Be careful with bad jokes in WoW Classic. They can also lead to a ban that can last quite a long time.
In World of Warcraft Classic, players are regularly banned. Usually, it affects bots and cheaters, but occasionally a few innocent players are removed from the game as well. Recently, there was a case that caused a stir on Reddit. A player was banned for making a joke – one that was quite obviously recognizable as such.
What happened? The user giganticmom posted in the WoW Classic subreddit a message from a Game Master that he had received. It explains why his game account was suspended for 7 days. The Game Master stated that there was a violation of the in-game rules because giganticmom had written in the chat that he “possessed a fly hack and had unlimited ammunition”.
Is the ban justified?
What exactly did he do? As the player admits in the subreddit, he had a macro that he would occasionally use in the trade channel as an “obvious” fake offer. His macro reads (translated) as follows:
WTS ZG boost for 15 gold 鳄鱼 (River Crocolisk) and 虎 (Wild Cat), I am the second most professional player ever. Still 1 spot left, I have a fly hack and unlimited ammunition AND I AM NOT A BOT
Is the reaction appropriate? It is hard to say. For most players, it seemed relatively obvious that the macro was just a joke. After all, hardly anyone would advertise that they are “only” the second most professional player ever.
However, encouraging the use of hacks and cheat tools is prohibited and can result in penalties – just as has occurred in this case. After all, Blizzard does not want such programs to be mentioned. Because that could lead players to become interested and ultimately resort to such hacks themselves. It would therefore be indirect advertising.
This may seem a bit surprising, as players using bots and hacks are a constant topic in the general channels, yet it fundamentally does not comply with the rules.
The Game Master also mentions that previous penalties are taken into account when applying new ones. Whether giganticmom’s account had been previously flagged is unclear, but it would explain the severity of this penalty for a “joke”.
This is how other players react: Other players are hilariously amused by the Game Master’s reaction and the reason for the ban. They find it interesting that players are banned for obvious jokes, while actual bots continue to roam freely in the game. Zarianin, for instance, says:
I really can’t decide what my favorite part of the GM’s response is:
1. That he says they want to keep the game fun for everyone while banning a player who is making a joke
2. His question that you should participate in a survey to rate him, even though he admits that his response seems drastic.
3. Or that he banned you for pretending to have hacks, while actual hackers get away with it every day.
There is more drama currently around the opening of Ahn’Qiraj – many accounts are getting bans there, but for different reasons.
Have you ever been punished for a bad joke in one of the channels? Or have you never experienced anything like that?
