town, and hitting "Start." So far you only got answers from other players, but I would advise you to not use it until you get an official answer from Gaile, which will likely be the same as ours: don't. Rose Of Kali 22:33, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

I guess you could say its mimicking a user doing it there's already a red flag for you. You basically are saying that something other than you is doing things for you. That's bad. Rose Of Kali 22:42, 26 April 2009 (UTC)

With sf, you have to time when to press the macro, is what I've found, and if you don't do it exactly when it recharges then it drops, and me being a human, I can only hit that on rare occasions, I've stopped using these macros, but I would like an official response from Gaile.124.178.139.111 02:35, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

IGN: Ranger At SoulDarthD 03:01, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

According to the EULA...

"You agree not to use any hardware or software, including but not limited to third party tools, or any other method of support which may in any way influence or advantage your use of the Service which is not authorized by NC Interactive, including but not limited to the use of 'bots' and/or any other method by which the Service may be played automatically without human input."

So according to this, using a mouse + keyboard is not permitted due to giving players advantages over those who don't use one or the other (You apparently are not aloud to assume that a EULA means something, so there can not be a common sense factor to these things. If the side that wrote it starts making assumptions on it then you can put forth your own as well). You also can't use any hardware or software that is not authorized by NC Interactive, I have sent in a couple of support tickets to see if some documentation about these items exist. I have not found anything anywhere on NC Soft related sites, it's been 3 days since I sent in my support tickets to ascertain whether this information exists or not. If it doesn't or at least is not free to the public you are free to use anything not directly specified in the Guild Wars EULA. If it does exist then your mouse and/or keyboard type could be grounds for banning you. When I get a reply from support I'll post what they say here. If it turns out that NC Interactive does not have documentation for what is not authorized people could have potentially been banned for not breaking any agreement. As for macro's, they define input as being done by humans. If you push your macro button that's human input, and since their unfair advantage is so poorly defined that people using a mouse and keyboard fall under it you can argue hypocrisy if you get banned and the rest of the guild wars community doesn't.~>Sins WDB 18:15, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, they also DO condone sync entering, so I doubt that significant advantage argument holds much weight. Surely anyone would agree that abusing sync entering gives players an unfair advantage over others. It's an exploit of the current RA entering code and it should be punishable under your quote from the EULA/CoC. But Anet does nothing. Also, Vent is a third party tool used to give PvP teams an edge, and that edge is huge vs. teams with no voice communication. It would be utterly ridiculous to ban its use. 68.51.95.206 18:27, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

Let's be more accurate: We do not "condone" synchronized entry into missions. We do not currently take action on the accounts of those who do it; at the present time, it is allowed as a "permitted strategy." I would say there is a difference between not taking action against something and actively condoning its use. There is a tremendous difference between counting down to enter a map and using hardware that auto-plays the game, or gives someone the ability to, say, AFK while leveling.

I do not think that the programming mentioned in this thread is permissible, but I could be mistaken. I will verify that. -- Gaile 04:39, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

The kind of macro he's talking about does not let you AFK. It isn't botting, it's using your computer to time and execute button presses for you so you don't have to time them/press them yourself. The complexity of a macro varies. For example, say you want to make it so you only have to hit one button instead of three buttons for you to maintain Shadow Form. You could program your macro to hit the button 1, 2, and 3 successively thus activating skill slots 1, 2, and 3, all with only one button press. You can take this concept further and make the macro repeat itself right when Shadow Form is about to run out. The player would still have to press other buttons himself, like wasd for positioning and mouse clicks or tab/c space for targeting, not to mention any unmacro'd skills. So I guess the question is where is the line drawn between illegal botting and a simple macro that fires off 3 button presses with 1 button press? 68.51.95.206 06:55, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

Here [2] is my response from support. I asked NC Soft initially, but it seems my ticket was forwarded to the Guild Wars support team. I have asked for specification of automated software and hardware as it is not clearly mentioned in the EULA. It looks like they might not have the correct documentation for these things, even still they could just fall back on the 3 times they mention "we can void the term agreement at anytime."~>Sins WDB 22:20, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

I squeezed for everything I could [3]. Basically they don't care if you use macros as long as you are at your computer and the macro sequence isn't capable of doing much without other input from the user.~>Sins WDB 22:57, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

Is there an actually answer to this question, as in a straight NO or a straight YES, not the whole, its okay if it doesn't break the EULA which can misunderstood, and even then it's down to watch the employees think is right, blah blah blah. DarthD 09:12, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Well imo the keyword is "human interaction" (and not once in 24h ;) ). Come on how big can the advantage be for someone using a macro like this. Then also ppl with fast reflexes can't play, cuz they will have an advantage to other people as well. He still has to be there, he still has to push the buttons and move. Just a few buttons less. It wouldn't bother me if all the people in the world would use this and I couldn't. --Pepper - Dewdrop talk 09:25, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Please accept my apologies for the delay in responding to this. It has indeed been a long while! What I did was present to the Live Team my thoughts on the matter, asking them for approval, modification, or rejection of the statements. Fortunately for all of us, they've approved the following:

• PvE Gamplay: As long as you are at your computer and are actively playing the game, we’re ok with what you’re doing. As soon as the game plays itself – as soon as you can walk away and the computer continues to play – you’re in breach of the Rules of Conduct and you are subject to account sanctions, which can involve an account suspension or an account termination.

• PvP Gameplay: The use of macros that give an advantage in competitive play is strictly prohibited and if it is reported and/or detected, we will research the activity and take the appropriate action on the account, which can affect both tournament eligibility and the account holder’s ability to continue to play Guild Wars, either with a temporary suspension or an account termination.

I hope that answers the questions that you have. I'm not able to give detailed responses to the various scenarios or systems or programs, but I think the information provided should enable you to figure out the official position in the various usages that were initially mentioned. -- Gaile 21:45, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

"The use of macros that give an advantage." Doesn't that tell people macros that let people be lazy are okay? Since, a player who would normally perform a sequence of actions can just set it to a single button. No competitive edge is gained as it is simply player habit being made a bit more concise, in fact a macro could result in a loss of competitive edge as a sequence that was desired may change quickly to something else. Just playing devil's advocate by pointing out the loose ends.~>Sins WDB 04:02, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Thank You gaile, it has to some extent answer my questions and I know it answered a few for my guildies. Even though it isn't detailed on what we can and cannot do, it is still a rough guide, which is still good. And thank your for your commitment to finding out the answer. Cheers. Stu 15:02, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Radical yet Simple

Hi Gaile I’m sorry to dump this on but I like many others have come to you for long time now to voice our concerns about the problem of leeching in the game and you have always taken on board what we had to say and passed it on to the team. All we ever got back from them was fine words ie we understand/we are looking into it and so on. With the April update I had hoped we would see something no matter how small get done to elevate the problem but alas no. What we got is the Zaishen Combat something that rewards lechers’ even more now not only can they leech alliance and Balthazar(+ get bonus amounts)but now they can also leech Zaishen coins and gold to. So I have come up with a radical yet simple idea to end at least 90% of the leeching just let the leechers submit a support ticket asking to have their alliance title maxed out and give them as much Balthazar faction Zaishen keys and coins as they want. So they will have no need to leech and the people that want to play the game as it is meant can get on and do so.

True Arrow San

And... everyone will do this to get their titles, and then go play the game without feeling like they have to AB/TA/etc, only when they want to. Great idea... How about cartographer unlock maps from Sekai the Mapmaker for 100g per zone? And free vanquisher credits for killing a boss in HM? Or account-wide guardian? Or free zcoins and zkeys when you /beg? Rose Of Kali 19:05, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm down with that --Drakora 19:16, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

When I made this post I did not think anyone would take it as anything other than my light-hearted attempt to get across my frustration at the problem of leeching in the game. And the fact that that with the introduction of the Zaishen Combat the problem as just got bigger. From almost the day Factions went on sale we have had a problem with leeching and nothing as ever got done about it apart from you can now get band for reporting leechers. Also I must apologise Rose Of Kali I appear to have mist the post about your appointment as PA to Gaile and I would modestly suggest you look at how Gaile replies to post from players she is always understanding considerate and polite no matter how much people are flaming her in fact she is always the Lady

True Arrow San once more sorry for dumping this on you Gaile True Arrow San

I guess sarcasm does not work on the Internet. :( Rose Of Kali 02:11, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

rofl 99.144.228.152 02:16, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Jaha Rats...*should have waited for the updates to end and get automatic-Gwamm instead of playing my bu..ehind off. But then again...I did see every Nook and Cranny in all the campaigns and still don't know everything they dreamed up and made virtual. And am still enjoying GW BIG TIME.* --Silverleaf Don't assume, Know! 10:13, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) *insert JOKE ALERT warning, so this isn't taking out of context: "We will continue to examine ways to give everyone all titles at Level 1 and end anyone's need to expend effort." *end JOKE ALERT*

And yes, to confirm, I'm just joining in the joking. :) -- Gaile 04:47, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Wow, that joke alert has to be the next best thing to actually causing the keyboards of people who don't get it to emit high voltage current ;). --Star Weaver 19:12, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Oh yes, Gaile! *moans* Can't wait to see the results! Maybe now I won't have to spend 750 hours on my new ranger to get that "gay" bird! Rose Of Kali 21:12, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

No, it's a stupid idea because, well, you still have to take the time to log into the bloomin' game! We need to automate that even more! ;) -- Gaile 01:39, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Update: Free Pane Promotion Issues

Here's the official word on the free pane promotion from the ArenaNet and NCsoft Marketing Teams: "The NCsoft website is experiencing unusually high traffic. Due to site performance issues we ask that players please try redeeming their storage later in the week. Players have until May 31 to redeem, so there's plenty of time! We apologize for any inconvenience." Thanks! -- Gaile 01:40, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

In the meantime, I will do homework as I wait for support to get my ticket. I'm on a long, long list of people who made a playNC account who cant get their stupid keys to add into the account and suspect they already have one and have no knowledge of it. >.>" I'm not complaining though, as long as I eventually get it. Katherinezoltin 13:02, 27 April 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) A awful lot of people are not aware that they have an NCsoft Master Account. But if you've ever shopped in either the NCsoft Store, the PlayNC store, or the In-Game store, you do have such an account.

If you find you cannot remember your account name, then of course you can't recover your password. But why not save yourself some time? Here is what Support will need to know from you:

• Your name
• Your game account name(s)
• Your address
• Your birth date
• Your access keys (if you have any keys, which would be super helpful)
• The last four digits of the credit card(s) that you used for NCsoft Store or Guild Wars In-Game Store purchases
• The air-speed velocity of an unburdened swallow. European please. (Ok, we really don't need that last bit. :D )

Also, I always suggest this for fastest servicer: Please submit your ticket using the email account that is your game user name, if at all possible. In other words, if you have four or five email accounts, and you still have access to the email account that you used as your game user name, please send from that account.

Oh and lastly, I want to say that all this information isn’t all required in order for Support to help a player. But the more of these things that folks can send at the beginning, the more easily we can address their issues. All information is kept confidential so there are no worries about sharing this with the team in a support ticket.

With this info, you will get the fastest service possible. The team is putting in a lot of overtime to get these resolved just as quickly they can! -- Gaile 05:12, 28 April 2009 (UTC)

Information for Multiple Game Owners

If you have more than one game account on your NCsoft Master Account, you should know the steps to get your free panel on each and every game account you own:

1. Go to the [promotion page]
2. Log into your NCsoft Master Account
3. Select one game account
4. Follow the remainder of the steps to get the free panel
5. Then – fully log out of the NCsoft Master Account and close the browser
6. To get the free panel on another Guild Wars account, do a fresh log on to your NCsoft Master Account, select the second account, and move through the process again

Or, to put it more briefly, the player should log off NCsoft, reopen the browser, and log back onto the NCsoft Master Account for each game account, instead of trying to add all free panels in a single session or using "back" on the browser. -- Gaile 01:25, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

"But if you've ever shopped in either the NCsoft Store, the PlayNC store, or the In-Game store, you do have such an account." Huh? I didn't realise that.

Perhaps when we are on our accounts and go to the Store it should have our account name or something (I don't remember filling out such account information when I made a purchase, but my memory sucks), cos this just seems like a massive mess that could have been avoided. 000.00.00.00 01:30, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

It would be real nice to have the name auto-populate the browser, and some OS (OSes? OS's, OSsssss? ;) ) allow that and you can set your personal computer to do so. We don't reveal the account name as a point of security. And the issue with retrieval is that some people use bogus info, or they have a dozen email addresses they can't keep straight, or they use an account name instead of an email address (which is preferred, actually) and forget they were FredTheBear as their account name. All of that or any of that means they need help from Support to learn their account information.

We're not just handing out the account name and password, of course, but if we can get enough proof to be sure that the person who is writing is the owner of the account, we will provide the information necessary to access the NCsoft Master Account and from there, getting the free panel is simple. :) -- Gaile 01:38, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Of course, I understand ^_^ I bet if I my(peoples) account(s) had the name when I(they) look in the store through through Guild Wars it'd jog my(their) memory maybe. I have too many user names and passwords :P That's it, everything is to going to 000 and abc123... well... maybe not :P 000.00.00.00 01:41, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Just for reference, I got the panel one three game accounts on my single master account without having to log out of the site. Although, only one of those accounts was previously attached to the master account, so maybe that had something to do with it.--Pyron Sy 01:49, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

I had some fits and starts in trying to get my panels over the couple of days. But hey, it was a chance to test things and get out some info that might help others, so I'm feeling all virtuous about it now. ;) -- Gaile 02:00, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Important Note for Those Submitting Tickets

If you are experiencing a game or account issue, that last thing you want to do is to delay getting a response. And yet, many players do just that by submitting multiple tickets, or by sending from an email account that takes time to verify. Here are two tips for you:

• Multiple Tickets: If you have a support issue, please do not file multiple tickets. Multiple tickets on the same issue must be merged into a single ticket. That process takes time, meaning everyone hears back less quickly, including you!

• Email Address: If at all possible please submit your ticket using the email account that is already associated with your game account. If your user name is [name]@Hotmail.com, but you also have email accounts with Yahoo, Gmail, your ISP, or others, please try to send from the email that's already your game user name or that is the contact email address on your NCsoft Master Account. (If you cannot send from that email address, no problem -- just do so if you can.)

With your attention to these two suggestions, the teams will be able to help you more quickly and efficiently. Thanks! -- Gaile 00:44, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

I posted this note in a separate thread below, and it does apply to any support issue, not just those related to the free storage pane promotion. I'm going to also post the tips here, though, so it's offered in one tidy set, as well. -- Gaile 02:26, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

So, is it time to panic yet? Support is clearly overwhelmed, since they're stalling, and the month is about to end. Backsword 20:37, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

The promotion was extended to June 30. ¬ Wizårdbõÿ777(talk) 23:01, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

Promotion Extended

Players now have until June 30, 2009, to claim their free 4th Anniversary Storage Pane. Please see the promotion page for more info. -- Gaile 21:55, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Final Update

Although the 4th Anniversary Free Storage Pane Promotion ended on June 30, 2009, I wanted to let you know that any players who reported a support issue concerning this promotion as of June 30th will continue to be served by the Support Team. Those who qualified to receive the free storage pane will be assisted in receiving it. -- Gaile 16:16, 14 July 2009 (UTC)

Info for those Still Struggling with getting free storage

I have been fighting for a while with my PlayNC account, trying to make it accept my GW account, and I thought I would try something interesting. I decided to watch it as I enter in my password and email, making sure that there wasn't a weird character limit. Sure enough, with my password there was! Seems 16 characters is too much for PlayNC's site. So, I changed my password and tried again and sure enough, I have extra storage. ^^ So, if ANYONE is having link problems, please try to make sure you don't have a super long password. I think the limit is around 14 characters, so please double check. I told the support people who were helping me about this, it should help them solve a few of their cases. And, something Gaile might want to do, have PlayNC change their requirements for GW passwords up to the max that GW has for passwords. Keeping the same character length will stop more issues in the future, at least in my opinion. Katherinezoltin 08:32, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Excellent input, Katherine! Folks -- check your password length!

In reading your recommendations, though, I want to strongly encourage people to have totally different passwords for their game and their NCsoft Master Account. So having a different password length in the two systems could actually encourage that difference, which in my opinion is a positive thing. Anything that keeps accounts more secure sounds good to me! -- Gaile 19:21, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you, Katherine! Thank you, Katherine! Thank you, Katherine! It turns out this is what was preventing me from adding my other accounts to PlayNC, because my GW passwords are normally 16 chars long. Changing them to 12 chars long worked. And I've been pulling my hair out for over a week. Knowing that I've been entering the correct account details, but having the NCsoft site reject the account link. Anon-e-mouse 03:43, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

No problem, but Gaile, I ment that when you enter in your *GW password* for *linking*, the NCsoft site's max length and GW's max length requirements aren't the same. NCsoft is shorter. I say NCsoft should extend on their end, as it would be easier. And no problem, I figure that this place would be where the most traffic would be regarding this issue. I know people who are frusterated and pulling out their hair because they are in line for eternity to get what they see as little feedback. I know they seemingly confused my issue several times. >.>" Katherinezoltin 08:33, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

This post makes me nostalgic for the old days, or the old days that I imagine. Years ago, it seems we got a little more help. "Your password is incorrect, please try again." or "You are trying to set up your account with a password that exceeds the allowed number of characters; please choose one between X and Y." If I adorn my mind's eye with rose-coloured glasses, I might "recall" a truly gentle system, one that said, "Oh, sorry! That's not quite the right password, but you're only off by a few letters, so keep trying!" (Ok, I'm just kidding about that one. ;) )

Nowadays we get "You have failed. Your user name, password, hair color, clothing style, or facial expression may or may not be correct. Please try again. The electroshock penalties will begin in 15 seconds." :D :D -- Gaile 02:17, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Tell them to start giving less vague exceptions (error messages in C++)! At least mine are funny when I write them. "OMG! Your passwords totally doesn't match! Can't you copy and paste?" ^^" Katherinezoltin 20:08, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

Somewhat amusing error messages: OK. Error messages that are both ungramattical and insulting and would make me want to stab my monitor in hopes of causing whoever wrote it's computer to asplode (or, really: grumble and complain ;)): not OK. --Star Weaver 22:08, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Lack of sense of humor and too much stress to be relieved on inanimate objects: not OK. ;) Rose Of Kali 23:18, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Normally I use those type of messages in personal programs, ie, ones that will never see the light of day except when I drag them out. I wouldn't normally insult someone, atm I just wasn't very creative at examples. I'm out of school for the semester now so maybe I will get some creativity back, didn't mean to insult anyone. >.>" Katherinezoltin 20:08, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for update guys, I had this problem 8 months back when I attempted to purchase the bonus skill packs. I called support because I could not get into my PlayNC account. The guy I talked to was clueless on how to help with the error message, I also figured this out 3 months later after a few hours of intense sessions. Crazy enough, I never bothered to claim the free storage panel or go back again for the core skill pack because the support for online purchasing is non-existent and I do well enough to remember my online banking password. Maybe I can hack back into my account now that I remember how I did it last time with shear luck. User:Thoromire Titanis 10:04, 27 July 2009 (EST)

Reporting In-Game Account Buyers

Hi Gaile, I hope I'm posting in right place, please move if not. I was wondering what is the right option from the report menu for people who offer 100k-900k for various game keys and accounts, including buddy/trial keys, and accounts with 4+ lvl 20 chars (some of the ads I've seen, obviously targeting to steal accounts). So far I've used the botting box, if I'm successful. The big problem is that they swap districs faster than you can type /report botnamedude, and avoid detection. Is botting the correct option? And if so, can it be made so that the target does not need to be in your district to submit a botting report? Or possibly make a new box just for this kind of thing, and make it district independend? I don't know what the best way would be, but I think players would be of tremendous help to your team with reporting these guys and cutting their profits much sooner, hopefully discouraging some of them from trying again due to low profits. The faster they get reported and banned, the less damage they do, and the less money they make. But as it is now, there is no viable way to report them. I know you are all keenly aware of the situation, but I'm just wondering if you guys are thinking about any alternatives to the current reporting system, which flat out does not work in this situation? Thanks. Rose Of Kali 07:34, 29 April 2009 (UTC)

I'd think Spamming is better, since it points whoever looks at these reports directly at the chat log. And yeah, the /report function should be updated so that you have a minute or so to report people that left the district, because right now you have to wait for them to come back and report quickly, or go out of your way to submit a support ticket. — Poki#3 12:19, 29 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, I assumed the guy was a bot because the message was always the same, and he seemed to hop districts at regular intervals, but you may be right about pointing to the chat log. I think I use both interchangeably sometimes, as I'm never really sure which one is right. Regardless, I'm sure they'll figure out what the problem is just looking at his activity before the report. I'd still like to see a separate function for them, but oh well. I just sat there spamming /report badguy repeatedly until he came back around and I caught him. Rose Of Kali 17:22, 29 April 2009 (UTC)

I recommend that you use "spamming" as the reason when you report in-game account buyers or sellers. I have asked the team to consider allowing cross-district reporting, but there's no word yet on whether that will be coming in the future. Thanks for your help in getting the advertisers out of the game! :) -- Gaile 20:29, 29 April 2009 (UTC)

Feel free to report them at Botwatch. – Barinthus 16:06, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

Ooh, very nice, didn't know about this. TY Rose Of Kali 19:32, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

Instead of cross-district reporting, might it be easier to limit the speed at which one can change districts? In other words, require that your avatar has to stay in the selected district for 30 seconds, or a minute. Or limit the number of district changes in a certain amount of time. Either one, or a combination of the two (two changes, then a time limit) would slightly inconvenience real people, if you're trying to meet up with friends in a busy district, but make reporting easier, and slow down the bots. Of course, I have no idea which of these things (if any) is possible to implement or easier to program. :) Freedom Bound 12:00, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Ehm that would really suck^^ I would get pissed if i get (U have 30sec until you can leave this district, so that if people want to report you they have plenty of time :>) 80.203.134.22 18:48, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

I have to admit, I'm not a fan of the delay-to-leave system. Let's see how the Live Team feels about this matter and what they feel the best solution will be. We certainly want our /report system to be a robust and effective as possible. -- Gaile 02:44, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Just make /report work on any character in the game, online and offline, including NPCs. 99.142.23.15 06:21, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Found one of those tonight when going to open the Zchest. He's now the subject of a support ticket...*grins evily* I love ruining the day of those who do seriously anti EULA things. ^^ Katherinezoltin 07:46, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Another Banned Account Apparently for Botting

Hi, I am writing this (and being my first GWWiki post, hope it works) for a good friend of mine who in game has the name "Miss Gags", he doesn't have access so I am doing this for him. he was banned on the 15th April for boting and has since been trying to get his account back (support ref# : 090415-002324). He is adamant he has not used a bot, just been doing speed clears and some offline faction farming in Amatz Basin (the heroes do the work, you just start the mission and flag them every 13 mins). He is so close to GWAMM title and has put alot of effort into that account. Support are just closing all requests now without responses. Please can you have a look and try and get them to look again. We all want him back in the guild, I have played with him for 3 years so he is a good friend. Thanks for your time. Taffy - 02:22, April 30, 2009

I am moving this newer post into chronological order. New posts go at the bottom of the page. Thanks for understanding.

Secondly, anyone has access to the Guild Wars Wiki, so I'm not sure why your friend is not posting here himself. I have looked at the ticket and learned that the team has reviewed the situation at least twice already. Apparently there were very few hours over several days when your friend wasn't "playing" the game. Even if he was afking, I guess I don't see how it would be possible to flag and re-flag heroes for so long (it does require attention many times an hours) without some breaks for sleep, food, etc. So I will inquire about the matter, but it remains to be seen if this will be settled any differently. -- Gaile 02:16, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Oops sorry Gaile, thought newest was at the top but should have looked closer, thanks for looking into this. He hasn't posted here as he has virtually given up trying to get his account back (been several weeks) but I'm not letting him give up so easily :)

I'll pass this info on and get back to you (or get him to write here...). Just wondering why would support not let us know these reasons? They refused to give any info into why he was banned. Now he can try and defend himself knowing why you thought he was using a bot. OK, I understand if you told everyone why they were banned then they would know what they have to work around next time, but it's very difficult to put forward a case if you do not know the reasons. Anyway, thanks and we will get back to you. Taffy 07:43, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

OK, had a chat with, most of his reasons are personal so not sure how much I should write here. Anyway, basically he is unemployed on medical grounds, is an insomniac, has strange eating habits, trouble walking so doesn't go out much and is generally addicted to GW titles at the moment. I could say more, but don't really want to on a public page. I've written this so you can, in his words, "see what a pathetic person I am and why I play GW so much". :)

I hope you can help him Gaile and we both appreciate you looking into it. Thanks very much. Taffy 11:49, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

i'm also interested in this topic as i often play for sometimes 20+ hours at a clip only leaving the computer long enough to answer the call of natureFate1985 15:16, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

So am I. There have been plenty of times when I ran chests for 20+ hours or went on marathons lasting 2 days. Pkohler01 00:51, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

I hope that I did not give a misimpression. I did not mean to suggest "Someone played too many hours a day and we banned him." What I was saying in this particular situation was, "The player in question met enough of the parameters for botting to be flagged as a possible bot. One of those parameters is the time spent in the game. Combined with a large number of positives in the 20+ bot parameters, he was blocked."

Consider the comment that he was playing AFK and flagging heroes every few minutes. What I was pointing out -- in a generic sense -- is that when I see that sort of activity, but I see it happening for massive number of hours every day, I have to wonder: "Is it playing? Or is it botting?"

Finally, some of the personal information he gave you and the information that he provided in the ticket are in direct conflict. I can only say that the person who was blocked has contacted the team again, but because he provided no new information, the ticket was not given a third review. And because of the discrepancies in the details, I don't want to try to assist through indirect contact, much as I appreciate your kind intentions on his behalf. Thanks -- Gaile 19:39, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

OK, thanks for taking the time to look into it Gaile. I've been looking through his support request (I asked for all info before contacting you). I see there he says he is afk while he "is at Work". I assume that is probably the discrepancy you mention. No idea what he means by this I will have to ask him. Fair enough if you do not want to be involved any more, but can you answer one more question, if we put in another support request on that account with more info will it be read? Or just closed without even looking at it?

Again thanks for all your help and time. Taffy 17:16, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Opening new tickets only delays the process, as they have to take the time to merge them anyway. You can submit the additional info with the existing ticket number for additional consideration. But if it is true that he is "afk while at work" with this thing running, it's nothing short of botting, and there is no reconsideration for those... Rose Of Kali 19:38, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Finally found out, afk while working basically means working on the computer NEXT to the one playing GW. So that explains that. Anyway I have told him to update the support request and we will hope that this can sort it all out. Although he has since found loads of other things to do with his time... I don't think he is coming back anyway now, it's quite upsetting :( Taffy 13:29, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

It's a good thing when people get a life. :P I realize that I'm totally addicted to GW, but I can't do anything about it (and don't really want to, at the moment, read my wikia userpage if you want to know why). Rose Of Kali 21:34, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) These was no response from the player to the April 23 request for more information. Due to that, I am going to archive this post. -- Gaile 21:57, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

New Rainbow Phoenix BUG?

I know people have reported heros can charm the rainbow phoenix and we are told that it is a bug. Is this as I blieve a bug also today I was able to charm the rainbow phoenix with a char that as no tittles.--Kaiaba 11:18, 30 April 2009 (UTC) Ment to also say if this is a bug I will return it to the ZM True Arrow San =--Kaiaba 11:33, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

That is not a bug, it is an intended feature. Once you unlock the phoenix, you can charm it with any character on that account, just not heroes. Rose Of Kali 19:33, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

They made HoM account-wide so it's kind of a natural course for the bird to be so as well.~>Sins WDB 21:30, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

Well, it still only appears in the HoM of my title character, not the others, would be nice if I got to see it on the other chars in the account-view. Rose Of Kali 22:34, 30 April 2009 (UTC)

Feeling Ignored

Account Issue

Gaile, I have a created NC Master Account and two separate Game Accounts - one is my major account with over 20 character slots and all campaigns + unlock packages; the other account is a very much less used account but nevertheless uses 3 of the Campaigns purchased separately. I have previously registered the second, lesser game account on the NCsoft Master Account but was never able to add the primary/main game account. This did not seem to have any great importance but the new Free Xunlai Pane upgrade has put this need back to being something desirable.

Like many people, when I came to link and add my primary game account I was getting the message that my primary game account was already registered with another NCsoft Master Account. I raised a Support Help Request (Incident: 090424-001058) on 24 April to flag up my issue and see if my primary game account could now be merged into my NCsoft Master Account or at least have the account made available to me to get my free Xunlai Pane for that primary game account. I have responded to Supports response with all details required by them (name, keys, postal address, uniqueIDs etc. and as many of the Access keys and in-game store activation codes as possible (certainly enough to show that I have spent a fortune on GuildWars!)). The last I heard from Support was that the issue was being escalated to Senior Support. This was on 27 April. I have not received any follow-up or had any update to say that the matter is being investigated and feel somewhat cut adrift and ignored by NCsoft Support. Is there any chance you could look into the Ticket and see if any progress IS being made or whether I need to create a new ticket or whatever. Your help would be very much appreciated. Bearz 14:18, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

I have this issue too, in fact too many people have this issue. We still have 4 weeks to get this resolved before we're just SoL for that free storage tab, but I'm annoyed its taking so long for support to process 1 issue that everyone is having. Basically your not the only who is a little upset.~>Sins WDB 15:28, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

I would say that the reason why it is taking so long for them to solve a "single" issue is that the reasons why these are screwing up might be different for some people. My linkage error was because my GW pass was too long *explained more up above*, a friend I know has playNC account name length issues, and I am sure there are several other little things that are screwing up left and right. Some fixable, some less fixable. And they are processing a lot of them, they have probably seen more access keys and emails and names than you can imagine in one week. And from what I can tell, it is a small team relative to the playerbase. I am SURE if there are too many issues being resolved by a week before the deadline, they will consider extending it. Its what I would suggest at least, to help players stop panicking. Katherinezoltin 08:04, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for the feedback Sins and Katherine, however, it is not so much that I am upset, unhappy or have issue with the complexity of the various issues with which NCsoft Support are having to grapple. I can understand that there are a lot of people with issues with their abilty to register their in-game accounts with NCsoft (why that should be so is a matter that NCsoft needs to ask itself as it has been found wanting on that score!).

Being ignored is, for me, a far more serious issue than whether I register my main game account or not because, frankly, I have always been able to play the game reagrdless of whether I was registered with NCsoft or PlayNC and the free Xunlai Pane is of little value to me or my 9 Mule Characters .... My issue is that I am feeling ignored by NCsoft Support and that is why I am asking the Support Liaison for some help. Bearz 16:02, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

I am sorry that you have experienced a delay in getting assistance, Bearz. I can confirm what others have said: there are several levels of issues. One of those layers involves tickets that are simply solved and get people quickly on their way. But a situation like yours is more complex, and it takes the assistance of a senior staffer, and they are understandably fewer in number. The teams have been working overtime -- nights and weekends -- to help with this matter and I'm sure they'll continue to do so to get through the thousands of tickets that have come in.

I want to gently point something out about those thousands of tickets: In the vast majority of cases, this is not an NCsoft Store issue -- this is an individual account holder issue. Folks have forgotten their credentials (user name, password) or they've forgotten that they had an NCsoft account, or they have created more than one master account over the years. All these folks need and will get help, of course! But I've seen some anger (elsewhere) about this, and it's only fair to point out that NCsoft didn't make the account, choose the user name, select the password, or bind the accounts improperly -- the player did that -- but NCsoft will help get it sorted out. (When people get angry about the situation, it's like cursing the locksmith when you lock your keys in your car. :) )

Yet I understand people are impatient for a resolution, wishing things were handled more quickly. I do sympathize with how frustrating this is, and how the delay seems long. I am confident the team can and will help you. I'm also confident that everyone who tries to take advantage of the special promotion during the eligibility period will get assistance and be able to take advantage of that offer. The promotion runs for several more weeks, and the ticket queue is dropping. Please forgive the delay, and remain confident you'll get the help you need to be able to accept the free offer. -- Gaile 19:03, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you Gaile. I am happy that you are aware of my concern and appreciate your response and thoughts about the eventual resolution. Bearz 19:55, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

And I in turn want to say how much I appreciate your patience. Please do let me know when this gets resolved, will you? I think you'll hear soon -- unless this is a really extraordinarily complex issue that takes extra time to fix. If you haven't heard by Tuesday, feel free to ping me again. -- Gaile 23:25, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Using my ASDIC, I am pinging Gaile! It is now Wednesday and I have not heard back from Support since the issue was escalated to a Senior Support Staff by Adam. The Submitted Request is being dealt with under Incident: 090424-001058. Some news would be better than no news .... even if bad news! Bearz 06:37, 6 May 2009 (UTC

Coincidentally, NCsoft Support came back to me a few minutes ago so this is semi-sorted. If they came back to me as a result of something you did Gaile then thank you. :o) Bearz 19:07, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Please keep me up to date on this, Bearz. I'm crossing fingers. :) -- Gaile 21:46, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

All sorted now Gaile. Thank you for your time. Bearz 14:33, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

Suspension/Banned

Suspended for an Offensive Name

hello... similiar to someone else who already posted i'm not satisfied with supports support on this matter so i'm attempting to contact you about it... i was suspended for the following character name Cut Myself Again who is 5 months old now personally i was refering to shaving but whatever...i've certainly seen MUCH worse names floating around guild wars... and support contacted me in response to one of my replies to them and informed me i have another character they want the name changed on Sue A Sidel who is almost 2yrs old!!! now i know what morons and idiots are gonna say about this name BUT i named the character after a friend of mine who sadly is no longer with us ok now i know people are gonna grump and complain about the possible self harm motif WELL then i guess guild wars had better start redoing some skills???????? like all the life sacrificing skills=SELF HARM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! anyone look at the icon for Blood Is Power lately??? sure looks like someone slitting their wrist to me...................... —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Fate1985 (talk • contribs) at 14:35, 1 May 2009 (UTC).

^ups

anyone look at the icon for Blood Is Power lately???

sure looks like someone slitting their wrist to me QFTPika Fan 14:01, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Hmmm yer, entire Necromancer skills sets revolve around self harm or other such grim subjects... unless theres more information on ingame activities ya may have done I'm with ya on the name thing, it is rather... odd MrPaladin 14:04, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

Masochism, poisoning yourself, making yourself bleed, sacrificing your health, drinking other people's blood, eating corpses, carrying around your boyfriend's skull, "extracting" inscriptions from Ettin flesh, etc, etc. I'd agree the support team was a little too eager to suspend this account considering the in-game content. Mr J 14:27, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

i'll not be logging onto either character(therefore not renaming them)till i've heard from you gaileFate1985 15:12, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

"Cut Myself Shaving" or "Razor Cut Again" can be an option if it's not taken, as the first one may be misunderstood, but I agree, the second one is way too obscure, I didn't even get it right away, they're stretching it too far. Rose Of Kali 19:39, 1 May 2009 (UTC)

The EULA needs to be changed to say "You cannot make character names or guild names at all." ~Shard 08:24, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

It really doesn't matter how long you have had those characters, if someone is somehow offended by the names and reports and Anet deems the names offensive, then you will have to change the names. I personally don't see the names as offensive but obviously someone out there does. Your best bet is to change the names and carry on.--BabyJ 13:17, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Ridiculous. Gaile you guys are REALLY a bunch of hypocrites, there is no way you can deny this now... Mini Me 15:04, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

So you had a friend commit suicide, but can't understand how a name that makes reference to that act might, just might, offend someone? You don't see how such a name might upset a parent whose child died; a brother whose sister killed herself; a husband left to raise two young children alone because his wife made that final, fatal choice? People can play the game and use certain skills without feeling as if a real-life tragedy is being shoved in their faces. But a name, now, that's there in front of you, unfiltered and unfilterable. A name presents things on an entirely different level and makes a more overt kind of reference. And because of that, we do not feel such a name is acceptable.

And I don't know how many times I need to say this: The fact that you've played a character with an offensive name for some time does not give that character a seal of approval. The team blocks names every day, on report or by observation. When they block, they check the account for other offensive names and block those as well. (The standard observation is that most people with one bad name have others. As a kindness, the team blocks them all at the same time, so that the player serves one brief suspension instead of multiple suspensions.) Some of the characters they block are new, some are old. Longevity is absolutely no guarantee that a name is acceptable.

I am not offering to engage in a discussion about this topic; I will not join a debate. I don't need arguments such as "What about that image or those skills?" I understand that and have addressed it above. The decision about blocking names that overtly refer to self-harm or suicide was discussed with the Support Team and the Community Team, and in the end, it was felt quite strongly that such names should be blocked. Ultimately, the decision about this matter rests with the company on whose servers you play. And the company feels that the correct decision was made in this case. -- Gaile 18:38, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

His name had nothing to do with suicide, and was probably a reference to emos (despite his excuse), as cutting one's self usually is. If his name was "suicide lol" i would agree with you that it's offensive. He could have named his character I Drive Fast and someone at NC support would connect it to car crashes and it would be considered offensive. Who makes the retarded policies you follow? ~Shard 19:44, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

He said: "i have another character they want the name changed on Sue A Sidel..." I said that we block "...names that overtly refer to self-harm or suicide." -- Gaile 19:52, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm offended when people make names by mashing their hands into the keyboard, name change please-oh wait, the randomly generated name is random. In fact, the way that Anet forces all of these stupid restrictions on people without even bothering to fix the game is about as polite as shoving a fist into the faces of Build Wars players collectively. Fix the game instead of blocking names that I don't give a crap about and 99% of players don't either.72.71.231.149 03:04, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

If you are referring to the Support Team, they're not mashing keys at all. In order to create a random name, they are using a Anagram program that takes the letters from the original name and creates a new one. This seems both fair and impartial.

As to "fixing the game," well, that is a subjective matter. A hundred people might have a hundred suggestions on how to "fix the game" but nothing they're talking about is literally broken, thereby the "fix" is really just a change that they'd like to see. The point is, many experienced gamers will tell you that Guild Wars is fixed, expanded, and improved with impressive regularity, comparable to or better than that of any other game. -- Gaile 03:32, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

How about "balance the skills" then? And by that I mean have the variance in viability not as extreme as Searing Flames and Keystone Signet.~>Sins WDB 05:15, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

Looks at name of page.

Looks at topic title.

Counts to ten.

Smiles sweetly.

I do appreciate that folks like an listening ear, but putting skill balance complaints on a Support Issues page is like complaining to your plumber when the lights go out. :) In other words, please don't waste of your time, the time of others, and the wiki's pixels. The topic was naming rules; the purpose of the page is dealing with support issues. Anything else is irrelevant. Thanks for understanding. -- Gaile 05:29, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

I has eagle eyes! ~>Sins WDB 05:54, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

Sorry Gaile but I find it incredibly dumb that you ban things for referencing something if you reference to the same thing yourself. Mini Me 10:45, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

tbh, if names related to self harm gets you banned support have ALOT of work to do. --Cursed Angel 12:01, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

I do agree that it is silly. Two entire necromancer attribute lines are loaded with sacrificing and self-inflicted bleeding and life degeneration, and Holiday Blues is a conscious suicide in the full meaning of the word. When a player pings "I'm using Blood Ritual!" will they be suspended for referencing self-harm in team chat? At the same time, in another topic you found the squinty O-o eyes with a stylized finger completely unoffensive and downright harmless and entertaining, or whatever the exact words were. You puzzle me in ways I cannot explain. On a related note, I still haven't heard anything back on my Dupek the Mighty complaint, [Incident: 090415-002116]‏. Rose Of Kali 19:31, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

necro skill discussion for reference. Vili 点 19:39, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

I don't recall any skills named "Slit your wrists" "Suicide" or any other words of self harm. And if someone is offended by skill icons they need to find a new game to play. The icons may depict such things but the names are not worded as such. Besides that, I think the real question is why would someone even name a character Sue A Sidel after a friend that is no longer around. I am assuming that the friend inflicted self harm, but still, that in itself is a question of the mentality of the person. There is some deeper issues there. I can understand the reasoning behind banning such name and really, changing the name is not that big of a deal. "Edit" And furthermore, if any of my characters names someone found offensive, I would expect to have to change the names. But I doubt that would ever happen because my character names are all actual names instead of lines of text. --BabyJ 20:02, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks, Vili.

Actions speak louder than words. Comitting suicide because you feel "blue" on a holiday? That's quite disturbing... and offers a lot more context than a simple character name could.

An image is worth a thousand words. Blue or red, it's still blood from a slit wrist, which seems to be bleeding quite seriously and needs immediate help before a blood transfusion is necessary to save their life.

People who are offended by character names referencing these things should not play this game (or buy it for their children) to begin with. It is a personal choice, and they are not forced into dealing with this, so they should not force others to suffer the consequences. Also, Anet should not be forced to tailor to the people offended and reporting these character names, as that decision would also warrant removing the Necromancer profession from the game, as half of their attributes are dedicated to sacrifice for a greater good of the caster or their party. Rose Of Kali 23:25, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

I agree this is going to far. What if an elementalist would call itself "Burning Revenge" or something along those lines. Would that be allowed? People could have had family members killed in a fire lit in an act of revenge. Fact is, Guild Wars is a violent game. If you want you can go out and beat harmless animals with a club. In the same way sacrificing health and even suicide is part of Guild Wars. How can ANet force name changes when the names refrence an in-game act?// HeavenMonkey 00:43, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

So by this logic, just because in this game people kill things, then anyone should be able to have any name they feel the need to have because there's violence in the game so names of characters shouldn't matter. Yeah that makes sense, just let the game go to hell, who cares what people name characters because icon images depict violence. Real logic there.--BabyJ 01:38, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Now THAT's what I call logic... Wait, how would that make the game "go to hell?" I don't get it... O_o? If a movie is full of violent images, but they don't use any bad words anywhere, do you think it makes it ok to watch for children and rate it PG or something? Visual media is not rated simply based on language, but based on all available content. Imagery and language are very closely related. So, if you don't like the names, I don't see how you find the images and references acceptable. They are one and the same. You cannot filter out either of them.

And for the record, in case anyone is confused, I'm not trying to advocate removal or replacement of skills and images, I think this content is perfectly fine in a game like Guild Wars. I am simply confused as to why the company is so harsh on character names that reference widespread in-game content. Is it just because some person somewhere decided to report them? Is that all it takes?

Anyway, as we can see, Gaile has not yet responded to any of this, and I think that's because she's trying to figure out the best way to say what her and the company's stance is on the issue, all this while being sick, last I heard. Let's give her time to respond, as this conversation has already degenerated far enough, and people are mostly repeating themselves now, but with more frustration thrown into the mix. Rose Of Kali 09:21, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

my friend DID not commit suicide....their name was Sue Anne Sidel and they was killed by a drunk driver thank-you very much....Fate1985 18:52, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

If this is indeed the case, then that is an unfortunate case of misunderstanding, similar to [SuKa] guild. They had no intention of being offensive, nor did they know the meaning of their tag in Russian, but that does not take them off the name-change hook. However, here I still maintain that Anet is being too harsh for unknown reasons that I would like to see explained in the context of the related game content. Rose Of Kali 19:43, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm sorry for your friend and I know first hand what it's like, i've been there myself. I've been victim to a drunk driver and had my best friend die right beside me, not to mention the head and spinal injuries I had, because someone decided to have a few drinks before getting behind the wheel. But that's beside the point, why not name your character Sue Anne? Really, if you just see characters named Cut myself again and Sue A Sidel, the first impression is self-injury and a somewhat fancy rename of suicide. I'm not taking sides of either case but I can see where someone would take offense to both names and I can see the sides of the names with a different intention behind the names made. A simple solution would be to rename the characters.--BabyJ 20:07, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Did she have a brother named Hama? 99.142.23.15 18:13, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

And were her parents' names Reggie and Janice, perchance? 99.142.23.15 18:37, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

If your friend's name was truely what you have your characte named after, then, I am sorry for aNet's communism; if it is a lie-story, then, just take your suspension and simply rename them when it's lifted. Gaile will NOT help you with this matter-- she IS "support", afterall. -Lena 02:56, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) I have been doing this Internet / Fansite / Website / Forum Administrator / Wiki Editor thing a long, long time. And in the early days, I tended to be a bit more naive about the depths to which people will go to gain attention, to scam, to insult, or try commit a "prank" that can have some pretty unpleasant side effects. I've been sent notices of deaths, illnesses, and accidents that were simply and provably untrue. I've even had people crow at me afterwards when I reacted kindly and generously to such a bogus report. "Ha ha, fooled you!" was, I guess, the payoff for what's really a pretty unpleasant "joke." :(

Now, I'm quick to add, I've also received very legitimate reports of grave illness, death, and so forth. In a case like this, the simplest thing is to do what I've done in the past: Ask for the full name, date of death, and city of death. I have taken the time to verify a claim of this nature in the past, and I could, I suppose, do it again. In one case (in a position with another company) I lead a fund-raising drive for a memorial donation after we took the simple and prudent step of verifying the information we were sent. I'm not suggesting that would be appropriate or possible here; naturally it would not. But I'm giving it as an example of the past so folks can see the level of consideration and effort shown.

If you are able to provide the information above I will be happy to try to verify it. If we can verify the name, we'll be more than happy to give you a free rename and if you wish, you can rename to that same character name. I can't say it won't be reported again, but I suppose we can deal with that if/when it arises. Ultimately, while I wish this was not necessary, I truly must ask for this verification information in order to properly deal with matters such as this. -- Gaile 21:38, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

thanks for your response Gaile but seeing as i've already had to rename the character and changing back to the old name will simply just result in me getting banned again i sadly don't see the point of returning to it...but i do have a question? since Guild Wars does not condone self harm should i report anyone who pings they are using a self harm skill?? just trying to point out guild wars double standards on this issuse......Fate1985 22:06, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

I believe that we addressed the distinction between the skills in the game and an offensive name some days ago, along with the inability of people to filter names, real-life associations, and so forth. Once again, I fully understand that you are unhappy with and disagree with the rules. But in the end, they are rules that we -- as the company hosting you on our private servers -- feel are the most appropriate for the Guild Wars community as a whole. -- Gaile 05:18, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

A Simple Solution for NcSoft to Use

Gaile.

I have been among the many who are batteling to get our account info from NcSoft. So as i am a southern layed back american i came up with a way for NcSoft to let everyone in the game know what the account name is. Send them a birthday email.

format:

Hi (account name) NcSoft wishes you a Happy Birthday

disclamers of some type to keep the legal department in jobs...

would this work... YES. i have an account with a dutch company that sends just that kind of email every year. Its simple can be set up by a smart programmer to work with your automated email system pulling the data from the main account db you only need 3 data fields for each email. 1 DOB, 2 Account Name, 3 Email for the account. The best part is you dont have to invest a lot of money or people to make it happen. And it can generate a moment of good customer relations for NcSoft. so that is my two cents. have an awesome day. Rockweaver 11:56, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

It is certainly an interesting idea and I guess it could help a few of those who have simply forgotten their NCsoft Master Account name but remember the password. Well, it would help as long as they hold onto the email, or remember the reminder between birthdays. :) I am not sure about giving DOB in an email, though, because if someone gets his emails hacked, that information could be used by that hacker to try to steal the game account. However, I'm always up for friendly greetings! I'll be happy to pass along this idea. Thanks. -- Gaile 19:16, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

I don't think he means putting your birthdate in the email, I think he means using it to SEND the email at the right time. There is a difference. ^^" Katherinezoltin 08:40, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh, silly me, I understand now. The parameters for creating the email list would not necessarily be the same as say "Your birthday is 1-23-84" or something like that. Understood now. Thanks, Kate. -- Gaile 02:22, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Concerning Banned Accounts and Guild Wars 2

Hi Gaile,

Some time ago I asked a question twice in a talk page section that you deemed closed and archived without ever addressing. The section may now be found here. I suppose you simply missed it both times in all the excitement. I will repost my two statements here for your convenience:

• Here's a question that it might be prudent to consider. How will banned accounts interact with Guild Wars 2? In other words, if Pandora Mac's permanent ban stands, and she chooses to play Guild Wars 2, will her account and Hall of Monuments register at all? This extends to anyone who (rightly or wrongly) receives a permanent ban on an account with Eye of the North yet chooses to play Guild Wars 2. Felix Omni 15:16, 16 April 2009 (UTC)

• It's great that Pandora Mac was unbanned. I would still appreciate an answer to my question about banned accounts interacting with GW2, though- I think there are a good many cases still where it could matter. Felix Omni 19:56, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

I would appreciate an answer or at least an acknowledgement. Thank you. Felix Omni 22:13, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

Your question is acknowledged (and I deeply apologize that this was removed in an editing conflict!) However, because your question is about Guild Wars 2, it will not be answered by anyone at this time. I did actually ask the Live Team about this question, but they pointed out that due to the subject matter, it's not something we could address. -- Gaile 23:05, 2 May 2009 (UTC)

What the Hell

Locating Content Removed in Error

I posted a question here earlier today and it seems to have been deleted without a trace. What's your problem, Gaile?

...is what I would have said if I didn't know my way around a wiki. Fortunately, I do know my way around a wiki, and so I was able to find the 2 revisions over a span of 16 whole minutes where my question and your answer were visible and in the same place. Thank you for the response. I would suggest leaving material up a bit longer though- people are apt to get upset. ;) Felix Omni 02:53, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

Felix, I have a terrible cold, and my brain is filled with fuzz, but I truly do not remember moving your question or my answer. I'm busily trying to find out when it disappeared, and I do not think I removed it or archived it. I'll continue searching. In the meantime, if I accidentally saved over it, I am very sorry. -- Gaile 03:07, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

I just found the missing content. I knew I'd answered to other questions, too. I've replaced the topic (immediately above) and expanded a bit on my earlier answer. -- Gaile 03:26, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

It was Nargles...they always mess with things. Katherinezoltin 08:38, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

Blasted Nargles. I just hate losing stuff, especially on the wiki where everyone can see the mess-up. :-/

Now, where'd I put my cup of PG Tips? ;) -- Gaile 02:23, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

My apologies, Gaile. I unfairly jumped to conclusions. Felix Omni 18:38, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Not a problem, Felix. I am sorry for the mix-up, too. -- Gaile 21:41, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

You can totally archive this section and the above one if you'd like; I kind of feel embarrassed seeing it here every time I scroll down. Something of a "D'oh!" moment. Felix Omni 12:17, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Regarding my Account Troubles

Hello this is my first time posting here, I recently ran into trouble logging into my account I have sent two emails from two different accounts and gotten replies asking for my information, much like the stuff you have posted above but at the time I couldn't find my CD-key but now have located it so I'm worried I'll have to retype the email and wait all over again (minus the monty python reference).

But It has taken almost 5 days, I got an email on the second account i sent the support question from, it was much faster than the one i received from the email my actual guild wars account is on but I'm still in the "Bumping your ticket up to a someone more capable", I understand it's saturday but another of my concerns is a may have been hacked which is why I'm posting here, and also why I'm trying all possible resources.

I'm scared that I may be out 80k and my ranger and sin and dervish and warrior are all deleted or had their armor sets salvaged and sold and it breaks my heart, I'm trying to be as patient and I realize this is the weekend and not your normal hours as I can but I would appreciate a reply soon as to any methods you can provide to make this easier. --Tondrin

Tondrin, I really hope your account is fine. I would be devastated if that happened to me. Gaile cannot help you unless she has your ticket numbers or another way to track down your case.

On a related note, does Anet have a way of restoring hacked accounts to a pre-hacked state, in case valuable gear or characters have been removed, or are the players left with hoping for handouts and runs from friends? Also, are you able to reliably catch the hackers? Rose Of Kali 23:56, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

@Tondrin -- You don't need to file a new report, in fact that delays the process. Just update the ticket you've been working on and move forward with providing the additional, new info you've discovered you're now able to provide.

@Rose -- ArenaNet and NCsoft cannot do individual "roll backs" of characters. We would be required to roll back the entire game server for such a restoration, and as you can imagine, that would not be a feasible way to handle individual account theft issues. We are sometimes able to catch the hackers. If we do, their accounts are closed immediately. Restoration of items, though, is generally not possible because most hackers churn the items in a short period of time. That makes the items impossible to retrieve with accuracy, or without negatively impacting a lot of other players who may innocently have been involved in trades of the stolen items. We have restored, when we can, and hope that someday we'll have an even greater capacity to do so. -- Gaile 00:35, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for the reply, Would it be useful to post my ticket as rose said or should I just wait it out and see if anything happens today or tomorrow.-User:Tondrin

Thanks, Gaile. I hope the team can figure things out quickly. Losing some gold and armor can be very frustrating and upsetting, but these things are recoverable, and I think I could live with that, as long as my characters are intact. If someone deleted a character of mine (I actually had a dream about that once...), I would probably track them down and make them suffer in so many ways, they would never touch an online game again. (Note: these ways would, obviously, not include any physical harm... And who do I sleep with to tell me who hacked my account? *smiles mischievously*) Rose Of Kali 09:29, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Just an update gaile, I guess i put the wrong birthday when I made the account I have valid proof that my birthday is what i sent in the email and I am who I say I am in the email, I'm worried I may be ignored now because I can hardly read my CD-key, I gave a few variations on what the key may be 1's I's 8's and B's are getting confused for me, a picture of the key in which a few of the key's match up with my post (cell phone picture) I'm scared to death I'll never get to play again and I don't know what to do :( I know I may be over-reacting but I'm just frustrated ><Tondrin 00:34, 6 May 2009 (UTC) User:Tondrin

There are occasions when the key comes in with some characters in error. The team is real good at sorting that out, so don't worry too much about that now. I believe they will be able to help you, but the volume is still high, so just hold on a bit and see what they come back with. -- Gaile 21:42, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

So I got my account back and switched to a new master account, and...I'm banned for using a bot or third party program? I've never used one in my life gaile, could this have happened while I was hacked?Tondrin 17:45, 10 May 2009 (UTC)User:Tondrin

Ok so I don't know really know where to go for this so I kinda came to you. But xunlai house for may predictions i only got 5 reward points when u get 5 for just participating. So, I've been doing xunlai house for months now and 5 I was like 5? how'd i get 5? So i went to guildwars.com and opened two tabs, one with my predictions and 1 with the standings list. Well I predicted History Repeats Itself [Cry] to come in 1st when they came in 2nd!!!!! I Also predicted Anonymous Amateurs [AA] to come in 6th when they came in 4th!!!! Finally, I dont know if I predicted close enough for this one but i predicted Vent Rage [vR] to come in 5th when they came in 8th (BTW those were all gvg predictions). So obviously 5, hmmmm I think i predicted more than 5. Finally, im going to my cousins wedding this week so I'll be gone a couple of days and yet Mays predictions are still there and I still can't predict for June so like is there no predictions or like does my May predictions carry over to June?? Sorry if I took up so much room, but like if you need my gw email or something let me know.--Tiesto

Continuing Issues with Promotion

Sigh.... This is taking a very long time to fix

Gaile first let me say thank you for listening to my complaints and being willing to champion the desires of the game community.

i dont know if you can look at support tickets if you can i would love to have some help with this one.090427-001302 submitted 04/27/2009 05:46 AM the last reply was this one. Response (Alec) 04/30/2009 11:53 PM Hello XXXXX,

I am escalating your ticket for further assistance, and someone will be in contact with you as soon as possible

Thanks, Alec Guild Wars Account Support

i know the boys and girls at ncsoft are very busy and i understand that. i also know that we all need a day off now and then. what i would love is to know if there is anything i can do to help on this ticket. i have given them all the data i have and a call back number.

and as a referance yes this is related to my NcSoft account and getting my GW account attached. crumb i can not even change the email until this is resolved.

at this time the problem has 7 days and ~ 9 hours thanks for listening and i hope you have a great day. Rockweaver 20:53, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi Rockweaver. I have checked your ticket, and I noticed you offered to call. There is phone support for account issues such as this. Here is that information (also posted above on this page):

1-512-225-6359

Mon through Friday

Noon until 5:00 PM, Central time (-5 GMT)

I hope that you can call in and get assistance soon. By the way, please have your incident number handy, so the person you speak with can readily pull up the file and save some time in asking for info you've already provided. Best of luck! -- Gaile 19:43, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks Gaile I will call them in the morning and crosses fingers have this resolved .... again thank you for all your time. Rockweaver 23:59, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

Hey, Rockweaver -- any news? -- Gaile 21:56, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi Gaile and yes. I spoke to a very thoughtful person in your group who had the issue resolved in under 5 min. I had forgotten the joy of acutally dealing with a person for a problem in the place of a email. lol funny what we miss as we grow older. all of our accounts are now sorted out and we thank god have the proper names for them.

i am sure or at least hopeful that NcSoft has taken a large lesson from this and has invested in a way to prevent this type of event in the future. and i hope the folks will use my idea for the birthday email. so long story short all is well and we are all good. the wife and kids say hi and thanks for helping dad calm back down. :) and as a final closing thought. Thank you again for all you do for grumpy old men who can not find where they left important things like account names. have an awesome day. Rockweaver 06:44, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

I am sure glad it all worked out well for you, Rockweaver! And hey, anything that promotes family harmony is a double pleasure to help with. ;) -- Gaile 05:20, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

A matter of Principal

Purchasing Appearance Changes

Hi Gaile,

Forgive me, another little bit of feedback that might not put a smile on your face... a friend of mine asked me something two weeks ago, and I didn't have an answer for him. Ever since then it's been bugging me, so my apologies, but here I am.

If I decided to (legally) buy money, I'd go buy an Obsidian Edge, Tormented Shield, Obsidian armor... hey wait, this stuff is useless. It's just a sword which has the best damage range, a shield with maximum armor, and an armor set with maximum armor. So, if I was trading euroes for platinum, I'd just be fiddling with appearance. Which is what the character make overs, etc. do. Which you pay for. With euroes (or dollars, or pounds, or... you get the idea).

ArenaNet have always had the "We don't sell Guild Wars gold on a matter of principal" deal, which I respected and stood by (as I can stop myself from doing it, but only as long as I've never once done so). But now ArenaNet allow you to change the appearance of your character but not the appearance of their equipment, and... to be honest I'm finding it hard to come up with a reason for this in my head.

I'm sorry but... I always respected ArenaNet being on the moral high ground but... now... it looks like balancing the cash flow with principals, when once principals got absolute preference.

Am I missing something here? =/ A F K When Needed 18:36, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

I don't see this as a Support Issue of any sort, and I don't feel it would be appropriate for me to respond. As a player I can clearly see the differences between the scenarios you've offered. As a dev team member, I will point you in the direction of the community team for a more formal and official response. Thank you for understanding. -- Gaile 18:42, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

My apologies, I had both this and your user talk open, and evidentally closed the wrong one ¬_¬ I've moved my question, sorry for bothering you. --> A F K When Needed 19:18, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for taking care of that, A F K. :) -- Gaile 21:56, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Prompt for Name Change

Hi Gaile and others, My first character was a randomly made name with a last name to match my sons random character name. It has come to my attention (tho not reported) that my name phonetically is similar to "Jihad Jew" which is definatly not the intent. Is there a way to get a pre-emptive name change so I do not have problems down the road with reports/support? I have had the character a while now and am close to "people know mw" so starting fresh is not an option I wish to take. MrPaladin 12:53, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Out of curiosity, what's the character's name? Raine - talk 13:10, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

A name change costing 15USD is one option. :) And I think the character would be something along the lines of Gee Had You or something. Drago 13:16, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

It's the rather harmless "Geihai Jue". Randomly created when I first joined... MrPaladin 13:18, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Just contact support and ask them to put the forced name change on your character so you can change the name and not get banned or marks against your account. I recently had this done for my ele. No guarantee that they will do it but you never know. They are good people and will do what they can to help. I didnt have any problem getting it done. It only took me 1 day. Good Luck Drogo Boffin 13:24, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks Drogo, That sounds like the solution I was looking for. I'll contact support and ask nice. MrPaladin 13:34, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

This is why I use baby name websites for my character names, just pick the region and gender and you end up with a whole bunch of names to choose from. I tend to use long guy names for last names like my wiki name is my main's full name. Katherine Zoltin, Katherine is Greek for pure and Zoltin is Hungarian for life. So her name means "Pure life". Kind of funny sense she is a Necromancer but it makes sense if you know the character. Katherinezoltin 18:48, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks to GM ApplePython, for responding to my ticket and the old name has been flaged for inappropriate name and because it was self identified the account will not be suspended... Katherine: you give me the idea to look for something Latin or Greek thanks MrPaladin talk 18:59, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Glad to see they were able to help you. Pkohler01 01:43, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Two or More Ncsoft Master Accounts

A problem that may be unique but I doubt it! I have two Game Accounts and unknowingly I created an NCsoft Master Account for the first (and main) Game Account over 2 years ago. Some time later I started up a second Game account and thought I would "do the right thing" and created an NCsoft Master Account ..... not realising that I already had one in place. I now find I have TWO separate NCsoft Master Accounts which seems illogical!

Is is possible to merge the two NCsoft Master Accounts? Bearz 19:15, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

I believe that unless there are issues with the game or master accounts, the Account Support Team doesn't move them around. Having more than one master account isn't a problem, of course. -- Gaile 21:52, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

I can live with that rationale. Thank you for the reply. Bearz 14:31, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

Lack of Support Response...

Hello Gaile, A couple weeks ago I filed a support ticket to try to get my NCsoft account information, I got a response that weekend asking for my cdkeys and other info to help track the account, and I sent that to them. However, I did not get a response. Last Thursday I checked the ticket status and it said "closed", so I sent another ticket as it seemed that they would not respond. I have yet to get a response from that either. I know it's been busy for responses, however that shouldn't mean that the ticket should be closed when the issue is still open (and I know that you have to respond within two days and I responded ASAP, which was within two days for sure). Any help/suggestion on this matter? -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 19:34, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Be patient, I just got a response today which should help me resolve my account issue. I have a similar timeframe to yours. Within the next couple of days I imagine you will get another notice.~>Sins WDB 19:44, 6 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes well, my first support ticket status was closed, if they intend to respond, usually it stays as "Open". The second one isn't even listed. That is more of the issue than a "long timeframe." The fact that my support ticket was closed, not sure if I should open another one, or respond again, or what. Which is why I'm asking Gaile. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 02:20, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

I will say that Sins is right, and tickets are taking a bit of time to answer (with our apologies, of course). Has it truly been two weeks since you first wrote? I can take a look at the ticket. What's the Incident / Ticket number? -- Gaile 21:55, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

My account issue has been taken care of. Send a thanks to support for me please Gaile and get Shard unbanned already or we're gonna miss out on skills of the day next week! Oh Noes! Hope that gives you some hope Azazel.~>Sins WDB 00:29, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure he'll do SotD anyway, just more observatory and less from hands-on experience. --Riddle 13:32, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, the reference # is 090424-001040, subject is "NCsoft Account Username". I trust that is what you mean by "Incident/Ticket number"-- Azazel The Assassin\talk 04:47, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Azazel -- I have reviewed the ticket. The team responded to you within one hour asking for information that would help them confirm your identify and verify your ownership of the account. The reason that your ticket moved to a "closed" status is that you did not respond to their request, which was sent at 3:22 AM GMT on April 25th (which was, again, one hour after you wrote the team).

Please respond to the ticket that I have just re-sent to you with as much of the information that the team has requested as you can and they will be happy to assist you. Thanks. -- Gaile 05:26, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

That within the hour - although it got to me the weekend of (email could of been a delay?)- was in fact the response I was talking about. It seems that the first two times I responded... didn't go through. Wait... February 25th? That doesn't make sense... I sent it in after the April update... O_o Well anyways, I got the response from you and responded again - this time it showed up for me, so I'm assuming it actually got through, while the last two times it did not. Thank you for your assistance Gaile. Very very appreciated. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 08:11, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

You're right -- the month was April. (I edited my comment above, to avoid confusing other people.) Sorry, I've been sick for a week and my brain's a little fuzzy. :) Anyway, thanks for updating the ticket. I am sure you will have a response in the next few days and I'm equally confident that the team can assist you with this. Please do keep me informed. -- Gaile 19:19, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

I hope you don't have the not-so-deadly but highly contagious swine flu! :) Anyways, I just checked my email and I got a response and I should have my maser account soon. Thank you very much for your help Gaile. -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 19:42, 9 May 2009 (UTC)Edit: Yay I got the storage! Feel free to archive this topic now. Thank you very much for your help Gaile. :) -- Azazel The Assassin\talk 19:53, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks Gaile, I told him to show up here because you get right to the bottom of things and I am glad you could help him. Katherinezoltin 20:48, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

Well, that's just sweet, Katherinezoltin. I am glad to have your vote of confidence (and real glad we could take care of the issue, too, of course!) :) -- Gaile 05:18, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

Starting Guildwars

Is it normal that when I start Guildwars to fast I get this message:[4]. While I got direct10. Btw if I start guildwars after 3minutes it just starts. Death Sligher 08:40, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

I only get that error when my video card drivers aren't installed or working properly. Most likely, it's just a fact that perhaps your video card needs time to get settled? Perhaps your drivers haven't started working right away. Anyways, to solve the problem, just wait a few minutes. 142.161.99.223 08:45, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

What video card do you have? You might want to download the newest official drivers for it, remove your old drivers (this is important, installing over old graphic drivers is a no-no) and install the new ones. Also, make sure to patch up your operating system. — Poki#3 20:16, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

I think it is just the startup since at the start up alot of programs start up. Such as ICQ,msn,ts,yahoo,gw,other game,internet browser. XD Death Sligher 20:45, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

You have Guild Wars added to Autostart? AND another game? *insert exploding mind sound here* — Poki#3 20:58, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Wow why have all those on autostart? Just put them on your desktop and start them as required. No wonder your gfx card doesn't like to do anything for 3 minutes. --Lemming 21:15, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Euhm, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo, TS, GW, Internet Browser, Another game and all the system stuff. Thats a nono dude, I only let the things startup that are necisary for the operating system to run and to protect it, when that is done I MANUALLY start up what I want to run. My opinion is that your system has not loaded everything to be able to run Guild Wars, thats why I think it does run after 3 minutes. I'm gonna be a bit dramatic about one thing, games starting up when your system hasn't fully loaded is like making a bomb when gunpowder has not been invented yet (it won't work :P), that's how I see it. Qaletaqa 22:10, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Maybe it's just me, but I don't really like auto-start-up on anything but my virus protection programs. I do start-ups the old fashioned way -- I click the shortcut. :) -- Gaile 23:24, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Amen... And look into Trillian, how do you even keep track of that stuff? And how much RAM do you have? Unless it's like 8GB+, you shouldn't have more than 3-4 different things open at once, anyway, EVER (tray applications are usually ok, but also in moderation). And even the most powerful processor will choke on this "menu" at startup. Give your system some air. ;) Rose Of Kali 07:51, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

I second Trillian, and not starting everything at once (even my startup script for when I get coffee at work has delays in it). A lot of those IM programs are resoure hogs. I'm not as strict about number of running programs and what else i'm doing. (I tend to run, e.g., photoshop, gimp, firefox, blender, five copies of gvim, and i'd start GW on top of that because it's a lithe, small and fast program compared to some things. (OTOH I'd shut down everything but maybe winamp and possibly reboot just to play UT3). OTOOH I do my virus scanning on demand. /ramble. --Star Weaver 16:49, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

(reset indent)With that startup menu dont turn your computer off. Change the screen saver settings so that when you arent using the pc it uses minimal power. Drogo Boffin 16:55, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

You'd probably actually want to go into control panel / power managment and set it to turn the secreen off after 20 minutes and power down the drives after 45 minutes or something. --Star Weaver 16:59, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

Consider using MSCONFIG to do a selective startup (leave your firewall/virus protection on tho) MrPaladin talk 17:01, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

The messengers start auto and the programs I start when I see them on the desk. Death Sligher 19:53, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

Well here is a screenshot and everthing works fine:/. Dont know why you guys are talking about my pc shouldblow up. [5]. Owh and my pc isnt that great its not a 8gb mega machine, just a normal pc [6]. Death Sligher 20:06, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

There's a difference between "running" everything, and starting it up all at once before your machine is done booting up. Not a bad machine, by the way, better than average non-gamer PC. Basically, if it doesn't bother you, then there's no problem, but if you complain about GW not working right away, then you need to disable auto-start at least on all those messengers and voice chat. Also, Vista usually takes more resources to start up and get running than XP did, especially if you don't have it fine-tuned. Add some icons to your taskbar and click them in order to start it all up once you're done booting (or once you actually need them). Or, simply walk away for 5 minutes after you hit the power button before you touch the machine again. Rose Of Kali 21:14, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) @Gaile: That was exactly what I tried to say :), anti-virus is the only additional thing that starts up, and even that I mostly end up terminating because when it checks for viruses and updates, it causes lag in Guild Wars. But I only do that when playing Guild Wars, because Guild Wars is trustworthy :D but from the moment I start internet explorer or another program that connects to the internet while Guild Wars is running I also start my anti-virus. Qaletaqa 03:36, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

I just took a look at those screenshots and I just wanted to say that it's a better machine then many still use. I still use a Pentium 4 2.4Ghz single core with 2GB ram with a ASUS AH3650 Videocard, I can even play COD4 if I wanted to, If anyone can get me a new pc i'd be happy lol. Anyway give your pc a bit of breathing room at startup, It'll startup quicker and you'll be able to play faster. Qaletaqa 03:52, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

The Power of Gaile

Thanks Gaile !, today I got 2 late responses from GW's Support and NC Support. I found it funny that they both came at the very same time, I would have to guess you had a bit to do with that :) I am following the advice of the GW's Support team [Incident: 090502-000491]now. I wrote to NC support telling them the same, and to merge that ticket onto this one. I have opened a brand new NC account as asked, and just need to photo scan the keys and send them out. I should have that done by the end of the weekend, since I don't have a scanner. I am also moving all this info to my main email account, so everything with NC and support in the future will be always be available, an email account that will never be subject to change. This should make everything solid forever. I should have everything sent out by the end of the weekend. I will update you with the success or not. But it looks like we maybe moving in a good direction now. Thanks Gaile ! Xiena 23:52, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

It is great to know that everything worked out ok. Again, as I've said before, we're all sorry that it was taking longer than normal to resolve the various questions related to accounts, the store, and so forth. But in the end, I'm sure we have or will get everything aligned and working for all the players with questions and support needs. -- Gaile 04:34, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

== May 12th == All info emailed to support along with photo scan. I'm now crossing my fingers and toes. All my mini pets are getting ready to cheer! My Bunny has her ears crossed as well, due to not wanting to give up one of her lucky feet! Xiena 20:52, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Issue Closed Hows that sound? Gail? I'd like to give a huge THANK YOU! To: NC-Team: Leonie, David, Shaun, GW's Team: Chris, Nathan, John, Steve, & Vivienne ! The teams I have been working with for the past 15 days. Tonight at 9pm (est) the account was corrected & made stable by Viv. Your Whole team worked really hard to get this done. After 3+ years I can finally use the store ! Do you know how good that feels to say? OMG ! I'm so Happy ! my mini pets are dancing all around ! My Guild is launching fireworks ! & I'd like to say, I'd send you all a big box of homemade Butterscotch Brownies if I could !!! Gaile if your ever near Boston let me know, I owe you dinner ! Thank your Staff for me Gaile ! and most of all Gaile I'd like to thank YOU ! For putting up with all my non wikki style blerbs, and out-bursts ! Thank you so so very Much ! Issue Closed ((big-hug)) Xiena 04:23, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Dang, I forgot to post earlier. :) Anyway, here's a big "woot" and a hug back at ya. Thanks for your patience and for letting me know that all is well. -- Gaile 18:55, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Suspended for Defrauding

Hey Gaile,

I logged on today finding myself in a 326 Hours Ban, Reasoan: Defrauding. My ticket [Incident:090509-000314] , Im here to say. People get banned for no reason?Just cause some reporters said so? Just cause a screen shot prove? I asked them to scan if i took money from him when we went insde (FoW) which all did .Not going to talk here, but just check the ticket.

Thanks Gaile —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Simu (talk • contribs) at 06:16, 9 May 2009 (UTC).

Whoah... 2 weeks... O_o they're not joking around with this one. Is this a standard interval for any kind of fraud/scam? Rose Of Kali 05:31, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

@ Rose -- two weeks is not common, especially for scamming. We take such an offense very seriously, and a two-week block can be placed for such an incident. There are a couple of other reasons it can result: (1) If someone has prior infractions in a period of time, he can earn a two week block by having enough marks on his account to escalate from the normal shorter-term suspension to a longer one, or (2) the history on the account may warrant a longer time out, for instance, a repeat offender in this category. However, I do not see either of those things being the case here.

@ the OP: I've looked at the ticket and I know who placed the block, but I cannot see the details yet, nor can I pull the incoming report. I have pulled some records, but they are inconclusive because I don't have the report to compare them against. In the end, the team will be responsible for any review that takes place. I have to say that a review will probably not take place until Monday, as I generally want to discuss any appeal with the agent who originally placed it, and I do not believe that agent works on Saturday or Sunday. If there has been an error, it will be ironed out, and there will be no further penalty nor any long-term effects on your account. Thanks for your patience as we sort this out. -- Gaile 05:47, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

Is there any way there could be a typo in the hours? Are they entered manually, or chosen from a list? This may have been supposed to be 36 hours, or 1.5 days, but a finger slip hit a 2 after the 3 and the person typing didn't notice the mistake. Just guessing. Rose Of Kali 06:50, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks gaile . It just i dont care about the time of ban .I got the suspention for no reason at all.Just cause some screen shot show a chat .I asked the team if they can or Scan/Moderate what happened exactly thats all i need —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Simu (talk • contribs) at 06:16, 9 May 2009 (UTC).

yo big tortilla man here i think its bogus cause i was on cam with him and he was doin the run and he got payed by everyone except The Fth Element did not pay and he has over 200ecto in cash and can run 10k dungeons and 8k dungeons i think its kinda rediculous really. How he has all that cash and 2 scam for a pityful amount of cash 2k. Come on i have played with this guy in game and he is great at the game and just cause some guy gets a screen cause he has been banned before does not make it true. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 67.159.45.195 (talk • contribs) at 12:02, 9 May 2009 (UTC).

What exatly is "A"? I was reading this, and my face is like this -> :S--Unendingfear It's my birthday today! w00t! 14:40, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

There. Fixed it. But I smell something fishy here... — Poki#3 (talk) 15:42, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

Hey, I know I play with this guy and I know that he would never defraud. Hes nice and personally I think it is just rubbish banning him for one persons opinion or a screenshot. I think the other guy should be banned in all honesty. Hes great. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:Kiwiben25 (talk).

Please use four tildes (~~~~) to sign your comments so we know who is responding. People are going to do things like this just to try to get people in trouble because things dont go their way. Sadly these people are everywhere. Just sit back and relax they will do what they can when they can. Drogo Boffin 22:30, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

Hey Again gaile. I dont get ,i understand that the team doesnt work on sunday, but 5 days and i still got no respond?Sat,Monday, Tues,and Wedsnday is up.Again Ticket [Incident:090509-000314].I dont want to put u up in this gaile but its the only way i can talk to a member here.Thanks

Hello. Please understand: I did not say you would hear "on Monday." I said that you would not hear before Monday. I can't and don't make commitments on when a response will be made because I am not actively participating in the normal ticket queues and I would not want to presume to set a deadline for a response. So when you told the Support Team that I said you would get a response on Monday, that is inaccurate.

The logs show that someone paid you and did not get reimbursed. This was not the character name you mentioned to me, but another one. You were not blocked because this player reported you, but because of what you did... or in this case did not do. You said the run was not completed, and a person who paid you for the run was not reimbursed. As such, it appeared to the team that you had scammed him and that is why you were given a suspension. And because we take scamming so seriously, a two-week block is not unusual.

You are free to contact the team and explain that you made an error, that you did not intentionally fail to repay the player in question, if that is the case. -- Gaile 19:06, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Stuck on Korean.

Well funny thing happened but is slightly annoying. I tried selecting French to know the name of a skill in French but accidently selected Korean, tried changing the language back but it won't change to the selected language, I tried reinstalling the game and it didn't help. So i'm stuck on Korean for now. See screenshot. Can you help me? Qaletaqa 22:37, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Caption text

Ow sry I found out why, I feel stupid now. I checked my other computer and did see something funny. I was constantly changing the audio language instead of the text. Ouch. My few hours of Korean fun are over. Sry for the misinformation. Qaletaqa 22:49, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

I am glad you got that figured out, and thank you for letting me know it was no longer a possible issue. -- Gaile 04:32, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Absolutely np for letting you know it is no longer a possible issue. I was already hoping when I saw my mistake that nobody already started to make work out of it, because it could have been used in a better way then wasting time on "misinformation" (don't know how else to call it). But I don't know if I should make a suggestion on how to prevent this from happening or not because of the GFDL issues. Qaletaqa 17:23, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Credit Card Banned-- more biased-decision proof.

So, you know my (Lena The Saint/Lena Allums) account was recently biasedly banned, and, I have given you countless facts already that support that word. Well, just thought I'd ask/point out ANOTHER biased move on Arena.Net's part against me that I did not found out until yesterday evening (3 weeks AFTER I was banned). Hhere's the story... My girlfriend still has her account, and, I was going to buy her the 4 storage panes and when I entered my credit card info it told me my "card for blocked for being used on too many accounts". Ok... For one... My card has only been used on ONE account, my MAIN account that was banned. And two, my card was only used on my master plaync account. I have NEVER used my card for anything other than those 2 accounts. Is this legal? To ban my credit card because it was linked to an account that was banned? To biasedy ban one's account, their IP address, AND their credit card just to prevent them from logging onto Guild Wars all because of 9 VERY SMALL EULA breaches form people who reported me just to "get back at me" (in which I have proof on a lot of these that they tried to merely hurt me when they were in no way "offended" in any of the "breaches"-- also because I knew quite a few of them perosnally via chatting/messenging/vent/ect)? It's truely funny how people, furthermore, people from within' Arena.Net defend their support team SO much and say their decisions are NOT biased yet I have dozens of facts and proof to counter their false statement. Feedback from Gaile and only Gaile on this matter is very much appreciated. I will most definately be looking at legal-information sites for this technical issue and see if this was a legal move on Arena.Net's part.... No matter how you look at it, it's a discriminational act. It's like saying "you're black get the hell out of my establishment". That is a BIG no-no in the U.S. and is something that is not legally tollerated. -Lena 00:35, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Have you ever read the EULA? They banned you because you broke it, of course it is leagal for them to deny service to anybody for any reason listed and that they deem neccisary furthermore you are not even supposed to get back on another account if you have been banned. Says so right in the EULA. If you feel you have been wronged submit a ticket and see what happens. If there was a mistake used then they will fix it. Also I still have not seen any viable truth/evidence, you were banned and now you just want to cause trouble. Drogo Boffin 00:48, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Nope, wrong, it's not "account sharing" when you're simply purchasing them something from the store. And yes, I've read the EULA, and no, why would I go through those biased dipshits who threaten you with bans for reporting a guy for who harrasses you for hours on end just to ultimately have it disclosed as "mutual confrontation" when there wasn't anything said from my part (and yes, they coulda have simply checked the chat logs to confirm it, but did they? Hell no! Their answer was "we know you are not genuinely offended by such language". Screen shots of my support tickets and emails as proof, if needed.)? -Lena 01:03, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

edit: this is why I said "I want Gaile and only Gaile's reply", she knows the truth behind it all and all the circumstances. Once more... Please... Try not to bud in, it's extremely technical and anyone from support knows the story with my case(s). -Lena 01:06, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

if you wanted this to be a private conversation you should have sent her an email instead of putting it on a public userpage. Drogo Boffin 01:30, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

I've tried that approach before. I emialed her, she replied, I emailed her back with questions/statements about the redundency about the suspension, and that was it-- she never replied back to me after that. I am the definition of discriminitive-decision making. :) -Lena 01:36, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Wow Lena, first, calm down, second, what the hell? You are bringing up the racism card over this? seriously, take this to private messages, this is quickly turning into an attack. You are making serious accusations here and also threats. So please, think again before you post. --Lemming 02:08, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

This actually may not be an issue between Lena and ArenaNet but the Card Issuing Authorities. Due to efforts to prevent credit and debit card fraud through online transactions it is the Credit/Debit Card Issuers who are blocking cards from being used on second transaction for separate accounts such as topping up on two mobile phone numbers or paying bills online where the payee is the same for two different customers or the customer is the same for the second transaction with the one payee. Sometimes the card can be used again within 24 hours to conclude the second transaction but the pain of having the card blockled or declined is annoying ... especially when the transaction is legitimate, can be funded by the card user and is not less than an honest intent. I simply mention that the blame may not be ArenaNet's but merely that they are constrained by the Card Issuer and there is nothing that ArenaNet can do about that. Bearz 02:26, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Threats? Yes. Legal threats. Calm? Oh, I am very-- just hadme a nice cold drink. ^.^; Private messages? I tried that approach. Got me nowhere but with a biased-perma ban. Serious accusations? Oh, yes, very. I find none of them to be taken lightly nor do I take them lightly myself. This is, given, a very serious matter. As for the "this is turning into an attack", well, I don't want that, I want this answered by Gaile.

p.s.: Haha, I've already got 3 ZoS members (Teal as the 3rd within' Drogo's discussion tab) to comment on this. Word spreads fast, don't they? :) -Lena 02:33, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Actually, Bearz, a lot of what you say is true, but, in my case, the block was established from Arena.Net's end. Mmy gf will pass me the screen whenever she gets the chance and then you can rejudge the current situation (btw, the message doesn't even have an error code following it... lol) :) -Lena 02:38, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm sorry, but a threat is a threat, no matter how you dress it up, I don't care if it is legal or physical or emotional, they have no place anywhere on this wiki. --Lemming 02:42, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLL Arena.Net changed the message to "The order did not pass the risk management assesment". Wow, gg!! Still doubt that they are not behind all of this? Truely amazing. Now that it has a "risk assesment check" even though I am the owner of the card my girlfriend and I can formally submit a support ticket and have them unflag my debit card. If they still refuse to remove the block "because of security reasons" even after personally, as the OWNER, that no foul play is involved with MY card, then fixing this "error" should NOT be an issue. If they refuse to remove the flag, well, all I have to say it that legal action after proving ownedship will be taken. :) *waits on Gaile* -Lena 02:46, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

How many times are you going to quit the game before you leave? I grow tired of hearing about your ignorance. -FireFox 03:45, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

agreed. What is so hard to understand...they do not want to have anything to do with you. No business. . I can only imagine your local restaraunt telling you that you were no longer welcome and you then going there to buy your girlfriend a meal and you wondering why they didn't let you. Why not go purchase something from someone who wants to sell to you? -- Inspired to ____ 03:56, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Firefox... I have quit. How is me buying my *gf* something for *her* account "me quitting again" ? ._. And sorry, I am here to stay. I enjoy wiki, I don't have a reason to NOT post on it. :) -Lena 04:19, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

Your account was banned, your CC was associated with your account, and thus could have been rightfully banned also. In addition, "risk assessment" may be coming from Anet's credit card company, not them, they're not a banker or a financial institution, and do not perform financial risk assesments. Buy a prepaid card before you get your GF banned for messing with her account. If you want to buy her something, you need to log in as her, so the account IS shared, even if you don't play the game on it, end of story. Don't cause to her what you caused to yourself by taking over her account now that you lost yours, and then causing a public fuss on top of it. This is not discrimination in any way, especially the way you are trying to disguise it. Rose Of Kali 17:50, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

@ Kali - So by your logic... If SHE logs into her account to enter MY credit card info, that is "account sharing"? That's new... -Lena 19:22, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) I do not know about the situation with your credit card. Fraud is a very serious issue with online businesses and the companies who accept cards must be careful. We have a very small number of "false positives" for fraud. We may also disengage from the credit cards of those whose accounts have been terminated. As firmly, as considerately, and as fairly (yes, fairly!) as possible, I suggest the following: Please file a support ticket in order to discuss the matter with the Support Team.

At this point, I want to end the extended and repeated threads about your account termination(s) that you've placed on my page. I want to discourage, if not stop, a constant stream of ill-founded protests and appeals that take up the time of the team and of myself, as well. Therefore, I tell you, once again: If you feel you need to know more, file a support ticket. I might suggest that it is imprudent and inappropriate to flash the "legal action," "racism," and "9 small breaches" cards. Do keep in mind that at some point, your protests can, will, and should fall on deaf ears, so you may wish to communicate in a reasonable tone and avoid hyperbole, threats, and bogus protestations of innocence, when applicable. -- Gaile 23:20, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

GG, Gaile. And by Lena's logic, how is Anet supposed to know that your GF didn't steal your credit card and is trying to use it without permission? It was linked to another account, and they don't keep track of real-life relationships. And it is somewhat widely known that there do exist false positives in the system, so if you didn't know about that, now you do. Don't make a problem where there isn't one, and don't make this to be what it's not. You said you like it here, for whatever reason, so don't grief, be reasonable, and someone will listen (yes, right now most people consider your posts as grieving). Rose Of Kali 04:14, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

And I have every reason to "grief". You don't know what crappy Arena.Net did to my gf and I, do you? Bud out. Thanks. :) -Lena 05:42, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

edit: fyi, Arena.Net knows she is my gf-- but that is besides the point. The point is they banned my credit card as par my ban on my main account. There is not denying it as much as they might try. I still find it funny how they changed the "error" message for me from "This card has been blocked. This card has been used on multiple accounts (in which they are refering to my "alt" accounts which were also banned-- which I never even used my card on" with no error code following behind it to "Your card did not pass the risk assessment <insert error code here>" in the game store shortly after I threatened with legal action. :D -Lena 05:51, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh yes, I'm sure they have a special place on every account to note who is someones girlfriend. Computers can usually sense that kind of stuff. And yes, it's because you threatened them. Empty threats always work. It's not like you broke the user agreement that says that you can be banned by breaking the user agreement. Oh wait, you broke it 9 times... You still want a second chance? Seriously man, let go, because you're not making any sense. If you really want to sort out your credit card problem you can try. File a support ticket. That's the way things are handled. You want Gaile to wave a magic wand or something? — Poki#3 (talk) 06:29, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Considering they perma-banned my gf (but lifted it and replaced it with a 2 week suspension) just because of the fact that she "was related to my account", then, yes, that is all the proof I need. As mentioned 18,438,426 times before: Arena.Net knows the in-depth information for this situation extremely well and are well aware that she is my gf. Thanks, though. :) -Lena 07:06, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

That doesn't matter when it concerns automatic risk calculations though. Anyway, I would advise you to read User Agreement section 4h and 4i:

(h) Former Members. Members whose Accounts have been terminated by NC Interactive may not access the Service in any manner or for any reason, including through any other Account, without the express written permission of NC Interactive. Accounts accessed by Former Members are subject to immediate termination. NC Interactive reserves the right to use any means necessary, including those in section 4(i) to identify and remove Former Members.

(i) Related Accounts. If NC Interactive terminates an Account, NC Interactive may terminate any other Accounts that share the same member name, phone number, email address, postal address, Internet Protocol address, or credit card number with the terminated Account.

In short, they have every right to do what they are doing. Regardless of what their right is or is not, you may be able to work something out to get your credit card working, but to do so I would advise you to calm down, take a deep breath and stay polite. // HeavenMonkey 12:19, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Given what HeavenMonkey has just copied for you, I'd highly advise against using your credit card for anything on your girlfriend's account as you risk getting her account terminated as well. --★KOKUOU★ 12:22, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I just love the part where Lena assumes that everyone at anet knows the in and outs of his situation. For starters the credit card system is almost certainly automated, and even if it was overseen by a person in billing they would have nothing to do with the support team in most things. Of course they maybe go down to the pub together and just chat about your situation in case you decided to use your CC on someone elses account..... --Lemming 20:28, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

No ZoS.Net members allowed (other than Gaile), Lemmings. Thanks.

@Heaven - Yea, I understand that completely, BUT, it still seems very biased and a HUGE case to solo one out just because they are someone's gf. -Lena talk 21:50, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm sorry, it sounds like you are under the assumption that you can decide who posts where. That is most certainly not the case. --Lemming 22:22, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

The only "soloing out" Anet did here is the decision to UN-permaban your gf and give a suspension instead. They bent their own rules, don't make them change their mind. Rose Of Kali 23:16, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

lol and what "rules" did they "bend"? They biasedly perma'd her account because she is my gf ("RELATED TO MY ACCOUNT", ahem). How is that her breaking the rules or Arena.Net upholding their EULA policy of a "family oriented game" ? This has seriously degenerated and not even worth tlaking about anymore. The Wiki/GW "community" who have tried to defend Arena.Net, aka, the ass-kissers of Arena.Net, are completely dumbfounded and truely need to not speak on such matters unless they know the facts themselves (ESPECIALLY about this issue since only my girlfriend, guildies, Gaile, Arena.Net support, and I know the truth). Go ahead and archive this, Gaile. I don't need an answer anymore, the one person who DID have something extremely constructive to say on this matter was HeavenMonkey, and, I thank you very much for that (assuming you ever get to read this later on sometime)

G'day all.

One last thing, @ Gaile. Sorry to put all of this on you, when I said "you", I am never reffering to YOU as a person, I am reffering to the company whom you work for. So, thank you for your patience. In the end all I can say about this is "I am sorry". ^^ -Lena talk 23:37, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

So you didn't even read the EULA before bitching at gaile and anet? I'm not a fan of their sub-par support or their lack of honesty when people get banned, but that's just plain stupid on your part. You can't even begin to argue all that "family oriented EULA policies" bullshit if you haven't read it.

If you want to make ANet more prone to ignore your argument and those from people after you, keep going the way you're going. Don't bother doing your homework, don't bother reading policies you're legally bound to, just start posting away and saying the law is on your side. If you want to take legal action, don't say anything at all to Gaile et all - merely show the evidence to your lawyer and let him do all the talking. -Auron 01:15, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Unable or Unwilling

Others like myself have over a long time asked about the problems of match fixing and leeching, and for about two years all we are told is the team are talking/the team are looking/we understand your frustration <.>So what I would like to ask is with all this looking talking and understanding why is it that the problems are still ongoing is that anet are unable or simply unwilling to tackle the problems?<.>I mean no disrespect to any one by this post but like the team I have looked and talked about the problems and I’m left even more frustrated by the lack of action--Kaiaba 10:42, 14 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi Kaiaba. I let this post remain in place without an answer for a few days because last week's build -- which went up later on the day you posted your note -- contained some changes that may help address some of the issues you've described. And I know we've talked as recently as two days ago about certain means that we will use to determine if someone is "taking a fall" in order to give undeserved victories and rewards to other players.

The going is slow, it's true. The problem is complicated, the ways in which players abuse the system are varied, and there's (clearly) no quick fix for any of the elements, or they would have been made a long time ago. The concerns are not hitting deaf ears, and as you can see from the recent changes, and as I understand it from our Live Team meetings, there are other potential changes under consideration as well. So while I cannot give you concrete "This will happen on that date" answers, nor am I able to reveal some of the potential fixes (for obvious reasons), I can say that I bring this up with the Live Team often, we're all keenly aware these are very prominent concerns amongst players, and we continue to brainstorm a better means of preventing the issues or of dealing with them if they take place. -- Gaile 05:50, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi Gaile First let me say thank you for your reply, I do understind that it all takes time, its just as a pve player with about 8k hours Compared to about 300 hours pvp I’m frustrated that my transition from pve to pvp is restricted by the actions of others, I wish to be able to play the game in its entirety, and pvp is a interact part of the game.Thank you once more for your time.--86.156.74.53 10:47, 20 May 2009 (UTC)--86.156.74.53 Kaiaba

DirectSong Help

I'm having trouble with the whole DirectSong thing, should I contact the GW-support peeps or give DirectSong a buzz? It's nothing urgent but their Knowledgebase is worryingly empty, response appreciated, --Alex Eternal 19:41, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

What exactly do you have problems with? — Poki#3 (talk) 08:08, 16 May 2009 (UTC)

Well that's just it, I have no idea. From the sound tab of the Options menu (in-game), I'm told that there's an error and to contact support, I've tried re-downloading the latest "GuildWars.ds" and it makes no difference, which means that I'm totally out of ideas already :S --Alex Eternal 09:08, 16 May 2009 (UTC)

I just deleted a few obsolete files in the DirectSong folder, it's working wonderfully now, sorry for the clutter, --Alex Eternal 09:43, 16 May 2009 (UTC)

If you have any more problems with DirectSong, feel free to drop by my page, I'll try to help ^^; — Poki#3 (talk) 12:28, 16 May 2009 (UTC)

Hello, Alex. I am glad to hear that you sorted out the difficulties. For others interested in support for DirectSong, yes, it's usually best to contact DirectSong directly about such issues. They may work with our Support Team on an issue -- for instance, they may ask our Technical Support Team for input on a particular matter that interfaces between the game and the music. So if you want to write to Guild Wars support first, you're welcome to do so and they will let you know if they can help or if you should get in touch with DS. But for issues outside the game, such as listening to music independently, obviously going to DS straightaway is best. -- Gaile 05:54, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Reselling Offence

Hello Gaile Grey i am wondering if you can help me with my rescent ban due to "reselling". Support ticket is [090513-001309]. im not sure why i was given this suspention of 2 weeks(no previous suspentions on my account). I dont know what eveidence would be to say i have been "reselling" as i know i havent sold or bought accounts(if that is what it means). if you can help my case it would be greatlly appreciated.Lodgeinator 17:42, 16 May 2009 (UTC)

A 2 week suspension for a first time offense is very, VERY hefty. If it is not your first time being suspended, then, that is why you were given 2 weeks (for continuously accumulating "penalties"). Selling access keys, accounts, in-game gold for real world money, ect, is considered a big no-no and a big breach in their EULA. -Lena talk 06:03, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes i know very well the penaltys that can occure due to re world trading and the reselling of acconts and access keys but i am unsure of where eveidence of this would have came up as i havent performed any of these activitys.Lodgeinator 09:46, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Then all I can recommend is contacting support (which you have already done) and ask them for the "logs" (proof) that they have on you. Normally for cases like these there are chat logs that they obtained from you that they use in their "investigation". Basicly, they don't need screen shots to see if you said something, they can simply bring up individual chat logs for an individual account and scan through those. -Lena talk 10:18, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Ok il update my support ticket(i sent them an email asking for infomation but that may have been delayed), it says the support ticket is closed on the support site, can i still update it?.Lodgeinator 11:16, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

After updating my ticket my account was unblocked ty for the help on the matter and i have to say not to send thme emails back just update from the sight :).Lodgeinator 14:56, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

First, some general information:

• For certain offenses, even first time offenses, a two-week period is the normal suspension. Length of suspension really depends on the infraction and the details that surround it and is entirely at the discretion of ArenaNet and/or NCsoft. Outcomes are not "set in stone" but can be gauged on other elements involved in any infraction. Solicited resales -- the attempted purchase of a trial key -- often result in two week blocks; permanent suspensions are not unheard of; and of course those involved in repeated infractions may find that even a minor "tips the balance" to a termination for repeated violations.

• NCsoft and/or ArenaNet are never required to provide logs or "proof." As a general rule, we are more transparent with players than we once were, but at no time can someone make a case that "They have to show you the evidence or they must remove the suspension/termination," or "You can argue with them and you'll get your way."

Happily, in this case, the team did provide you the details. That meant you were able to point out that this was a case of mistaken identity. It happens -- not often, but it happens -- and when it does, we try to clear it up as quickly as possible. The team member who wrote you most recently expressed regret for the incident, and the person who made the error was shown the details so that he or she will be aware of such a possibility in the future.

I am really glad that you're back in the game, and I thank you for your courtesy and your understanding in the matter -- you've been really nice. :) -- Gaile 23:33, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Human beings... behaving humanly. Brilliant! Rose Of Kali 18:12, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

@ OP - Good job on getting the account back.

@ Arena.Net - looks like someone (AGAIN) doesn't pay much attention to details when they mash the "suspend"/"ban" button. i think a 2 week no-paid "vacation" is in order. ;P

@ kali - ha... almost got a small chuckle out of me there :) -Lena talk 18:05, 22 May 2009 (UTC)

GW.exe considered a Virus

Today My Comodo Virus Detection acused the executable for Guild Wars as a malicous virus on start up, considering it as a Heur.Suspicious@19399639, strangely this morning the game runned without any trouble but now at the end of the day this happens. As this ever happen before? The only thing that I can see new was thevirus update but I keep GW as a trusted aplication. --82.154.180.89 18:51, 20 May 2009 (UTC)Cake and Waffles

Do you use external mods like TexMod or such when you launch GW or it just happened like that, with this antivirus ? Davor Belegnaur 19:12, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

I do but thats beyond the point because I only used them when Vanquishing and also want to Explore the map, so it is most of the times unused. It was the executables that is acussed not textmod, I quarentined it to scan, delete and reinstall the game, after googling properly it seems to be a false positive since the 14 update but only today it showed, but GW and games werent on the false positive reports must where the SPybot searcha dn destroy utility and mediaplayer so I am not sure about the game.

Forgot to sign--82.154.180.89 19:23, 20 May 2009 (UTC) Cake and Waffles

It could be that it has been infected? If my anti-virus (Kaspersky) detects anything I upload the file and scan it on Virustotal. Maybe you can do the same, GW.exe isn't such a big file. Qaletaqa 20:08, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm Back and scanned it with Virustotal, results on it can be found here. Even Comodo doesn't give a positive on Virustotal. Qaletaqa 20:16, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Honestly, I wouldn't use Comodo even if I didn't have any other anti-virus programs to choose from. Mediggo 20:26, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

I have messaged our Technical Support Team to ask about this, but I don't know of any other such reports. The TS lead is not presently available, so you may want to simply contact Support directly and they will likely route the ticket to Technical Support. I believe that team would be very interested in hearing about what you've experienced. Again, with no other reports (to my knowledge) it appears to be an individual issue that they can help you with. Good luck. :) -- Gaile 20:28, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you Gaile, I will do that but, I am starting to supect it's a false positive with the new update but I am not sure, also the GW.exe is about 7GB so it huge to send to that site 82.154.180.89 20:51, 20 May 2009 (UTC)Cake and Waffles

GW.exe 7GB? Impossible. Maybe 7MB. Even GW.DAT can't break past 4GB. Either delete it, reinstall, or somethings really wrong O.o Dominator Matrix 20:55, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

My GW.exe is just shy of 8MB, with my GW.dat just shy of 5GB. — Jon Lupen 20:58, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

File is safe [7]. (Comodo is severely out of date on that site, so its not detected there). I've contacted comodo and relayed the false positive. Dominator Matrix 21:00, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for the help, I see that due to the quarentine act the GW.exe became a bit corrupted/lost and accused about 7GB for some wierd reason and every try to see it's property and scaning it lagged my pc. After reinstaling it all again and downloading the data file again, all seenmed to be okay, even though the message came back, so I assumed it was a false positive. Thank you Dominator for also going into the trouble of contacting them 82.154.180.89 21:15, 20 May 2009 (UTC)Cake and Wafles.

Your Welcome :). Though if it is a false positive it could take days for it to get fixed. Dominator Matrix 21:17, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Issue has been sent to the Comodo Devs. The issue should be fixed by Friday. Dominator Matrix 00:25, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

RI. I experienced the same thing last night too! O_o I thought it can't be that gw.exe got infected, so I put it on the trusted applications list. :) 12:41, 21 May 2009 (UTC) Minami Kaori

Many viruses target *.exe files specifically, infecting some if not all of them, if virus is properly written executable continues to function properly, so a working game doesn't mean that its not infected. It is generally a bad idea to exempt any file from virus scans unless its one time thing. If something is wrong with gw.exe remove it and download a new one, you do not need to redownload entire game. Biz 13:47, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

For the love of god, do not remove the .dat file, only the .exe, or you will be loading and decompressing each game area for a long long time. ^_^; Also, try Avast anti-virus. Works wonders for me, found a plethora of bugs that got completely overlooked by Norton and McAfee. The best part? Avast is FREE, just get the free home use registration key in your Email. Rose Of Kali 18:32, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

I hope this was a one time thing, since it happened for other people too... Next time when the alert comes up on some executable file, I'll be sure not to ignore it. :) Like the OP, I also checked on google the heur.suspicious thing, and found that the new Comodo update recognizes a few files as infected with this heur... - Minami Kaori

@Rose doesn't everyone? ;). Anyways the issue should be fixed with the latest update, that or on Monday since supports sniffing it out. Dominator Matrix 21:52, 22 May 2009 (UTC)

Doesn't everyone what? O_o Rose Of Kali 04:35, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

Use Avast -_-. Dominator Matrix 05:04, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

GWx2

I am being told two things related to this program: it is legal, and it is not. So, I wanted to ask you if it is or if it is not... Thanks in advance Gaile! Sentry007 21:29, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

The answer to this question is still up in the air, no one knows if it is right now or not. There is a discussion going on about it here if you want to take a look at that. Gaile has contacted the Live Team about this and is currently awaiting a response. I am also quite curious as to what the answer will be, since I don't plan on buying a 2nd account if it is deemed illegal (I can continue to use Furyan as my item holder between mules if that is the case ;) ) --Shadowphoenix 23:03, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Ah, ok, thnx lots! Sentry007 22:56, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

>:| Geez, thanks Shadow >:| ^_^ 000.00.00.00 05:41, 22 May 2009 (UTC)

Problem with /report

Copied from User talk:Linsey Murdock#Problem with /report at the suggestion of Pyron Sy.

Last night, I saw a player very blatantly advertising for a 'Monks Tomb' in pre-searing. After a rather unpleasant conversion, I was informed 'you should keep track of the glitches' (or words to that effect). In other words, the player was trying to cheat. I tried to send a '/report' of this activity, but was informed that the player had to be in the same district. That is fairly obviously a BUG. If you hear something like that, it should be possible to report it. --Max 2 12:30, 24 May 2009 (UTC)

If you managed to get a screnshot, contact support and send it to them. They'll take care of it from there. And since this is a support issue, it would be better handled by Gaile Gray.--Pyron Sy 14:14, 24 May 2009 (UTC)

Sorry, no screen shot. I just stuck the character on my ignore list since I couldn't report. --Max 2 15:45, 24 May 2009 (UTC)

My guess is the /report function adds informations such as the district/instance and (approximate) time to the generated report. Without it, the support team would have no clue where to look for the committed offence. The system could, maybe, track the user's movement and list all districts/instances (with timespan) that the reporting user has been in with the reported user (both at the same time). A dropdown list would be needed though to select where the offence was committed: a public channel (general chat, team chat, trade chat) or a private channel (whispers, guild chat, alliance chat). This would be necessary since public channels are bound to districts/instances while private channels aren't. // HeavenMonkey 17:50, 24 May 2009 (UTC)

At least partially incorrect. Trade chat covers multiple districts. That's why it's a bug. I've posted a copy of this on misc. bugs. Discussion should probably continue there. --Max 2 18:48, 24 May 2009 (UTC)

Trade chat is district limited as well, only party search goes over multiple districts. poke | talk 19:11, 24 May 2009 (UTC)

Is it possible to merge two different GW accounts? If it isn't, it should be.

Hello Gaile,

I was stupid and made two different GW accounts for myself. The first account was made when I got my first GW game, Prophecies. The second account is for Factions and Nightfall. I thought, at first, that having four character slots for each game would be best. But that was way too much. Now, I would LOOOOVE a way to merge the two accounts to end up with one account with 8 character slots. If this isn't possible already, someone should make it where a person could 1) delete characters until they have 8 (or 6) total, and then 2) supply the usernames and the passwords for both (or all) accounts to merge them.

Thanks

Whilst you probably want a response from Gaile, I gotta tell you now, I wouldn't get your hopes up. It isn't possible already, and it is probably an insane amount of coding to actually make it viable. --Lemming 02:27, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

At a guess, it could probably be done with an SQL script by an expert DBA. If they go that route, they should charge real money for the service. --Max 2 05:18, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

Issue with Reconnectin Window

So there i was, vanquishing an area with some friends when the reconnect window popped up. Normally i could've just clicked on YES. But as usually with some friends, we were chatting.

So the problem is that the reconnect window popped up when i was typing. And guess what, the N key is bound to the NO button there. So before I knew i had to reconnect the window it was gone already. This really pissed me off and i hope the support can do something about it.

Thanks in advance File:User Smurf Minions Smurf.pngSmurf Minions 14:55, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

I've been farming before and would hit F9 to open inventory if I needed to drop something or check what I had. I pick up loot by hitting Z to target objects and then Spacebar to pick them up. Well, a few times I hit F12 instead of F9 while picking up loot (I wasn't used to my new "funky" keyboard layout), and hitting the Spacebar automatically logged me out, because that's the default key to accept logout from the F12 menu. Unfortunately, the only solution to these problems is removing keyboard shortcuts to menu buttons when a selection window is open, which I don't think will happen. Watch the screen when you type, that's all. Rose Of Kali 19:30, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

These can't be remapped, eh? -- Gaile 02:32, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Not that I know of. You can only remap in-game shortcuts, not the client menus. Rose Of Kali 17:55, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Falsely Blocked for Fraud?

This weekend a problem arose where some accounts were marked, in error, as having been involved in a fraudulent credit card purchase. I believe this involved some purchases that were made over the long weekend. The situation arose due to an unhappy (and blessedly unusual) combination of events that are definitely getting addressed, account by account, as quickly as possible. We are also taking measures to avoid a repeat in the future.

I've been on the phone with a few folks, including a very nice family in the UK, and of course Support has seen a number of tickets about this. If you made a purchase and found your account inaccurately "closed" for fraud, please contact support. Give the team your Guild Wars user name, your NCsoft Master Account name (if you recall it) and the date and approximate time of the purchase. They'll get back to you to let you know if they need additional information, and they will take care of you as quickly as possible.

It goes without saying that the folks making these purchases are amongst our most loyal and valued players, and we're very, very sorry that this happened. Thankfully, the number was relatively small, but anyone who experienced this is probably understandably upset. So again, we apologize for the problem and will get these issues fixed ASAP. If I can help in any way, let me know. -- Gaile 02:15, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi Gaile

If the number of people is small, why is it taking so long to fix these accounts?

We are now into day 5 of the ban and there are still people who have not had there accounts back.

These people are now getting more angery and are now starting to make this problem more widely known by contacting the gaming press.

people are not getting any replies on how long this will take and the GWGuru thread about the ban has had no A-net rep. reply in the last 48 hours.They are looking for answers including are support working the weekend to fix this or are they going to be looking at Monday before they can hope to see any news.

please look in to this. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by 87.115.80.52 (talk • contribs) at 14:55, 29 May 2009 (UTC).

Thanks for letting me know about the concerns. Unfortunately, there is no easy fix for the individual situations -- each must be resolved "by hand," one by one. The good news is that as of today, there will be team members working during the weekend in both our UK and US Support offices to help get these tickets resolved. Some of the issues are very complicated -- one single account took an hour to fix due to the high number of keys on the account -- but most are not that time-consuming and progress is being made.

The team is working together to get this sorted out ASAP and to get everyone back into the game. In the meantime, we're very sorry that the issue arose at all, and are deeply apologetic for the time that it has taken to resolve. -- Gaile 02:38, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi Gaile

Firstly thank you and all concerned for sorting out the banned accounts – I think most if not all players now have their accounts unlocked. It would be nice to see an acknowledgement to this incident at the log-on screen – together with an assurance that the cause of this problem has been found and corrected, so we can now order from the online store without fear of a repeat. I know that I am not happy to buy anything from the store until I get reasurance that it is working as it should.

This incident does however highlight two points – firstly that the European Support team were unable to cope with the demand for support so maybe help should have been sort from the US support side earlier. Secondly im a little shocked that accounts are banned (by remote means) for so called Payment fraud without any warning to the Customer – I would expect many of these so called cases to be simply down to a mistake – either on the part of the customer (a simple one number incorrect when entering details) – or indeed by the Credit card / bank card provider – errors like this do occur. Maybe a more understanding approach – for instance an email being generated to warn the if situation is not resolved in 7 days then account will be permanently terminated together with an incident number to quote when contacting support. I feel this would have led to none of these accounts being banned in the first place.

If this had been in place then it would not have cost you all the free upgrades you have given out to compensate players for this error.

This incident has cast a shadow over the otherwise excellent recent update – some people im sure will now struggle to gain their Guardian titles because they missed the relevant Z-Quest mission (one thing this update has done is increase interest in old missions and in do the Dungeons in Hard Mode) – maybe to help with this would it be possible to create a “Wish List” for players as to which Missions / Dungeons to appear daily?

Anyway thank you again – hopefully some good will come from this incident(Gilliandark 15:20, 30 May 2009 (UTC))

Repairing data archive...

I've never seen this before, but now for the second time in a few weeks I saw this on the initial Guild Wars startup screen, the little one that looks like when you download things. What does that mean? This happened the first time I ran GW on my new laptop (didn't surprise me that much, I transferend my Templates and Screenshots from the old PC, but apparently into the wrong folder, as I later discovered O_o) and again today, for no real reason. Just wondering what's the significance of this. Please move if I'm asking the wrong person. Rose Of Kali 20:34, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

Scared the living daylights outta me when I first encounterd it.

"Repairing data archive" is a technical term given to when the game will attempt to rebuild its database upon activation when a problem has occurred somehow. The process can be quite lengthy taking approximately 10-15 minutes to complete depending on the speed of your computer.

The problem is known to be client side but its causes are otherwise unknown. --Silverleaf Don't assume, Know! 20:37, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

O_o Yeah, sounds like something that should happen post game crash, (a-la city of heroes' "verifiying files" stage), but it never bothers with mine, so it can't be a simple "if game did not exit cleanly" flag. I wonder if it's tracking database bloat or fragmentation and running a compact type operation on it if it feels a need . . . O_o --Star Weaver 20:54, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

My game hasn't crashed, though, just some usual lag yesterday, and I closed it normally before shutting down. O_o Weird... Rose Of Kali 21:20, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

I had this happen to me a lot on one of my old computers, and I found that if I exited the game by going to the character select screen, then logging out, then closing the game (instead of just alt+f4ing like I usually do) it wouldn't happen. ¬ Wizårdbõÿ777(talk) 21:34, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

If you get the problem again, I'd scan your harddrive for any errors, and delete the dat file and redownload it. — Poki#3 (talk) 01:39, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

Prefereably in the reverse order, especially if you want to defrag while you're at it. Not having to shuffle the dat will speed up a defrag, not sure about the chkdsk. (You might want to run chkdsk /r too, or check the 'check for bad blocks' thing in the GUI; takes forever but is much more thourough ^_^.) --Star Weaver 16:06, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

I ran the scheduled scan once, the DOS sfc /scannow command twice, and chkdsk.exe, and still it ended up with files that it could not repair. Researching online revealed that it is a known Vista problem that's not really a problem, as it doesn't affect anything except return false positives in chkdsk. Dunno if that's causing this data archive repairing, but I got the message a third time yesterday. I really, really, REALLY don't want to re-download the dat file, as it's a monster, but I'll do it if this keeps happening. Is there a way to just download a FULL version of it? Usually what happens is I download the client for 1 hour, then try to login with a character and download for another hour, and then still have to download and decompress every bloody area in the game when I enter them for the first time, and often subsequent times, this is very annoying. I'd be more content if I could just go afk for 5 hours and come back to it being COMPLETE, without all this extra loading all the time. Last time this happened, I just wasted a bunch of time zoning into every city and exiting into the explorables just to pre-load them, so that I didn't have to deal with it later, especially if I was in a human party. Rose Of Kali 18:04, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

You can use the -image command line argument to download the whole mess in one go, or any parts you're currently missing without having to visit their relevant areas. You can also try invoking -repair manually to see if it can sort things out. Apparently it also downloads while you sit at the login screen, which I didn't know. If you've got an extra drive, you could also try moving the dat off the current drive, doing another round of repair/defrag, and moving it back into the fresh space. No idea if that would actually help though. --Star Weaver 18:19, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

Urgh! It just did it again. :( I'll be sure to use the -image when downloading next time... Rose Of Kali 18:57, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

I don't want to be alarming, but when I started getting "Repairing archive" notes, it was a sign that my power supply was dying. I had all sorts of fun with that. (Aye right!) You might watch for video glitches, extra noise, or other signs you're about to have a power outage. Good luck! -- Gaile 03:36, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

@ Gaile: my laptop is only 3 weeks old, I really doubt it's power issues. It's quiet and the graphics are perfect. Though, I've been through power supply issues before with an old desktop, so I know the pain.

A few other "funky" things started happening besides this GW issue. My Firefox crashed and could not restart or restore session until I rebooted my computer. I blue-screened twice within a few days. Some kind of Superfetch(?) feature crashed and got disabled a couple times, which is apparently a Vista caching program that pulls your most used programs into RAM when you boot up before you even run those programs, or something along those lines. Other than that, everything else seemed normal, no malware was detected. All of these issues were an annoyance and made me raise an eyebrow, but haven't bothered me enough yet, and my husband (you might consider him a level 20 geek) said that none of these seemed serious and some were known issues, though he couldn't figure out why I blue-screened. Then I noticed that my Recycle Bin was filled by looking at the icon, which I normally keep empty, and opening it revealed about 2 dozen .pl files, which I definitely did not put there. That was the final straw.

I saved everything I wanted to keep to an external hard drive and loaded up a ghost image we made the day after buying this PC. All the problems seem gone now, and I have no idea what happened. I also pulled my old GW.dat from my desktop instead of downloading everything all over again, and it seems to work just fine. So, I installed my usual programs all over again, downloaded patches, etc., and made another ghost image of everything complete in addition to the baseline image. We'll see if this oddity starts happening again, hasn't so far. Rose Of Kali 05:27, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Well, for what it's worth, here's another update. Two days after re-ghosting all started happening again. Turns out I have bad RAM. All the crashing problems with Guild Wars closing and repairing data archives, Firefox freaking out, BSOD (blue screen of death), all seems to stem from that. My darling nerd husband is running a memory test, and sure enough, bad memory errors are popping up. Yay for warranties! Rose Of Kali 03:59, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Before you blame it all on bad RAM, check the power supply. Particularly if the problem seems to be related to the time of day. Marginal power will often show up as memory errors and/or disk errors. Also, if the errors tend to jump around rather than being pretty much in one place, that also indicates power problems. Another thing to check is stuck fans. Overheating can push a machine into intermittent failure, but is actually more insidious and more serious. Too much heat for too long can actually destroy a machine. --Max 2 20:48, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

The BCODs happened at various times of day. The PC did not overheat, as I can feel it under my hands and it felt barely warm, actually cooler than some of my older laptops. And how the heck would I check the power supply on a laptop? The battery seems ok, has rather good lifespan. The fans seem working fine, very quiet, but I hear them ramp up every once in a blue moon, and it's new, there can't be any dust in there yet. Also, we used MemTest86+ to test for bad memory, and it returned about 175 errors after 13 full scans (19 on the first pass). The fact that the errors were rather limited in number, seemed to occur in about the same range of memory bytes every time (1200 and 4200), and the fact that MemTest86+ ran for 23 hours without crashing (it would have crashed if the PC overheated) leaves no doubt that it's bad RAM and nothing else. Rose Of Kali 04:30, 13 June 2009 (UTC)

With a lap-top, the batteries are the most important part of the power supply. If they are not lasting as long as they used to, even if overall their lifetime is still reasonably good, that is a bad sign. I use MemTest86+ myself. The narrow address range does favor bad memory but the counts are still low enough that it could be power. If you have a good spare battery pack, doing a swap on the battery might be a good idea. The main reason I brought this up is because I had what I thought were memory problems a one point. Replacing memory did not solve the problem. Moving some of the extra gear to another machine was what rehabilitated the machine. --Max 2 07:31, 13 June 2009 (UTC)

Did you see the "new laptop" part? The battery life is better than I expected out of the box, and no, it's not losing performance over the last 4 weeks that I owned it. I will also be using this as pure DTR (desk top replacement) soon, so I will take the battery out altogether and stick it in my fridge (haha yes, the user's manual actually tells you to do that! ^_^). The low (175) error count is actually more in favor of bad memory, because if it was in the thousands, it would indicate that either the memory is really REALLY bad (unlikely to pass the automated QC) or indeed the problem is not memory, but possibly the memory slot it's in, or other things. I also don't have any "extra gear" on this other than what came in the box. My ages old Vaio can't even run on its battery anymore, it can't hold charge at all, but it still doesn't crash when plugged in. :P Thanks for your inputs, Max, we really had no clue what was happening for a while, but MemTest86+ was the eye opener, and at this point we're just going to contact Gateway for warranty.

In any case, the main reason I wanted to update this post is just to let Gaile know the real problem that was causing the constant data archive repairs. Some of them took upwards of 15 minutes, and were rather annoying. At this point, the topic is getting long and can be considered resolved, so feel free to archive. Rose Of Kali 14:43, 13 June 2009 (UTC)

Hello, Gaile.

I was wondering if you could please look into this (090527-001683). I gave Support a fair chance at responding back to me without being rude with them or anything of the sort-- as requested from you the last time I spoke with you. Thank you for your time. if you need any additional information or anything at all please do not hesitate to ask -Lena talk 22:24, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

Still waiting for a reply, so, just letting you know I was still here. :D ^^ -Lena™ talk 19:04, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Been quite a while so far. :( Any input, Gaile? :'( -Lena™ talk 00:14, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Okay... So you have time to answer long questions but you cannot take care of mine? I know you're busy but I have yet to recieve ANY kind of feedback from you on this matter. I'm reeeally starting to feel that you've given me the cold shoulder also just like the rest of the Support Team has done to me... Sigh... -Lena™ talk 22:08, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Lena -- you've filed ticket after ticket about essentially the same matter, that "same dog in a new dress" situation. You say "let me back in the game because..." and then add "...that name is as nasty as mine," or "...this player said something worse," or "...you didn't take action on such-and-such." The aggregate history of an account can and will be reviewed when taking action on a report. I can't state that anyone on the team -- including me -- gets it right 100% of the time, but we're careful and cautious in taking action on anyone's account. We might miss chat that should have been actioned, or misjudge a name and need to review it later. If you're pointing out errors, I thank you, because that means they can be reviewed. But seriously, pointing out anecdotal evidence of other issues doesn't wipe the slate clean of what you, yourself, did. (Sort of like "He looked at me funny" doesn't excuse "He hit me!")

I looked at the ticket and I can see that the team answered you several times yet you made new tickets. I have a feeling if I tell the traffic cop "Well, that guy was speeding too," he's going to tell me to worry about myself. I'm really sorry to say this, but you made too many errors and breached too many rules, and the outcome was something you could have predicted if you had only taken things more seriously at the time. But you didn't. Is it a wonder that, finally, it caught up with you? :( -- Gaile 03:31, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for the professional answer-- it's more than I've gotten from others. Well, Gaile, the 2 appeals that I have made were for my perma-ban. My perma-ban, rather, my "last chance", was based on something that was completely unfair and had they not given me my perma-ban I am almost 100% positive I would have continue down the path of no causing trouble. Yes, on my FINAL warning I stopped going to anywhere that people hung out and kept local chat off almost 100% of the time. That is why I try so hard to get that through to Arena.Net's heads! I did nothing wrong on my final suspension-- they went through my personal PM's and personal messages with my gf/officers in my Guild Hall and perma'd me for that. I honestly have to say if I DID do something wrong for my final suspension I swear it I would NOT try to appeal it as I KNOW I had deserved to be perma'd after a final warning. The way I feel, is, support told me "you are on a final warning", I took that warning toi heart honored it, and, Support insisted on perma-banning me over what was not fair. I know I had 9 total marks on my account-- I am sincerely sorry for them. What I will never be able to get over is my final suspension on something I didn't do wrong to recieve. Thank you for your reply, Gaile. I hope you reply back again after sincerely and HOPEFULLY going through the most recent support ticket I submitted and TRY to please see my side of the story on this. I look forward to an answer if you so wish to look into it and not just go off what your co-workers tell you. :) -Lena™ talk 04:00, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Is it safe to assume you have been going through my case? Take your time, if so. :) -Lena™ talk 01:53, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

Lena, I cannot see where there is anything to review that wasn't already reviewed, and re-reviewed, by the Support Team. According to the records, and they don't lie, the chat that was cited was not private messages, whispers, what have you. The other incident in the Guild Hall may have been witnessed only by your and your girlfriend, but we have no way of knowing that based on the data we retrieved. And that incident became known -- no one was chasing after you! -- after other incidents were reported.

Let me explain: Someone says "Fred was swearing in Kamadan AD #2 on Wednesday afternoon at 3:30." Now, a lot of time they forget to give the time zone, and naturally we don't expect the person to be precise, so when we review logs, we do so for a "window" around that time. A lot of times, when I get referred a ticket by the team to deal with personally, I will actually review records for a full 24-hour period to see more of what was going on and better understand the situation. Hey, when someone is reported for cheating, we may review a month's worth of activity on all kinds of levels, we're that serious about stopping abuse.

Anyway, the point is the cumulative nature of the problem. It's not like you said "poo poo" and got a permanent ban. You know that; you have to know that! You did some pretty bad things (I won't go into details, but there was a variety) and on the 11th mark, you were told in no uncertain terms that if another report was verified, you'd be gone. That was an extraordinary effort on the part of the team to not ban you. Another report revealed a 12th breach, and once verified the team acted as they had said they would.

There have been a few *cough* threads about account actions lately and it's late and I have packing to do, but I wanted to answer you and not leave you hanging. If any of this is inaccurate, please let me know. But please, be honest. Comments like "I only had 4 marks" or "I told someone he was silly and got a perma-ban" miss the mark by light years. :) -- Gaile 06:49, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

I understand that, but, where are you getting 12 marks from? I've only been suspended (to my knowledge) 8 times and then perma'd for a ninth? Also, you say you have NO way to tell if "chat were in private session" (in secluded areas). Well, if this is the case, then, doesn't it seem a little unjust if the reasons for being banned are pretty irrelevant? I understand language should not be tollerated against other users (such as swearing like a sailor in Kamadan in Local Chat, for example), I truely do, but, in private areas in our Guild Hall is just.... Unfair since you are unable to prove it (on your end)? Thank you for your reply, Gaile. I truely do appreciate it. -Lena™ talk 21:43, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

1. You could have gotten multiple marks for the same suspension, aka multiple violations.
2. 9 times is pretty lenient, honestly, many games permaban/long vacation you way before that. Pika Fan 23:22, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm kind of impressed you got suspended 8 times. That takes some real determination. Blood Red Giant Mani Mortus 23:26, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

I think Gaile has my email blocked... -Lena™ talk 16:25, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

I've sent you 4 emails so far, Gaile, and you've yet to reply. Can I look forward to a reply? I'd very nuch rather not spam your page with what I've been sending you and keeping your talk page clean... -Lena™ talk 17:10, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Account Closure Issue

GW Support Closed and Banned My Account Permanently ( for using BOTS or 3rd party programs which they claim)

IMPORTANT UPDATE(2ndJune09) Matter Has Been Resolved Positively,Thank You everyone for their response. Can This Post be Deleted?

First and foremost, i'd like to thank Gaile Gray in providing this platform and his her joy in helping others with issues with ArenaNet or Ncsoft.I'd like to share here my own experience with ArenaNet support, for the benefits of others and the gaming community who may experience the same problems now or in future.

On 29thMay'09, while doing runs with some peeps, I was suddenly kicked out of the game and brought to a screen which says " Your Guild War Account Has Been Terminated for using a BOT or other Third Party Program which is a breach of the User Agreement and Rules of Conduct. This action is permanent (code 045)".

Below is the correspondence(all copied and paste exactly),for which im still awaiting a reply after a day. And according to others' experiences, they may never reply again.

---

Question Reference #090528-001950 Summary: My account Terminated ?????????? Product Level 1: Guild Wars Date Created: 05/28/2009 06:44 PM Last Updated: 05/28/2009 06:44 PM Status: Unresolved Department: Game Support NCsoft Account: unknown Game Account: unknown Operating System: Unknown Character Name:

Customer (joe) 05/28/2009 06:44 PM Hi, can u verify dat i was indeed using a bot or any other program besides microsoft xp before blanketing a ban. Does your personnel or staff actually verify this before terminating my account or use a bot?

I was playing for hours before this happened, and was in the middle of a dungeon run before receiving your error code. Im extremely unhappy with such a experience, reinstating my account ASAP will be a good start.

If i do not receive a satisfactory answer, i may just have to query this on wiki for a start.

yrs truely,

PlayNC Support to me show details May 29 (2 days ago)

Thank you for your support request. Our response is included below. If you have other questions, please reply to this e-mail with your questions between the green lines.

• • • • Please enter your reply *below* this line ****

• • • • Please enter your reply *above* this line ****

To avoid e-mail delays, you can click this link to update your question using our support site.

Response (Karsen) 05/28/2009 06:47 PM Hello Joe,

Thank you for contacting the Guild Wars Support Team.

I am escalating your ticket to our Guild Wars senior staff members to assist you further. Once they have reviewed your question, one of them will contact you shortly.

Regards, GM Karsen The Guild Wars Support Team

Response (GM Cykor) 05/28/2009 08:52 PM Hello,

Your Guild Wars account has been closed for using an illegal third party program. We want you to know that we use great care when analyzing accounts prior to termination. We are both diligent and conservative in determining which accounts are using these programs, and we only take action after we are able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that such use has occurred.

For additional information on the User Agreement and Rules of Conduct, please visit the below links:

http://www.guildwars.com/support/legal/rulesofconduct.php http://www.guildwars.com/support/legal/user-agreement.php

Regards,

GM Cykor

joe to PlayNC 2:52 AM May 30 (1 day ago)

Hello,

I fail to understand or maybe you and your team dont.

Firstly let me be very specific, I was not and have not been using any programs or bots for playing guild wars for the matter and I do not need to use bots to have any advantage, i simply played the game for what it is.

Even after bring this to your attention, u can even accuse n insist dat im using a 3rd party program, can u tell me what program it is or was it someone in my party? Cause i have no idea that such a program even exist.

The problem or error is definately on your side. Surely if you and your team adamantly still fail to recognize your mistakes or errors, but only to create a bigger error now.

In my country Singapore, to have a complete version of guild wars with all expansion, i have to spend US$150. And now i been accused of being a cheat via using 3rd party programs, and wrongfully have my account terminated.

Lastly, im telling you the truth since your checks dont reveal dat. Make it my money's worth and i dont have to pursue this matter further.

---

(awaiting reply)-------------------------------------

---

Having presented the situation and circumstances,there are afew points I'd like to raise here.

1. Areanet/Ncsoft/Guildwars support team claimed or complacently flatter themselves to have been diligent and conservative.

Having a players account ban permanently is a extremely serious action, extremely more so when done indiscrimately. If they are diligent with a service and suppport accumen, they would have asked if I was running any BOTS at anytime and if i was using any 3rd party program and investigate and monitor further. I was using Microsoft Windows Xp as platform,Norton Firewall and firefox as browser inbetween games every now and then to check wiki for information on missions, bosses, skills to capp etc. No BOTs !!

2. "...we only take action after we are able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that such use has occurred."

For an action such as banning an accoount permanently, reasonable doubt is just not good enough and injust. They need concrete proofs such as program used and reserve the benefit of the doubts for the customers when the customer contacted for support and stated he did not used any contravening software.

3. In using a bot, a player would have gained a significant amount of loot or XP in a drastic short time, or maybe GOD-mode. Did my characters show such signs in the period of time i was online?

4. In releasing a game and add ons expansions to consumers, how much are they willing to deliver and ascertain online playability. Indiscernly, i been asked repeatively to look at user agreement and code of conduct so as to prove their case for banning permanently? And not in correcting errors, theirs and others.

I truely havent used any BOT. And thus as evidently, many people like me would have their account, money and time invested taken from them innocently and wrongfully.Perhaps, they should review their own user agreement and rules of conduct and uphold them themselves and to the customers. No rules broken - No ban imposed.

But it looks like they do not care about their support and service lapses and do not value customers or returning customers for Guild Wars2 and a whole line of other games, maybe others and me will ban these permanently from now.

Unfortunately, all it takes is afew incompetent staff without hindsight to totally ruin the image of the company ArenaNet Ncsoft and efforts of others permanently. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:116.87.116.17 (talk).

Being as I was recently perma banned for no reason, I can respectfully say that what Cykor says ("We want you to know that we use great care when analyzing accounts prior to termination.") highly disturbs me. If you're truely innocent, then, I'm sorry it happened to you and hope for the best. If you're quilty, then, well... Looks like you were finally caught. Either way, we'll see what happens. Keep us posted. -Lena™ talk 20:37, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Sorry I somehow forgot to sign the above comment. >_< --Lena™ talk 20:37, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

I have already removed your email address once and will not do so a second time Joe. Please refer to the note at the top of the page clearly indicating that you should not post your account details. -- WarBlade 20:52, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

You are understandably upset, but it would seem rather silly to me for them to ask you if you are using 3rd party programs. It's asking "Hey, did you break the rules?". Nobody will answer yes to that. And they don't say they can prove it to reasonable doubt, they (claim they) can prove it beyond reasonable doubt. Your first correspondence was rude and in a demanding way. You start by accusing them of not checking facts and banning at random, then you end by demanding your account back. That's not going to help your case. The only thing you accomplish is annoying support. // HeavenMonkey 21:05, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

At the same time, it's not difficult to understand that some people can become extremely frustrated when they believe that they have been wrongfully punished. A perma-ban is a very serious punishment, and can be quite devastating to most players, especially those who heavily invested in the game, time and money-wise. So I think support can expect to receive this kind of attitude from many banned players, be they right or wrong. Both sides need to understand that mistakes happen and nothing is fool-proof on the internet. I hope this inquiry gets resolved justly, and I still command the GW team for making one of the best online games to date. They do an unbelievable job in keeping the GW economy afloat (no, don't argue this, we have not even come near to turning into an SoJ economy, it doesn't get better than what we have, heck, it's better than the last few years of the US economy ^_^). They also do a great job in preventing the game from turning into an RMT slum like most other MMO's. Thank you for doing all you can, both in keeping this game "clean" and in resolving the "casualties." Rose Of Kali 08:16, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Did you fill in your account name and/or character name? because this:

• NCsoft Account: unknown
• Game Account: unknown
• Operating System: Unknown
• Character Name:

does indicate you did not, or that you removed the info to post it here. If you did not give that info to support then i'm wondering how Cykor knows wich account you are talking about. I think they should check if any program is causing a "false positive" because the amount of bannings seem to have increased lately.

I'm wondering how Anet checks these things, do they go thru all that data manually? Do they use a program to check for certain algorhytms? Does Guild Wars send info to Anet about wich programs are running in the background or anything else? They'll prolly won't give out that info tho. Qaletaqa 10:45, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

I am increasing worried about false positives like this; how long before my friends and I fall victim to the same issue? Pika Fan 11:03, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

You're worried about being banned from gw? I think I'd throw a party or something. -Auron 11:06, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Please Auron, I am entitled to cause show false concern like everyone else here....oh, and if you have a party to throw, make sure it's an omelette party. And no cakes. Pika Fan 11:20, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

@Pika: we cannot know if this is a false positive, we are unable to know for certain that the person who made the unsigned post isn't lying. Also we can't know because we do not have access to the data wich Anet does have access to. I'm not even sure that there is an increase in bannings, I just get the feeling that there are more because of the various posts on the wiki and on several forums. Or maybe I get that feeling because i'm focusing on it a bit to much. Qaletaqa 12:06, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Auron's basically saying being banned is a relief. If he was getting banned, he'd throw a party. King Neoterikos 12:38, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

@Qaletaqa You seem to be under the delusion that you are well-informed, when in reality you probably don't know how anet works. Just look through archives and scroll up this page to see how many confirmed false positives we have already. Maybe if you would actually avail yourself with the truth, people would pay more attention to what you say, otherwise, stop bugging me, and move on.

@KN I know, that's why I said I was entitled to show false concern, which means to say I don't really care like him. Learn to comprehension.Pika Fan 18:22, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

How much false positives... hmm... tens out of millions of users? Didn't we also establish that we don't have access to information what the person was doing and thus cannot say if he is in fact a false positive or a knowing or unknowing bot user that wants to get out? And as a side note, could the e-mail be removed? This is entirely my opinion, but it looks to me that it is unneeded (Support, the people that can do anything about this case already have a copy in their database, they just need the ticket number so they know what to look up) and contains information that should be a little more... private. ...and it's huge. — Poki#3 (talk) 19:37, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh the irony, first you claim we do not have access to the information whether the person is a false positive or not, then you go on and say only tens out of millions of users are affected. Nice try, but do put in more effort before you dismiss prevalent and existing problems. Even if only "tens out of millions" of users are affected, the fact that the numbers are rising should raise alarm bells. Unless you are implying that the minority getting banned for no reason doesn't matter?Pika Fan 19:53, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Sorry but this threat made me chuckle "If i do not receive a satisfactory answer, i may just have to query this on wiki for a start. ". Now there is a threat! --Lemming 21:23, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

@Pika Fan - Irony? Try? What? My statement (as was yours) is based on this page. The numbers of people playing GW is big enough that I don't understand how you can make any sort of judgment based on 1 or 2 more or less "appeals" a month. I was going to write more about how none of us, not knowing the circumstances of this case AT ALL have anything to say on the matter and that no system is 100% right, but everything was already said here before and requires just a big of common sense if you take a moment to think about it... — Poki#3 (talk) 22:55, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

@Poki Since? You? Say? That? The? Number? Of? People? Playing? GW? Is? Big? Enough? That? You? Don't? Understand? How? I? Can? Make? Any? Sort? Of? Judgment? Based? On? 1? Or? Two? Less? "Appeals"? A? Month? Well? Let? Me? Tell? You? If? You? Actually? Counted? How? Many? Appeals? There? Were? Recently? Compared? To? The? Last? Few? Months? Or? Years?, You? Will? Notice? There? Are? Certainly? Many? More? People? Appealing? And? Ruled? As? False? Positives? So? Basically? Nothing? Is? Perfect? So? We? Shouldn't? Try? To? Be? Perfect? And? We? Should? All? Exercise? Our? Fine? Common? Sense? As? Taught? By? You? And? Basically? Treat? It? As? Acceptable? Pika Fan 23:37, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

The funniest part of that is wondering how look it took you to type that --adrin 23:38, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

2 minutes considering I needed 1 1/2 minutes to program my spacebar to ? + <spacebar>. Pika Fan 23:40, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Lets go a few posts back Pika Fan where you said this:

"@Qaletaqa You seem to be under the delusion that you are well-informed, when in reality you probably don't know how anet works. Just look through archives and scroll up this page to see how many confirmed false positives we have already. Maybe if you would actually avail yourself with the truth, people would pay more attention to what you say, otherwise, stop bugging me, and move on."

First i'm definatly not under the delusion that i'm well-informed and I never said I know how Anet works but that they have more data to show about who and how much people they have banned but turned out to be false positives. Looking thru the archives and reading this page I have done my friend, the thing you do not know is that this is just a portion, do you know how much percent of the bannings turn out to be false positives? I don't because we don't have that data, only Anet does. And this: "Maybe if you would actually avail yourself with the truth, people would pay more attention to what you say, otherwise, stop bugging me, and move on." I take that as a personal attack, actually the whole post is, because you don't know me at all nor the people who listen to what I have to say. Qaletaqa 04:00, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

I don't need to know you to tell that you definitely do not know that the number of false positives have increased. Naturally the amount of false positives will be a portion; thanks for telling all of us the obvious, but the fact that this portion is increasing must raise a few alarm bells.

Basically, from the start, you feel that a portion of people getting banned for no reason is not a cause of concern, after all, it's only a minor portion. I don't have to explain to you how deluded you are for thinking that way; keep thinking it's a personal attack if it helps you think you are right or that it helps you detract from the truth, just like Poki. Pika Fan 05:10, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Why dont you guys take your discussion to your talk pages since it doesnt help with this issue. Drogo Boffin 05:30, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

Good point. And somehow everyone fails to realize that this page is simply becoming well known throughout Guru and other places. Where before "victims" would handle things exclusively through Support, like they're supposed to, more and more are now aware of this page and make themselves known. The increase of cases here is in no way indicative of the overall number of cases filed with Support, it only tells you how popular Gaile is becoming as a subject of "HALP ME NAO because I'm impatient and can't read instructions" rants. True, on rare occasions Gaile does help beyond Support team's efforts, or helps speed things up where it is due, but with many others it's just a redundant repetition that is handled by Support before Gaile even gets around to it, or a bogus story of "I'm innocent, I swear, even though my pants are on fire!" Is it really Gaile's job to tell people to reply to Support's Emails and follow instructions, as is the case with more and more complaints here? Sounds more like common sense. I'm sorry, but I don't see the sky falling. People spend time in prison for crimes they did not commit, but somehow all "false positives" here have been resolved favorably, afaik. Justice is not perfect anywhere. There is a difference between giving up on the goal of achieving perfection, and realizing how close to it you can get realistically. If any part of this discussion is moved to a user talk, feel free to move this along with it. Rose Of Kali 20:28, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

So basically, one cannot be realistically concerned for a number of false positives that are clearly numerically rising because justice is imperfect. Flawless. Bravo. Pika Fan 10:50, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Of course you can be concerned. An investigation would be the first step, instead of raising a panic over speculation and personal opition, because what seems "clearly numerically rising" to you is inconclusive at best to me. How many false positives have you seen on this page? A number, please, for each month or quarter over a reasonable time, to demonstrate a significant increase. Then compare it to the total number of complaints and posts on Gaile's page in general to see how they relate. You claim that this is clear to you, please, enlighten me as well, for all I see is speculation. I'm not saying you're wrong, not at all, I'm just saying you haven't provided anything to support your claims, especially in the context that I described. Also, look at this case: Gaile has not replied to it a single time, so it's very likely that she had nothing to do with the resolution. Again, this is user who was vocal about their case, because they heard about Gaile, but all seems to have been resolved by Support, as has been the case for a long time before people started turning to Gaile for additional help. I'm not trying to defend Gale or Anet just to defend them, I am simply stating what I see and awaiting a counter-argument, which will either prove me wrong, leave you inconclusive, or help both of us dig deeper into the issue. As this case is now resolved, and this isn't the place for this discussion anyway, you can respond on my talkpage (if you wish to continue). Rose Of Kali 19:11, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

IMPORTANT UPDATE(2ndJune09) Matter Has Been Resolved Positively,Thank You everyone for their response. Can This Post be Deleted?

Glad you got this resolved. Posts are not deleted, they are archived. Rose Of Kali 19:11, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Congratulations on being innocent :). --Silverleaf Don't assume, Know! 19:20, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Guesting

Hey Gaile, a certain guild keeps me "perma-guested" because they don't like me and they have their members pm me on whatever name I'm on because they can all see which name I'm on from their guild list. Not only do i have to stay on DnD alot, but I am also forced to see "You have a guest invite to Blah Blah [Blah]" every time I zone. Could this be harassment enough to get the guild/players disbanded? The players in the guild KNOW not to actually say anything bad when they PM me because I've gotten 2 of their members perma-banned. However, it's very annoying to get 20 pm's saying "Sup, what you doin? I'm doing heroes ascent winning HoH, wanna come play IWAY with me?" every time I log to a new character. The guild that's doing this is "Fat Insecure Neurotic Emotional [FINE]", and I'm really getting annoyed of this situation. Thanks alot Gaile ! <3'ÑöẊĭƑý 00:33, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Are you sure they arent just looking to play with you? 24.188.207.20 04:09, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Have some screens handy (which I'm sure you do) if this is going to go any further, with any substantial result. King Neoterikos 05:48, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Amazing! I wished I was obnoxious enough that people did that to me.Pika Fan 06:19, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Nasty!. Tried to actually talk to the Guild Leader? And the suggestion from King to provide screenies is an option too. --Silverleaf Don't assume, Know! 13:39, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

No, we would not disband a guild because of a guild guest invitation. I'm not sure this would even come close to being called "harassment." However, I can understand it would be irritating, and I would therefore suggest contacting the guild leader and asking him, with courtesy, to remove you and keep you off the guest list. (I reason that the guesting must be being renewed on a regular basis, since invitations expire after 8 hours.) We really don't have the means to "force" someone to do that, but I believe that most guild leaders would be receptive to helping. If not, let me know and I will speak with the team about what other steps would be appropriate in this situation. Good luck! -- Gaile 20:06, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

I didn't ask for the guild to be disbanded, but the guild leader says "You're an inspiration for our guild, that's why we ask you for tips!". --'ÑöẊĭƑý 20:59, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

...8 hours? Raine - talk 21:05, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm... speechless. I don't think guest passes have ever ended after only 8 hours. -Auron 21:09, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

I think she meant unaccepted guest invites, not the actual guest status. I've never used that feature, though, so IHNI :). OP: You say something like "Are they being bad enough to be punished or disbanded?", so. --Star Weaver 21:25, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Guest invites aren't ever "unaccepted". You can't reject one sent to you. Also, guest invites say they last 8 hours, but they sit at 0 minutes remaining for a long time. They seem to actually last somewhere between 16 and 24 hours. ¬ Wizårdbõÿ777(talk) 23:04, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

It does seem like harassment a wee bit though, having someone on guest just so people in your whole guild can see you're logged on and spam you random crap all day. Seems like the definition of harassment to me. For example Gaile, say a few guilds did that with your main gaming account and you were getting several hundred people a day saying "hey!" and you knew they were doing it just to wind you up and disrupt you, would that not be victimization of a pretty major level? (believe me, for me to be arguing Noxify's corner is a pretty big deal as I never agree with him on ANYTHING) -- Salome 00:10, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes, when you issue a guest invitation, it stays active for 8 hours. Honest, go try it with your second account or with a friend. Check the invitee window (not the inviting person): There's an 8-hour timer on their window. You may find the invitation appears to remain active for longer than 8 hours, as Wizardboy says, and I think I recall that I've been able to accept after nearly twice as many hours. But at much more than that, if you click to accept the invitation you do not go to the invitee's guild hall because the invitation has expired.

I just issued another of my accounts an invitation because I do want to test this. After all, it'll be fun if I can razz Auron and tell him to save his "speechlessness" for another day after I prove this isn't an error or another "oh gawd, the devs don't know their own game" situation. *lol* -- Gaile 01:24, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

I do know that the guest invite lasts much more than 8 hours if I come back still sitting in the guild hall even though I initially afked after the timer hit 0. 152.226.7.205 02:13, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes, you come back in the guild hall of the guild with whom you guested. But after a few seconds, you're tossed into the last district in which you were active. I welcome, positively welcome, testing on this, but that has been my observations based on a great number of guest invitations and actual guild guesting, as well. -- Gaile 04:32, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Just thought of something: The invitation lasts 8 hours. If you accept at 7:59 in that 8-hour period, you then have 8 hours to guest, right? The timer for the guest invitation and the timer for the actual guesting both being 8 hours, I believe. -- Gaile 04:34, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Would it be to much to add an accept/reject guest feature to the Guest tab on the Guild window much like accept/reject guild invitation which is already in place.--Pentu Prage 14:39, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Yes, that would be a lot of work since the have to change the UI for it. 145.94.74.23 19:16, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Not that it actually fucking matters, but whether Nox can get into [FINE]'s hall after eight, nine, twenty-four hours is irrelevant. What this discussion is currently focusing on is whether the people in [FINE] can instantly see Nox's status after eight or more hours without any action on their part.

What this discussion should be focusing on is what will be done about [FINE]'s alleged abuse of the guest feature. Everyone here should know how I feel about Nox (it's not like I hide it - I feel about him about the same as I did about pre-buff Erasculio), but it really shows a failure of the system when ANet's representatives are telling him that he has to either set himself to do not disturb or flood his ignore list while you determine whether this is actually harassment and what, if anything, you'll do about it if it is.

-- Armond Warblade{{Bacon}} 05:24, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

Although I dont agree with how Armond said it, I have to admit he is right about the focus of this discussion, we should be focusing on the harrasment here, not sidetracked by how long the guest feature works for. (Don't worry I'll go and jump of a bridge later for ever admitting Armond is right about anything) -- Salome 15:10, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for the support guys, and yest please get the topic back on track. This is about guest abuse, not the length of guest invites. With the current feature there is no way to DENY a guest invite, this allows their entire guild to see whatever name I'm on and spam me with retarded non-bannable ramblings. Think of it in a real-life situation. Your sitting on a bench reading a book and some kid comes over and says "Hey what book you reading?" five-thousand times. Although he's not doing anything wrong and you already answered him, he's still being annoying as hell just to make you mad or annoyed. This is exactly what their doing. Getting 15 simultaneous PM's while vanquishing an area with messages like "Hey nox, can u ping good SFway bar, we forgot the builds and i know u copied em on observe once or twice". With guildwars I only have several options. 1) Ignore them... although when 15 pm me that means i have to take 10 off my ignore, put 10 on, and let the new 15 people spam me. 2) set myself to dnd. 3) set myself to offline. 4) become an hero. 5) ???? 6) profit--'ÑöẊĭƑý 23:08, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

You know what I would do? Take a screenshot, and send it to anet, or post it here for people to see. Pika Fan 23:18, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

I know someone who used to do that to Leeloof. Only, instead of guesting him to watch his online status, they would guest-then revoke-guest-revoke over and over...not to give FINE any ideas...However, there is no reason Nox should have to be on perma DnD or hide offline to play. That is completely unfair. To a dev or someone like you Gaile its somewhat different, but for the average player, having to do that to enjoy the game isn't right at all. You may not need to ban them, but perhaps make it possible for the player to revoke a guest invite, just as they would a guild invite. Or better yet, a dev contact these players and give them some kind of warning to stop if its the same people and Nox has screenshots to verify that the do harass him. Or you could go through the player's chat logs like you did Shard and Adrin's...I know for a fact, you do that in cases of harassment and language.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 22:19, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

I still think a guest invite should be akin to a guild invite, one must accept or decline it. IF it is being used in this manner to harass people however, then quite frankly the users should be banned. I look forward to seeing Gaile's feedback on this issue as to be honest it seems that she got somewhat sidetracked by how the guest feature works. However Gaile has not suggested that Nox go onto DnD or put the people on ignore. She said if talking to the guild about it doesnt work, then come back to her and she'll see if she can help. Seems reasonable to me. -- Salome 09:04, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Help me Gaile Grey You're Our only hope

Hi Gaile, my problem has been going on for several years now. I bought Prophicies and on registration I was told that my email address was invalid or not accepted (long time ago and old age etc. So a friend I was sharing a house with suggested I use one of his email addresses, as he didnt use it and didnt play or know anything about gws. Yep a noob like me :). I knew I would get the email address changed sometime in the future. This friend started to play gw after seeing the game in action. After many attempts to get it changed and lots of frustration, rage and several years down the line I have now been told by a support supervisor that the account is not mine and will not discuss the matter any more with me. Frustration springs to mind. Wanting the game I paid and played to be linked to my email address is important to me (I am sure that i am not the only one in this situation or something similar) having spoken with players in game. When I started playing gw I was in the process of moving house. Another thing is I am not sure what details I used for the registration I hazarded a guess when filling in the support answers which was noted on the answers. As I already stated with support the loggin email address that I had to use was not and never has been mine I had to use it to register to play gw. I have even purchased gw games for friends and my wife (whom I met on gw). We play gw together side by side and we have a newborn son, future gws player. I moved to Holland from Ireland last year to be with her, in the process my access keys have gotten either mislaid and the infomation I had concerning my original account registration is also mislaid. We have our main gw accounts and also several storage gw accounts, yes these where purchased before the extra storage panes where introduced. I waited for a phone call from support but after re-reading the email I realise that it was never going to happen. What I did was i tried to link my gw account with a master ncsoft account but I am now wondering whether that was done correctly. Now when gw2 comes out I have the feeling that I will not be able to play as Pentu Prage (mesmer) officer in Armada of Doom and I will also miss out on the free storage pane that I am due according to the 4 birthday of gw. I am sure that the number of people that have not applied for the free storage pane or are trying to get their free storage pane will be many hundreds of thousands (bot accounts not included as im sure they sell all their farmed items rofl and are not pack rats like myself hehehe). The support numbers are as follows [Incident: 090426-002268] [Incident: 090521-000905]‏. What am I to do delete Pentu Prage, Pennu P (that name was a typo :S) Pentu Phate, Pentu Plove, Pentu Pheals, Pentu Pspirit, Pentu Panger, Pentu Phunger, Pentu Pele and Pentu Plager (Pentu P*emotion* trade marked) and remake them on my storage accounts so that I can play them on gw2? making almost 3 years feel wasted. Being Irish I am more of a talker than a typer :D Help me Gaile Grey Your Our Only Hope. Yes Im an original Star Wars kid circa 1970 and proud of it :D.--77.249.254.66 13:14, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

I thought worst case scenarios were only theoretical... Good luck, man. Rose Of Kali 19:53, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm flying out the door for an appointment, but let me understand: You bought the account but registered it on another person's email address, from which you cannot write. You also do not have any access keys to prove ownership, and the information that you used on the account is bogus, or is information that you cannot recall properly? If you look at that -- no keys, no verifiable information, writing from a different email address -- that exactly parallels the dozens of people a week who try to steal someone else's account. Now, please note, I am not saying that this is what you are doing! However, I can certainly understand where the Support Team may feel that their hands are tied in being able to help you, since there is virtually nothing to show you own the account. (Knowing characters or titles doesn't help. I can give you names and titles for my guildies and friends, but I certainly don't own their accounts!)

I will try to brainstorm this, but first, please confirm that the situation is as I describe it, and then I'll see if I can divine any other way to assist in this account ownership situation. -- Gaile 20:10, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

I will admit it sounds a tad dodgy however I'm not doubting you matey. Could you contact your friend with the original email address and get him to help you in this as showing you do have access from the original email account holder might help somewhat. -- Salome 00:04, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you Rose, Gaile and Salome for your comments. Looking at this even I must admit that this sounds very dodgy. *jokes* Im not asking anyone to buy a used car from me. *jokes* Moving to Nederland from N.I. some things where bound to get waylaid. We will continue to look for the access keys. At the moment I am loosing the enjoyment from playing gw. The way the rules are I will be considered guilty until I can prove my innocence. If that is the case then my account should be banned or suspended until I can prove that the games I purchaed in Belfast and elsewhere r really mine. As I am able to play on my main account any time I am free to. I do help with taking care of our 4 month old son. You make a very valid point Salome "Could you contact your friend with the original email address and get him to help you in this as showing you do have access from the original email account holder might help somewhat." When that person was my friend we sent emails to ncsoft support to get his email changed to mine with no success that was around nov/dec 2006. Soon after because of a theft of monies from myself that person is no longer a friend. That person is a very good gw player remember he was introduced to gw by myself. After I started playing gw I became a member of Snake Dance Kurzick guild and have spoken with several officers and leaders on email and voice chat. That guild has been around since the start of gw. Some of them should be able to confirm that I am the owner of the account in question. The games Prophicies, Factons both normal and colectors edition, Nightfall both normal and collectors edition, Eotn trial and eotn have been added to my account. This is the one time that using a credit card would have helped. So if I was trying to steal someone elses account would I know players and spoke with them when I was just started playing gw. The name Pentu Prage comes from when I played a Play By Mail gladiator game the company was based in England in the 1980s/1990s. Got a response from support looks like the rest of the world is treated differently from America Hello Brian,We are not able to contact you by phone as you are not in North America.I've read all of your responses. But because you can verify any of the requested information, we will not be able to assist you with this account. There is no way to confirm that you are the original owner of the account.If you can provide access keys, we will assist you further with this. Otherwise, we consider this matter closed.Thank you,John - NCsoft and Guild Wars Account Support Supervisor Looks like a case of takes the money and runs laughing to the bank. I didnt know that the phone systems in North America where different from the rest of the world. I doubt very much that the cost of phoning would be the case if that is so then I would be more than happy to phone John at support or we can arrange to reverse the charges that way the phone number remains safe. When I worked with customers I went the extra mile to help a customer. Many people may say that I am not a gw customer but many many more know that I am a gw customer and I have also given gws as presents to other ppl. One good thing about gw is the people that I have contacted in many countries around the world. On a different topic what is happening with world.com and their claims about owing the patents to virtual worlds and its lawsuit against ncsoft and if it wins (which i think and hope it doesnt win) all other mmo and virtual social networking games etc. As i said before im more of a talker than a typer. Take care all gtg our son needs feeding P S this is my second post on the offical guild wiki :D--Pentu Prage 12:54, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

So you used your friends email, didn't change it over to yours in time, shared your account and after waiting 4 years had a breaking up with the friend in question while losing all documents that can prove ownership and now trying to get it back? Really? Biz 17:40, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Er, as far as I can tell after reading it twice the only thing that was shared was some email address, not the actual use of any GW accounts. --Star Weaver 17:56, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Biz as i said to John in Support please read the emails (in this case the post) before making a judgement) I have been trying to get my email address changed on my account since it was created with not much help from support at the time it was a case of just changing the email address. The reason im having problems is that I linked MY account to a ncsoft master account and those details are also mislaid. Long story short I met the love of my life on gw, fell in love met up, then moved from Northern Ireland to Nederland to be with her and now we have a 4 month old son. My honeys IGN is Bellando Mara and she is leader of Armada of Doom guild and alliance. I know I am in a difficult situation as far as Support are concerned but i know that this matter will be resolved and ill be able to play gw and gw2 as Pentu Prage. One other point I have metioned numerous times to Support to please not send replies to the email address I mentioned in my responses to no avail. This time I have sent FIVE access keys that I have found some will be ones that I gave as presents to friends. Replying to all email addresses by support WILL COMPROMISE the security of said accounts I wonder if support will read and act accordingly this time. --Pentu Prage 18:42, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

I have my fingers crossed for you Pentu. I feel for you as I wouldnt be able to supply serial codes for my games either as its just not somethign I keep a record of, further to that one of my initial email accounts that I use to play in has now become defunct over the past 4 years, but I trust this wont effect my ability to play GW2 as Salome. (well i hope it wont anyway) -- Salome 19:13, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Star Weaver is correct. I have the access keys somewhere as I said I moved to Nederland to be with my honey last April. We missed the gw birthday celebrations but it was worth it and I was without my main Pc until mid June as it was with the moving company, last year was one roller coaster year in many ways. Salome there are many people that have defunct email accounts as their log in name there are a few in our alliance and I know many more players in the same situation. I have my account tied to my ncsoft master account and those details are mislaid--Pentu Prage 19:28, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

(: Almost there. I have found the access key card for my Prophecies game ,the picture on the front is a female mesmer. John from support is now able to help with the ncsoft master account and I should be able to get the free storage pane and more importantly play gw2 as Pentu Prage and the other Pentu's. I would like to thank my honey for being so supportive and calming and our son for the distractions hes brings and thank-you (Albert, Adam, John from Support),Gaile, Rose Of Kali, Salome, Biz (I hope you have your reading glasses on and not your beer glasses on hehe), Star Weaver. Being Irish I dont give up the fight soo easily, when I know that I am right and neither should anyone else. We where doing some brain storming about the account , like giving my pcs ip address as I have played and registered gws from it(then realised that ip addresses can be changed. Among many other options the best was find the access keys. honey iuu myl uu --Pentu Prage 21:23, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi honey :)iuu well almost there hope to get it sorted soon he he what some good digging around in the stuff will be good for.. but hopefully we will get it sorted before the closing date :) --Bellando Mara 21:35, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) }Hi Pentu Prage -- how goes? It appears from my most recent review of the ticket that the team is doing some transfer and clean-up work on this, to help you get reestablished. Please let me know when it all gets sorted out, ok? Thanks. -- Gaile 02:35, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

Maybe a bit late but u also got my support, and I can fully assure support and other people that he is telling the truth. You got my `support! Nick San | Talk 17:15, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Update Account now linked with NCsoft master account. Got free storage pane amd I would say that gw2 can be linked with that ncsoft master account (if I buy it. was that swearing?) Having dealt with support the majority where very helpful and friendly, one could have some more customer relations training. I was still admonished even after I pointed out mistakes on the part of that person. John must have had a difficult week at least the email with several access keys was not send to another email address as I requested on almost every email. Thanks to all that helped and a raised eye-brow to those who may have doubted my veracity you all know who you are. Still wondering why the rest of the world can not receive phone calls from support like customers in North America, would it be because we are second class customers (I know that such concepts exist) an answer would be appreciated. I would like to wish all who are in the same situation I was in the best of luck, you will need it. Have fun and take care. Hoi Nick San and honey iuu myl--Pentu Prage 23:11, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Thanks a lot for the update. I'll pass along your feedback. Once the team verified you were you, I mean, that you were the account holder, I'm not sure why they did not send the keys to the address that you requested. It's a valid concern and I will ask if we can be a bit more careful to fulfill such reasonable requests in future dealings of this sort. (Now, I don't want to make excuses, but the teams have been working long hours, weekends, etc., dealing with issues regarding folks not knowing their account credentials and other challenges. Could be that the agent was so happy to resolve the matter for you he didn't read far enough to go "Oh yes, keys to that address!" :) )

Very, very few customers get phone calls from us. And I did make a call to the UK just this week, so those I call are not exclusively North Americans. And most importantly, Europeans are decidedly not viewed as "second-class citizens" in any way, shape, or form, I promise you! One thing I've been thinking lately is that the US Support office has a phone line set up for customers to call in where nothing like that exists for European players. Let me talk to the director and see what he says about the possibility of adding that in the future -- I think it's an excellent idea! -- Gaile 23:32, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

OP is still stupid for registering it on someone else's email. You are aware that whenever someone forgets a password the first thing the company does is email it to the end-user right? --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:72.43.62.68 (talk).

Here is part of the email from the ncsoft and gw account support Supervisor "We are not able to contact you by phone as you are not in North America." As I already mentioned North America has phone access to gw support and the Rest of the World not just Europe has nothing in place. Now to me and alot of other people that would seem like one rule for one geographical area and another rule for the rest of the world. Some may go so far as to say an in game "elite" just because of the area that they happen to be from. Evetyone that has paid for their games in stores should have access to the same quality of support. Race, class, colour, creed and geographical location should not make any difference. Everyone should be treated as equals correct, in the real world that just is not the case. Business is business. Customers have power please do not forget that, the power to buy or not to buy. I would like to clarify that I said the Rest of the World,not just Europe, is seen as second class citizens (customers) compared to North American customers. I have first hand experience of that so please do not tell me that I am mistaken. Please do not think that I am calling anyone a liar, its just that I know the truth when I see it as do others! In response to User:72.43.62.68 while in hindsight I have to agree about using other peoples email address. First time players on any online game might (and I would like to paraphrase some of Gailes words) be so happy to have the game that being able to register the game seems more inportant. I shall restate again for those so happy to have missed it the first few times I was not able to register gw on my only email account that a friend at the time allowed me to use his email address to register gq as he didnt use that email address. Thanking those for taking the time to read and respond. Better to read many times and understand and know, than read once and think "I understand and I know". That works for movies as well as words. Second viewing provides more insight. Keep us all posted on the outcome of phone support for the rest of the world im sure we all would like to have the same access our fellow players are enjoying in North America. Thankyou have fun and take care hehe forgot to login edit :) --Pentu Prage 11:38, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Verbal Abuse in unsupported languages

Dear Gaile,

I recently reported 2 players who were swearing in Dutch (not German, and it's an unsupported language). Support replied to me that they wouldn't do anything about it. Is there a specific reason besides the fact that nobody at support speaks the unsupported languages natively? And isn't it possible to alter that policy? Because I can understand why you won't act on single words, as they may mean something entirely different in another language. But to me, it's a different story when (as in the case of those 2 players) people spam the worst kinds of profanity for over 30 minutes and get away with it, just because it's not one of the official languages. Even something as simple as Google Translator would have shown Support that what they wrote was far worse than what most people get banned for in supported languages. 145.94.74.23 12:24, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Map_Dutch_World_scris.png -- Mafaraxas 13:31, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

im dutch, i could translate it. what did they say? InfestedHydralisk 15:37, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

It's not about this particular case, it's about verbal abuse in all non-supported languages in general. Thanks for the offer, but I would have translated it myself if Anet had asked me to. 145.94.74.23 15:40, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

then how do you know if they were swearing? InfestedHydralisk 15:42, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

Uh, he clearly knows Dutch. Misery 15:59, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

I would have translated it myself if Anet had asked me to.

Kinda obvious, too. ··· cedave 08:52:55 CSUTC 21/11/24

It seems to me that if people are swearing, people are swearing and we should try to resolve that. Yes, it's difficult to verify when we do not have staff on board for specific languages, but there could be means to do so. (I'm sure you appreciate that we couldn't simply "block and forget" based on the report -- we do need to verify the offense.)

I got a name report this week in Romanian. Now, the game isn't localized in Romanian, but some of my favourite co-workers speak Romanian, so I pursued it with them. It was quite the amusing email exchange, but in the end, we did establish that yes, that player was using a bad name. I can't promise that we'll be able to look at every single such report, but I'd bet we're going to try, especially for a long "discussion" involving offensive language, such as you observed.

I want to ask the Support Teams about this during our weekly meeting. But in the meantime, if I were going to make a report, I'd do this: Include the offensive chat in its native language and insert a careful, detailed translation in English. This probably only works if you speak the language in question (rather than using a translation program.) In the end, saying, "Someone was swearing in (language)" isn't nearly as helpful as saying, "Here is what they said, and how it translates." Detail details can sometimes be verified with help from others, including co-workers with a surprising knowledge of swear words! *lol* -- Gaile 02:27, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for your answer Gaile. It was very helpful and I'll keep it in mind for the future. As far as I am concerned, this post can now be archived. 87.210.150.58 15:03, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

BTW, that was me on my parent's pc. 145.94.74.23 17:53, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) @ 145.94.74.23 -- Would you kindly send me the support response that you received, or the ticket number? At our meeting today, I brought up this very issue. The team agreed that my proposal would be workable: Provide the original text and a careful translation and they will review. But they also said that they couldn't remember saying that they wouldn't do anything about the issue to a recent report. So if you can give me the 12-digit incident number, or forward a copy of the email to SupportLiaison@Arena.Net, that would be every helpful. Thanks. -- Gaile 22:59, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I have forwarded the mail to you. In their last reply, they mentioned something about only being able to investigate the use of certain english words. Maybe I misunderstood though, it has been a while so I don't know what I was thinking back at the time. :D 145.94.74.23 09:09, 7 June 2009 (UTC)

Thank you for sending that email. I reviewed it again today, and I must say, I think we sort of erred on that answer. Even if we don't have a specialist in a certain language, we will take a look at the incident or report and do our best to find out if something bad happened, whether that's a bad name or a bit of unacceptable in-game chat. In this case, we have folks who can help us with the language plus we can use on-line translation programs to verify the report. (I mean, it was a pretty long log there!) I talked to both the North American and European teams about this during one of our meetings, and they agreed that the response you received wasn't on the mark. We likely could address the issue and we certainly would try!

So please excuse the error in the message you received, and do feel free to send along reports of incidents such as this in the future, if you happen to spot them. Obviously a random swear word isn't as serious as a lengthy discussion with inappropriate comments, but I can see that you already know that. Thanks a bunch! -- Gaile 04:13, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

The Corrupt Power Struggle

→ moved from User Talk:Gaile Gray

Calling [dr] Leader a pedo

Insulting Joelly via Team chat

Threatening Joel after he left [any]

As you know there are many communities Guild Wars has inside. But a major part of the community is that of the Faction based side of things. This is for owning the #1 Towns provides you with the ability to say your alliance is the best out there, and for this reason many new players will want to join yoru guild. So there are many battles over the two #1 towns.

Now back in the days of the kurzick side, I had much fun, watching new guilds take House Zu Heltzer every week, but generally everybody was friend, and a new opportunity always aroase to take the #1 spot, for anybody, and all played fair. I have been playing this game for 33 months as of now, and was introduced to the game by me real life friend. However, before I got the game I asked him if there is any warnings that I should need. He responded with "Just stay out of Jaypac The Celt's And his aliance [any]s way, they will stop at nothing to take Cavalon, and the guy cheats with bots".

Playing the game on the kurzick side, I saw many guilds turn from luxon to kurzick, for the reason that Jaypac The Celt Of would spike their guilds, or steal their members using diry tactics. But once I maxed my title I set off the the luxon side to max my title their. So I jonied [any] as it was the #1 Guild. However when I got there, I saw Jaypac be-little 12 year olds, force people to farm faction, and ruin players relationships.

Now my story is alot mroe complicated then this but this is a rough outline. I decided i'd rebuild my old guild EMP, and have a shot at Cavalon myself. I joined the MKOD alliance and we soon became #2. Gaining on Jaypac he soon leaked rumorus about my guild being bots, and because of my age put an alt into my guild and PMed all my members "Did You Know Your leaders only 14, isn't that to young to lead a guild?"

He then Pmed me vicous insults as we grew closer, and spiked many guilds in the alliance I was in. Later my guild was spiked, and totally destoryed, so i joint KING for abit then set up another one in pursuit of Cavalon. However in the mean-time Jaypac took Hosue and destoryed all kurzicks guilds in his path.

I recieve horrible Pms from him every single day, very sick thigns are said as he belittls me because i'm a 14 uear old leader. He has been permantly banned before and somehow wealed his way back in. Is Arena-Net corrupt, i;'ve heard people say they;ve quit the game for WoW because of this man. Why is he not banned? Why Does he still Play? I know pople who have handed in screens? What is this?? I will send in my screenshots, I hope every member follows, he destorys the games community, and ruined my experience totally. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:J0ely b (talk).

I gotta be honest, but you are in a way doing exactly what you are accusing him of doing, which is trying to discredit him. I am not taking sides as I don't have the whole story, but this is just an observation about your post. --Lemming 21:51, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

lol, people who care about owning towns... -FireFox 21:59, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

the horror.. InfestedHydralisk 22:08, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

What's the purpose of owning them anyway.....

stuff cost less at merchants, some few bonuses InfestedHydralisk 22:11, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

wonderful fireworks to annoy people. --CA Mightyblade 22:30, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

This isn't some crappy free mmo like Perfect World. People don't get banned for politics on Guild Wars. 99.151.143.197 04:49, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

this may sound stupid, but have you contacted support? :/ ~PheNaxKian Talk 17:14, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

I know many who have, which I was I ask Gaile whats happened? Drake, the DoWn leader sent in many screenshots, yet nothing has been done. --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:J0ely b (talk).

Lemming, this is just the tip of the iceberg. I've been in a guild that once chased Cavalon (and we got it, too, for a short amount of time), and this guy does far worse things in a similar vein. People, for a fact, stop playing just because this guy downright insults them. In game, discrediting guilds is a common thing (like sledging of other sports teams in the media), but it's gotta stop when it gets to players. King Neoterikos 21:43, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

For reference, this isn't just politics...King Neoterikos 21:47, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

Organized repetitive guild spiking is more than enough for a ban. The problem is to prove that it came from him, and not the will of other players. Other than that, this is rather disgusting. Makes you wonder what kind of person he is in real life, and why people like that get followers anyway. I guess what sets him apart from you average scum is the ability to organize other scum into a formidable force. I will laugh when owning Cavalon/HzH becomes sort of like Presidency: you can only go for so long before you gotta step down to second place for say a month, now matter how much faction you have. Should have been that way from the start. Now, where did I put my ego crusher?.. Rose Of Kali 22:30, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

If this warrants a ban for him, please let me know. Thanks --adrin 06:28, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) This issue has been 'round and 'round with Support, over many months. Accusations, counter accusations, charges, counter charges, mischarges, overcharges, discharges... Sorry, I forget myself. ;) But honestly, it's very taxing of time and effort to try to mediate a situation where a few people simply do not like each other and try to grief each other in any way they can.

I am not going to get involved at this point because it's a long-standing and apparently never-ending issue that the Support Team is more aware of. And in truth, this space is not the place to bring charges of this kind, especially when I sometimes sense that my page is used to discredit someone else, perhaps even with the hopes of getting other players to harass the individual or group whom the contributor dislikes. :-/

@JOely -- I don't think you've filed a ticket or sent the screenshots to support, right? Please do so, and follow their advice or answer their questions. You are free to follow up with me after you've had a final answer from Support. I cannot promise I'll be able to make this all better by waving my Magic Wand (+25 to all damage types, Halves skill recharge (Chance: 98%) Halves energy use, +20 to Sparkly Goodness). :) However, I do care and I will try to help, but all in good time. Sound fair? -- Gaile 06:50, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for replying Gaile :) But as King Said, it does happen, there is a perfectly liable resource of infomation, if people keep accusing Jay, and so much stuff is sent in, why is he not banned? People quit th game because of him... I sent in my screen shots, and clearly explained my reasons, but they automate answers, and are still looking into my screens. :) --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User: 89.242.247.187 (talk).

Please sign your comments Drogo Boffin 16:41, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

As I said, you need to contact Support. They're keenly aware of this issue and they'll involve me if that becomes necessary. -- Gaile 21:24, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Having said that, please understand that the entire team is keenly aware of this issue and of the people involved. Support Team members will take your reports seriously. So this isn't a "brush off" answer, but my best effort to get you to the right people who will deal with the matter on the primary level. If they need my assistance or input, they know my number. ;) -- Gaile 21:32, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

I have seen both sides of this conflict for years and to be honest, most of the dergatory remarks and snide comments and plain out rudeness has been on Joely B's side and the side of the #2 Ally spot. He is not the innocent he claims to be. I have Screens of him and his disruptive behavior and his Racial remarks sent to people and i will happily contribute them and witnesses if need be. There was a big controversy today in Aspenwood surrounding this issue and as i observed from a third pov, i noticed that Joely B and his friends were the ones harassing members of the #1 alliance and also friends of his. If you do not believe this, there is a 3 hour chat log about what happened that was witnessed and saved by many people. I am not taking sides, but i see more disruptive behavior stemming from Joely B and his friend's side. Note i am a third party rep and have no relations on either side except to watch what people do , for deeds will betray a lie. And so far theres less animosity coming from the #1 spot and more so from the #2 spot, throwing insults around like they are innocent. I would just like to inform you joely b that your actions will seem hypocritcal to all, seeing your the one antagonizing everyone involved. thank you; --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:Shadowzz (talk).

For the love of god SIGN YOUR COMMENTS! It's not rocket science! Put a - followed by 4 ~. Anyways, on the subject at hand, I perosnally know of this issue from both a 1st PoV and a 3rd PoV-- JayPac is an absolutely horrible person and I am stunned he has yet to be perma-banned by now. -Lena™ talk 21:56, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Why isn't it painfully obvious to you all that anet just bans people they don't like? There's more evidence of prejudicial bans than there are of Wasabi violating pretty much every section of EULA, and trust me, there's plenty of that. ~Shard 22:01, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

@ Shard - Does this include Ms. Gray lifting Wasabi's suspension on that double fame weekend? -Lena™ talk 22:20, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

@Shard -- Honestly, you could take a discussion about the weather and turn it into "It's raining because ArenaNet hates me" commentary. Here's the real question: if you have evidence against any player, why has Support never seen it or more importantly, been able to prove it? Because it's not true, perhaps? Maligning a player's integrity with wild and unfounded accusations is disallowed on the wiki.

@Lena -- You have fully crossed the lines of NPA, as well, when you attack my professionalism with false -- provably false -- accusations of some sort of preference. Do you honestly think that I would pull strings or look the other way about player misconduct? You played the game. You play the wiki now. But ArenaNet is my employer and to them I owe my loyalty and the best possible application of my skills and abilities.

All of this -- the abuse of my wiki pages and the personal attacks on me -- have gone on far too long. I will seek an admin review. -- Gaile 01:43, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I like the part of Lena's support conversation where they basically said "we banned you for something somebody else did."

I'll let Gaile ruin her own company. BTW tell Fall I said hi. Tell him thanks too. ~Shard 01:53, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

False? So the words of an ex-officer in ZoS, MORE IMPORTANTLY, someone who was/is very close to you, are made up and a lie? I have NOT lied about any of this, Gaile. Please do not try and say "my professionalism" as an excuse to try and call me a liar on the Wasabi's suspension accusation. My proof is someone whom knows you VERY well whom you consider/ed a close friend in-game. My accusations are neither a threat nor deformation, they are not brekaing any rules. I had not attempted to make you out as a bad person, either. If I am breaking policy by asking "why did you lift Wasabi's suspension?" then I truely do need to reconsider in trying to seek your assitance for help on your Support Teams', co-workers of your "employer", biased decisions on my behalf. I have been respectful to you but you threaten me with "seeking admin review" (in more a paraphrased wording: "I don't like how you're accusing me of this I am going to get you in trouble"), which is, well, a violation in NPA. Have a great rest of the day, Gaile. -Lena™ talk 02:02, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) In regards to the first part of this topic perhaps Support needs to give out some tough-love to both parties - if behaviours have according been out of the spirit of fairplay etc. If neither side can conduct themselves in the spirit of fairplay give them warnings and then suspensions. This sounds like it's completely un-necessary for Guild Wars, I personally hate porting into districts and seeing this kind of worthless non-sense going on. If it's a long standing issue it's something that's probably taking far too much of Support's time that could have been used far more constructively. 000.00.00.00 02:21, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for an on-topic post, Triple-Oh. Yes, this is clearly a long-standing issue, and quite frankly, Support is disheartened by the amount of time being spent to mediate personal issues. We don't have corners and dunce caps; we can conceivably give everyone a child's "time out," but I am not sure how effective that would be. Soon after this appeared on my wiki page, a ticket was submitted to Support by the other party. In the end, how much umpiring should be given? How much time should be invested in trying to build bridges that seem destined only to be blown up again? At some point, those who are reported often and are found to be involved even in seemingly "minor" issues can and will find their accounts terminated. It's not what we want or like to do, but given fairness factors and our desire to keep the game world pleasant for the players as a whole, that may be what happens.

I don't know the outcome of this issue yet. I think it's going to take some time to do all the log reviews, etc. -- Gaile 02:56, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Personally, if it were me (and maybe this is why I'm not in Support lol) I'd have to weigh it all up. Given that it's a long-standing issue shows that those at the core of the in-game matter aren't dropping it. Rivalry, a little bit of smack talk is one thing, one can take it in jest for what it is, but some of what I've seen in this thread is concerning, though I find it difficult to take the matter too seriously as we're only seeing the one side. Seeing as how the matter is long-standing shows that both sides may be giving as good as they are getting, an issue like this isn't long-standing if one of the sides is the innocent party, it may have started off as such but may no longer be the case. If it's a considerable length I would draw the line in the sand on the matter, if either side oversteps it a warning, a suspension or a ban. Boundaries must be given otherwise it will continue on as it seems to be.

It's difficult for me to really say anything constructive on the matter, without knowing what's really going on, I dislike only hearing one side of the situation and basing judgements on that (though I still do it from time to time >.<). That, and this may also be showing why I'm not qualified in thought enough for Support LOL.

Sorry, just rambling now. 000.00.00.00 04:42, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I was involved in the whole "fight for Cavalon" over a year ago (probably close to two now) and my brother is still in one of the guilds involved. I can tell you now that almost every guild involved in that is breaking rules, organising guild kills, botting, leeching, harassment, etc. Not every player involved, but almost every guild certainly. I guess it is support's job to work out who is clean and who is dirty. I came out largely unscathed, probably due to weird timezones and the fact I didn't actually care that much, but I saw what happened to other people. I can provide details if requested, but I didn't take any screen shots or anything. I assume support is able to confirm or deny anything I state once investigated. Misery 08:21, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

@ OP's post: I have never been involved in the "fight for cavalon" as the benefits never really justified the effort imho. However My guild did become very close to a group of people who left ANY due to them not wanting to faction farm. I have vivid memories of Any finding this out and both my friends guild and my own were subjected to repeated harassment from them, up to the point where many of my friends guild just stopped AB-ing. I am not taking anyone's side in this and I can not vouch for any persons claim but on a completely personal level, I have had first hand experience of Jay's harassment tactics ingame. As Misery has said however, all serious Faction-farming guilds are guilty to some degree of breaking the EULA with botting, leeching, spiking etc..., however it must be a nightmare for support to work out who's guilty of what, when a massive bulk of that community is equally liable of winding each other up.

On a completely different point however, Shard you and your friends issues with anet are well known and established, I'm not going to argue how valid they are, as I'm not privy to the information needed to judge that effectively (none of the admins here are), however that is not our role and the wiki is not the place to air your grievances about a user/company repeatedly. Nor is it the place to continually hijack other peoples topics. If you're pissed about a valid point send an email, organise a forum, start blogging, contact the gaming media etc.... Do not however turn the wiki into your own private hate grounds and derail every topic to your own issues. I am getting tired of constantly seeing it happen over and over again from various users. Anybody I see turning a valid topic into a wee "i hate anet/random employee" rant, runs a very strong risk of earning themselves a time out. I hate having to say things like this, as it makes me look like an anet "yes-man", but really guys the constant abuse aimed at certain users just because they are anet employees is completely out of line. Anet employees on this wiki are just the same as any other user, they enjoy no extra privileges or rights and they are afforded the same protection as that of any other user. To be completely blunt they may be afforded less protection, as if i saw this amount of constant harassment on a none-anet employee's page I would be perma-banning alot of people right now, instead of just giving this warning. In short guys, you either choose to stop this pointless insulting of anet staff, or we, the admins, will stop you. It really is your choice in the end, but either way this behaviour will stop! -- Salome 08:55, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Misery is right; it comes from both parties (I was in [Halo] a while back when we took Cavalon from [any]). I, too, would be willing to elaborate in the sort of, uh, shenanigans that take place. King Neoterikos 09:59, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Joely B. Your record proves that you have been banned for racial slurs before.

Sup Rahl? Misery 16:31, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Guild Spikes do, infact, happen

New screenie for you. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 16:36, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Jay does alot of what he does via Ventrillo, and USES people (like slaves :P), to do his bidding. J0ely b 16:44, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

You know, you could promote everyone to an officer to prevent "guildspikes"? Honestly, differentiating between "ordinary" members and "officer" members have no benefits at all, other than to stroke your epeen if you become an "officer" member. Pika Fan 16:48, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Lol wow, nice pic. I've had that happen once before to my guild. I slept with an officer's gf and... he found out.... and... well... Yea.. <_< Anyways, on-topic: what Jaypac does is horrible and I am pretty sure that in the EULA it states something alone the lines of "making the gaming experience worse for other players may result in a suspension/ban" (paraphrasing, of course). Hmm... -Lena™ talk 16:59, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I really don't know why but I lol'd for like 10 minutes when I read all this. --Jette 17:26, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Sadist? (Satanael 17:30, 3 June 2009 (UTC))

Well, I was chilling on [dr] vent just the other day, when an old [any] Officer Rhapsody came up to me, and explained what Jay had done to her, when he tried convcining her Steve [dr] Leader was a pedo, I was outraged at this statement, leading me to amidiate action, and yes I have contacted support, who have done nothing, no matter how many Jay bombardments they get.

You say it happens both sides?? I have never, nor my men ever spiked a guild, botted, or made fasle accusations towards the opposing team. J0ely b 18:53, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

we currently reside ally-less, desperate building faction without recruiting to take down Jay when the time is right What you just said reminded me of a typical melodramatic B movie. I would be very surprised if support actually takes this seriously. Post formally, remove all the flowery language, and people will actually start paying attention. Pika Fan 19:09, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Jay makes up rumors about Steve, the [dr] leader.

Jay calls Joel a sh!thead

As the screenshots newly posted show, that type of behaviour is not aceptable to the onlnie commuinty, I personally think Gaile Just the one of him amking rumorus about the [dr] leader is enough for a small ban, let alone all my screenshots, I have many many more, which I keep sneding Supprot yet nothing happens, this is a small sample of what happens, ofcourse I care more about the organized Guild Spiking & Botting, but that is very well covered up by him, yet we all still see it, however somehow A-net doesn't :)

So Gail,e can you brief me, how long has Jaypac been hassling the games community, and what is gunna be done on the matter, I take it seriously as it still happens every day, the quicker the problem is resolved the better. J0ely b 19:28, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Please Sign your comments. Drogo Boffin 19:26, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

The thing that bothers me is that the OP is trying to make this seem totally one-sided, and by doing so throwing question over the validity of Support. If the case was as one-sided as you're trying to say Joely b then I do question why Support hasn't done anything. Again, we only have one side of this story to go on.

I think Gaile has said as much as can be said on her part, perhaps this continuing conversation can be taken to your talk page so those interested can continue the discussion without it over-sizing Gaile's page - I think we all get your point. 000.00.00.00 21:37, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Thank you 000. I see one side of the story but i bet theres alot more to it then J0ely B sasys it to be. Take this Hate you have to your own page and stop flooding Gaile's with it.~~K~~

you the thing that is hilarious about this is the one sided pms, why don't you show screen of how u harass him also? oh and lets not talk about our vent crash. or even better, pming members of revo and paying them to leave the guild. that isn't dirty is it? and really he spiked your guild? because I KNOW for a fact and actually have proof of, is of How your guild was taken down by your dear friend Jahf. You are 14 dude, and someone is making your mind to this and that because they know you can't decide for yourself. Grow up, learn what the truth really is, don't let other people make up your mind. your nothing but jahs puppet and you are naive for npt seeing it. It frustrates them that we work so hard for our faction and we are always one step ahead, no cheating, no killing guilds. I have now been in jaypacs alliance for 1 year. On both sides my guild rose and flourished under his alliance, and everyday I received pms about why I should leave and why I should join them. All I heard was people pointing fingers Jahf, you all know JAHF right has been forcefully killing guilds, making names resembling jays to blame him, this man does nothing but work for his allaince, WTB Cavalon is what they say. Can't take Cavalon fair and square so they cheat. Joel u know well enough who kicked u guild and stole ur members. yeah u r too young to own a guild, u r too young to know anything. and Jahf, stop using people for your dirty tricks, we see right through you. Grow up people. -Miss Chris

(Reset indent) Gentlemen, as a sometimes member of RageQuit, a guild spanning many years and many games, I have seen more inter-guild politics then many of you can imagine. This bredth of experience allows me to share with you all the following knowledge- none of you are innocent. This situation cannot and will not be resolved by Support. If you continue to insist on bans, and Support gives in (I believe they won't), both sides of the conflict will be penalized. None of you will like the results. This I promise.

I will also tell you this- every complaint you make, every accusation you level, every handful of mud you sling will not help your "cause". You will only succeed in making bystanders dislike you. You will look petty, childish, and immature. What's more, you will unintentionally bias the people to whom you look for support against you. The issue is known to Support, and the issue is known to Gaile. If they are wise- and I believe that they are- they will not act, but if you continue to berate and degrade each other like a bunch of simpering ninnies, then who could blame them if bans are given?

Continue this argument here at your own risk. Be warned, you're only hurting yourselves. Felix Omni 22:56, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

← moved to User_talk:J0ely_b#The_Corrupt_Power_Struggle

(Reset indent) Not to be rude but this topic I feel is over-grown and to save space on Gaile's page before this turns into some kind of 'he said she said' discussion I've directed it, if people want to continue there it might be better than here as I think the conversation is now degenerating. If this is questionable a Sysop can undo it. 000.00.00.00 23:00, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I have to agree that any discussion here is misplaced and is probably destined to turn out badly. I'll archive and the parties involved can work with Support directly, please. -- Gaile 22:11, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Free Storage

Hey Gaile, it's been a while since I reported NCsoft about that I couldn't remember the account I linked my GW account to. Seeing the end is coming near, I still haven't recieved any response from them yet. Do you know if it's still really busy there or w/e? InfestedHydralisk 18:55, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi, Inf. I think you want to update your ticket to follow-up. I found another player who contacted me here had heard back, but somehow lost the response from Support. So he was waiting for Support at the same time that Support was waiting to get some info from him. Just find your emailed ticket and update with a polite ping about the matter. -- Gaile 19:10, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, I had the exact same problem, Inf, and I heard back from them within only a day or two, and that all happened a week or two ago. Of course, every ticket is different I'm sure... (Satanael 19:24, 18 May 2009 (UTC))

oh i just have to fill it in? InfestedHydralisk 19:37, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Your ticket should have a little space (surrounded by green "***" things) where you can right in an update or response, say what you want to say there and send. (Satanael 20:12, 18 May 2009 (UTC))

Satanael is correct. There's a "Please respond below this line" divider, and a "Please respond above this line" divider, as well. :) Insert whatever new information you can provide and I'm sure the team will assist you. If you check the ticket and find that you do not have any outstanding questions from Support and you want me to take a look at the ticket, please provide me the 12-digit number and I'll be happy to check it out for you. -- Gaile 17:06, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

filled it in, got a reply a couple of hours later. good thing i asked about it here, or i would have kept on waiting InfestedHydralisk 11:15, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

I'd like you guys to brainstorm with me. This is the second time that someone has received a response but has not realized that he/she needed to "fill in the blanks" because the team needed more info. How can we make that more clear, so players aren't kept waiting, thinking the team is slow, when in fact the team's ready, willing, and able to move forward as soon as the info come in? If you have any ideas, please share them and I'll pass them along. Thanks! -- Gaile 21:06, 22 May 2009 (UTC)

Put a red notice at the top of the support's message if they require a response from the player. Something like "It is important that you respond to this inquiry as soon as possible" or whatever applies best to the situation. This will make sure that people don't just skim over the message to see if they got what they wanted, realize that they didn't, and ignore the rest of it and then come crying to you. Rose Of Kali 04:38, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

Maybe you can help, NCsoft support doesn't seem to care

Hi Gaile, I recently contacted NCsoft support about a player I had previously reported. I was happy with the results becaue the player was permenantly banned. However, that player decided to purchase an account from another player which voided two rules in your EULA. First one, you can't buy accounts from other players, 2nd one, you cant return to GuildWars EVER unless you get written permission from an NCsoft/ANet employee. When I sent in this ticket, I got negative results from what seemed to be a bot because he didn't give me any feedback whatsoever. I provided him the exact sections of the EULA the person disrupted, as well as telling him how to pursue to banning him (I said to check the I.P. for the account, if so possible he would see the I.P's of the two different accounts match, and that the second account originally had a different I.P. if they can look that far back.) The reason the person was susspended in he first place was because of extreme harassment involving him telling me to kill myself and somehow obtaining my personal phonenumber and spamming it in the most active districts in the game (Kamadan, Heroes Ascent, Lions Arch, etc...)

Here's the NCsoft refrence: 090515-001756--163.153.122.213 11:35, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

NCSoft support will not usually give you any details of what happens to players that are reported, or whether they've been actioned. It's unfortunate what happened to you, but IP addresses are dynamic and can be changed, so they're not the most reliable way of researching whether someone that was previously banned has purchased another account. I'd say that if you're fairly certain it's the same person, you've done all you can do, and your best course of action would be to put the new account on ignore. As for your phone number, well, the only source that could have possibly come from is you yourself, so I'd have to recommend not publishing your information on the internet or giving out your name or other personal information to anyone in-game. Hope that helps. --★KOKUOU★ 13:08, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Hello. I need to say two things:

1. You're not hearing from a bot, you're hearing from a real person. Yes, the team can use somewhat "formal" language, and that might come across as "auto response" or "bot-like," but I'm sure if you think about it -- and the fact we serve players in half a dozen languages -- you'll understand why the wording is somewhat formal.
2. Yes, we often do give information about blocks and bans, much more so than we did in the past. I strongly believe in more transparency, more explanations, and just generally getting more information in the hands of our players. Starting last spring, the team began giving fewer responses like this, "We received your report and cannot tell you the outcome" and more like this, "We investigated your report and found that an infraction took place and the player has been given a suspension."

The second comment doesn't mean we'll be able or willing to give chapter and verse on every ticket, but we do try to provide some information, if only to give peace of mind to those reporting bad behavior.

In the case you've pointed out, the team is investigating the various aspects of this situation. However, verifying the information you've provided is not as straightforward as you may think. "Checking IPs" sounds all fine and well until you learn that entire neighborhoods can share a single IP. (I know of a 1,000-unit condominium complex that has one IP address -- we can't take out a whole complex based on one player's behavior.) The team will continue to look at your tickets (I am not sure why you filed more than one?) and will get back to you soon. -- Gaile 18:47, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Well, I suppose I stand corrected on one thing, then. I didn't realize that Support was now giving out more information to reporters. I've always received the generic, "Thanks for your report, but we can't tell you if we did anything or not" message. I have to agree, though, more transparency is definitely a good thing! :D --★KOKUOU★ 19:00, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Massive Wave of Bots in Jade Quarry

→ moved from User talk:Linsey Murdock

Hello, there are many bots in Jade Quarry in International District. They recognize that they are stuck against the wall with a curse. I have taken four out : I Strong I, Silent Hill Ilo, I Pepito Gele I and I Marcia Baila I. Please, rid us of this vermin who dare to usurp the name of our guild, that is recognized in the world of ava, giving us a bad reputation : in addition, we have changed our Guild cape. Thanks in advance. --Anvar Le Barbare 15:58, 21 May 2009 (UTC) File:Bots in JQ-1.jpg

It's funny and despicable how far people go. FA is also being botted. All of them have the same path. --ShadowFog 16:01, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

any game with no game masters and any sizable player base will have bots -Auron 16:04, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

You mean GW2 ? :) Yseron - 90.14.102.125 17:59, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

I would have no problem with bots if they had a competent AI. Boro 18:07, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

Anvar Le Barbare. Linsey is a game designer. You want to approach the Support staff that will handle this matter and the place to do that is http://us.ncsoft.com//us/support/prod_48.html -- WarBlade 18:16, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) I'm sorry to hear that someone is mimicking your guild, Anvar. I think you were wise to change the guild cape. I appreciate you letting me know about the problem with the bots, too. I assume that you used the /report for each of those you spotting in with bot-like behavior? That is the thing to do, after which the team will take action that will reduce the number of cheats and exploiters and curtail their impact on the game. Thanks. -- Gaile 04:54, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

This Friday I experienced extreme botting. 6 Charge! Warrior-Bots in one Jade Quarry match. Before that, I had 1-2 RoJ Monk bots all the time in every match. I guess bot users prefer the Luxon side because they join without the delay the Kurzicks usually have and thus farm faster. Most human players did not report botters, and often they reported them, if at all, as leechers. I hope you do some random checks, user reports alone cannot combat the wave. There is a way to recognize a lot of the bots, they always head for the Jade Quarry flag in the staging area after the match. --Longasc 09:37, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

They can easily be recognized that they run from portal to portal at the beginning of the match and spam speedboost skills, always running straight. And I've noticed that when I report botters I end up having dishonourable--81.246.128.156 15:38, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

Sadly it seems like arenanet likes to punish you for reporting botters. Boro 06:49, 11 June 2009 (UTC)

We're sorry if you've gotten a dishonorable hex in error. We need to be able to take measures against bogus reports, or reports intended to grief another player. However, we certainly do not want to inflict a negative hex on players making legitimate reports! This is an issue that crops up from time to time, and I did mention the concern to the Live Team as recently as three days ago. We're hopeful for some sort of remedy for this. In the meantime, if you're concerned about such a thing happening you could submit a support ticket with the names (spell them very carefully, please) of bots that you have spotted, rather than using the in-game /report feature. Thanks for your efforts to rid the game of bots! -- Gaile 17:11, 15 June 2009 (UTC)

Quick Question about reporting for names.

I reported the player "A Net Blows" about a month ago and noticed that he still signs on the name. I also reported Omg Pull Out as well. I'm curious about how long the reporting process takes. I've been banned for names within hours of making it. I'm confused. --adrin 05:02, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

Well, there's really nothing at all offensive about someone wanting something pulled out -- they probably got hit with Penetrating Attack and wanted the arrow to be taken out. As for the other one, I think it's just silly. Imagine Izzy huffing and puffing trying to cool off or something. --Jette 05:05, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

When my PvP Assassin Blows blew It got me banned, not cooled =\ My main point isnt to bitch about my bans, I'm over that. I'm just confused on why A Net Blows is a legal name. --adrin 05:06, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

For the first, can you tell me why you think it would be banned for being offensive? I can think of two possible reasons you might cite, so I'd like to be sure I understand your objection.

I'll submit both of these names for review and thanks for making me aware of them so I could do so. In the future, do be aware that a quick select, /report, "offensive name" is another way to do that. -- Gaile 05:13, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

He thinks it's offensive because it's a reference to coitus interruptus, otherwise known as the pull-out method, a terribly ineffectual method of birth control that stupid teenagers think works for some reason. The first was a reference to fellatio, the slang term "blows" or "to blow," which I guess would imply that ANet as a collective entity was... well. I don't think people should be banned for anything ever except harassment and illegal stuff/RMTs simply because it's the internet and people need to grow up and get over it. But it's your world (literally), I just troll it. In any case, there's your reasons. --Jette 05:24, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

I used the /report feature in game. Thats my question is when I type /report how long does it take for A Net Blows to get a block/rename? It happened to my sin "PvP Assassins Blow," and my friend's monk, Wow This Game Blows, and his mesmer The In Her Erupter. Those were deemed banworthy. I can't figure out why A Net Blows is any better, and it's been a month. The second one is exactly what Jette said. It's a common term. I agree with jette on his second point too but thats not always the case. Thanks. EDIT:LoL @ Jette's personal opinion on pulling out. --adrin 05:31, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

Just Kinda off topic, but can you check if you name is unacceptable? if so where can you do it? DarthD 05:58, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

If you think the name might be unacceptable, it's probably unacceptable. --Jette 06:01, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

Funny names are also unacceptable. ~Shard 06:21, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

In my experience if it contains any word you can't find on this site it's probably unacceptable and sometimes ones you can. A friend got banned for using Phyllis once because it was "similar to phallus." --Jette 06:40, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

It is fairly obvious what kind of name is out of line, which is fine, and which is borderline, what I find funny is all the people who know they are making borderline names whining about it when their char gets banned. Seriously if you didn't want the Risk why not name your char Odin The Strong or something that couldn't possibly offend anyone. --Lemming 12:23, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

OMG!!! The first name site that actually got my name origins right! O_O Rose Of Kali 04:08, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

I have a feeling that if a sex toy or some obscure sex play gets called "Fan" I will get banned too.Pika Fan 04:15, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

Pikachu Furries Fan. Rose Of Kali 04:19, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

Honestly, if they really wanted, they can already argue that "Pika Fan" hints at beastiality. Pika Fan 04:28, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

I saw he was on A Net Blows again, I went to take a screenie and noticed the next name he was on. I can honestly tell you I don't know this guy at all. I just added him as an experiment to test the blocking process. So it's not like i'm going after him for some reason, feel free to check my chat logs. A Net Blows has to be offensive if PvP Assassins Blow is. --adrin 07:37, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

The character that was named A Net Blows may have been suspended already, but it is still tied to the owner's account and added to your friends list, so you will still see it when the person logs in on any other character on that account. So this screenshot does not prove anything one way or the other. You can add a name to your friends list, then the owner can delete the character, but you will still keep seeing the old name, as that's what is in your friends list, even if it no longer exists. Rose Of Kali 18:09, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

I know how the friends list works, dont worry. When i signed on, he was on the A Net Blows name. When I decided to take a screenie a few moments later, he had switched names. If he was made to rename A Net Blows, they probably would have made him rename Sxual Healing too I would think. --adrin 08:02, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Good heavens, how many wiki threads are there on this single name? As I said, yes, it was an error, there was an inconsistency and the name was subsequently blocked. We apologize for the error -- the name should have been dealt with, as you suggested. -- Gaile 06:52, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

Question about Proof of Offenses

Why Is ArenaNet Not Required to Provide Proof of Offenses?

You said this (source):

• For certain offenses, even first time offenses, a two-week period is the normal suspension. Length of suspension really depends on the infraction and the details that surround it and is entirely at the discretion of ArenaNet and/or NCsoft. Outcomes are not "set in stone" but can be gauged on other elements involved in any infraction. Solicited resales -- the attempted purchase of a trial key -- often result in two week blocks; permanent suspensions are not unheard of; and of course those involved in repeated infractions may find that even a minor "tips the balance" to a termination for repeated violations.

• NCsoft and/or ArenaNet are never required to provide logs or "proof." As a general rule, we are more transparent with players than we once were, but at no time can someone make a case that "They have to show you the evidence or they must remove the suspension/termination," or "You can argue with them and you'll get your way."

My question: Why are NCsoft and/or ArenaNet never required to provide logs or "proof"? This could potentially provide the possible "offender" the proof he needs to show he is innocent as we don't have access to all that info. I'm asking this because I want to be well-informed if I ever get banned and the reason why is unknown to me, as I have spent hundreds of € on this game, and tbh I would be pissed if I would not get the that info.

Also wanna say that I don't mean to "step on someone's toes" by asking this, as I already said I just wanna be well informed and would like to know the reason why they don't feel the need to provide logs or "proof" because from my personal point of view I think it's just wrong not to do so when asked. Qaletaqa 06:20, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

I think Anet basically reserves the right to keep their mouth shut, so to speak, if they want to. They seem to always be willing to work with you when the issue is sort of "fuzzy" and there is a possibility of a false positive, at least judging from Gaile's page so far. There have also been cases when they refuse to communicate with clear bot cases and repeated offenses where there cannot possibly be other explanations or excuses. Other than that, I would like to hear if Gaile has a "clear" answer to this. Rose Of Kali 15:53, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

"transparent" is not something Support could claim they are. I recently got banned for botting, yet support messages suggested it was a third party program (not a bot which they seperate), but by the end of the situation where my account was unbanned it was because they claimed I was botting. For me, I'm not sure what I was banned for, it's one or the other. If Support actually provided proof, whether it turns out the person did something or not, it would be better than this 'he said she said' situation they've got going.

I can't imagine Support fully being 'transparent' is ever going to happen. Support is so much of a gray area when it comes to issue like this. Kinda sucks, my experience has loosened my enjoyment when it comes to playing Guild Wars. [shrugs] 000.00.00.00 21:39, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

If they provide you with a false reason for your ban, just call them out on it and they'll make up a new one. That's what I did.

How many people find it odd that if you have a complaint about support, it goes to support? ~Shard 21:46, 23 May 2009 (UTC)

I think you will find it is pretty standard practice across the industry. There is no requirement in any kind of way that proof is necessary to give. The fact is it probably comes down to a time issue, and to provide every banned player with proof of their transgression would consume a lot of time. And lets face it 9 times out of 10 the player probably knows exactly why they were banned. --Lemming 01:33, 24 May 2009 (UTC)

That might be true, but to whom should they provide this proof? The player in question, who already knows very well that he did something wrong? The community, who are quick to judge and readily form a lynch mob? I've already seen the community doing that when they had no evidence and half of a story. Not to mention that whatever proof support provides can't be used to change their minds, because if it could, they wouldn't have banned you in the first place. So I don't see the point of it, to be honest. 145.94.74.23 08:19, 24 May 2009 (UTC)

145.94.74.23 they should provide the "proof" to the "player in question". And if you would have clicked on source you would have seen they sometimes they already do that, also the person who got banned if you followed the link was able to show it was a case of mistaken identity, so he was innocent. Not everyone is guilty mate. Also they should never provide "proof" to anyone else except to the player in question because they don't have anything to do with it. Qaletaqa 09:00, 24 May 2009 (UTC)

Just think of the game like a restaurant or a bar, if the owner wants to kick you out of his place, he doesn't have to say why, he can just say "Out!" and you go, even if you have paid for your drink and don't get to finish it. Or even if he does give you a reason (e.g. "because you're lifting all the waitresses skirts, and they don't like that."), he certainly does not have to provide proof of anything. (Satanael 18:26, 24 May 2009 (UTC))

Satanael, any restaurant or bar that runs like the first part of your example would have such a negative reputation. My partner works in hospitality and if a customer is asked to leave (ie removed) they are given a reason. Though, we're not in the US or other countries consumer rights etc might be different. 000.00.00.00 04:57, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

In Singapore, consumers have the right to sue businesses for poor service. Not that it's cheap or anything, but sure as hell fun and interesting if you are rich, have the time, and bored of terrible acting and drama on TV.Pika Fan 05:08, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

In the US any privately owned business has the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason unless it is a violation of the Civil Rights Act. And 000 I would not only give any restaurant more business for banning someone who was lifting all the waitresses skirts, I would recommend them to all my friends. -- Wyn 05:36, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

So conversely, you wouldn't recommend the restaurant, or would even boycott the outlet if they banned someone who was perfectly innocent. Pika Fan 06:28, 25 May 2009 (UTC)

They should provide reasons yes, but proof? What would a user do with proof? Again, whatever proof they have, they've already looked at it and won't change their mind if they read the same proof a second time. I'm not saying people are always guilty or something, I'm just pointing out that it would be kinda pointless. 145.94.74.23 14:34, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Suppose for a moment that providing proof will reveal something about security system company is using. This would be equivalent of telling what person A did wrong the first time person A will be able to avoiding doing the same next time. Important thing to remember here, if you read EULA, they can do what ever they want, just like any company that provides similar service, for instance your ISP company can freely cancel your Internet service without any proof of wrongdoing on your part. Biz 16:12, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

More generally, by providing proof, they open themselves to (1) people finding ways to criticise and debate, and (2) people searching for loopholes. Both of which are very costly on PR time. So if there's a ban, either (1) the "account" deserved it, which is either the player him/herself, or whoever he lets use his/her account without supervision, (2) it's a false positive, which can be corrected by contacting support, or (3) someone needs to get fired for abuse, which can be corrected by contacting PR. Anything else resembling a process will end up constly on PR and ultimately on product pricing (e.g. subscription prices). -- Alaris 17:46, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Who is "PR" in this context? -- Gaile 19:50, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) So you want proof? Here are two possible scenarios:

1. "You were found to be botting. We discovered you because you did A, B, and C. We have no doubt you were botting, and the ban is permanent." Player then runs to his bot program and tweaks A, B, and C to put them just below the "scan range" and continues botting.
2. Here is your chat log. As you can see, it's offensive. Possible responses from the blocked player:

• No, it's not offensive! (Answer: Oh, yes, it was.)
• I've seen worse. (Answer: Report the worse, by all means, but don't expect forgiveness because somewhere, at sometime, someone else said something else that was offensive.)
• I was in (someplace) where no one else could hear me. (Answer: We can't really confirm that; All Chat is All Chat.)
• So I engaged in offensive chat 12,392 times -- that doesn't mean you should terminate my account! (Answer: You're joking, right? ;) )

Now, for chat incidents, we often do provide chat logs. What we don't do is debate the content. For botting, we're not going to be able to fulfill the "prove it" requests for very practical and understandable reasons.

I hope this information is helpful. -- Gaile 19:48, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for the info, Gaile. Just a quick question, though. When you say, "All Chat is All Chat," is that because Support can't tell where the person was when they said XYZ, or that they can't tell who else (possibly the offended party) was in that particular Explorable/Guild Hall/Town/Instance? --★KOKUOU★ 19:52, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

I guess not as many claim they use offensive words in whisper/guildchat with only friends and get blocked for it. anet stalk chatlogs you know, and probably can't see if it's local or whisper/dis 1 kamadan or just friends in a guild hall. Pretty stupid if you ask me. --Trapinch 01:07, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Thank you Gaile for answering. I'll continue playing only with real life friends or alone :), I have Aspergers Syndrome and because of that I sometimes give the wrong impression and get misunderstood, or I get the wrong impression and misunderstand them. I'm saying this because of this line:

• No, it's not offensive! (Answer: Oh, yes, it was.)

I've never had issues tho in Guild Wars, mostly because I play solo or with real life friends who know me well and know not to be offended by things I say (also the reason why I wanna be able to take 7 heroes lol, then I don't have to talk at all). I also know that disabilities is something you can't take into account. And now I know explaining why something isn't offensive is useless. If something looks rude, I didn't mean to be. Have a nice day everyone. Qaletaqa 00:35, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

@ Kokuou -- the latter. We can tell where you were, but I don't think we necessarily have the tools to say "At 12:26 in Guild Hall ZYX, 11 people were present rather than just the 2 that the suspended player says were party to the conversation." Pulling that sort of data would be time consuming and pretty much unnecessary with our policies applying to All Chat as a whole, not "All Chat w/Others" and "All Chat w/Only Close Friends" or "All Chat w/only GF present." ;)

@Qaletaqa -- I understand and fully sympathize with your situation. While we would definitely want to and try to take exceptional matters like health issues into consideration, it's difficult from our viewpoint, as I sense you understand. (Rather like the recent matter where someone wanted to use a name that we felt was offensive and that related to suicide, but which the player swore was a real-life, departed friend. It's difficult to verify, and statements of that nature could be bogus, although I know yours are not.) Anyway, I admire your finding a solution that readily serves you and the community as a whole. Thanks for your sensitivity and your common sense! :) -- Gaile 01:03, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks again, Gaile! That's what I assumed, but we all know where assumptions can take us if we're incorrect. I could see how resource-consuming it would be to track down how many people were present during every infraction in All Chat, so I can understand Support's position. In other news, I hope you get your wiki issues sorted out soon! :D --★KOKUOU★ 01:33, 27 May 2009 (UTC)

error 227, and problem with ncsoft support login.

Dear Ms Gray, May I ask what is an error code=227? Pumpkin pie 11:53, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

In case Ms Gray is delayed in answering you can find the error codes here. --Silverleaf Don't assume, Know! 12:27, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

thank you silverleaf, i found out what it is, I got hacked someone change my login password and the client can't recognized the information i use to login. Now, I'll give Arena Net what I think of their recent desperate attempt to gather information. I've never have a problem with my accounts for the last 4 years that I've been playing, and now, right after all my accounts are link, all 3 of the linked accounts are hacked simultaneously. Everything that is worth anything, 200+ zkeys, alcohol enough to max my drunken title from 60 points all my holidays items that i've collected for 4 years. 30+ undedicated mini pets lots of gold and green ones, lich lord, malyx, grease lightning, almost collection of max shields and swords and weapons are all gone. Plus approximately 650k in gold my ectos collection for my fow armor, everything is gone. Pumpkin pie 03:07, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh, Pumpkin Pie, I feel so very sad about this! So you believe that they accessed your NCsoft Master Account and altered your game account information to get access to the individual game accounts? Have you let Support know about this? Please give them as much information as you can and they'll do their best to investigate. You can give me the Incident Number (here or via wiki email) if you would like me to take a peek and see how the investigation is going. I'm very, very sorry to hear of this situation! -- Gaile 02:30, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Hi, Ms Gray, I got my accounts back, lucky no damage done to my characters. I'll try to write an email to Support with my suspicion, I am not saying it definitely is because of the linked accounts, however, I recap my activities and cannot think of anything that could have compromise those accounts information that cause all 3 accounts that are linked to be hacked simultaneously. I am very happy Support is willing to look into this. Thanks Very Much for the speedy recovery too. If you can relay the message to whom it concern that recover my accounts. BTW, I've send an email to you Ms Gray, hope it helps in your investigation. Pumpkin pie 11:03, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

I discussed this matter at length with our Support Team (in two countries) and they feel strongly that there is no correlation between your linking your Guild Wars accounts into a NCsoft Master Account and the issue that arose with the unauthorized access. And I have to say I agree, for if there was some sort of security breach, we'd be seeing tens of thousands of such issues, rather than just the one.

I know it's hard not to feel there's a cause and effect here, but we believe this is strictly coincidental. The team will be alert about this issue, though, and will watch for similar reports. -- Gaile 23:39, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, I thought about that too, (the-I am the only one who actually ever get hacked simultaneously) I hate hackers! LOL. I do hope it's not because of breach of NCSoft's webpage, that would be devastating. But thanks for all the help and hope it doesn't happen to me again! lol, can't even afford to buy armour for my low level any more! haha, luckily its just pixel item. Anyway, have a nice day Ms Gray. Pumpkin pie 10:00, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

Name check!

Hi Gaile, I just spent a large amount of money buying a guild with a korean tag/name. However, I'm wondering if the guild could get banned... because of a symbol in it. The guild name is: 卍 havoc 卍 [變卍 變]. I don't see a problem with the name, and the fact that you allow the chinese symbol of peace in the game (who many people seem to misinterpret as a swastika) makes me think it be harmless, however people have been banned for the symbol before. Thanks alot Gaile! <3--72.230.63.96 22:59, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

Just for your reference, Gaile, the characters on either side of the manji (卍) mean "change." --★KOKUOU★ 23:14, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

Did you just say "large amount of money" as in real-world cash or do you mean in-game gold/platinum? if it's the first then you are in violation of the EULA.

Anyway it's not the right-facing swastika, but it looks like a left-facing swastika. Anyway both are still beeing used in many religions, the right-facing one is not beeing used in western civilization alot because many immediately think of Nazi's, Hitler and anything connected to it. Also the name of the guild seems dodgey to me because it also has havoc in it (wich I think doesn't have a positive meaning, correct me if i'm wrong), and the usage of any swastika with it could upset people, and if it's not ment to offend people the guild could possibly become target of people who misintepret the guilds name. My personal oppinion is that you could have used something else. Qaletaqa 23:51, 28 May 2009 (UTC)

@Qaletaqa, stop trolling. Obviously I spent in-game money, the only guild ever sold for real money was Delta Formation. And the name has NOTHING TO DO WITH SWASTIKA's or hate. It's just a play on the guild "Peace And Harmony". 卍 is the symbol of peace, and havoc is bad. So instead of peace of harmony, it's Peace And Chaos pretty much, or Peace And Havoc. The other symbols in the guild tag are just cause they look cool :D.--72.230.63.96 01:51, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

You are correct that (卍) is a symbol of peace. The swastika of hate, such as the nazi, is more inverted like this. Most people won't know the difference between the two so I wouldn't be surprised if someone reported it.--BabyJ 02:42, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

'sigh' I'm not trolling mate, the money thing was a question not a conclusion I made.

'sigh' I did not say it has anything to do with hate (I never even mentioned the word hate). I just said it looks like a left-facing swastika wich it also is, and also never said it was bad, but that people may see it as bad because not everyone knows all the meanings or like BabyJ said "most people won't know the the difference between the two". Qaletaqa 03:18, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) The character or symbol means many things in many cultures. Generally, the character raises concerns because the Swastika is so closely tied to a dark time in human history. I think it's fair to say that few outside of specific cultures know of the benign symbolism, where nearly everyone, of every culture, knows the Nazi symbolism. So you ask yourself, is that symbol going to translate in people's minds as "universal harmony" or "peace?" Or is that symbol going to be seen as a Nazi trademark? I mean, honestly??

@72: You have asked, after the purchase, if a specific controversial symbol/character will result in your guild's closure. I can't imagine why you're asking afterwards since the delicacy of the subject would have seemed obvious from the outset. No matter, though. I have taken this topic to the Live Team for a discussion on the matter. At this point, I am sorry that I cannot tell you with certainty if the guild will or will not be blocked. -- Gaile 22:17, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

@72 Qaletaga clearly wasn't trolling, your reaction to his comment actually makes it sound worse than a simple denial. Anyway regardless I doubt there is only one guild in this game that has ever been sold for real money. --Lemming 23:06, 29 May 2009 (UTC)

Actually nazis used both symbols early on (as well as a circular one instead of their straight one) and later switched to the inverted one mainly, even if the regular one was still in use in some places (The History Channel Australia recently broadcasted a documentary about symbolism during WWII). And if I remember correctly, it is also used in celt numbering as well (meaning 8, saw that in the booklet my mother uses as a reference for glass painting) which is also armless.

Gaile while it's true that western people may not know about it's benign use in easter countries, religions and philosophies, the other is also true as many eastern people may only know of the Pacific and Asian side of WWII and do not care much about the war in Europe (despite the Hollywood barrage of TV series and movies about it) and how it impacted american, european or israely culture. The symbol appears in A LOT of popular japanese manga and anime such as Naruto or Bleach and it is normal that it is been used there. In the '90s we went to have some holidays in Bali and it appeared in a lot of buddist temples and our hotel actually had 2 entire wings designed as swastikas when viewed from above (and no one cared).

If there isn't a paragraph yet about that in the rules of conduct and naming guides, it may be added, I think, to tell that the symbol is OK to use in a non-offensive manner BUT that, of course, ArenaNet may still reserve to ban someone depending of the name context (i.e.: if someone names his caracter "hail xxx..." or "SS ...", typically it should be considered offensive as the symbol is not used in the eastern sense).

Jaxom 03:11, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

I personally feel that adding a paragraph about a single symbol is unnecessary and a bit excessive. At this point, none of us can see any legitimate use for the symbol in anything other than a conversation in the languages for which is it part of the character set: Korean, for one. That means those using it in non-Asian languages, or using it as a guild name, are likely in breach of the Naming Policy.

I will see if the Live Team has a more formal statement on the matter. At this point, my comments are merely on the informative side and not an official statement. -- Gaile 07:28, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Jaxom makes the best point. It's always about context. --adrin 08:04, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Yes, definitely. For example, a screenful of swastikas in All Chat isn't a heartening example of "valid context." :( -- Gaile 22:24, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm confused Gaile, why should it only be available to be used by those that can write in simplified chinese? If someone has a problem with the symbol, then they can look it up and see forthemselves that it's completely harmless. If having a symbol that looks SOMEWHAT like a swastika is illegal, then the guild in your alliance "xpowertradersx [^O^o] or w/e thats clearly shows a person sticking up their middle finger should also be banned (i cant do the symbols in their tag, if you've seen it in game you KNOW what I'm talking about). The middle finger is a sign of hate and basically a way of saying "f--- you" with your hands. Why should that not be bannable... but the Asian symbol of peace be bannable? In my guild tag, it consists of three korean charactors, so I wouldn't think it would be violating said above rules. Because the tag is all in korean then according to what you said it should be fine. Even though I don't know what the other symbol means, it shouldn't matter. It's like someone from korea making the guild tag [xsaF] or just a buncha random letters because they think it looks cool. If having the word Havoc between two peace signs is innapropriate... then you have to look at many guilds in the game that have anything to do with chaos/havoc and such. There goes Team Chaos Theory, and many other top gvg guilds could be considered to have a bad name.--205.188.116.135 22:41, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

The symbol in question is decidedly not "completely harmless." You know that; we all know that. I've been asked on this very page to help the Support Team deal with chat (Dutch) and a name (Polish) because of their offensiveness. No one would say the Swastika is inoffensive when viewed by persons of certain language groups or specific cultures. If we block a word that's offensive in a particular language, why not restrict the use of symbols to the languages in which they have legitimate use? In my opinion, with sensitive symbolism such as this, any person for whom the character does not have legitimate linguistic use should not use it. And I'm very much hoping that we adopt that as policy. -- Gaile 00:32, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Not that it actually is important

but guest invites do allow you to enter and stay in the guest guild hall even after the timer reaches zero. I have screenshots to verify that. Pika Fan 13:33, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

that has always been like that, i dont mind tbh InfestedHydralisk 14:00, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

I did some testing after the discussion above as well with screenshots, and I wasn't kicked out of the hall until around the 12 hour mark, and could still leave the hall and re-enter it normally at 11 hours. ¬ Wizårdbõÿ777(talk) 17:29, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

It has ALWAYS been like that, just that you tl;dr the part that Gaile needed clarification on it.Pika Fan 03:31, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Ah, Wizardboy, thanks for testing! So let me understand: Although the invitation says it has an 8-hour "shelf life," you could still accept the guest invitation and enter the guild hall even 11 hours after the invitation was made? And you could stay in the guild hall until about 12 hours after the invitation, and not simply 8 hours?

Thanks for the details, guys. I started to test, but go so blamed busy I didn't go back on my invited girl until it was waaay later, so I missed learning the time windows. But it's safe to say that a guest invitation does expire at some point, it's just getting the hour info we need now. And once we do, I vote we add it to the page on Guild Halls. :) -- Gaile 07:15, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

""oh gawd, the devs don't know their own game" - Gaile." Maybe you should be more careful with what you say... >_> Misery 07:54, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Linking the diff for fairness and context. Misery 08:08, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Sorry, Misery, but I don't understand what you're saying. The point was made that guest invitations don't expire when I had said they do. Well, lookie there, they do. So, I already made a full "mea culpa" on not knowing the precise details, and I encouraged research so we all could learn more. Sounds fair enough to me. :) -- Gaile 22:26, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Actually, it appeared you were encouraging research to prove Auron wrong >_> Misery 08:12, 11 June 2009 (UTC)

Proving others wrong is a perfectly legitimate excuse for research... when I was 8, a friend and I were debating whether or not a cat would explode in the microwave like we heard on TV or something, so we found neighbor's cat and... haha, no, I'm kidding. --Jette 08:31, 11 June 2009 (UTC)

Again one of those videos.

I'm pretty sure this is a scammer, I only understand a bit of German, so can someone look into this? make a copyright claim :). I already reported it, but they'll probably won't remove it.

youtube video --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:Qaletaqa (talk).

It's definitely a scammer. It says something like "We found a way to dupe items and can get everythig we like. Just mail us with name and password of your acccount, and we'll transfer a stack of ectos to your account." --84.178.68.4 19:34, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Sorry, forgot to say: I've passed that along. The team has a way to shut those down, as I recall. Thank you! -- Gaile 03:34, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Wasn't waiting on a response but it's always nice to get one, responses take time so no sorry needed :). Next time i'll use the support website as you already have alot to read, I just forget that it's there sometimes :/, :D. Qaletaqa Hania 00:57, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

This video has been removed by the user. Drogo Boffin 01:26, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

The clock, she is ticking...

...and time may be limited, so I will add this comment now. On the other hand, someone said that the extra storage pane offer has been extended. If it has, this can wait a while.

Yesterday (29th) I bought another copy of Prophecies (GotY edition) and created another game account for it using an alternate e-mail address. I started to follow the instructions to get the additional storage pane, but NCsoft would not accept the 'serial code' when I tried to update my master account, possibly because it had already been used to set up the new game account. I've put in a trouble ticket. I am adding this note to document that I started this process before the storage pane offer expires. --Max 2 18:55, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

The easiest way to add an active account to your NCsoft master account is to go through the procedure to get the free pane. When it gets to the window that asks which account, click the button that says Link & Select Account. AT the next screen, put in your login information, and click Link & Select Account again. This will add the account to your current master account. Then just finish the checkout procedures for the free pane.--Pyron Sy 20:43, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Resolved, I've closed the ticket – I misunderstood which account information was being asked for on the link page. The label on the field could be clearer. --Max 2 18:11, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks a lot for following up and letting me know all is well. Happy to hear it sorted out. -- Gaile 03:18, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Phishing attempt following support ticket

Hello, I recently filed a support ticket for the first time concerning login problems with the Xunlai house. This was the first time I had ever needed to contact support. In the time since I created my original NC-soft master account my e-mail has changed, and so I used my new e-mail for the contact details on the support ticket. The very next day I started to recieve Phishing e-mails ( actually trying to steal details of a World of Warcraft account, Which I have never even created ! ). I have never had any phishing e-mails before this, and the fact that it was sent to my newer e-mail address makes me believe that the nasty little "Phishermen" managed to get my contact details from my interactions with the support team.

Anyway wasn't sure if this was a known issue, a coincidence or just bad luck, But thought it might be worth mentioning. ( Btw this is my first post here so sorry if I muck it up ! )--Westie 10:46, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

NcSoft has nothing to do with this. The emails could come from anything you give it to not to mention that some places you use for email come with the phishing emails. I have a gmail account that gets killed with spam and junk email along with phishing ones too. I have never used it or given it to anybody. Yet everytime I log into it full of crap. Drogo Boffin 20:20, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

It's also not uncommon for phishers to try to "guess" email addresses using software. Common name combinations and such are more vulnerable. I had made 2 accounts one shortly after the other. The one with the "weird" name is still spam free, the other was bombarded a few weeks after creation, before it was disclosed anywhere. New accounts usually stay free for a while, and then once the spam starts, it's a full blown bombardment right away, it never starts slow. So this very well might be a coincidence. Also, it may be a coincidence that you happened to get a keylogger or other malware on your computer around that time. WoW being unrelated to the Xunlai Tournament House or GW Support further reinforces the coincidence. What stupid phisher would phish for WoW account info from you instead of GW if he got your email from GW websites? That noob, he's not making money any time soon. Rose Of Kali 20:44, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for the answers guys, I thought it was possibly just a coincidence but the timing seemed a bit funny, and I'm fairly vigorous when it comes to pc security. A deep security scan showed no keylogger or anything dodgy, so I guess it must have been a ( very ) lucky guess as to my e-mail account. Thanks for the reassurances. Although, to be honest, If I did have a WoW account the phisher would be welcome to it !!--Westie 21:09, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

I sure have not heard of any issues, and I'm keenly aware of how careful the company is with software applications, retention and privacy of personal information, etc. We don't sell our mailing lists or anything of that sort, ever.

Please give me a day or two on this. I have my all-team meeting tomorrow and will ask about whether there have been other reports. The team members can then search for any relevant info and get it back to me. Thanks for letting me know about this. -- Gaile 03:03, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

@Westie -- could you please forward me that email you got? Send to SupportLiaison@arena.net if you would be so kind. I just came across discussion about this via an internal mail, and I want to compare your sender with the one I have here. We're confident it's external, but yes, someone is trying to steal accounts through an email.

Important Note: We do not use Gmail for any official emails from ArenaNet or NCsoft. We don't use Hotmail, Yahoo, AOL, or any other provider, either. If in doubt, just ask me! Our mails would say something like @guildwars.com, @arena.net, or @ncsoft.com. -- Gaile 03:15, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Can't subscribe to the Newsletter

A little while ago I sent off a ticket to Support in regards to not being able to subscribe to the newsletter, I can do everything on the site just fine but when I get the email from the site the link within the email can't be click, nor can I copy and paste the link into my browser.

The issue seems to still be there.

I was wondering if this is a known issue. 000.00.00.00 20:40, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

You could try the link manually [8] --snograt 21:58, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

I can already do that step, Snog, but when I receive the subscription confirmation email the link provided is broken. However, the unsubscribe link works o.O 000.00.00.00 23:11, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Oh, right, I see what you mean. I can't test it because I'm already subscribed :/ --snograt 23:13, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Hey Triple-Oh, do you have that incident number? It's much faster for me to research that way. Thanks! -- Gaile 07:11, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Yes, of course. 090506-002376 I believe I sent it to the wrong department first. Why? I'm just good like that. >.< 000.00.00.00 03:22, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Thanks for that info. I'm checking on this and will let you know what I learn via wiki or ticket. -- Gaile 22:41, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Dupek revisited

Didnt want to start my own topic, but just wanted to thank Gaile for personally replying to my support inquiry about Dupek the Mighty. I hope this finally gets resolved, and it will give Anet some brownie points with the suspicious character name enthusiasts. Rose Of Kali 18:15, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Aha, nice one Gaile. Dupek the Mighty, this one seems like an inside joke by one of your fellow care workers. Having the name changed will most likly result in people learning a new swear word --Smithy-Star 18:20, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

I really don't think this was intended by anyone (care workers? O_o), especially since it's in a supported language. To me it just sounds like a made up name that turned out to have a meaning. If I wanted to drop a hidden joke, it certainly wouldn't be in a language that thousands of players can understand and complain about. Sure, most of the GW team will now probably know what Dupek means, but that will also encourage name checking in the future before made up words go live. Just another little perk of having a multi-lingual game. Rose Of Kali 19:00, 30 May 2009 (UTC)

Words in one language can have a meaning in one or more languages sometimes acceptable sometimes not, as car maker Ford found out with their Pinto car in the America's. Even my chars name Pentu as I found out with google has many meanings in several languages, in my case it comes from a play on the words "pent up rage" as i already stated on a previous post of mine. Sometimes people make a name and dont think what will this mean in other languages. I suppose the offensive nature of a word depend to a degree on majority perception. Much like the majority decides who is sane and who is insane (in the membrane, insane in the brain, Pinky and the brain, brain, brain, brain), I digress.--Pentu Prage 19:07, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

I honestly believe someone randomly made the name. I believe that, in part, because it was in the game long before we supported the Polish language and long before we had Polish-speaking team members (at least that I'm aware of). The name just sounded good, you know, like certain letter combinations sound cool? (I still miss the City of Kyhlo, for the way it sounded. *sniff*) -- Gaile 22:38, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

And yes, Rose, I asked about it (again) just yesterday. There needs to be a discussion about it -- changing names is more complicated that it seems and must be viewed as being truly warranted. I imagine I will hear back on this, although I don't know when. Do feel free to remind me about it if it languishes. That's not my intention, but I may need a poke. :) -- Gaile 22:41, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Support team issues:

Any issues I have with other players are cast aside because it's adrin. I reported A Net Blows, and nothing was done. I was banned for PvP Assassins Blow. People have used offensive language to me and I report, and nothing is done. I was banned for whispering to friends. There was another player on my team being rude to other players. I told him to be nice, it's just a game, he replied with this dialog:

Me: Be nice people

Me: It's just a game

Violater: adrin, thats what pussies say

Violator: who arent good at anything

Violator: on gym class

Violator: I stuffed some bitch

Violator: and she cried

Violator: saying it's just a game.

Yeti drops a jade staff"

I got this response from Wumpus:

Response (GM Wumpus) 05/31/2009 05:59 PM  

Hello,

We certainly understand that there may be some disparaging remarks said during PvP. These are not typically considered strong enough to warrant an account suspension. There is a certain level of discourse during PvP battles due to the high level of emotional content and competition. If you feel that someone has violated the User Agreement or Rules of Conduct, we encourage you to report them for Verbal Abuse, and then add them to your Ignore List. We will investigate the incident and take action where necessary. Please let us know if you have additional questions.

Regards, GM WUMPUS The Guild Wars Support Team

Here's the picture:

Wumpus did not look at the picture AT ALL How do i know this? Because he said it's PvP. Last time i checked Yeti's and Naga Warriors are not in PvP. Also, it was a full screenshot with yeti's on the ground. Why would he say ppl get upset in PvP when there are Yeti's on the ground? It's either because they fail at their jobs or because it's adrin and they know not to even bother. I have regretted my rudeness in the past and have stated such to you, however, if I am still going to be blacklisted, then it shows that my regrets are not even considered. this is the third time my reports have been ignored. all customers need to be treated the same, otherwise it's discrimination. btw, A Net Blows was online yesterday on that name. --adrin 23:20, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

I'm not sure but I wonder what happens when you add a player to your friendlist and he then changes his name (forced or not). I know all my armour and items are still customized to my first name (I'm currently on my third name) even the new ones. So somehow, the system still thinks of my character as my old name. Maybe it just shows his old name while it already has been altered? I may be completely wrong though, I'm just throwing it out there as a possibility. I can't imagine ANet support not forcing a name change in this case, considering other names much less offending being blocked. Unless, as you say, they really are ignoring you. // HeavenMonkey 23:29, 31 May 2009 (UTC)

Unrelated: Data is generally not stored as names, but as numbers. For example, the user name Red Apple Peel is probably stored in the folder Account 4723, subfolder Character 15. These are just random numbers, but you get the idea. The actual names are probably stored as a bit of data within the character folder (or perhaps file). Weapons, armor, pretty much anything can be stored like this, as it makes it a lot easier to change things that the client would see without reorganizing the internal databases. Thus, your armor is probably customized to your character ID, not character name.

Related: ...Uh, yeah.

-- Armond Warblade{{Bacon}} 01:28, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

I am very interested in how Gaile will respond, or maybe it will be just silence, SOP for situations like this.Pika Fan 05:18, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

To assuage any concerns that the name may already have been changed, go ahead and add "A Net Blows" to your friends list; I just did. There is still a character by that name in the game. 99.151.143.197 06:01, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

EDIT:

Customer (adrin) 05/31/2009 01:19 AM  

I reported this character name about 4 months ago through the game. He has since then kept signing in on it. it's offensive and it needs to be removed. His name is "A Net Blows" thank you

Response (GM ApplePython) 06/01/2009 01:13 PM  

Hello adrin,

The character name was reviewed and it was not considered to be inappropriate. Please let us know if you have any further questions.

Regards, GM ApplePython The Guild Wars Support Team

Yeah thats right. PvP Assasins Blow is offensive, but A Net Blows is NOT?? That is the most rediculous statement I have ever heard. Also, saying "I stuffed some bitch in Gym class and made her cry" Is not offensive, but whispering a few racial slurs to my friends in whisper chat is? In this case, I want to rename my character back for free, and I want all previous marks on my account removed, or I will be taking this to higher-up's. Ticket #'s 090416-001537, 090530-000005, and 090531-000360. --adrin 20:27, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

They can't ban "A Net Blows" since it's the truth.

Can't believe I'm saying this in public, but I'm with Adrin on this one. Given the situation, they at least owe you a detailed explanation, not some lame "not considered to be inappropriate" bs. Pressure them for an explanation as to why the two names were not treated equally. Do not mention anything else, as it provides room to avoid the issue at hand, only a simple question "What is the difference between the names PvP Assasins Blow and A Net Blows, as far as their offensiveness." I would like to see that answer. Rose Of Kali 20:58, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

Response (GM ApplePython) 06/01/2009 03:28 PM  

Hello adrin,

Your feelings on this particular issue has been noted. However, we do not consider the name you reported censor worthy. Please let us know if you have any further questions.

Regards, GM ApplePython The Guild Wars Support Team

Customer (adrin) 06/01/2009 03:35 PM  

Then why was PvP Assassins Blow censor worthy?

tbc --adrin 21:02, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

While it may seem strange on the surface, on your own page, you indicate that "Your account has been blocked for excessive use of racial slurs and hate-speech in whispers, as well as profanity in global chat," so I'm guessing that it was that part, more so than your actual character name, that prompted your block. I'm sure if A Net Blows begins using racial slurs, hate-speech, and profanity in global chat, and is reported, the same thing will happen. --★KOKUOU★ 23:14, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

That was a separate case; adrin's block then and his block for the character name were at different times. 99.151.143.197 23:26, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

They made me rename PvP Assassins Blow because it was offensive. but then they say A Net Blows is not offensive. thats the whole point. read the full threads on my page --adrin 23:39, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

From your page: Your account has been blocked for excessive use of racial slurs and hate-speech in whispers, as well as profanity in global chat and having an inappropriately named character "Pvp Assassins Blow".

Nowhere on your page does it say that you were made to change your name from "Pvp Assassins Blow" and then you were given a block. As far as that text reads, your account was blocked for being offensive in chat and having an inappropriate name. Not that I'm trying to discredit you, but with the way the text reads on your page, it sounds like what happened in your case was expected and not in the least unusual. --★KOKUOU★ 23:45, 1 June 2009 (UTC)

Response (GM Lemoncobra) 04/22/2009 01:48 PM  

Hello,

Yes, once your suspension has elapsed, you will have an opportunity to rename the character before it is playable.

Regards, GMLemoncobra The Guild Wars Support Team --adrin 00:05, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Good lord... This is the definition of biased decisions. GG on Arena.Net "support" on CHOOSING when to follow EULA rather than *CORRECTLY* enforcing it. -Lena™ talk 00:25, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Canned response ftw? --Shadowphoenix 05:13, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Bookmarking this section in case anyone ever asks me why I don't play Guild Wars or why I claim GW support sucks. Keep 'em coming, Adrin. -- Armond Warblade{{Bacon}} 17:06, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

This really is ridiculous. The name is both an insult and a reference to a sexual act. My name "Mevrouw Necrofiel" (Miss Necrophile) was deemed inappropriate for referencing a sexual act. If that was, this is as well. // HeavenMonkey 19:19, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Awaiting Gaile's Magic Wand (+25 to all damage types, Halves skill recharge (Chance: 98%) Halves energy use, +20 to Sparkly Goodness)...

Oh, and anyway, a little off-topic, but I think support outsourced to India sucks, because it takes you 5 minutes just to figure out that they are repeating what you are telling them, in very broken English, and asking you the questions you were so naively hoping they could answer for you. Now, THAT truly sucks. Rose Of Kali 19:49, 2 June 2009 (UTC)

Since we only have adrin's version of the story, I'd rather wait until Gaile has an answer. It wouldn't be the first time an user 'stretched the truth' for 'personal reasons'. 145.94.74.23 06:09, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm not exactly sure how i'm going by my side of the story since this is all based off my conversation with support. Feel free to read the entire unedited threads on my user page. I'm just going off of what support has been telling me, in which they are making no sense. That's why I'm posting here. Not to troll gaile, but to get some valid feedback from the head honcho --adrin 08:11, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

To have gaile avoid having to read a wall first, the basic premise of this post is, I reported A Net Blows, they said it was not censor worthy. My character PvP Assassins Blow was deemed censor worthy. I was harassed in team chat when i was trying to calm a situation. The violator was not blocked. When I told some racial jokes and slurs to my friends in whisper chat, I was given a block. Now, feel free to read the whole wall ^^ --adrin 08:16, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) As I said in a similar thread on my main talk page, "I'm sorry it took so long (to block the name you reported), Adrin. We try to take (believe it or not ;) ) a light hand with name censoring, and as you surmised, there was a discrepancy between one team member's perception and that of another as far as the offensiveness of the word. I appreciate you bringing up the matter, as it's a good talking point to improve consistency across all teams and team members." -- Gaile 22:17, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

It's a miracle... I'm glad someone ELSE (no offense to Cykor........) on the support team had the right mind to think/see the similarity between the two names. Finally-- some consitancy. Job well done, Adrin/Gaile/Support (still would very much hope to see some results like this on my case if Gaile could would be so kind as to personally look at it and do (a lot) intimate research on the matter. -Lena™ talk 23:42, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Still possible to get the bonus storage?

I know it's a few days late, but during the entire promotional period I was attempting to gather my NC account information, I was unable to find the login name (because, honestly I haven't ever used that in... ever) and by extent I'm unsure of the password; I can prove ownership of my account in a variety of ways if needed, but there is pretty much no way I can get my NC account login, I'm not even sure which email it's linked to.

So, what I have to ask is

• 1. If I had asked previously, would there have been any way to obtain the storage without my NC login info, but proving my GW account ownership?
• 2. If so, is it still possible to get around the deadline and get the storage pane now, in any way, shape, or form?

Thanks in advance, Gaile. ~ Ryuu Desu[ Talk|Contributions ] 18:21, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Dealine was extended to June 30th. — Jon Lupen 18:22, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Ah, the Xunlai Storage page needs updating then, thanks.
Well, my first question still stands. ~ Ryuu Desu[ Talk|Contributions ] 18:24, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I have a question about this too Gaile...when I logged onto the NCsoft page to claim my storage, it says my NCsoft and master accounts aren't the same, or aren't connected...which I have no idea how that could happen since I have only one game account that has purchased several things from the GW store and has all the game add ons attached. I've been busy with work, and keep forgetting to contact support about this. Has anyone else had this issue?--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 18:50, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Actually, my issue is that I tried to link my GW to a master account, but it says it was already linked... I don't recall ever doing this at all, to be honest, and since I bought GW at the very start start, I don't know really what it could be at all, I've bought a few char slots as well as upgrades from the ingame store as well, and yet I've never used the NC website, so... Well, it's left me in quite a predicament.~ Ryuu Desu[ Talk|Contributions ] 22:24, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

The accounts get automatically linked when you open the GW store. Dominator Matrix 22:29, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

The only thing I can think of for me was that I did register on NCSofts main page to report a game bug before the Wiki was popular...does that have an effect? I use the store often too, I have 3 extra char slots and I bought EOTN and the BMP through the store with no problems.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 22:34, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

(Edit conflict) What do they get linked to? I was given no NC soft master account login information, so what exactly do you mean? They just link it to nothing, randomly, when you open the store? I don't believe this is the case, perhaps I'm misunderstanding something here? Also, while skimming through this page, I came across this, which may answer my question, but a more direct answer would be much appreciated. ~ Ryuu Desu[ Talk|Contributions ] 22:36, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) The promotion was extended to June 30th. Yes, one must have an NCsoft Master Account to take advantage of the offer -- call it one of two requirements, the other being that you must have a Guild Wars account. :) There is no "work around" for having an NCMA, but anyone having problems of an account nature is welcome to contact support. And there's an additional way to get in touch: You will find the telephone contact information here.

Having filed a ticket would give you a Support account, but not necessarily a NCMA, so I'd again suggest contacting Support. I know I probably sound like I'm on auto-repeat, but that really is the right answer. -- Gaile 21:46, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Hey, Gaile! I just had a question about the free storage. Was there a reason that it wasn't offered to Japanese accounts? I've got one such account, and I can't find a way to add the extra storage. Am I missing something, or is it just really not offered? Thanks! :D --★KOKUOU★ 01:37, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

Hey there, Kokuou. I think there are limitations on where the NCsoft or In-Game Store is offered right now. (We're working on expanding that.) But don't you worry, we should be able to hook you up! Please submit a support ticket so we have the account details and the team will take it from there. :) -- Gaile 06:26, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

Oh, thanks Gaile! I've just submitted a request to support now, so we'll see if they can help me (which I have no doubt they can). --★KOKUOU★ 20:24, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

Hey there, Kokuou -- any news yet? :) -- Gaile 05:08, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Oh, hey, Gaile! I just came here to actually let you know that they have added the storage to my account, and lo and behold, a follow-up from you! ;) They needed nothing more than my login name, and they were able to do it within a few days! Thanks so much. :D --★KOKUOU★ 05:59, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

Delighted to hear that, Kokuou. See, I told ya we'd take care of it for you. :) Thanks for letting me know, and enjoy that new storage space! -- Gaile 05:53, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

I understand...

request to address existing thread concerning offensive name

...that you may be quite busy; however, as you just replied to a topic on this page, I think it is safe to assume that you are not, perhaps, so busy that this talk page is devoid of your attention. I also understand the potential difficulty of remembering to check pages that are not your talk page (as there's no system message reminding you to do so); as such, I thought that I might bring this topic to your attention. As it is a very serious matter, I cannot imagine that you would know about it and simply ignore it; the fact that you have not even posted something as simple as "hi, I know about this, but for X reason/reasons that I can't share, I can't post an official response quite yet" implies to me that you must be unaware of the topic's existence. As such, I thought I'd point you to it. :) -- Armond Warblade{{Bacon}} 00:25, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Since you're no longer playing the game (according to your comments) and since I know you are active on the wiki, I think you must be aware that I sometimes wait to respond to threads posted on my pages. You may also have noted that there's no need for cross-posting, particularly when you're aware of my activity levels and you therefore have surety that I've seen the thread in question (and the dozens of others like it). :)

In the case of that thread, I'm not inclined to respond any more than necessary, really, because I feel my pages have repeatedly been the site of personal protests that should be addressed elsewhere. And while I would disagree that getting a player with a massive number of blocks back into the game is "a very serious matter," the issue of inconsistency in naming policy enforcement is a matter of concern to me and I will be pursuing it.

In short, rather than leaping to the conclusion that I'm avoiding the issue, please instead assume that I don't yet have an answer. That's the fair and historically proven standard by which you may judge me. -- Gaile 01:32, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

While I would perhaps disagree with the label of "active" (as evidenced by my ignorance), I do thank you for your response. Also, might I ask who this player is with the massive number of blocks that I am apparently trying to see un-blocked? Or am I misreading your writing? -- Armond Warblade{{Bacon}} 12:48, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm sorry if I was not clear. As I think I expressed, there are two ways to read the "very serious" comment: As a concern about apparent policy, about the inconsistency in blocking one name and not blocking a second, similar name, or as a comment in support of a player's assertion that because his name was blocked and another was not, he (the first player) should be reinstated to the game. As I mentioned, I will look into the apparent inconsistency issue; the reinstatement request has already been rejected. I hope that makes sense. :) -- Gaile 22:51, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Um, are we talking about me? (The OP of the discussed thread). Because I'm not banned asking for reinstatement... --adrin 22:58, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I assume she means the reinstatement of the name. Misery 06:39, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

Makes perfect sense, Gaile. I guess I was mostly confused because I didn't consider the possibility of the old name being reinstated. -- Armond Warblade{{Bacon}} 07:08, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

Do you guys block the name after it's been reported and banned? I'm just asking, but if I felt like it, after getting a name banned, could I pay the 14.95 fee and get myself the same old name? It'd be pretty dumb since it'd prolly get banned again anyway, but just hypothetically speaking here. --Jette 07:15, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

::::::::My point on this whole wall wasn't to get my name back. It was that there is such a bias towards me whenever I report violations to the point of support having to pull a double standard. What was the real reason why I was forced to change my name from PvP Assassins Blow, if A Net Blows is not censor worthy? --adrin 07:35, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

Actually, rereading it all, I'm confused again. It is possible that Gaile is confusing Adrin and Shard, unless by "getting back into the game" she means satisfying Adrin so that he starts playing again. Misery 07:40, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

If people keep confusing me for shard I have a whole other set of problems to deal with --adrin 07:42, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) EDIT:I'm sure alot of time has been wasted spent by support on this issue and they have replied by removing A Net Blows from the game. Thank you for the team effort. I know this may have been seen as a waste, but it betters the company as a whole and it somewhat clears my suspicions by your correct judgement. I'm not sure if it was a discrepincy between applypython and the team or everyone as a whole, but the correct decision was made, and thats not just my opinion. Thanks --adrin 08:00, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

It is clear to me that Adrin, Shard and Lena get lumped into one catagory, and are often viewd together. While I have no issue with anyone pointing out any problems they have with content, treatment and actions of any one of those 3 people, it is very important that it be recognized that they are 3 individuals, not the same person, and that their content and actions be judged individually with backup and supporting arguments.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 17:37, 4 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm sorry it took so long, Adrin. We try to take (believe it or not ;) ) a light hand with name censoring, and as you surmised, there was a discrepancy between one team member's perception and that of another as far as the offensiveness of the word. I appreciate you bringing up the matter, as it's a good talking point to improve consistency across all teams and team members. -- Gaile 21:31, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Flame Issue

Hey Gaile,

Recently I got harrassed after just simple saying GG (good game) after winning a Fort Aspenwood Game. It happened at 7:49 AM (+1 GMT) on June 3rd. (File:User dav- Gw448.jpg) This guy from the kurzick side just randomly started spamming inappropriate content towards my account, with no reason. I'm not sure if this is the right place, but could you handle this?

Sorry to disturb. ;) --DAVA 05:53, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

As stated at the top of this page, you should direct this toward support first before coming to Gaile. --★KOKUOU★ 06:10, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I like how you have your friends list open with all the devs' names on it. :P 99.151.134.146 06:13, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Doesn't everyone's? >_> -- Salome 09:10, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Not a single dev on mine. I need every slot for people I actually play with. Only time I have ever communicated with a dev in game is when I have faced them. Misery 10:06, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

I contacted NCSOFT with this, and they told me to find contact with Gaile. Also Anon: I regularily talk with the devs on my list, like Linsey. She is random, so that fits my chatting style... --DAVA 14:28, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Hi, Dava. Could you please tell me how you contacted Support? For instance, do you have a ticket number? The reason I ask is they generally don't refer people to me for this sort of thing unless an issue needs some sort of escalation to the studio. The situation you describe seems pretty straightforward, and I would imagine that Support would dive right in, research, and let you know their decision. So, may I have the incident number so I can review what their findings were? Thanks. -- Gaile 21:38, 3 June 2009 (UTC)

Support just emailed me, that account has been banned. Thanks for your time. ;) --DAVA 16:40, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Glad to hear it! Thanks for letting me know. :) -- Gaile 21:27, 5 June 2009 (UTC)a

JQ Bots/PvP Bots in General

Hi Gaile. Im sure this matter has been bought to your attention many times. (as i have read here in the past???) but even though there is a tool that we can use to report bots - 2 months later - the same few are STILL joining my team weeks/months on reguardless. I love guild wars, I have been a dedicated player for over 2 years since i got introduced to the game by a friend but since im pretty much done with PvE & im now doing a lot more PvP Bots are quickly ruining what love i have left for the game, because no action seems to be taken. I know that the team as well as yourself work very hard to prevent these things but there doesnt seem to be any if much progress at all. on this one occasion i had 3-4 bots join me in JQ, its laughable at first seeing them spam their spells on each non stop then I just quit the game straight away without logging out. other people might tell me to Q.Q more but Honestly - this is a problem that needs to be addressed. please be honest & tell me something is being done, because if this is the way it is then i dont see how you can prevent them from ruining GW2 in the same manner. If a list of names is required I willing to email or post them here. I await you response patiently :) 89.243.90.0 00:22, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

I take it nobody cares enough to reply? 89.242.97.136 12:51, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

Do you report the bots... have you submitted to support? And if you have read the other posts you will see things are being done, and some people being upset at being locked out for bot use MrPaladin talk 13:15, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

I have reported them but i havent submitted to support. but it real question is, if support would take action rather then let them carry on 89.242.97.136 13:58, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

...you will see things are being done, and some people being upset at being locked out for bot use... also see this subpage and help the effort... bot ... and Botwatch .. hope that helps MrPaladin talk 14:03, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) We read the bot reports hourly, and we smite bots 24/7. As I mentioned in another thread, we took about -- what was it? -- about 4,000 bots in May, along? We're serious about this, and seriously happy that our players want to help. -- Gaile 05:07, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Why not just give all existing accounts free extra storage?

Why do I have to go through the trouble of setting up an NCSoft master account? It would seem simpler to just give every account an extra pane of storage. See, I can program this in pseudocode if you like
for i := 0 to n-1
accounts[i].EnableExtraStoragePane();
Doesn't take a genius.72.43.62.68 01:13, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

Doing so would also give extra storage to inactive, or rarely active accounts, of which I am sure there are quite a few. This would cause massive amounts of wasted memory on their servers, for which they would gain no money. Not exactly a reasonable business proposition. ^{Blood Red Giant} _{Mani Mortus} 01:24, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

It also works as a valid marketing tool to get people to the store to purchase other upgrades as well as other titles from NC Soft. After all, NC Soft IS a business, trying to make money. Setting up a master account is not that big of a deal at this point, not like it was when the update first was released. -- Wyn 01:40, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

It's basically advertising for the NCSoft store. Though, I think that at the end of the promotion, if people are still having problems, it wouldn't be unreasonable to just give it to every account that has logged in in the past month (yes, they know, the same way your guild roster tells you). The advertising will have been done, and people will still get the storage they deserve, as many had to go through hell and back to try to get it, and still may not have the problems resolved. Rose Of Kali 18:37, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

Quite frankly, the promotion has a twofold purpose: (1) to celebrate 4 years of Guild Wars, with presents for our players and (2) to give us an opportunity to introduce the store to GW players (which you may call an "evil marketing device" or a "reasonable business practice" as your personality dictates. :) )

I very much doubt that we will automatically add free storage panes to accounts. Why would we ask our best and most vested players to jump through a hoop -- not matter how simple it is -- and then just hand out the gifts to those who didn't? We extended the offer, which was good. We'll help anyone who has issues or who needs help, which is required, of course. But I strongly believe we'll be maintaining the parameters of the offer. -- Gaile 00:57, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

I love "evil marketing devices" and hope to see more in the future! Thank you for the free storage pane. My experience getting it were actually very fluid, had no problems. 24.188.207.20 02:31, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

const static unsigned comment c = "Give storage to accounts the next time they log on, that way you don't give them to inactive or banned accounts. Problem solved. Oh, and the best way to get people to use the in-game store is to first of all price it competitively. The boxed edition is generally cheaper plus you get the manual and all that stuff. Anyone who got the game from the online store got ripped off. Also, don't make a game that sucks badly and then perhaps people will buy it." --The preceding unsigned comment was added by 72.43.62.68 (talk).

Have you seen the new ads on the website? The original campaign is $19.99, the Trilogy is $49.99. That's comparable or better than what I see at my local store at this time. Granted, the price online is sometimes higher than what you can get at a store, especially since stores have lots of sales and the website only has them occasionally. Still, the new pricing is worth noting.

As for your rude and oh-so-obviously-inaccurate commentary on the quality of the game, excuse me while I just ignore that nonsense. Hmmmmm... how did I know yours would be an unsigned comment. *rolls eyes* -- Gaile 06:29, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, I love your frankness on this matter. :) Blood Red Giant Mani Mortus 04:34, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

I also believe that anyone who has experienced difficulties getting it and has contacted support will get it regardless of whether the offer expires before it's completely resolved or not. -- Wyn 05:02, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

Gaile, do try to not fall into the fallacy of attributing credit to a comment based on the commenter... There's actually a wiki guideline that specifically states "comment on content, not contributors" because things aren't true or false based on who said them, but rather because of what they are. -- Armond Warblade{{Bacon}} 02:30, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Basically, ANet didn't give storage to all accounts because, if they did, they would have eaten a lot of server space. Instead, they just made an option that allowed the people that wanted it to be able to get, and those that didn't notice or care wouldn't take up any extra server space. --Riddle 05:30, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm trying to figure out if a game "sucks badly" why would one play the game or even care about a storage tab? At least I don't play games that I think aren't worth playing.--BabyJ 03:33, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Because when it came out and it was balanced and there was no stupid garbage like Shadow Form, it was really good. It was when the imba stuff like Nightfall's conception of Fire Magic and Wail of Doom and a weapon that autoattacks for more damage than Eviscerate Decapitate Rodgort's to three targets were introduced that the game started to be not fun. Maybe this poorly articulated anon, like me, keeps the game installed in the hopes that one day the person/people responsible for ensuring the game is good will claw his way out of wherever he's been trapped and fix what's happened. --Jette 04:46, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Next to the 2 reasons Gaile stated it sure is a nice way of getting control over the "sure to be legal accounts" that are connected to a PlayNC Master account and those other accounts. --Silverleaf Don't assume, Know! 16:04, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Dear Armond, you really need to tl;dr less if you wish to prove a point here. If you noticed, Gaile put down the argument as "rude and inaccurate". That's attributing credit to the comment rather than the contributor under any sane and realistic definition. And because it was allegedly "rude and inaccurate", she stated she wasn't surprised to see the comment unsigned. Pika Fan 05:42, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Wanted to bring this to your attention, somewhat big issue

Hello Gaile, recently a friend of mine who I got addicted to the game went to EB Games to purchase Eye of the North. I drove him their, he picked it up and we got back in the car. As we were driving away he opened the box and alas, there was no game key; but it did contain all of the other mumbo jumbo (The discs, manual, warranty info, etc...). I insantly drove back hoping their was something we could do because I know that NO store accepts opened games returned for the exact reason that you could just take or use the code and go. When we got to the store the salesman guy was kinda bewildered, he asked us if we were sure the key didn't fall on the ground or anything; which we were. He then decided to open up another box to see if this was the case..., in doing so he picked up a box with two keys. The box looked just like all the others but contained two keys, the discs and all the other stuff. Both times the games were sealed and never opened, so this isn't a concern of buying a new game or anything. I'm just posting this here because whoever box's GuildWars may be royal messing up with the distribution of the keys. Once again, this is just a heads up, maybe it was a 1 in a million chance but it did happen. --'ÑöẊĭƑý 23:36, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

Hey Noxify. First of all, thanks for introducing the game to a new player. :) As to the key problem, that really is a rare situation, and we've empowered our authorized retailers to help customers when it arises. I'm glad that this matter worked out ok, and I encourage anyone in a similar situation -- and honestly I've only heard about 5 or 6 of these, total, in 4 years -- to get back to the store and ask for their help with the missing key. We can try to help, but the first line of assistance is the store at which someone just bought the game. -- Gaile 05:05, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Probably is a packaging error, when the people or robots (Gods know how they create video game packages nowadays) put in the keys, they must have accidently skipped a box. Then that box probably snuck past inspection without raising alarms, which is a miracle in itself, and got to the store without anyone knowing. As Gaile mentioned, what happened to you is rarer than finding a black dye drop in Presearing, just be glad it got resolved with little trouble. Katherinezoltin 20:21, 13 June 2009 (UTC)

Love the robots sometimes though, got 2 NF CE cards in my box O.o --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:81.246.37.187 (talk).

Means you got someone else's card, and they got an empty box, probably. :/ Rose Of Kali 16:37, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

Rerouting support issues

Hello Gaile! I'm a sysop over on GuildWiki, and we occasionally have users mistakenly believe that we're ArenaNet employees. One such incident happened last night; I'm going to copy+paste it as something of a heads-up.

hi ya m8 im sorry to be a pain but i nead to no y m8 nephew got banned indef i got him the game 4 xmas 1 year and now he tell me he is banned ,, is it possible you could let me no the reason plz coz he dont no y and im a bit put out becouse of it, his account is ........<removed> if you can do this i would be most gratefull you can contact me at ..............<removed>.my name is barrie,if its poss to reinstate his account i would be very gratefull but then depends on what he has done ,he is only 11 and suffers from outsimers and playing this makes him happy .well i will let you get on i bet yr busy thanks 4 yr time yrs faithfully barrie

This roughly translates to...

Hiya mate! I'm sorry to be a pain but I need to know why my nephew got banned indefinitely. I got him the game for Christmas one year and now he tells me he is banned. Is it possible you could let me know the reason please, because he doesn't know why and I'm a bit put out because of it. His account is <removed by me later>. If you can do this I would be most grateful. You can contact me at <removed by me later>. My name is Barrie, if it's possible to reinstate his account I would be very grateful, but then depends on what he has done. He is only 11 and suffers from "outsimers" (Alzheimer's maybe? Never heard of an 11-year-old with it though) and playing this makes him happy. Well I will let you get on, I bet you're busy. Thanks for your time. -Yours faithfully, Barrie

This was my response to him:

Hiya Barrie, first off I want to tell you that GuildWiki is a non-official fansite run entirely by players; this means that I am only a Guild Wars fan, not an employee of ArenaNet (the company that created Guild Wars), and so I can't directly help you with your problem. Also, I'm going to remove your nephew's account name and your e-mail address from this page; the wiki is public-access, and that information could possibly be used to gain access to either of your personal details.

Fortunately, I have worked with the official Guild Wars support team in the past, so I can tell you what you need to do to get more information about your nephew's ban and perhaps file an appeal.

First, you need to contact Guild Wars' support team directly. Send them an e-mail or fill out a support ticket here. You must do this before anything else. Tell them exactly what you told me.

If the support team cannot help you, the next step is to contact an employee named Gaile Gray, she is the official support liaison. Her e-mail address is <SupportLiaison@arena.net> and she would most likely be very willing to look into the matter for you.

Be sure to provide the Support team and Gaile with as much information as you can, excluding account passwords, because they don't need those.

I hope you and your nephew can get this issue sorted out as quickly as possible. I will also e-mail all of this to you, using the address I removed from your post, so it reaches you as quickly as possible.

I hope I included all the relevant information. Anyway, if you get a message from Barrie, you'll know where it came from now. Felix Omni 22:52, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Felix, to be honest, this really impressed me that you'd help those who get the wikis confused get to where they need to go and you'd warn Gaile ahead of time about it. Nice to know there are nice people on the internets. ^^ Katherinezoltin 08:41, 13 June 2009 (UTC)

I agree, Katherinezoltin! Felix, thanks for the help. I don't have the info on this issue, but I am confident the Support Team has helped out this player and his nephew. Thanks again for the heads up. -- Gaile 06:01, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

Shucks, it weren't nothin'. I wouldn't edit either wiki if I didn't want to help people. Felix Omni 22:52, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

What can I say but <3 ? :) -- Gaile 04:02, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

To be honest, most I do wiki edit wise is spell check. I'm slightly nervous about screwing things up on here. :P Katherinezoltin 07:06, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Giant Support GM Check My Game Course Again Please

→ moved from User talk:Gaile Gray

Hello Gaile

I am TACO

My monk made mission to chapter 1 Crystal Desert on that day.

I stayed in the Augury Rock had many mins for gift of the traveler.

Find many monks in and out. so they thought me botter too?

NOT REAL!!

I just only farmed the gift of the traveler for Hydra drop the Dessicated Hydra Claw.

I never used illegal third party program because i can not and what was bot program?

Tell me!!

So only verified that i made main mission to there.

They saw me thought like bot in error.

To giant support GM check Game course again please

thank you!!

My ticket number Reference # 090605-000772 --The preceding unsigned comment was added by User:119.77.214.251 (talk).

How many ?

If it had to happen, would your team be able to tell how many people did forgot my password since i announced a 1000k contest ? Yseron - 81.251.150.117 01:17, 14 June 2009 (UTC)

Sorry, no, it would not be possible to retrieve that information, as far as I can see. -- Gaile 06:53, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

NPC animation bug

Yeah, he called me a baboon while stuck in this loop! This is right as he's about to run towards the spot where his name actually appears.

Don't know if this has happened to anyone else, but I've ran into a rather weird bug with NPC animations. Yestarday and today I noticed that the majority of NPCs are stuck in a loop of animation where they kind of appear out of nowhere, jump up and run towards their designated location, then get rapidly dragged back a few yards, and the loop repeats. This happens in towns, explorable, and mission areas. I didn't really care about it until today, where Lumo the Mime got glitched like that and it was impossible to complete the Mime's challenge for Master's reward in Tihark Orchard, today's Zquest, because he was stuck in this loop instead of showing his emotes, and then the bastard called me a baboon. :( Restarting the client didn't help.
Also, don't know if this is related at all, but last week my ritualist kept performing the "/no" emote every time she used a skill like summoning spirits or ashes, instead of the usual weird body twisting they do.
Last, but not least, could this possibly be related to me having bad RAM and the game somehow not reading it correctly? (yes, still working on that from the "restoring data archive" discussion, will probably just buy some on NewEgg, Gateway's support wasn't particularly responsive: you have to pay in-bound shipping for the entire laptop after talking to an outsourced Indian support guy who kept telling us to restore the machine, which we've done twice already, and refusing to connect to a manager. *sigh*) Rose Of Kali 22:22, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

I was not able to replicate the bug on another computer using the same GW account, but even restarting my laptop and the GW client, the NPCs were still glitched upon login. So far I've seen this in Great Temple of Balthazar, Lion's Arch, Tihark Orchard (outpost and mission), Kodash Bazaar, so it seems to be everywhere, and it doesn't affect all NPCs, but many of them, such as guards, the Kurzick Recruiter, Lumo, Vabbian Nobles, and appears regardless of what character I use. :( No clue what this might be, since RAM was supposed to get wiped upon restart, but the bug has been there since yesterday. O_O Rose Of Kali 23:26, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

I once had the same problem and textures that were not beeing loaded and or out of place, the texture problems were not only in GW but other games to. I don't know if both were the result of bad RAM tho because I replaced 2 things, my RAM and graphics card. It solved those two problems, I still have some minor texture problems with my current graphics card but they are so small and only noticeable when selecting certain objects like the portal to enter the underworld located in ToPK, when selecting Phantom Chests, and some others.... But thats probably because my graphics card isn't fully supported, I have a Asus AH3650 Silent/HTDI/512M (AGP). So yeah if replacing RAM doesn't help it's probably your Graphics Card, if replacing both doesn't help it's something else. Qaletaqa Hania 00:44, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Texture Problem

I just made a example of what I mean with minor texture problems, the cause is still unknown to me because i'm not really bothered by it. Qaletaqa Hania 00:57, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Your textures problem is a graphics card issue, I've had similar problems when my old crappy ATI was overheating (because the vents were full of dust, as it later turned out), and also when I try running GW on a very very old graphics card on my ages old Vaio. Currently, my graphics card is one of the better cards on the market today (GEFORCE 9800M GTS with 1GB dedicated GPU RAM), and it's definitely not overheating. I'm also hesitant about this being a RAM issue now, since the glitch has been there for 2 days now, and RAM gets wiped when the PC is restarted, but the glitch keeps coming back every time, so I really don't know. I'm going to try deleting and reloading GW.dat and see if it helps, because I've had frequent "repairing data archive" messages lately (now THAT is 99% surely caused by the RAM problems), and it may have "repaired" the data archive incorrectly and caused this glitch. *shrugs* I have a backed up copy of GW.dat that's about a month old, so it shouldn't take 3 hours to get that replaced and updated, like it usually does downloading it from scratch. Rose Of Kali 05:20, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) I have the "jumping NPC" issue for quite some time. I was also getting the "repairing .dat file" messages a lot of the time when I logged into the game, and I had strange stretching lines (video glitches), too. I could not figure out how system problems could cause such a strange combination of phenomena in the game, but in fact, I did have system issues that were behind all the problems I noticed: My power supply was failing, and a fan on my video card was locking up and the whole system was therefore overheating. Once I replaced the PS and the video card, I was set. (I probably could have gotten the fan working on the video card, but I love a new video card, so I used this incident as an excuse to upgrade. :D )

Anyway, I haven't had a single crash, a bit of strange text, a "repairing" message, or even one hopping NPC since that time. I would encourage you to contact Technical Support and tell them what's happening. If they haven't seen the hopping NPC issue themselves, tell them to get in touch with Gaile and I'll dig out my emails about it and send them over to the team. -- Gaile 05:34, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Ok, so the hopping NPCs got fixed by deleting and reloading my backed up copy of GW.dat, and it was indeed a .dat file problem. My guess is still that the frequent "repairing data archive" was the likely cause of this. Maybe not. Something to keep in mind if you ever run into this again. Rose Of Kali 05:54, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Wow, that's good to know. I repaired and replaced and nothing really fixed it. Glad to know that sometimes, a reset on the .dat file will do the trick! -- Gaile 05:59, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Also, if you think that the support team might for any reason like to examine the "corrupted" GW.dat that was causing the hopping, I still have it in my Recycle Bin, and I could probably zip it up and send to them. Let me know. I'm still getting the repairing data messages occasionally (and blue-screened again 2 days ago), and I'll let you know if that stops once I get my new RAM. Now off to defeating that pesky Mime on all characters that I have that far. ^_^ Mister fake "Palawa Joko" proceeded to own my Dervish surprisingly fast. O_O Revenge is in order. Rose Of Kali 06:10, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Good to see that it's solved. I know my problem is my graphics card but I don't have the money to buy a new pc and updating my current pc would be a waste of money. My current graphics card is known to cause alot of problems but it runs, it's also not an overheating problem, the drivers haven't been updated by ASUS and there are no other drivers that work well, I tried using the Saphire drivers with the AGP hotfixes and the ATI drivers with AGP hotfixes but those give me more problems.

Anyway, I enter every competition that has a pc/laptop (that are good enough for the things I wanna do) as a price, I entered 2 I think from guild wars, the 3rd year anniversary competition was one of them, but with no luck yet. If i'm not able to afford one or win one before they release GW2 i'm gonna go nuts I think :P (I don't have alot to do). Hopefully i'm able to get a job then (if employers can see past my problems), but that requires alot of papers beeing filled in because I have a disability and can't work without notifying social security, also finding work that is suitable for me is tough. Hopefully I can win or buy a pc before mine dies of old age :). Sry for my rambling, I just write alot down to get my thoughts out of my head. Qaletaqa Hania 07:36, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Hey Qal, I want to wish you luck on the contests. I hope you do win one, so you'll be set up for a few years with a good machine. Keep an eagle eye out for those opportunities, and best of luck! -- Gaile 17:05, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Thx Gaile, I always search for trustworthy European, Belgian, Benelux and/or worldwide competitions. And I also hope I will win one, won a television in the past, but I didn't go and get it because I don't need one. I also won a Miniature Grawl with the european Massive Mini Pet Giveaway :), I still have the card with the access code, used it tho. But i'm not worried, if I don't win one or am able to buy one before my current pc dies.... i'll just have to wait longer ;), patience is a virtue. Qaletaqa Hania 17:33, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Guilds buying members

Not really sure if this would belong here, but I'm giving it a go.

So what do you think? Mediggo 22:15, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

I've chatted with that fellow before concerning his guild, and looked through their website (they're Kurzick or I might have joined). They're in no way affiliated with BANDAI, and the incentive thing extends to actions all across the internet, not just in Guild Wars. Just some extra info. :) Felix Omni 22:50, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

That reads really oddly to me. I would say claiming association with a company with whom you have no affiliation (according to Felix' info, which I have no reason to doubt) is a bit on the odd side. I confess I am uncomfortable whenever I see a dollar sign in Guild Wars, because I am so attuned to RMTs and other scurrilous activities. So personally, I would not be interested and in fact would keep my distance from someone who advertised this affiliation, this payoff, and then (again, by report) does not have such a relationship. If you want me to investigate if this is a violation, please let me know. -- Gaile 04:01, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Yes, please. I have zero faith in the human race, and this just smells like a scam of possible identity theft thing going. -Drakora 04:35, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Just on the surface, isn't it RMT (kind of almost in reverse)? Since they're paying their members, they must expect something in return (probably faction farming, in this case). Freedom Bound 11:45, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

I should have linked this before; their prospective member FAQ explains the BANDAI joke (it's not really funny, but whatever), as well as providing some insight into the paying thing. They also expressly point out that you absolutely should not give them personal information. So basically, there are some rich oddballs who like paying people money to play games under their banner. It's all for e-prestige I suppose. Felix Omni 12:14, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

I agree with Drakora, this could EASILY be an identity scam like "sure we will pay you, but first give us your SS number and credit card numbers!". I'd rather Gaile check it out myself, better safe than sorry when it comes to money and the Internet. Katherinezoltin 07:03, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Contacting Support

Hello Gaile. I've been wondering for some time now if there is a difference in the means by which we contact support. I see there is still the web based support ticketing system but, I've been using the email system since I noticed it. Does support prefer one over the other? Is one more secure than the other? Thanks and sorry if you've already covered this somewhere. 24.188.207.20 05:25, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

It's in the big pink box at the top. Basically, it says to use the web based system unless you cannot, in which case to use the email. I'd hazard a guess that it's probably easier for them to use the web based one, since that would feed directly into their ticketing system. Emails probably have to be manually entered into the system (some responses alluded to this). Plus, with the web-based one, you don't have to try and remember all of the stuff that's helpful to provide, you're prompted for everything. Freedom Bound 12:52, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

All the means to reach us are just fine, but it's true that using the ticket system -- the website form-based system -- is probably the one that gets us the most complete set of information from the outset. -- Gaile 18:41, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

That's good to know. Thank you for the information! 24.188.207.20 23:43, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Xunlai Tournament House: Points Issue

We have heard from a few players that they've not been able to retrieve their points for predictions in the May ATS. We're sorry to hear that. As you know, the points went live tonight, but there appears to be a minor issue with the distribution. Don't worry, we're on the case! If you are missing points, please contact support and contact the team by whatever means is best for you. We have a couple of ways of taking care of this situation, and I'll post more once I know what the team has elected to do. You can be sure you will get your points, no worries, so let the team know your situation when you get a chance. Thanks for your understanding! -- Gaile 04:28, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Hello Gaile, maybe it's a good idea to mention what information is needed by support when contacting them by email. That would help us and them to speed up the process. bb Didis 08:55, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

The only information the team needs is the game account (user / log-in) name. With that, the team can check the master list and verify if the player is owed points, and how many he is owed for his May predictions. -- Gaile 18:39, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Hi Gaile..if a player has more than one account do they need need to open a ticket for every account?? or can they just put all account names on one ticket? Baz 11:33, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

I have send an email with a consolodation of all my accounts and one of my friends. This is what i received as a reply.

Hello,

As you are aware, the distribution of May Xunlai Tournament Points took place on June 18th. Unfortunately, a problem developed during the distribution. Many players received their points, but some players appear to have received the incorrect number of points, and others did not receive any points at all, even though they did make predictions.

The dev team is currently reviewing the situation in order to determine the best means to correct the problem. The team will be need a few days to settle on and implement a resolution. In the meantime, we greatly appreciate your patience as we address the issue.

Regards,

GM Phields

The Guild Wars Team

So i think, the answer is yes, now just wait for the team to implement a resolution all people will be fond of. :) Didis 13:54, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

I happened to write that response for the teams to send out. :) As you can see, we hope to have a resolution within the next few days, but cannot at this time offer a specific timeframe. Folks should go ahead and submit a ticket for their account or accounts -- one ticket is fine for multiple accounts -- and they'll get their very own spiffy message. :D -- Gaile 00:18, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

So should we still email support? or wait for you guys to anounce you have fixed it? --→Darklɘs McChaosmongɘr 15:58, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

I emailed them with details and got a very prompt reply despite them no doubt being inundated :) Baz 16:42, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

Hi Gaile! Given that the problem is not isolated, is it worthwhile sending the info? Or can I happily wait for a resolution that will most likely reach everyone affected including those who did not send a support ticket? Thanks. -- Alaris 19:11, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

There is a typo in the response you typed out Gaile. "The team will be need a ..." -Drakora 04:26, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

Question on "Core" Skill Unlocks

Questions on Discrepancies with the "core" Status of Priest of Balthazar Unlock Items

I've posted/asked about this several other places on this wiki, and another user said you'd be the best person to ask. So, I'm copying this request I put on Regina's talk page. I've noticed that accounts without NF or EotN are missing options for many items from the Priest of Balthazar that one might think should be core items. Would it be possible to find out from ANet if this is all as intended or if some of it should be fixed to be unlockable for all accounts? I've made a list of all the differences I see on my talk page because it seemed to long to put on pages like this. User_talk:LicensedLuny I've asked for general wiki comments about it, too, but an official response from ANet letting us know if it really should be this way would help decide what documentation on the wiki needs to be cleared up and what, if anything, just needs to wait for a patch. Many thanks for looking into it! LicensedLuny 21:30, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

This is an interesting question, and I can see where it is Support related, so I'd definitely like to help. Please give me a bit of time to investigate this concern, but I will do my best to learn more about it. -- Gaile 03:57, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Thanks! It never seemed like an easy question, so I understand if it'll take a while to sort out. LicensedLuny 06:02, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Here's what I've learned so far: The majority of these issues, if not all, are based on erroneous wiki documentation. Here's how things work, according to internal game code as relayed by a Guild Wars designer: There is not a single item upgrade unlock that comes from Guild Wars: Eye of the North. Upgrades are either Core (coming from all campaigns); or they come from Factions or Nightfall. The designer who addressed this question said that "I think this technically means that an account with only Factions & Nightfall would have access to all upgrade unlocks."

And to answer another question that was posed, this means that adding Guild Wars: Eye of the North would not fill in any of the missing items, for Eye of the North does not add anything in the way of unlocks. Adding Nightfall to the account, however, would achieve that objective.

Does that provide the info you sought, or do you have remaining questions about this? -- Gaile 00:49, 15 July 2009 (UTC)

Thanks very much for your help on this! I do have one remaining question. May we assume this is all working as intended, or does some of it need to be changed with a game update? Some of the missing upgrades, like the 10 armor vs various damage types, are certainly possible attributes on non-inscribable drops in Prophecies and Factions. It seems odd that the corresponding inscriptions wouldn't unlock with Prophecies or Factions. Thanks again. LicensedLuny 18:55, 16 July 2009 (UTC)

N/D profession problem

So it appears that I can not get dervish skills for my Necromancer. I have most of these skills unlocked, but when I go to a skill trainer (both in the Nightfall area and my guild hall) there are only the Necromancer skills and Dervish skills I unlocked when I learned the profession. The only way I can get Dervish skills is through a Dervish skill tome.

A little side note, I bought the NF skill unlock pack before this happened. Thanks in advance! Blessed Spectre 19:12, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

Could you please drop a note to the support team and let them look into this for you? Thanks! -- Gaile 00:19, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Not to intrude, but on a quick side note, skill trainers in the GH only show core skills. Magic Talk 03:09, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Good point, Magic. Thank you for making that clear. -- Gaile 08:02, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Question

Reporting a gold buyer

If I had screenshots of someone admitting to buying in game gold, or using that bought gold knowledgeably, is that enough to get them banned for it? Also, where should I present that information? --Tha Reckoning 21:21, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

That information would be presented to Support, linked at the top of the page. So far as whether or not that's enough, I can't say for certain, but on the basis of other responses I'd say that Support would do their own research into the facts, and not base the ban on any screenshots that were presented. Freedom Bound 22:03, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

Well the gold was bought and used several years ago, but I obtained the confession today, so I would think it should be difficult to research. --Tha Reckoning 22:07, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

It won't hurt to send it to support, so if you want to go that route, go for it. Keep in mind that the only way you'll know what happened is if that person suddenly doesn't log into the game anymore, support won't let you know how things turn out. Freedom Bound 22:09, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

Alrighty, thanks. --Tha Reckoning 22:19, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

Please contact support with such concerns at any time. However, I want to point out that that I know of a few cases where a player has already contacted Support on his own and has gone through a process that allowed him to "clear his name." That is not a common situation, but such cases do exist, particularly if a player has a spotless record.

I know of a player who has been harassed for an error made early in his Guild Wars career, and yet the matter has been discussed and resolved with Support, to everyone's satisfaction. So in this case, it really wasn't something that a third party needed to get into, and certainly should not have subjected the player to abuse. When I see words like "obtained a confession" I have to say I get a bit uncomfortable. ;) However, do feel free to submit your report to the team and they'll check it out. Thanks. -- Gaile 00:30, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Nobody expects the Spanish inquisition! --Lemming 00:33, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

No, but a little Spanish Sangria on a Saturday night, that could be nice. :) -- Gaile 01:25, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

...hummm Sangria, only after a nice spanish Paella[[9]] at dinner :D-- (Max / talk) 01:34, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Which process allowed wasabi and fall to clear their names? Being in ZoS, or breaking more rules since? How is real money trading any more acceptable when the person brags about getting away with it later? ~Shard 05:23, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

You just couldn't resist, could you Shard? Vili 点 05:45, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

They are not very famous players, just old ones that I know. Also, who is fall, the person Shard is talking about? I know of wasabi, but not fall. Feel free to go to my talk page if you like. --Tha Reckoning 06:47, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Who else finds it strange that Gaile recalls letting fall and/or wasabi (or whoever she's talking about) off the hook, yet 21 minutes later, in the section above this one, she says "I don't think we've ever reinstated someone who has been found to be involved in Real-Money sales" !?!??!? ~Shard 06:55, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Shard, read: My comment related to RMT sales. Specifically, sales. You need to get over your obsessive hatred of certain Guild Wars players and move on. Claims of abuse, accusations of cheating, cries of misbehavior have not fallen on deaf ears, they have been carefully investigated and found to be false. No matter how many times you point a finger at someone, if that someone is innocent -- if the claims are researched and found to be groundless -- their accounts will not be terminated.

In my opinion you have engaged in yet another personal attack. Perhaps the Arbitration Committee would care to add an investigation of your wiki behavior to that of Lena, for I don't really see that much distinction between what the two of you have done. -- Gaile 07:22, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Isn't selling GW gold and buying GW gold realistically the same offense? --Tha Reckoning 07:46, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

No, it is not viewed that way by the company, and the penalties for the offense may differ, depending on several details. There's a multi-million dollar company making illicit profits from most sales of Guild Wars gold; there's a single player -- some of whom don't even know it's forbidden -- at the end of most purchases.

I'm sure that those who have been nabbed for the two offenses can give you more information. -- Gaile 07:58, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Oh and because it seems to be a point of concern, the sales or purchase of guilds for in-game goods is not forbidden (although I personally think it's pretty dumb). :) -- Gaile 07:59, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

How can you tell if a player knows whether or not something is wrong? ~Shard 08:03, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

You hook them up to a ethicometer and read the print-out, doofus. 99.151.139.100 08:05, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

It seems my talk page has a map dot =D --Tha Reckoning 08:07, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Shard, I'm sorry, but it's 1:00 AM and I really need to sleep. I will give you the only answer that my tired brain can give right now: Nothing in Support is black and white, and there is always some consideration given to the people behind the monitor, the players with the issues. Or the players causing the issues, as the case may be. :) In some cases, it seems to genuinely be a fact that the player didn't know he couldn't take advantage of one of those in-game or Internet advertisements for gold. The team looks at the big picture, including the player's history and his track record, and may come to believe that the player wasn't knowingly breaching the User Agreement. These situations are -- like the reinstatement of an account -- reviewed and appraised by multiple people.

I believe that nearly everyone knows that it's disallowed to buy gold for real money. But I also believe that there are the rare cases where someone buys without knowing that it's disallowed. -- Gaile 08:10, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Just curious but... are the punishments for those who are released from their perma-ban changed? In "other games(tm)" first-time offenders receive punishments that go from the removal of the acquired goods to the blanking of the whole account, but i see no mention here to anything besides the "they were banned, then not".--Fighterdoken 08:13, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Ahh, I see. You give considerations to some players and not to others. I was wrong about you being biased. I'm sorry. Anyways, have a nice night, get lots of sleep, and get your pops something nice! ~Shard 08:20, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Gaile specifically stated that they give considerations to all players, but not to gold-selling companies. If that qualifies as being biased then I don't think any one of us would mind. 145.94.74.23 12:13, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset Indent) Shard, please refrain from hi-jacking this topic; Gaile really should not have to keep dealing with you. As for anyone else, although I am sure Shard will continue to speak out, please only respond on Shard's talk page if your response is even minorly off topic. Thank you. Blood Red Giant Mani Mortus 12:28, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Wow Shard you just keep reading biasedness into it, you sound just like Lena. Gaile has explained how the system works, something she does not -have- to do. You don't seem to understand that nothing is black and white in this world. Not every situation is the same, and yes whilst is isn't perfect that's life for you. The way I read what you read as biased is "if they have a history of being a -dick- they will get banned for the infraction, if they don't than they -may- get away with a warning". I think you will find this is how just about every person in the world with some kind of power over others operates. Moral of the story, don't be a -dick-. --Lemming 12:57, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

145 has it right. And I can put it another way if that helps: We give human consideration to all individual players. For the RMTs -- who fill the game we all share with advertisements, who steal hundreds of accounts a month through social engineering or playing on the good will of other players, who bot, who lie, who cheat, that is, who breach the User Agreement seven ways from Sunday -- we do not. -- Gaile 19:40, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

So the only real way to get out of trouble from RMT is if it's your first ever offense? What about other offenses, like ladder manipulation? ~Shard 21:01, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

That is not what I said, and that is not the topic of this thread. There are multiple threads on ladder manipulation that you may review. -- Gaile 21:05, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

I don't believe that policy is ALWAYS true, but certainly in the majority of cases I have seen, customer support can be compassionate. --Tha Reckoning 22:35, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

I really appreciate you pointing that out. I feel that the team is very considerate, and I know from personal experience that they've re-re-reviewed cases, at my request, to try to find a way to remove a block, reduce a penalty, or reinstate an account. It's nobody's pleasure to take someone out of the game, and we all try for as much compassion as we can get. Well, unless someone works for an RMT company. :) -- Gaile 22:53, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

We all make mistakes, but I try and give credit where credit is due. --Tha Reckoning 23:48, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

While I think Shard's being an idiot here, Gaile, you ought to realize he's not making any personal attacks. Personal attacks require a definite subject and a definite attack; the only comments Shard has made here are about the functioning of ANet as a company, and nothing about you as a person. He has not, for example, made any comments about your religious beliefs, sexual orientation, or age; he has not threatened you, be it with (unnecessary) legal action ("I'll sue you because you banned me for buying gold! And then I'll have a restraining order placed so you can't go within 500 yards of me even though we live in the same neighborhood! etc"), violence, or vandalism; he has not blackmailed you; he has not revealed embarrassing information about you; he has not attempted to break your computer's usual functions; he has not attempted to trick you into doing any of these yourself; he has not linked you to a site that would do any of these.

I only point this out because I feel many, many people misunderstand what construes a personal attack. In the extreme end of the spectrum, this results in people crying for bans because someone said "ur dum". (I've actually seen this happen at PvX.) -- Armond Warblade{{Bacon}} 18:50, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

Armond, I'm well aware of what construes a personal attack and I know your definition to be far too limited. And as to whether certain comments were directed towards a person or the company as a whole, a quick search of this page, the Support Issues page, recent archives of same, Shard's user page, and those of others to which he's contributed will show a concerted effort to engage in personal attacks. There are claims of ArenaNet errors, yes. But there are also completely false statements that I showed preference to certain individuals, that I dodged questions or lied in response to questions, that I made errors and must accept public castigation for that which did not occur. These are most definitely personal attacks. There's a name, an individual, a target for those comments -- it's not "ArenaNet" or "Support," it's "Gaile."

Having said that, please be aware that my protests concerning personal attacks are not solely on my own behalf; I am much more concerned about the frequent abuse of others with accusations of breaches that did not occur or have already been addressed by the Support Team. There is decidedly a pattern of personal attack towards these individuals that does not stop with the wiki, but it is only wiki issues that are relevant here. You could say that, by virtue of my position, I'm required to accept attacks. (I'm not, but folks might think I am. :) ) However, other contributors are not in a similar position; no "justification" could be made for what I've seen directed towards them. I invite you to do the research and to review what does, indeed, constitute a personal attack. -- Gaile 19:18, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

So accusations of wrong-doing and misconduct constitute a personal attack? If I were to say to someone "You're lying," or "You're doing X incorrectly." then I'm violating NPA? A false statement is a personal attack? Gaile, by wiki definition, a good number of your accusations against Shard of personal attacks have no ground to stand on. On the wiki, we go by wiki definition of policy. The way I'm seeing things, using your definition of a personal attack, I could accuse you of the same. — Jon Lupen 19:34, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

Jon, I could go into why someone defending herself from provably false accusations is not a personal attack. But let's just leave the matter to the ArbComm committee. -- Gaile 19:40, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) This thread had an original topic: gold buying. That topical question was asked and answered a couple of days ago, and since then, the thread has been derailed in a couple of directions. The principle question having been addressed, I'm going to archive this. Discussions concerning the other matters can take place in threads about other matters. Thanks for understanding. -- Gaile 19:44, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

Self Harm.

I don't know if it had been discussed here but I want to know the official standpoint about character names referring to self harm. --Boro 20:34, 26 June 2009 (UTC)

That question really needs examples. Most inappropriate names are obvious, but if you think one is borderline, then it's probably worth asking. If a name is going to offend people, then no - simple. (Well, no it's not, but it ended the sentence nicely.) --snograt 19:29, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

Been done: Archived. Freedom Bound 20:51, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

yup and this thread is complete flame bait. However on a tangent point, I read that whole post and Gaile says at the end "I believe that we addressed the distinction between the skills in the game and an offensive name some days ago". For the life of me, I can't see where Gaile explained the difference between self harm referencing names and blood sacrificing skills. I see alot of random arguments back and forth between wiki peeps, but no actual official word. If someone could point me to it, I would appreciate it, so that we can finally put this subject to bed. -- Salome 03:23, 28 June 2009 (UTC)

Sorry then. Delete or archive pls. --Boro 07:10, 28 June 2009 (UTC)

Salome: then if you read one of the links from that discusssion, the only thing Emily Diehl mentions about blood magic is that it's not an easy fix (compared to the Corsair Prisoner torture issue) -- Mafaraxas 10:18, 28 June 2009 (UTC)

@Salome I think she's referring to this:

"So you had a friend commit suicide, but can't understand how a name that makes reference to that act might, just might, offend someone? You don't see how such a name might upset a parent whose child died; a brother whose sister killed herself; a husband left to raise two young children alone because his wife made that final, fatal choice? People can play the game and use certain skills without feeling as if a real-life tragedy is being shoved in their faces. But a name, now, that's there in front of you, unfiltered and unfilterable. A name presents things on an entirely different level and makes a more overt kind of reference. And because of that, we do not feel such a name is acceptable." ETA: that's from her initial response in the topic linked above. Freedom Bound 13:01, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

Ergo, it sounds like it's ok to reference the necromancer sacrifice skills in the name, but not the actual act of real-life suicide, since the latter is not present in the game directly (Holiday Blues is very stylized and serves a different purpose, as well as being only limited to a seasonal mini-game). Rose Of Kali 16:52, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

(Edit conflict) That response was in reference to the name "Sue A Sidel". Gaile made no response to the OP's original inquiry regarding the name "Cut Myself Again", a name which purportedly referenced shaving cuts. You can see what you like in a name. The problem seems to be that there is no clear defition of what is acceptable. From Gaile's response(s) on the matter so far, I'd say the best presumption is: 1) vulgarity is a no-no, 2) innuendo, intentional or not, is offensive once reported. Of course, this entire topic is simply flame-bait and hypocrisy-bait, given the game's content and its ESRB:Teen rating. ··· cedave 16:59, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

If, say, a friend of yours cuts their wrists and bleeds to death in a pool of hot water, Blood is Power won't be a Bad Thing to that person? What about the Bleeding condition (and God forbid someone degening to death from it)? That doesn't seem any less "overt" or "in their face" than "Sue A Sidel". That's my two cents, anyway. Raine - talk 17:06, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

Guild Wars was at its best when the EULA forbade players under 13. 99.142.41.123 18:15, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

(Edit conflict) Uninstall or try opening a lawsuit which will eventually fail miserably because the game is rated Teen. It's not like ArenaNet is forcing you to play Guild Wars. They're simply being proactive about keeping the majority of players around by removing offensive names. ··· cedave 18:17, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) As simply as I can put it: A name that is an allusion to self-harm, including suicide, or a name that may be interpreted by a significant number of players to be such a reference, is subject to renaming. Since the thread's OP has been satisfied with the answers offered, I will honour his request to archive this topic. -- Gaile 20:24, 29 June 2009 (UTC)

Sorry to bother you...

→ moved from User talk:Gaile Gray

Hi Gaile!

The only reason I posted here is because I troubles launching a ticket, and I also don't know if a ticket is the best way to sort this out.

I recently purchased 3 GW:Fations CE Boxes, activated the cards, and, said that a friend, known to both of us, Joely B, could use them to help out guilds faction grow. However, they soon had their passwords changed. Turns out that one of them, he gave to a friend. Without telling me. I was shocked at this. Completely!

Even more of a disgrace, and adding insult to injury, was the fact that his friend is "good with computers". He knows how to bot. He created a bot that can vFFF and MQSC. And he ran it. Succesfully, I might add, on my account, without my knowledge. His excuse, and a damn pitiful one, is that [any] bots, with a "stupid leech JQ bot that generates about 10k and hour, and Jay just leaves them on for an hour a day". It's a "pathetic bot" he adds. This bot is "amazing" and furthermore "no-one knows about it. We could have the bot account in [any], and donating to EMP, and no-one would be any the wiser." I would like to stress, that I had no idea about this at all. I was under the impression that the account got hacked..

The account names he may have used for botting are:

<email snipped> -The one I gave him

<email snipped> -Another I said he could use, he says he hasn't touched that one.

<email snipped> -See above

<email snipped> -Another alt that he uses frequently. He and I reset the password after the person it was lent to spiked EMP

<email snipped> -What someone tried to change the account name of Kilo.Sierra to. I declined, of course.

The character names he may have used for botting are:

Joely B, -His main character

Spike You Down, -An alt that he uses frequently. Also the account of a friend

Joe Monks Cavalon, -Another alt that he uses frequently. He and I reset the password after the person it was lent to spiked EMP

Great War Lord -An alt that he sometimes uses.

The character names he has admitted to running bots on:

(<email snipped>) Account name, do not know the character name yet

Necroma the Unquick

Necroma Unquick

Necroma Dat Unquick

Gaile, I now refer you to the wonderful world of video uploads, YouTube [10]

As you can see, the span of the problem could potentially be major! Something needs to done right now, to ensure it doesn’t become a massive, massive problem. If it is possible, I would like the account to remain unbanned, if that is possible.

Thank you in anticipation,

--Saberhagen (My Talk) 18:39, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Check every single one of thsoe acounts, I garentee you NONE have botted :D Thank You J0ely b 18:48, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Joel, after listening to the YouTube recording, it seems like a pretty rehearsed and fluent lie. And of course, if you haven't done anything, why bother putting me on ignore? --Saberhagen (My Talk) 18:56, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Email accounts snipped, please don't post personal information on the wiki. You can email either support or Gaile directly. Misery 19:23, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

If I recall, there was recently a claim by J0ely that someone else was attacking him. This looks like just another attempt to make someone look bad. ··· cedave 19:25, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Also, screenshots would be a lot more useful than just possibly misleading quotes. ··· cedave 19:26, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Did you listen to the youtube video? Of course, it might not be his voice, but there's not a whole lot of ambiguity there. Freedom Bound 19:33, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

In response to Cedave, I would like to say that it was against Jaypac, rather then Joel, and I was on Joel's side. Until I published this and he saw it in RC, we were friends, and I do still consider him to be my friend. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 19:49, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Being that sound and video can be spliced, and that I don't have any ability to actually listen to the video right now, the only evidence I can see there is your chat window, where someone says "Who's on Joel's account?", then there's a reply I can't make out, then the person who asked said "Joel has never got naked and run around the GH before." I'm assuming the sound clip is a vent recording. If I'm correct, then it'd be extremely difficult to ascertain who the actual speakers were. ··· cedave 19:56, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Oh, and Joely B, the character, appears to say "Sup (indeterminable word)" prior to the question "Who's on Joel's account?" ··· cedave 19:57, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm sorry I listened to like 30 seconds of the video and the bad amatuer voice acting hurt my ears. ~~000.00.00.00~~ 19:59, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

(Edit conflict) All the accusations being thrown around aside, you admitted in the very beginning of your statement that you gave account info to someone else to use. Not only is this against the EULA, it's kind of the same thing as saying, "I gave my debit card and PIN to a friend to use, and they took all my money." Honestly, this is a support issue, and not something that you should have come to Gaile in the first place with. Also, the voices in the YouTube video could be ANYONE with a mic, so you really should have let support know (if you think someone is using a bot) so they can investigate whether said player is breaching the EULA. --★KOKUOU★ 20:01, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

I think Gaile needs to put her link to support in size 90pt font, tbh. ··· cedave 20:05, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

I would like to say that is not a screen shot from the time. It is a screen from a while ago, I only had it in there so that Movie Maker wouldn't save it as a .wav. Anyway, I do have proof, sort of that it was Joel on the account, but it's subject to opinion. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 20:17, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Furthermore, I gave it as a gift to him, and I have only used it once before, when I was trading my Kuunavangs over. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 20:19, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

From the EULA: "You may not (a) sublicense, rent, lease, loan or otherwise transfer the Software or the Service (or any part thereof), including without limitation access keys; (b) modify, adapt, reverse engineer or decompile the Software, or otherwise attempt to derive source code from the Software; (c) create any derivative works in respect of the Software or the Service; or (d) otherwise use the Software or the Service except as expressly provided in this Agreement. You should keep your access key in a safe place and not share it with anyone else." Keys once used are only to be used by the one person... MrPaladin talk 20:21, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

There's a lack of proof that the account was ever his to begin with. This entire section is simply an attempt to damage the reputation of another user. This sounds disturbingly like a breach of NPA for making libellous statements. ··· cedave 20:31, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

That the account was ever mine? I have the accounts inbox on my email program. Here is an email from today. You recently requested to reset the password for your Guild Wars account <snipped>. Your password is case sensitive and must be typed in exactly as it appears above. Please note that your old password will remain valid until you login with your new password. Thanks for playing; we look forward to seeing you online! -The ArenaNet Team.

Anyway, regardless of whether I was in breach of the EULA, and I will admit to that, the issue at hand is whether or not Joel was botting. Oh, BTW, I didn't take a screen of the proof I mentioned above. basically it corresponds to the part of the video where I am asking for Steve's alts. He PMed me with 'Necroma the Unquick', which proves it was him that I was conversing with. At least, in my mind it does. =] --Saberhagen (My Talk) 21:24, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

This comes across as pointless drama. It's hard to jump up and down and say "ohh ohh ohh, he's being bad by doing this!" when you yourself admit to breaching the rules yourself. ~~000.00.00.00~~ 21:38, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

I think less people need to inject their opinion in these matters and allow Gaile, Support, and the user come to a resolve. -Drakora 21:50, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Not to mention, claiming that you got an email from support at a certain email address tells us nothing. It isn't hard to quote canned responses. ··· cedave 21:52, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

Well, if it is only a support issue, it should have been posted on the support issues page. :P -- Wyn talk 21:54, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

But I like injecting my opinion. I also like seeing people trying to discredit other people, and in the process they discredit themselves. ~~000.00.00.00~~ 22:00, 30 June 2009 (UTC)

I am not trying to discredit anyone at all, but trying to bring him to justice. Another email, which I explicitly mentioned in the video:

Hi Kevin

Joel said i could use this acc didn't know it was yours. U want me to change the password back to what it was before?

On Wed, Jun 24, 2009 at 6:28 PM, Kevin Saberhagen <snipped> wrote:

Who the fuck are you, and what the fuck are you trying to do with my account?

If you want, I could even provide a screenshot of my inbox? --Saberhagen (My Talk) 07:09, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

(File:User_Saberhagen_Inbox.jpg|250 px)

Anyway, as I said above,lets get back to Joel botting, rather than pointless meadering around. Thank you. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 07:16, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Whoa, dude. that image needs be edited or deleted. O.o ~~000.00.00.00~~ 07:18, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Let's take this off the wiki Saberhagen. I've already asked you to email support directly, rather than use Gaile's page as your personal platform and making this into a public issue. You are not going to accomplish anything in this way. The only way for support to review this is for you to submit it either through the website ticket system, or if you are unable to do that, then use the email options Gaile has outlined. Thanks! -- Wyn talk 07:25, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

I have some vent recordings that I found saved. I'll put them on YouTube, and hopefully that will prove what Joel sounds like. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 07:26, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

I'd advise against that... legal issues and all... I'm sure, to be safe, you made sure those involved in the vent recordings (including the one already posted on Youtube) knew they were being recorded... yes? ~~000.00.00.00~~ 07:34, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Saberhagen. Why are you persisting with this method of raising your support issue? You've been informed repeatedly that going directly to Support is the best approach. Please follow that advice. -- WarBlade 09:54, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

@ 000.00.whatever. Of course I didn't let Joel know that he was being recorded. He's obviously going to talk to me abut this bot after I've said "Mate, I'm recording this vent." isn't he? No. Duh. Logic exists. Please follow it. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 16:21, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

"Logic" says you should be taking this to support. Do so, and keep it off this wiki. (Aiiane - talk - contribs) 16:33, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Well my logic tells me that I should escalate this straight to the highest authority, and bypass a semi-automated, unhelpful response. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 16:45, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Unfortunately that's not how it works and this isn't the most direct method of contacting Gaile anyway. If you wanted to contact her directly you should email her, then you wouldn't have pages of other people's opinions inserted. Misery 16:48, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

"The highest authority" is really taking it straight to Support, instead of bringing it to ArenaNet's Support Liaison. They are the ones with the experience and tools to assist you. -- WarBlade 16:58, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Saberhagen, by recording and publishing Joel or anyone's conversations without their knowledge and permission, and freely admitting to it, you have just opened yourself up to an incredibly easy lawsuit. That was unfathomably stupid. 99.142.46.39 17:00, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

And he is open to the same, as he has a video on vent of me talking. Thank you so much above poster. There is my proof that it was Joel talking. His very own recording of vent. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 17:05, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Well then hurry up and sue each other, end your friendship, and CONTACT SUPPORT ALREADY. 99.142.46.39 17:09, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) This has turned out to be some epic lulz. Jay bots and we all know it. Just submit a ticket to support or email Gaile. Also, screen shots do a world of wonders instead of a voice recording, tbh. --66.190.80.193 21:35, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

And just to let you know, its [KING] & their allys who bot in JQ not [any] --→Darklɘs McChaosmongɘr 21:38, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Actually, since you mentioned [KING] just now... To be fair and not point fingers at only one of the beforementioned parties.... It's both of them that do. --66.190.80.193 21:54, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

And that's why they're allowed to continue playing, obviously. ANet Support may not be ideal in the minds of some users, but it's proven it's pretty damn good at catching bots. ··· Danny Pew Pew 22:12, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

Quoted from the top of this page: "The first place to seek assistance with matters of a support nature is through our Support System. If you require additional assistance, you may post here and I will do my best to help you. Please note that appeals should first be directed to Support, and that you should provide your Support Incident/Ticket Number with your comments here so I have a good point of reference. Thanks!" You are not specially privileged, and Gaile has clearly stated the proper procedure within her announcement. Continued posting regarding this matter here until or unless you have followed that procedure will be considered intentionally disruptive behavior and may result in administrative action. Thank you. (Aiiane - talk - contribs) 22:17, 1 July 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) To emphasize the message here (thanks, Aiiane!), these matters need to go to support. Reports of this nature should not be sent to me on the wiki, via forum PMS, or through email. Support is going to do the research, and Support is going to make the decision about these situations. In the event my help is needed in reviewing such a matter, the team will ask me to do so. And in fact they have asked me to review some reports involving people mentioned in this very thread. However, that's appropriate on the part of the team, but rather inappropriate in a situation when it comes from individuals heatedly involved in the whole situation.

Let me make it clear that neither Support nor I will be used/manipulated/cajoled into terminating an account simply because one player dislikes another player. On the other hand, Support and I will work our darnedest to address issues of players who cheat, harass, abuse, or in any other way breach the User Agreement or cause disruption or harm to the community as a whole. So I'm asking that people "choose wisely," as the Old Knight said, in asking me to get involved with a situation such as this one, and that they start and continue to work with the Support Team for a resolution. -- Gaile 18:36, 14 July 2009 (UTC)

Is there a way to see your account "Marks"

If not I suggest you find a way to let people see them. This gives you a way to point things out to players and lets players know what marks they have and why. I'm sure it would reduce the amount of questioning support gets and you get on these pages.~>Sins WDB 04:45, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that if your account is "marked," you can't log into it. It'll say "lol b&" or something to that effect when you try. And legally, ANet isn't required to provide reasons for banning people, so the best you can hope for is to ask support and hope they'll be nice to you and tell you what you did wrong. This is because if they had to give you the information, it would imply that you had some sort of right to your account, which you don't -- which, of course, is the biggest crock of B.S. a man's ever heard; in fact, the only reason the old EULAs still apply is because no poor sucker who got banned took his case in front a competent judge, who'd rule the contract (which it barely even is, since -- legally -- you should be allowed to negotiate the terms of a contract, or even if ANet's automatic response to all contract except the default are "no" then you should be able to return the game to the store and get your money back, but if you try that they'll laugh in your face and tell you to STFU and GTFO their store) was completely ridiculous because it translates to "screw you guys, you gave us your 50 dollars in exchange for absolutely nothing whatsoever, you don't even own the box it came in." I may have omitted some minor details but that's about what most MMO EULAs are. You pay for the hope of getting to play the game. Now tell me something, if a man on the street walked up to you and said "hey, gimme fifty bucks and I might let you play an awesome game when you get home!" would you believe him for one second, or would you pull out your mace and/or sidearm and tell him not to come any closer?

P.S.: For once, I'm actually not blaming this on ANet. This is MMO companies in general. --Jette 09:12, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

I'd think you could write to support and ask them to list you any offenses you might have had, but I'd like Gaile to clarify that. — Poki#3 (talk) 10:08, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

What all this "we do not need to tell you what you are being charged and found guilty of" in relation to gw smacks very much of the patriot act which is very much a part of life in USA. Anyone can and has been lifted off the streets without being allowed to know what they are supposed to have done wrong they dont even need to be charged and no access to legal representation. If anyone enquires about them, they too can be locked up.So maybe count yourself lucky that all your loosing is some money, this only applies to USA. The rest of those charged with gw offences should be told what they are supposed to have done so at least they have a chance to make some defense as in some cases anet have admitted that it was anet that made the mistake and not the player.Bots and gold sellers should be banned.--Pentu Prage 11:51, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

You guys are funny. I can assure you there are people playing from countries with far less due legal process than the United States. I know exactly how many marks there are on my account currently. Zero. Misery 12:01, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

tbh I have never got, and probably will never be marked. I don't know/care if I'm being timid or PvE scrub or w/e, but I don't understand what's the problem here, and those people who get marked from doing something obviously wrong and against EULA and all that. Once you get marked, there's pretty much nothing you can do about it anyways. Also, I prefer katanas over maces (hammers do not count as mace weapons in this case), and throwing bullets is way more fun than firing a gun. Mediggo 12:12, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm far from timid, but I am very friendly ^_________^ Misery 12:17, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

If you actually read the legal disclaimers on Anet's site and the full EULA you will see Sins has a valid point. The legal page on GW.com states that over time, if no further incidents occur, that marks on your account can go away. From the legal: "Account marks expire after a period of time. Therefore, a player can clear his/her account of marks, and remove the risk of lengthy suspension, simply by obeying the Rules of Conduct."--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 15:45, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

That information then could only possibly be used to let someone know when it was "Ok for them to start engaging in risky behaviour again" or something. Why else would you need to know and why would ArenaNet ever want someone to know? Misery 15:47, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Technically, people are entitled to that information. When people request copies of their leases or any violation notices I send like 3-day to Perform or Quits, 3-Days to Pay or Quit and eviction warnings, I have to comply. Similarly, when I sued the drunk driver that hit me, I was entitled to a lot of his insurance evidence as well as anything of my for my driving record and some of his and so forth. And back to your comment about unfair countries...there are international laws the game company must comply with that give full faith and credit to most normal policies. And few of the nations that play this game are so terrifying that they are not reasonable to consistant policy.--*Yasmin Parvaneh* 15:52, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

The comments about those countries were mainly relating to the fact that he seemed to be implying that America had it bad. Misery 15:55, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

For a variety of reasons -- many of them outlined here -- we don't provide that information. Sorry. -- Gaile 21:11, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Really?

It's also important to note than when I emailed support about it, they said "personal information" is limited to your account name and password only. ~Shard 23:32, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

So let me get this straight. We have account reports that at the very least include marks against our accounts, and we are not allowed to see our own report even if we ask? I call that bull sh** and yes I have the right to call it what I want. How else is this information used beyond bans? Players have the right to see their own information, oh yes we do. The company you represent has no right to withhold any reported information about an individual's account from that individual if they ask for it. I should be able to reqest seeing my account report just like I should be able to ask my employer to see my personal report. The EULA doesn't even give ANet that right.~>Sins WDB 05:49, 6 June 2009 (UTC)

AreanNet does not disclose this so that your information stays secure. I tried also before but got a solid "unless you have seen a ban screen assume that your mark free". Dominator Matrix 05:56, 6 June 2009 (UTC)

There is no valid reason why. I've already said the information should be available to the account owner. Providing proof of ownership should be enough to see that info.~>Sins WDB 06:21, 6 June 2009 (UTC)

"players have the right to see their own information"

No, actually, you don't. Read the EULA. If a person legitimately just wants to know if they've done anything wrong, you're right, it would be reasonable to expect ANet to have to hand over information, but they have to deal with RMTers and botters and scamming morons and other losers that all have good reasons to learn what gets you marked and what doesn't. In a perfect world, you could very reasonably expect ANet to tell you if you were marked; but in a perfect world, you wouldn't get marked anyway. I'm not trying to say it's fair, but unless you have some sort of divining powers to tell the difference between legitimate players and the jerkoffs who try to make the game worse, this is the way it needs to be. --Jette 06:39, 6 June 2009 (UTC)

You don't need diving powers. Your instance is not justified, botters and scammers deal with multiple accounts, so even if they did get marked out of the game they just use another account. If they really want to do something about that though they can track IPs and accounts accesing various IPs, that would help them slow down botters and scammers. This could also be used to help varify an account owner and disassociate or associate an individual to suspicious activity. If they find someone to be taking part in suspicious activity they tag them and see if the person should recieve a mark on that account. However, just because they don't have the resources to do this to the degree necessary doesn't mean they can withhold information. Nothing gives them that right, no contract does. If need be their service contract can be taken to court and with all the mistakes and obvious problems (documented on this wiki and others that even I have documented) it wouldn't be too hard to win. I'm not willing to do this, at least not right now since I personally haven't had major issues with ANet.~>Sins WDB 06:43, 7 June 2009 (UTC)

In Perfect World they don't really bother with temporary blocks, it's just violation -> permaban, make a new account, start over. 99.142.16.105 02:31, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Account marks are internal information that cannot be shared. It is information that we use to make internal decisions, and in fact while I appreciate you'd like to have that information, there are far more reasons to not provide it than to do so. I'm sorry if the policy is upsetting to you. --

The question has been posed: Why was the number of marks on one account shared with the player. At our discretion, we will provide such info, but we will not do so by request. -- Gaile 22:21, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

This doesn't look like discretion to me. It's exposing it to the whole public. --Boro 18:04, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

Note prior to archiving: Discussion of violation counts is based on revelations by the player. Once a player makes public reference to his real or alleged violation count, then the actual number of violations can appropriately become content for the discussion. This addresses false claims of unfair blocks and sets the record straight on Support decisions related to "repeated violations." -- Gaile 02:20, 3 August 2009 (UTC)

Problem with the Store (SMS)

hey there, is there a problem with the store because i recently went and purchased a new character slot using SMS, i have e-mailed support the code and it has been checked as valid, but when i try to apply the code through the in-game store it comes up with invalid code and wont let me get my character slot. can you help Gaile :) thanks in advance --Robot 18:54, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Which store did you purchase the character slot through? The in-game store? Or the NCsoft Store? I've only purchased two character slots myself, but both times (through the in-game store) the product key was automatically added to the account without me having to input the details manually. I'm curious to see if that might have happened in your case without your realising it. -- WarBlade 20:28, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

Hi Robot -- did you fill out a support ticket? I can't really assist with this, it needs to be handled by the Support Team. Please get in touch and they'll assist you. If you find you have issues after you've discussed the matter with them, you are welcome to let me know. -- Gaile 21:26, 5 June 2009 (UTC)

with SMS? how? where? - Wuhy 07:37, 6 June 2009 (UTC)

Please submit a support report and our team will look into the matter. -- Gaile 04:38, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Hey Robot -- just checking. Did everything work out ok for you? -- Gaile 20:06, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Account Blocked

Please Help

It is not often that you will hear me beg. This is one of rare cases.

Today, at roughly 20:45, I noticed that instead of sitting in Kamadan,I was at the CSS. I logged back onto Tortellini, but this happened again. I now began to sh!t myself. I quickly tried to change my password, but my account's new owner had got their before me. It doesn't help at all that i was asked to reset via the bloody NCSoft site, a site which I have forgotten the password to. I realise that won't be able to do much to help, but anything that could be done to help speed up this issue --well, I would love you eternally. My ticket number is this: [Incident:090608-001253]. --Saberhagen (My Talk) 20:03, 8 June 2009 (UTC)

I have a new issue. My account has been banned for 'an account issue'. I feel that there may well have been a mix up here. I bought from amazon.co.uk, 3 factions CE. I waited 1 day, then transfered my kuunas to my main account. I have the keys used to register the accounts right here in my hand, if needed, I will list them to prove that I bought them. Aside from thi, could you please xplain what an account issue is please, it is very vague. Chhers! --Saberhagen (My Talk) 20:06, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Hi Saberhagen. An account issue often (but not always) means that ownership is in question. I am not able to get into this matter just now -- the team will be happy to accept the information that you have, and yes, having the access keys is extremely valuable in establishing ownership. Other things that might fall under account issues would involved RMT (real money trading) or things of that sort. The best contact for you just now is truly the support team. If they need me to get involved they'll let me know. And I hope you will give me an update as the investigation continues. Good luck. -- Gaile 04:55, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

I Dont Trust Surfpin (in Game Store)

As the name suggests i dont trust this surfpin that you are using for SMS payments in your ingame store. i dont mean to sound like im moaning or anything but i have contacted the surfpin support 4 times now because i wanted to get a character slot, and everytime they reply that the pin they gave is valid, however since i have already payed £7.50 for a new character slot and not yet got it because the pin they have given keeps getting rejected. I have got my pin right and i am entering it in the right place, and i am beginning to belive i have been coned for my money. is there anything you can do to help?--Robot 20:33, 9 June 2009 (UTC)

cooned for your money, you say? -- Mafaraxas 05:03, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

I believe it is "conned" and I don't think Gaile is here at the moment ( I could be wrong ) because I've been waiting on a response from her for quite a while now. Then again, she may not respond to me, as my issue has been beaten to death already. --Tha Reckoning 05:15, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Robot, Gaile previously responded to your question here. Have you tried contacting support yet? ··· cedave 08:52:55 CSUTC 21/11/24

I have at least 4 times, all ive been told is that the code works, but i have tried many times in the character slot 'pay by phone section' but my pin keeps rejected. i feel conned. --Robot 18:22, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Pay by phone section for character slots? O_o Rose Of Kali 19:22, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

yeah in europe --Robot 19:53, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

And you're adding the key you got just like you would add a game key? Considering that support validated the key to be working, this truly must be an issue with how you are adding it to the account. In any case, this has nothing to do with Surfpin, as they sold you a valid key, according to support. Rose Of Kali 22:28, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Are you Support? -Drakora 22:32, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

No. He already contacted Support and wasn't happy. He chose to seek further help in a public place where everyone, including yourself, is free to comment. Gaile has already responded to his previous inquiry by asking to contact Support. Nobody is trolling (yet), so how about we all try to help this poor soul get his character slot, eh? Rose Of Kali 22:40, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

ok pin still not working, im definatly entering it in the right place, its no ordinary key, it and 8 digit number instead of 16-20 letters and numbers. Here is a screenshot of what happens everytime i enter it. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v358/robotnorris/Surfpin.jpg --Robot 21:27, 11 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Hey there, Robot. I'm so sorry that you've had this issue, and that it's still going on! I am more than happy to refer this to my excellent associate in Europe. May I have the 12-digit support ticket that you've been reporting on? Or, if you have not submitted on, please do contact support -- that's our support, not someone else's ;) -- and we'll look into this! -- Gaile 04:45, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

12 digits? they gave me an 8 digit code for it. how do you want me to give you the code? --Robot 18:32, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

never mind read that wrong, i just e-mailed support now. --Robot 19:37, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Support Code [090612-001318] thanks--Robot 19:51, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Nice lagg

Just wondering i heared Anets changing the name to Lagg Wars? Nah just kidding whats with the lagg for the past days or is it just me which i doubt, i got a fast internet so it wouldnt just lagg whenever i go on guildwars. Any answers? 90.211.36.100

Lol i didnt know lag was gaile's fault. --adrin 22:44, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Unless she drove a tank through the servers recently, it's not. I don't really know where "Lag help plz" threads are supposed to go :P ~Shard 22:53, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

Shes support aint she lol 90.211.36.100

Yes, but she doesn't support ISP problems. If it was a GW-related widespread lag, there would be a Yeti riot in LA. Last time I had unexplained long-term lag and disconnects, Qwest discovered a problem at one of the nearby distribution nodes or whatever they call it. Rose Of Kali 23:07, 10 June 2009 (UTC)

It's happened a couple of times where the only connectivity issues a person will have will be with GW. As in, they'll be on Vent streaming music while downloading files and chatting on seven different IM clients... and complaining about how they're lagging on GW. I can't reasonably say that that's an ISP issue. :/

I don't claim to be an expert on the inner workings of Internet Service Providers, but it seems odd to me that GW and only GW lagging would be an issue with an ISP. Raine - talk 03:10, 11 June 2009 (UTC)

GW and nothing else lagging is pretty common compared to many other online games, and judging by forum and wiki posts everywhere, anet is probably already aware of this. ~Shard 03:42, 11 June 2009 (UTC)

Remember the time they did Hero Battle bonuses at the same time as the MAT? I think that was the worst lag the game's ever been through. I was seriously laughing my ass off looking at the GvG teams fighting 3v3 (at best) though. Meh, it's not like it would've been based any more on skill anyway if the servers had been working. --Jette 03:45, 11 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Hi 90. I think the best thing to do is contact support and work with the folks in Technical Support to see if there's an issue between you and the server. To take Rose's observation one step further, if the problem was widespread -- a GW Server issue of major proportions -- we'd see devs in flaming effigy in LA. :) So I am quite confident it's a regional or ISP issue, but that's not to say we can't help you. Get in touch with the team and they'll look into the matter with you. -- Gaile 04:48, 12 June 2009 (UTC)

Thanks alot for the quick reply :D 90.211.36.100

My pleasure -- glad to help. -- Gaile 03:47, 14 June 2009 (UTC)

i contacted suppoer i did what they told me to do but it diditn change, the Lag ive been getting since tuesday increased with 18ths updates support (while usualy helpfull) didint help much this time--Lord randy taylor 01:07, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

It is good you let TS know this. They will track the issue reports they receive, and the team will take a look at those to see if there's a problem. I don't know of any others, but I'll check with the team next week. Thanks. -- Gaile 00:53, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

name change

i dont know if this is a bug or what or if this is possible but im thinking of getting my main a name change now if i do ill still be able to use my old weapons and armor customized to him before the name change cause i was told an ocasional bug could take place and prevent me from doing so is that possible cause i dont want to risk it if ill loose all my gear, to sum up is there a bug that would prevent u form using your old gear after changing a charachters name--Lord randy taylor 04:40, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

This would be better placed in the HELP:Ask a game question section, but that bug (assuming it exists) is extremely rare. If it did exist, I'm sure support could reimburse you for the lost name change and any equipment you lost in the process. Or if not, they could just give you a unique mini, you could sell it for more ectos than a gold trim guild costs, and get it back quickly. --Jette 05:15, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

Please Jette, do not answer this sort of question. Allow me to give the correct answer so that we can avoid misinformation or confusion. We do not reimburse for lost equipment -- we do not have the ability to do so. We would not give a unique miniature for such an issue, either, for we don't have them to give, and it's not policy to start handing out some sort of bogus compensation. Fortunately, though, there is no need to worry about this, as you can tell from my answer to Randy:

Hi Randy. There was a rumour about this alleged "bug" a while back, but we were able to review the account and we established that there was no such bug. The person who claimed that his character could not equip the armour was noted in the game, wearing that very armour. :)

If you change your character's name, your items--armour, customized weapons, etc.--will remain in the old name, but they will be useable by the new character. So you may be named Fred Smith, and your armour may say it's customized for "Mary Brown" but it'll work just fine. :) -- Gaile 05:53, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

kk thanks--Lord randy taylor 06:29, 16 June 2009 (UTC)

Yes, I too was wondering as to that as well, Thank you Gaile!! MystiLefemEle 13:19, 19 June 2009 (UTC)

Glad to help, and to put your minds at rest. :) -- Gaile 00:52, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Forbidden Name

Why is the name, tried as seen in this screenshot, forbidden? ôO

Ɲoɕʈɋɽɕɧ 18:54, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

Smother probably can refer to act of intentionally killing someone like with a pillow :) --Smithy-Star 18:57, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

>.<, really, and what about all those "X Dark Killah X"? Ɲoɕʈɋɽɕɧ 19:02, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

Even stranger "Name Smother Name" was eligble for a name. As well as "Gail Name". I simply don't get it.Ɲoɕʈɋɽɕɧ 19:03, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

Maybe they don't like Ford. -- Brains12 \ talk 19:04, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

I tried everything I could: The part "motherfo" is forbidden. Can the same be applied as to "Charles Dickens"? >:( Ɲoɕʈɋɽɕɧ 19:10, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

Well, we can all guess why "motherfo" isn't allowed. ^_^ I wouldn't be surprised if dropping the last "o" would still keep it illegal. Rose Of Kali 19:51, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

Well... I have seen worse ingame (as content). I guess smother was the problematic part or smother (someone). Boro 19:53, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

lol, Boro, read above, man, the issue is "motherfo", not "smother". I always laugh it this stuff, because there are plenty of real life names that would not make it through the automatied checker, yes, like Charles Dickens, or my old high school friend Tyler Dickinson (we always laughed at him because his family had a business named "Dickinson and Co.", they weren't a real picky bunch I guess...) (Satanael 20:01, 17 June 2009 (UTC))

(Reset indent) I encounter alot of these forbidden ones when I make new names. I wanted Abigaile Grayvee, but it is forbidden because it has Gaile Gray in it, all the other names of Anet employees that I know are to long to change to something like this or I just haven't found a good variation for those, I guess showing some gratitude is illegal to :). If they change the rules so that Abigaile Grayvee is legal I would like to have it lol, it's funny. Qaletaqa Hania 02:57, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

i wonder if Mike Hawk would be banned. (say it aloud) --adrin 03:20, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Emulating the name of a well known ArenaNet or NCsoft employee is a bad idea anyway. It can lead to questions of whether or not you're impersonating such an employee, which in turn has been known to result in a 72 hour account suspension and imposed name change. -- WarBlade 03:24, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

I know impersonating is a violation, and I would never do that because I don't wanna be banned, not even 72 hours. Let me explain why I want Abigaile Grayvee as a name, I like the name Abigail, I like what Gaile Gray has done for the game and the community, and grayvee is just referring to grayvee sauce. If she was male I would have used Graybeard or Grayback. I could use Graywacke tho, because I kinda like graywacke in nature. Qaletaqa Hania 04:28, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

I'm flattered that you'd want to name a character as you said, but there are some pretty powerful reasons for having the name filters as they are. I would suggest you pick a different name, one that is uniquely your own, to avoid any confusion. As for the first example, I don't know what's causing the block, but it could be any combination of things, from a unacceptable words in a specific language, to the name being seen as "creative spelling" for something that's disallowed, to the name being seen as a reference to violence. All of these are things folks have suggested above, and I don't know which, if any, are accurate. The filters are very complicated, since they address several different types of concerns in many languages.

All I can say is that there are millions and millions of possible names, and only a small percentage are blocked. If you run into a "this isn't allowed" message, why not simply move on to another name? -- Gaile 05:44, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

I find it comical when I think about it, I've learnt more 'bad' words while playing Guild Wars than I think I have from any other source. Sometimes for a laugh I turn the filter on Max and see all these ---- everywhere. "Oh noes, Guild Wars is warping my fragile little mind" O.O lol 000.00.00.00 05:52, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Yes, it's amazing how so many people turn into potty-mouths on the Internets. Sorta sad, really. I like that we have a filter; I wish we didn't have to have one. :-/ (BTW, I don't use the filter, myself, but then I'll be the first to admit my mind was probably warped back in, oh, 1998 or so. ;) ) -- Gaile 05:57, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

I personally don't use it when I'm playing (unless I'm bored) because people find ways around it - I know people just use abbrevations: STFU! WTF! A new one I've seen: DA = dumbass etc and so on. Quite frankly the filter gives too much meaning to the words, in my book, yet that is just me. If someone is trying to be offensive (or rude to me through the internet) it means more to them than to me, I can't say I've ever cried into my pillow after someone's verbally abuse me, made me laugh until I had an asthma attack however ^_^ 000.00.00.00 06:06, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

I turned it off rather soon after starting to play GW because it was ---'ing words that are completely harmless in german (but obviously not in other language). If the filter isn't even able to see my language settings and only blank the words that are bad in my language, it's just wasted programming time IMO. Xelonir 06:52, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

i know those filters serve a good cause, yet i don't like them for a specific reason since they fail doing their task imho. as in noctarch's case for example, he wasn't allowed to create the name he wished for just because some letters in between were identical to an incomplete curse word. yet players intensively trying to circumvent that filter will likely also succeed with names like "X Mothurrfoccur X". therefore i think filters for entire words are ok, but anet's current filter is rather unfair since it only prevents good-natured players from creating characters with their desired names while those with bad intentions are still able to do what they want to. —ZerphaThe Improver 09:01, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

The current filter prevents those jackarses from doing it more blatantly. I'll take that over nothing at all. Rose Of Kali 09:08, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) i don't really care the names being slightly more blatantly chosen if this goes otherwise at the expense of other players' name versatility... —ZerphaThe Improver 11:08, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

@Qaletaqa Hania: the names of ANet employees aren't forbidden; I was Stephen Cartwright (or it might've been Izzy Cartwright; it was a while ago) for a while. I thought it was a good name for my RaO ranger. =3

I later changed the name to "Not Izzy Cartwright" to avoid being accused of impersonating an ANet employee, for the record. Raine - talk 17:21, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Never said they were tho, I only said any name containing Gaile Gray is, haven't tried any other ones because I don't have any open character slots left. Alltho I have some good ones, but they are formed differently then Abigaile Grayvee, the ones I made with other Anet employees names I did by scrambling there letters and adding some to make the name sound good, so you wouldn't be able to read their name. Qaletaqa Hania 17:53, 18 June 2009 (UTC)

Latency Issue Since June 18th Update

I've heard mixed responses about whether or not Arena.net is working to fix the latency issues brought up by the update. I'd like to know if 1) they are working on it and 2) a rough ETA on when an update to fix this will come out. I know for a fact that it isn't my ISP because it's happened to various other friends and guild members and I've also seen and posted to other topics regarding this on the wiki's update notes. I've been playing this game since it came out and have never had such a problem. It's a mix of general lag and network errors. In the last 3 hours I've have 27 network errors. :S Magic Talk 03:07, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

I will get on and start playing a bit more to test it, but I haven't noticed anything lately, other than people on the wiki mentioning it. Sometimes when my phone rings (though it is on a completely separate line) my internet disconnects momentarily. As for GW, I probably wouldn't notice because I've been working 20 hour days for the past couple of weeks, but I can try and see if I have the same problems. If anyone wants to explain the phone ringing disconnect thing to me, that would be great =D --Tha Reckoning 06:51, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

I have not seen a groundswell of concerns about lag, at this point. I know a few folks thought there was a connection between the update on the 18th and an increase in lag. I have to think that's not the case. TS notices that a few people may write in, and something may appear to be a trend, but the team never hears back and when they research it they learn that's because the situation was a one-off, like ISP or Internet backbone problems that resolved on their own. -- Gaile 21:03, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

Over the past 3 years the reasons for my lags were these:

- Computer overheating

- Modem overheating

- Modem drivers outdated by the Windows version

- Guildwars network lobbies ( groups of interconnected players, in guildwars = instances ) failing to reconfigure themselves after having rejected a node that was making packets retention during good ol'alliance battles lags wars.

- Learning to fly after my foot got stuck in the modem cable

Yseron - 86.209.64.146 21:26, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

Well I know for certain my computer isn't overheating with the help of a program called Speedfan which regulate the speed of the fan and the temperature of the computer. The modem is doing fine or else the lag would be on other programs and such.. which it isn't. My drivers are update to date and I don't know what you're talking about on the 4th bullet Yseron. As to the last.. bullet.. ouch, lol. Back to Gaile's post. I have changed nothing on my computer since the update. No new programs and no changes to the settings on my computer. I've sent it a ticket to TS and haven't gotten any emails back. Been checking it daily. I'd much like to get this fixed because at the moment, i simply can't play. I tried loading Vizunah Square on my rit today and got a constant stream of network errors. The game itself isn't laggy.. it just suddenly drops and asks if I'd like to reconnect to the currant instance. I saw the link of the login page to "Test My Computer." Should I run the test and send in the results about my computer? [Note: this lag ONLY happens on guild wars. I've got a pretty good graphics card, my VM is turned up to the recommendations of TS, and as stated above my computer is up to date and there haven't been any changes on it.] Magic Talk 02:16, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

I've seen a surge in complaints on my alliance chat channel since the update and have experienced a few issues myself in recent days. A couple of days ago a 4/8 guild group lining up in Eternal Grove (US district) experienced about a 5 second spike simultaneously. I had actually done a bit of checking in previous days (because of the complaints) and was able to determine that I had a pretty good signal from New Zealand through to about Kansas. After that data packets were going AWOL. At this point (and given that I haven't seen any news come out of ArenaNet/NCsoft) I'm leaning towards the believe that there are network problems very close to the game servers a little more than trouble with the servers themselves. I'm wondering if any weather troubles are impacting the US network also... -- WarBlade 04:05, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) The lag is 75% server side. My networking experience and the fact that it is thousands upon thousands of people district after distric of people complaining about lag says so. They have simply outgrown the servers and they cannot handle the load anymore. Drogo Boffin 04:13, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

@DrogoBoffin: Hey.. I didn't think of that. That Korean merge added a lot of people to the server. Wonder how many servers GW runs on? Just Curious. :) Magic Talk 17:50, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

(ec)I wonder just how many Koreans migrated to US servers with the recent change (as my EC pointed out). And I'm also getting lag spikes and frequent failures to reconnect when prompted, and horrible rubberbanding no matter where I go. This used to not be the case, I completed my LDoA in a total of 2 months of deathleveling, it would be absolutely impossible now. Whenever I leave my computer for more than 15 minutes, I come back to a dropped GW connection, but any torrents or messengers have no problems. I've also done a couple things with my mule account, and most lag spikes were both accounts lagging at the sime time, while my browsers opened large pages just fine during this lag, and my messenger still stayed active, so it really doesn't seem like my ISP. Something is going on that was not there before, that's for sure. Rose Of Kali 17:57, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

What time are you guys on? I play from 7-10 PM EDT daily and only had one disconnect in the last week. Some lag, but nothing bad, or unusual. This is in the DC area on Verizon, btw. Freedom Bound 18:02, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

What is it going to take for you guys to realize that it is not YOUR ISP or anything on YOUR end if it is happening to as many people as it is. Drogo Boffin 18:04, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

I play at completely random times of the day, sometimes starting as early as 9am, and sometimes going as late as 4am, and at any time inbetween, and the lag seems to happen at all times in those 19 hours, and seems worse on weekends. Last Sunday I almost smashed something out of frustration (restarted Fort Ranik mission FIVE TIMES before finally being able to finish it without a disconnect), and then just decided to go do something else. I really really don't care if there is a good lag-free period in the 5 ungodly hours I never play, regardless of time zone (I'm in US Mountain time, central Colorado), but seems like 80% of the time the lag runs rampant. Hope this helps anyone in doubt. Rose Of Kali 18:13, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

I am summoning Mr Spock so that he give us all a logical explanation ! (i'm not concerned by your lags but it's always cool to learn things) Yseron - 90.28.82.18 19:20, 23 June 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Is anyone sending a support ticket? It's super easy, you can start one with an email, now. Please do let the team know so they have a body of reports to work with. Thanks! -- Gaile 02:14, 25 June 2009 (UTC)

I've sent in a ticket for this as well as a ticket for my XTRPs and haven't heard back from either. [Used the web-based form too.] Magic Talk 04:01, 25 June 2009 (UTC)

I have been playing and talking to people a lot over the last couple of days, haven't noticed anything. --Tha Reckoning 04:25, 25 June 2009 (UTC)

I take that back, it's gotten bad lol --Tha Reckoning 04:13, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

1) Run windows update/software update(s) to make sure your computer is up to date. 2) Check for dust in computer 3) Google For Speed fan 4) Google Broadband fix 5) Give up :P. As its never really laggy here, in Edmonton, Alb, Can. (Far from server). I get 90-400ms and live with it, I never notice it. Once in a blue moon I will have issues but are fixed after a day. Or bug to your ISP to diagnose your connection. Dominator Matrix 04:19, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

Or add more hardware or fix the hardware in the data center. Too many people are having lag issues for it to be a (or entirely be a) user issue. -Drakora 04:57, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, I sent a support ticket after a pretty brutal mass lag spike earlier today. A number of people in my Fort Aspenwood match stalled for a bit and guild chatter indicated it had hit an Alliance Battle match at the same time. Running Windows updates etc. isn't likely to improve anything under such circumstances. -- WarBlade 06:54, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

Yeah I was either in AB or doing a vanq right then. --Tha Reckoning 07:01, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

Arguing back and forth doesn't solve anything. It's been noted by a mass of people that it exists. We're wondering how it'll be fixed. @Gaile, I haven't heard anything from my support ticket over a week ago. Should I send in a second to make sure it got there? Also, do you know the ST's current stance on this issue? Has any other information come in? Magic Talk 22:03, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

Alright.. It's been a week. No word. No updates. And now I'm beginning to get pissed. The latency has gotten worse. Again, it's not lagging while you play, but rather a sudden disconnect/network error. Now, it's getting to the point that when I enter my password to login, the little loading pop-up shows up.. and it practically stalls out. If by chance I can log in, I'm dropped within 2 minutes. It's not my ISP. I can both load wepbages with easy (though wiki seems to be bogging down too) as well as play other online games. It's not my computer. I run anti-virus sweeps multiple times a week. My computer is clean. No dust in it, on the surface it sets on, or anywhere around it. The Dragon Festival is currently running and as I've stated in other places of the wiki, this is my favorite event. Hopefully everyone else has run because I can't play it. I've spent over $250 on my account.. I'd expect it to work. Gaile works for the Support Liason does she not. If she can't help me, she need to redirect me to someone who can. [Though I'm pissed hopefully I didn't come off as to much of an asshole. :S] Magic Talk 01:31, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Can't verify this, but I think I read someplace that Gaile has been on vacation for a bit, mate. --Tha Reckoning 01:37, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Yeah, she's away still. Magic: The "someone who can" will be Support. You really need to be getting straight onto them if the trouble is that bad. -- WarBlade 05:58, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

Fwiw, my latency has slowly gotten better since the update, haven't really had problems during the festival, even though the game was unplayable after the 18th. Rose Of Kali 18:33, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

I've been seeing the same. A gradual easing of latency troubles until the game got back to its old self again. I had one problem patch during a bout of Dragon Arena matches, that was simultaneously experienced by about quarter to half of the players in the same match (AKA temporary network issue), but otherwise Guild Wars is running well again. -- WarBlade 23:27, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Magic -- if you're still experiencing issues, could you please refresh your support ticket? (Do not send a new one, please, but simply update the existing ticket and request further assistance.) Let me know if/when this is sorted for you, please. -- Gaile 17:48, 14 July 2009 (UTC)

I think the game, in general, has been acting a little weird since the end of the Dragon Festival. I've seen mobs not attacking as I killed them, terrible lag and rubberbanding, etc. I, too, know that my PC isn't overheating as I have 3 230mm fans, a 140mm fan and a cooling van device that fits into a 5.25" expansion bay running that are keeping the PC nice and cool (as confirmed by BIOS and an admin tool). Bandwidth tests and user experience indicate that the lag I've experienced has nothing to do with my internet connection / service provider. Thought I'd mention it, not sure if there's any value in that. Pkohler01 03:51, 20 July 2009 (UTC)

Permanent Bans

Hi again, got a question about something i've been wondering about.

Well i've been thinking about permanent bans. And my question is, might sound stupid, how long does a perma ban last? I'm asking this because in some games i've played, a perma ban refers to a long-term ban from somewhere between 3 months to 6 years, or for a unknown amount of time. In other games i've heard it results in your account beeing deleted or the ability to play online on secure servers would be taken away.

I've never been banned in a game, and I intend to keep it that way, so I don't know if it's true or not of what was beeing said. I'm just curious, people would also be able to document it here.

The only reason i'm asking this is because I just like to know things, even if it's useless to me. Qaletaqa Hania 06:37, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

I figure permanent bans last until whichever company running the game unbans the person, or a glitch in the servers cause the person to be unbanned. --Riddle 07:02, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

@Ezekial Riddle: You said, "I figure permanent bans last until whichever company running the game unbans the person", that's obvious offcourse but I wanna know if Anet has a specific amount of time in mind. And about this: "a glitch in the servers cause the person to be unbanned", that's very unlikely to happen but it's possible, and I think i've seen it happen once on a large scale, i'm sure i've seen the opposite. Qaletaqa Hania 07:35, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

I've seen the latter happen on an internet forum after it had upgraded software. I don't think ArenaNet will disclose the length (if there is a defined length) of a permanent ban. I think the reasons for this should be obvious, but if you're curious, hit me up on my talk page. --Riddle 07:59, 20 June 2009 (UTC)

Before I answer, please keep in mind, we have blocks, which are temporary, and we have account terminations (aka "bans") that are permanent. Now, in Guild Wars, we don't generally use the term "perma-ban" or ban, but we do use the term "account termination." And account terminations are intended to be permanent. I don't really know why anyone would call something permanent when it's temporary. ;) I mean, even six months or a year isn't permanent, is it?

There are two kinds of account terminations: Accounts closed for player misbehavior, and accounts closed to keep them secure. The ones involving security might be accounts in dispute, perhaps via an account theft, shared access, or two people claiming to own the same one. We "lock down" that account and consider it permanently closed until the legitimate owner contacts us with sufficient proof of ownership. At that time, we unlock the account and he or she regains full access and help in securing the account, if needed. (And of course there's no penalty on the account holder for the closure or reinstatement -- we just do it to protect players.)

Very few players whose accounts are terminated for disciplinary issues -- like cheating, scamming, botting, gold sales, hacking, etc. -- will be reinstated. But I'm sure you're aware that we do review terminations, and we do respond to appeals. We've definitely reversed cases where we discover an error, such as someone accidentally getting flagged for botting. On the other hand, I don't think we've ever reinstated someone who has been found to be involved in Real-Money sales, advertising, or deliveries.

So, to make it short: for the most part in Guild Wars, perma means permanent. :) -- Gaile 00:51, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Good one. Ban Form, any one ? Yseron - 90.9.123.176 01:03, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

@Gaile: That clears it up for me, now I have one thing less on my mind :). Also gotta add that players called it a perma-ban if they were banned for a longer time because they would just buy or make a new account.

@Yseron: Ban Form, good one, but that won't change a thing. Qaletaqa Hania 05:11, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Why should it have to change something ? Yseron - 81.251.150.39 10:30, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

It doesn't have to change anything but why would you ask/suggest such a thing then? If it doesn't change a thing then there would be no point for it to be made. Qaletaqa Hania 21:09, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

What is a ban form? -- Gaile 21:11, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

A ban form, would be something like an appeal form, standard questions wich could proof your innocence.

Example question: Were you aware that selling in-game items and/or gold is against the EULA?

Thats all, do you understand it now Gaile? It's the shortest answer I could give, don't really wanna explain it in detail because I have a serious headache today, from stress. Qaletaqa Hania 21:19, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

The Support Team deals with players on an individual basis. I don't see where such a form would be helpful and I don't see where a form could prove innocence, not really. The team member asks the questions he or she needs to ask, and moves forward with resolution based on the answers received and often in discussion with fellow team members. We've more than 6,000,000 accounts, and the system seems to be working quite well as it is. :) -- Gaile 21:25, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Sry, I forgot to mention something. A ban form could also ask the opposite, as why you think someone should be banned.

Response to your latest entry here: That's exactly why I think such a form would be useless, also forms are definatly not something that is needed because there is a support website wich can already be seen as a simple, interactive form. The support members ask the questions there. So basically i'm just agreeing with what you just said. Qaletaqa Hania 21:30, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Oh a side note, which is off topic: "6,000,000 accounts"? Guild Wars has six million accounts or 6,000,000 products sold? I find it hard to believe there are 6,000,000 accounts considering this household alone holds 13 products over 5 accounts (if products refer to the campaigns and expansions and nothing else like skill pets, character slots etc) unless you consider trial accounts however that number may be 'accurate'. ~~000.00.00.00~~ 21:52, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

Game accounts. Not users, you're right, as some people have multiple accounts. But other purchases -- like character slots, makeover packs, or storage panes -- are not included in the number when a company mentions "units sold," as in this press release. As you will note, it calls out "sold," and therefore that number would not include demo or trial accounts. -- Gaile 21:58, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

And hey, you're welcome to contact the Community Team any time, if you have questions about such things. They're the ones who know the most about numbers and press releases and so forth. :) -- Gaile 21:58, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

All i was thinking about was 'Ban Form' like 'Shadow Form', you know, "Perma LFG...". People think too much. Yseron - 90.15.62.153 22:58, 21 June 2009 (UTC)

*smacks forehead* I get it now. :D -- Gaile 00:22, 22 June 2009 (UTC)

Lol, i'll follow you Gaile with the smacking of the forehead hehe. And sry Yseron for the misunderstanding, and indeed i'm someone that thinks to much. Qaletaqa Hania 08:40, 22 June 2009 (UTC)