Bots annoy the hell out of me, in an unholy synthesis of the annoyances of rampant imm cheating of the distant past (Shriners!), and the inevitably enhanced knowledge of anyone who builds or imms. I don't begrudge the builders: they do the work, and the knowledge they glean is small payment for some of the zones we have. However, botting allows players to figure zones they wouldn't otherwise be able to access without taking other real people along to help. This furthers the 'elitist' aspect of this game, far and away the least attractive of the various blemishes which hold this game back. An example:
I've been Myth for over a decade. A few years ago, one of our major leaders of the wipe (a recent addition to the clan) multi'd through an entire wipe, dirtying our groups with both his characters regularly, and using the cleric/scout combination to explore a new high-end zone without exposing anyone else to the knowledge. Now, at this point, he'd involved a (mostly) unknowing clan in his cheating. For anyone who watched the Harpers get mass-deleted, this is a major problem. However, an honest player, concerned about enriching his clan, would have explored the new high-end zones with other clannies, strengthening the clan and enhancing play for everyone. This is a social game, and at its' best when it *is* social. This cheater's actions harmed the game for everyone on multiple levels, for an entire wipe.
Here's the problem. While people bot openly and receive no punishment, the bot will win. The previously described player did this for almost a year, in a major clan with no fewer than 3 imms who played regularly *with this player*, and nobody said anything. Why? Because he was our best-geared healer, he equipped himself, and due to his botting, he was one of the few people who could lead this new, high-end zone. Exactly 2 people in the clan thanked me for reporting him: a few people happily supported his plans to pk me once a week 'until I quit playing'.
Players will not enforce the rules as long as they can gain comparative advantage by abusing them. Saying that the imms don't know who the bots are is patently ridiculous: of the last 3-4 logs on Sufs, at least half of one side has been filled by known bots. These bots were known as such a couple months ago when I played actively, under the same names, by *every person who ever grouped with them*. It's not subtle: they stack commands like pardons without a prompt in between. The imms I reported them to (multiple) simply had no more bapts to give, though. Nobody cares.
And as long as nobody cares, the cheaters will continue to prosper.
Jason
Fyre/Siobhain/Hoodoo/etc.
