Patch 5.4 patch notes
Virtual Realms feature revealed
The Proving Grounds are coming
The latest patch 5.4 newsMass bannings strike Glider users
by Eliah Hecht 
May 20th 2008 at 8:00PM
We've gotten more tips on this than any other topic in recent memory: apparently many users of the popular WoW botting program Glider have been hit with the ban hammer, including some of our very own readers. You may recall Glider as the company with whom Blizzard is currently embroiled in a lawsuit (does the word "embroil" have any use other than lawsuits?). The Glider forums are abuzz with comments and complaints, to which I can only reply "QQ." Botting is clearly against the EULA, the spirit of the game, and the best interests of the other players. Yes, I would be sad if I got banned, but honestly, anyone who was botting had it coming.
There are various objections to be made to this stance. Most of the people who wrote in claim to have been botting in order to bypass the tedious leveling process. I agree that it can be boring to level 1–70 multiple times, even with the new, faster 20–60 process. However, that doesn't make it OK to cheat. Others claim that with fewer bots in the system, the supply of primals will be reduced and therefore the price will go up; I'm not much of a WoW economist, so I'll leave that to others. But to this blogger, banning botters can only be interpreted as a good thing: some cheaters got what they deserved. Whether you agree or disagree, please feel free to sound off in the comments. And if you are a botter yourself, and haven't gotten banned yet, I'd advise you to stop -- they're clearly getting serious about this.
Filed under: Cheats, News items
Reader Comments (Page 9 of 10)
Rking May 28th 2008 11:22AM
I don't bot, and never have... But i don't care if people do, it isn't a big deal if someone makes a way to farm honor, report them in BGs but i know a couple people that botted for leather or primals, they didn't sell there gold or there toons they just hated grinding.... My account got banned during this ban wave, i'm assuming gettin ingame mail or playing in my appt with guys that did "glide" but it is bull shit for you to call it cheating.... So all you that hate "botters" should realize that someone very talented came up with a program to do that and it takes a lot of skill, so QQ about something that matters like blizzard ruining the game making every class equal.... And i may just get a new account just to bot it and say F YOU to bliz
isobelle May 22nd 2008 8:40PM
the most upset people are those defending "the right to grind thier lives away in the lame parts of wow"... and being pissed off at those that found their way around it.
by all means, go for it, we won't stop you
lol
Gryphon Hall May 23rd 2008 11:25PM
Again, we aren't upset. There's a difference between /cry and /cheer. You don't get the point. We responded with "Yeah, ban them; serves 'em right," and botters came up and said stuff like "WoW made me do it, so I shouldn't be banned" or "I don't want to waste my time leveling up; I want raid epics now!" and we just voiced our derision.
Why do botters (and their supporters) try to turn the tables to justify botters' position (by saying that botters complain less).
Dasha May 22nd 2008 9:41PM
Reading through the comments, oi... The people botting and openly admitting it please take the time to read this:
My mage whom I faithfully ground her to 70. I had her as a spellfire tailor. I went on my way up to 'farm' some primals. So, I get there and there's some pretty stiff competition for the elementals. So, I conjur myself up some water and biscuits, and off I go. Time after time I get an elemental ganked from me. Then as I'm now about ready to scream in utter frustration a Hunter who has been constantly ganking the elementals I've tried for goes "Food and Water" and opens a trade window with me. Not only did I cancel the trade, but sent them to Iggy land. I went on my faithful non epic flyer and went off to another area to farm. Again plenty out farming, I dig in only to have a farmer cuss me out in Chinese no less for ganking a kill by using ice lance. Pffft. To the spammers in SW, IF, and Darnassus.... My woopsies Infernal got loose and are gonna eat your greedy A.. (Yes, I have a Lock too)
If you are botting honor in the BG's and Arenas, oi vey. Welfare epics... Ok, I will say some are actually worth the effort. However, I managed to grind my way to the rank of Knight on my pre-BC Hunter. My eyes were typically bloodshot from the 5 AM AV's but, c'est la vie. It was my choice.
Question, using a real life example: Can you buy or bot yourself into a promotion or career field? Can the daily grind to make it to the top suck?
Why do you do it?
Because, if you want it bad enough you have to work for it. Same should apply for your fun time. WoW is an escape mechanism for me. I don't whine that I haven't saved up the 5k gold for the epic flyer. Am I working at it? Half assed would be my answer.
Phrog801's youtube song Ni Hou says a lot. "It's getting old..."
Immo May 24th 2008 3:23PM
I think its fair and i tbh had a big laugh when i read this post ^^ they got what they deserved and wow is now cleaned from Gliders "i hope" and all there is left to say to all u guys who got banned
HAHAHA
LiT May 24th 2008 8:53PM
Well, I got a friend who just got banned and I can't say that I'm sorry for him... He was always saying that he was bored with the game, that's why he botted, so I guess Blizz did him a favor.
tbh, it took me 2 years to get my main warlock to lvl 70, paying on and off with several other alts (my highest alt is a lvl 52 mage) and I'm still not bored with the game. Sure, it may get tedious at some point, but when I feel tired or overworked in general, I take a break from it for a couple of weeks and then come back.
So again, the real question is, why play if you are bored? Just give it up and don't ruin it for the rest of the players. And if you don't have the strength to give it up your self... then I guess Blizz will do it for you :)
Shockk May 26th 2008 3:32PM
i agree completely. thats what i do. i personally have 2 70s, and each took me a while to level, i dont remember exactly (the first was about 1.5 years), and whenever i felt that i was getting bored with the process of leveling, i simply did something else for 1-2 weeks. i played basketball, soccer, lacrosse, went to movies with friends more, in short, i got out more.
i dont view this as a bad thing. in fact, its a good thing. i love going out with my friends, and rather than cheating, i feel doing something outside the digital world is a much better alternative.
however, while i do think that botters should be punished, i agree with the earlier post that said botters should not get perma-banned on the spot. i think something like a week long ban, followed by a perma ban would be much better, even if botting by itself is a "warning" of sorts. this would be good especially for those who have never done anything wrong before, who have never earned so much as a warning. while my case may be different, some years back i got an account banned for 72 hours for excessive cursing. like..REALLY excessive. i learned my lesson, and i have controlled myself ever since, not getting so much as another warning. for those, however, who have repeatedly infringed on the ToS, maybe an instant perma-ban would be the best, as they have already gotten repeated warnings.
Nostradamus May 27th 2008 12:06AM
I have missed the BAN wagon a few years back as well as the what we glider users like to call [B]BLACK - TUESDAY[/B] Which hit alot of gliding ppl with the BAN WAGON.
bts0uth3 May 27th 2008 4:55PM
i used glider from 55-70 and made like 4k gold and got about 6 epics with it. didnt get banned :D
Nothing May 29th 2008 10:35AM
My wife and I both had our accounts banned in the wave. The problem is, we never ran any bots. We had 3 level 70s each, and 2 more toons each approaching 60. We had many epics and probably roughly 20k gold between us.
Now, did blizzard make a mistake? No, not exactly. You see, I have a son and he lives with my ex-wife. I let him play on my account when he comes over, but not on my computer. He has his own for that.
So he had his own toon on my account. He was playing and someone whispered him to check out Glider and gave him a URL. Now, he's 11. Even if he read the ToS he wouldn't understand it. This is the first MMO he's ever played. He knows nothing about bots etc. So, he starts it up one time, plays with the options can't get it to work, closes it out and goes on playing.
Next thing I know, boom...banstick. Not just for my account, but for my wifes too.
What utter bullshit. Am I going to get my accounts back? No, of course not, because Blizzard is full of shit and simply too big to care when they hideously wrong an individual. I'm not upset about being banned in the first place, I'm upset about their total refusal to listen to what I have to say and verify my facts against their data.
So, what's the point of telling you all of that? I hate the botters as bad as anyone. I wish they weren't there. But the sad fact of the matter is the only people that ban waves like this hurt are the people like me and the people who shouldn't have been banned at all in the first place. I won't be back. I'm way too disgruntled. I earned every honor point, every experience point, and every copper on all three of my 70s. To have it ripped away like that...well...let's just say I have no desire to do it again.
On the other hand, as several of the admitted botters above me have said, they do it for RL money and/or they don't actually care about their accounts. So, you know what? They'll be back. And for the few that decide they're done and don't come back, more will replace them.
So what has Blizzard accomplished by this huge ban wave that you're all cheering? Getting rid of a few hardworking players who were actually a benefit to the community. Sure, you might have a short respite while all the botters take 3 days - 1 week to get back to 70. But is that worth the permabanning of the 3-5% that didn't deserve a permaban? I don't think so, and if you do try putting yourself in the shoes of the banned.
Bynde May 30th 2008 11:16AM
I sympathize with you. Your banning was BS, but....
"So he had his own toon on my account. He was playing andsomeone whispered him to check out Glider and gave him a URL. Now,he's 11. Even if he read the ToS he wouldn't understand it. This isthe first MMO he's ever played. He knows nothing about bots etc. So,he starts it up one time, plays with the options can't get it towork, closes it out and goes on playing."
It is your responsibility to parent your child. No matter what happens it comes down to you as the parent. I know, I know...you can't be everywhere..and I agree that Blizzard needs to remove the ban hammer and get some ban tweezers.
And I agree that your attempt to explain your story to Blizzardshould have been honored. Not ignored. That bothers me alot.
I know, in your defense you can't put your kid on a leash 24/7, but it seems Blizzard has covered their bases by providing the EULA forall to read, even tho no one does, including me.
This is why we hear such things as "parental control", so that kids don't mistakenly do something that their parents will be sorry for.
Jameson May 28th 2008 4:18PM
I think we all pay for the same game, and unless youre doing something to seriously mess up the economy, or ruin the fun of other players, whats the point of banning you. People who go into low level areas with tier 6 armor just to grief, those people should be banned, even on a pvp server, Glide botting, pfft, that doesnt hurt anyone at all.
Nothing May 30th 2008 6:02PM
@170
You seem to have missed my point entirely. You'll notice that in my post I separated myself and those like me from the people who didn't deserve to be banned in the first place.
I'm not trying to dodge responsibility for my child's actions. Do I think a permaban is way too harsh? Yes. I think a permaban is way too harsh for any first time offender who obviously hasn't botted constantly. A 3 day ban would work just fine for those people. Then, if they do it again, ban them permanently.
However, that's all beside the point. The point is that Blizzard is accomplishing nothing with these huge ban waves. They aren't helping *anything*, and in fact, they are harming the community.
They don't get rid of any botters, or gold sellers, or anyone else that Blizzard is supposedly attempting to control.
If it's that much of a problem, then fix the reason why these people bot. For instance, if you could only trade gold between toons on your own account, but leave the auction house intact, much of the gold seller problem would go away. Yes, it would be inconvienent in some ways, but I'd prefer it to being spammed by gold sellers all the time.
Agree or disagree, there are better ways to deal with the problem than banning people, then refusing to listen to a perfectly valid explanation that is supported by facts.
Dean Jun 2nd 2008 9:24PM
check out this awesome shirt in response to the bans
http://www.cafepress.com/mmohumor
jay Jun 3rd 2008 5:49PM
I think car manufacturers should start doing this too. Anyone using a shortcut to get where they need to go should have their car repo'ed, you can't have cheating at driving. If you aren't willing to take the long way, then don't drive.
Chicken Jun 5th 2008 7:21AM
I agree with 'Nothing' - Quote:
"I'm not trying to dodge responsibility for my child's actions. Do I think a permaban is way too harsh? Yes. I think a permaban is way too harsh for any first time offender who obviously hasn't botted constantly.
A 3 day ban would work just fine for those people. Then, if they do it again, ban them permanently"
...
EVERYONE!! (And Yes that includes you, reading this) has done something sneaky, bad, corrupt or missleading in their time, Games/Life - Did you get a second chance? I have looked at a couple of so-called 'Cheats' for WOW, just to see what they actually do - NOT to power-level my alts or farm.. Just out of curiosity.
If WOW found me out and gave me a Permban for it - would that be just? Doubt it. Ever thrown a piece of litter on the floor? Illegal in quite a few places now - does the Police officer smack you with a £1000 fine (UK limit currently) or just give you a smack on the back of the head and give you a 5min lecture in public for it?
It's all about comprimise - WOW should hit the BIG GUNS and leave us 'time-less' (and sometimes stupid/nieve) peeps alone with a stern tellin! PS - I got a Warning from WOW because in another languge it sounded like a bad word!?!? - Acceptable as just a warning...
QDraw Jun 9th 2008 11:28PM
I don't BoT, but I know 2 people who do.
Imo, we pay monthly to play this game (Key word being 'play')
And yet I see nothing wrong with botting.
Hell, if you wanna pay £12.50 then another £5 for the Elite Glider, go ahead.
People forget it's freedom of choice.
I hate leveling with a passion (2 level 70's and a 52 alt on his way) yet I love the game more.
People bot because their lazy, bored, cant be bothered etc.
Up to them!
Let them!
So, everyone, shut up.
Let the Botters bot.
And go play your game.
It's their choice. Don't try and take that away from them by saying its 'immoral' or 'stupid' and whatnot.
Let them have their fun NOT playing, and you all go have fun playing it yourselfs.
Ubergoi Jun 11th 2008 9:39AM
You're an idiot. You've taken the legitimate points of this discussion and ignored them, while trying to make an arguement over the points that don't even matter.
If someone wants to bot and it doesn't bother the rest of us, no one would give a rat's ass one way or the other. People care (most people, not the moral crusaders) because it impacts their play.
Botting in AV screws the rest of us out of a good time even if you're on the winning side because there was less of a challenge.
Botting for farming purposes screws others out of nodes/mobs/etc.. because a bot doesn't need a piss break or doesn't get bored thus freeing up that area for people who are actually at their computers trying to play.
If you're botting on some remote locale far away from me and you never bother me or anyone else I couldn't care less that you're breaking the rules, it's your choice to screw up and it's your money you're spending on the glider and subscription fees while you're off AFK somewhere.
Just don't screw around with my time or anyone else's and you won't matter anymore except to Blizz.
chuckie Jun 10th 2008 5:30AM
Like most people here ive leved a good few alts the proper way and at times i must admit having a bot would have been great but i enjoyed leveling these alts and therefore contined to level them. On some classes(paladin for ex which for the life of me i cant get into to level) it can be really boring to level.
I wish that blizzard would do something about that like you get a "Free" toon for every 2 you have at level 70 or something would be cool to not have to level all the way up again just to make a toon for Bg's and Arenas.
chuckie Jun 10th 2008 5:34AM
You cant defending botting its cheating full stop. Sure its great for you raking in the gold mats and Xp but what the rest of us who have slog it out?
If you cant be bothered to level quit the game. But Blizzard should do something about the "Gap" there.