Grief players in UO... what they don't want you to know.

Hobbes

Listed below is a communication to the Game Masters on Grief Tactics, and what is and is not legal. It is important for Game Masters to all be consistent on this issue, and it is also important for the Counselors to know what to expect as well. This information should be considered confidential, and not released to people outside of the program. Please distribute this to the counselors so that we are all on the same page.

Working definition:

Grief tactics: Behavior designed to ruin the enjoyment of Ultima Online for other players by use of game mechanics. In some instances, a distinction is made between this happening on Trammel and Felucca. GMs are less tolerant of grief tactics on Trammel, and a legal behavior on Felucca may not be legal on Trammel.

Types of grief tactics:

Standing on a ghost so that the player cannot be resurrected.

Luring monsters and then hiding so that it kills other players. (once or twice is okay, but if it is an ongoing problem, the player should be told to stop).

Opening a trade window so players cannot loot their corpse.

Tricking a player into your guild so you can then pk him. Doing this to newbies is not acceptable.

Tricking a new player into joining a party for the sole purpose of looting and keeping his/her items.

Releasing tamed monsters (dragons, nightmares, etc) in populated areas so that it kills many players. (Illegal on Trammel, Legal on Felucca).

Gating players to stuck locations or places where they die instantly (two tile islands, mushroom patch).

Trammel: Players jumping on someone's boat in Trammel. Owner cannot attack or do anything about it (Trammel). Legal on Felucca.


Blocking movement

Friending players to houses and then blocking them inside with locked down items

Blocking off areas with boats, furniture, etc so that players cannot pass in a reasonable manner.

Result:

Typically a player will be warned not to continue this type of behavior.

Any time a Game Master has an interaction with a player like this, it should be clearly noted on the player's history. If the offending player has a history of troublemaking, the account should be suspended for review. Grief tactics should be considered exploits, and can result in account closure if combined with other offenses.

The reason I say "once or twice is okay" in some situations is because a GM should establish a pattern of grief tactics. If a player lures a poison elemental once, it may be coincidence or accident. But if it keeps happening, there is a pattern, and that means it is an ongoing problem that a GM needs to address. Grief tactics are not exactly the same as exploits. In a situation involving grief tactics, a GM should go to the scene and evaluate the situation. If a player is doing something that is really disruptive to game play, or downright nasty, a GM should tell them to stop (examples of these are in my original email). If a player continues at that point, the player is in violation of the rules, by not following the directive of a Game Master. You can reference http://support.uo.com/gm_0.html <http://support.uo.com/gm_0.html&gt; if a player will not comply:

"It is important to understand that there are times when a GM might ask you to stop doing something, or may ask that you do something differently. Please remember that if a GM asks you to do something, they are asking for the benefit of the game and the community. We must ask that you comply with any request a GM may have of you. Even if a policy is not listed, you should still do as a GM asks. Should you disagree with the GM, or feel they are not being fair, you should pursue this through e-mail with Origin. We will review the actions of the GM and the circumstances of their request. Please do not argue with the GM or make repeated calls into the queue to discuss the matter further. This only hampers the GMs ability to help other players within the game."

Thanks.

GM Canyon

UO Player Relations Training Lead

Chance of Baja