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Comments
If you say that buying artefacts are like buying professional equipment as opposed to just using amateur equipment... you can say that about most scripts too!
There's only one reason that offensive automation isn't 100% against the rules, and that's because we've not been thrilled at the idea of trying to catch people doing it. Maybe it's reached a point where we will just outlaw it though. Then there's no comparison at all: Artefacts aren't against the rules of the game, whereas offensive automation would be.
It's simply the evolution of the PK meta. Classleads assume perfect execution because we CAN augment our actions with scripts. It's much like when queuing and server side aliases came to the forefront of PK. Queuing is only meant to queue one action at a time, but because we can command stack serverside aliases, we can circumvent that limitation.
Combat is evolving, and the landscape of the game is evolving because of it. Achaea's combat is more complex than ever, but still has a solid core baseline that anyone that learn. There is no denying that the evolution of current mechanics has at least something to do with PK scripting (both defensive and offensive). For all the nay-saying of it, no one ever looks at the fact that it's had at least a minor cause many imbalanced mechanics to be fixed, new mechanics to be born, and a hearty list of varying combat styles. For instance, within each class, many people are adapting new and exciting strategies at least in part to the collective increase in scripting knowledge. I know that teaching myself how to use tables alone changed the way fight, as well as the way I display vital information on my screen.
Just to be clear, I'm not trying to condone the stance of "all 'automation' is evil." I just have trouble understanding why anyone who truly enjoys the complexities of Achaean combat could grow so stale in their mindset while the combat scene evolves by leaps and bounds.
@Sarapis: I still don't see how you could ever enforce that rule. It's completely possible for someone to emulate script-enhanced offense totally manually. Rules that cannot be enforced are meaningless.
It's just that the boat long ago sailed on defensive automation to the point where we had to implement server-side curing. If we had an effective way to simply blanket ban all automation, I'd pull the trigger (heh) on that instantly, believe me.
Thank god scripts have a large weakness where people rely on them greatly and I can adjust my defense accordingly. If I didn't have above like a 90% win rate against auto offense I'd probably quit the game.
To be fair, manualing vs automation in Achaea at this point is the difference between being used to your aliases and setting up a system to handle it better.
Personally my alias list for bm is.. ^(1)(r|e|w|ws|a|as|s|ss|d|ds|sw|zs|z|xs|x|q|1)(s|w|r|e|n|q|p|k|ey|h|t|f|c|g|1|a|d|u)$
Now the difference between automation and the above? Pretty much that I have to hit 2-3 less buttons to do exactly what I was going to do to start with.
And as far as aim bot vs achaea. Aim bot requires moving and adjusting your view. While Achaea is pure entering commands to do different things.
For the record I don't really like Automation, but it makes the game a hell of alot easier than trying to remember the 25 different alias's I have for venoms alone.
Well, we already ban automation in gold generation, kind of, so it's not as if there isn't a precedent there. Enforcing it is the only reason combat automation isn't banned. The occasional high-profile perma-shrubbing would certainly put a damper on peoples' willingness to do things like try to automate group affliction tracking though. We'd never get rid of it entirely, just like PC FPS games can't get rid of aimbots permanently, but they can certainly ban people when they catch them using them. In fact, aimbot developers actually make their aimbots sub-optimal so as to make being caught less likely for the user - if you just got headshots every time someone was in view, you'd be caught too easily.
And of course, we could also legally go after people distributing combat systems for money (not much we could do about people giving them away) if using them was against our rules. See this victorious suit by Jagex (Runescape's developer) against bot developers, winning on all counts. http://mmofallout.com/jagex-wins-lawsuit-against-bot-makers/
Or this one by Blizzard, who won a $7 million judgment against bot makers for WoW. http://www.gamespot.com/articles/blizzard-wins-7-million-in-bot-company-lawsuit/1100-6415695/
If I want to play an action game with pure reflexes and skill involved, I'll go play something with graphics and better UI for that. Probably a fighting game or a MOBA.
Most of my scripts are informational-based, now that there's server-side curing, I do very little automation outside of minor quality things, like my strikes are triggered to successful slashes to prevent me from using actual balance when I only want to use BM strike balance.
Yet it's still how I try to bridge the gap against people who threw thousands of dollars into the game.
I just wouldn't have to deal with that gap in another game, and wouldn't have to deal with Achaea's limited UI either.
Way long time ago.
Now I use Svo for curing (and still die).
And a few combo aliases I wrote (some with help, some without help) for trying to kill (and mostly failing).
That really is more pure to me.
Yes, knowing what to do with the information is a large part of how I hope / assume people are using the trackers - but it is more realistic for me to flail and try to figure things out on the fly.
It is better RP, frankly.
If I wanted a game where it was only about who could kill how many people the fastest, I would not be playing Achaea.
Yet, I have watched Achaea morph away from an environment rich in many different ways to play into something akin to a FPS except it is a Team FPS.
I don't like it, but have not gotten caught up in it. Have refused to, in fact.
Thankfully, I think Achaea is still the closest thing to a varied and open RP environment, where, for the most part, people can choose their own path to personal goals.
I'll still be Prythe. I'll still RP. Even though I am being cockblocked seven ways to Sunday right now to actually be able to play and enjoy the fruits of my labors and hard earned (and spent) gold and greenbacks.
I won't change class just 'cause the cool kids do not grok what RP is or means or why 110% lockstep would be a very bad thing for the game, for IRE, and for Matt's pocketbook.
I won't create/play an alias and abandon my character like so many others because it is easier to do things that way....
Who started this thread?
- To love another person is to see the face of G/d
- Let me get my hat and my knife
- It's your apple, take a bite
- Don't dream it ... be it
I have high faith that you would never cross that line just to make a point, @Sarapis
Significantly though, it would potentially force scripters to run sub-optimal bots, which would lower the gap between people fighting without substantial assistance and those fighting with it.
What is the definition of 'Automated'?
Is it mashing one button over and over to kill someone?
Is it pre-envenoming in a specific order?
Is it choosing which venoms to add to your weapons based off of a pre-generated list that you've made?
I'm 100% curious at where the line is drawn, as most everyone at a mid-tier and above have aliases/macros that do a number of things at once.
Hell, my lunge macro does:
send("clearqueue all")
send("queue add eqbal stand")
send("queue add eqbal lunge " ..target)
send("queue add eq engage " ..target)
I'm just curious as to where the line is drawn between the two, because the reality of it today is pretty candid: Understanding what to do is the first step. Scripting it to do exactly what you want it to is the second.
The problem is that people can bypass step 1 and just buy someone else's script/code, and it works the same. They might not understand why, but it does.
On the flipside to that, however, is what if they do understand it, and wrote a script that does exactly what they want it to? Is it automation because they're not hitting 12 macros, and instead hitting one? How about two?
Genuinely curious!
"You have to learn the rules of the game. And then you have to play better than anyone else."
-Albert Einstein
For example, my own aff tracking simply tracks what affs I've given and what cures they've eaten. I can then either use an alias to modify my aff selection when it's critical to land a particular aff at a time when I'm ready for it or continue to assume things with the information the script tracks and I've witnessed.
I have no doubts that the highest profile players do something similar using a tool they've created themselves.
Also, anyone remember trying to teach old serpent to a novice? Yeah, good luck. The difficulty and skill required caused those who could, to adopt other manners of combating the problem. Evolution at its finest
As for outlawing offense tracking, I don't see it doing much. Proving it would be ridiculously difficult. I am definitely not opposed to it, though. Good luck. Though I definitely get a lot of satisfaction out of coding. I feel like my efforts are better served contributing something useful to Achaea as a whole. If you outlaw it, it will be turned into a blackmarket item by those unwilling to follow the rules in place. Like I said, if the admin take a strong stance on offense tracking, mine will no longer be hosted or updated. The damage of offense tracking was done the second one began being sold openly and no one stepped in saying, "No, you can't do that. " It's a bit late to curb it, in my opinion, but if you choose to, I will do everything I can to help.
That is why it is called "manual". You need to use your hands.
Not complaining though. That death felt nice........ (Well, that's what Aerosi would say <.>)
This would certainly upset a lot of people, though.