What are Ebayers?Follow

I hear a lot of guys wanting to ban "ebayers"..Who are they and what do they do?

and characters.

^^^ agree.

Since the question was asked in all innocence let's not turn this into another rant thread like the last. That is chock-full or arguments about the EULA etc,etc and repeating them here isn't going to accomplish much.


In case the OP wonders why people want these people banned there are two separate reasons.

First is the fact that if people sell their characters then someone will buy them. In general terms a person who buys a high level character in a game where they have no experience of playing is not an asset to the game. "E-bay" became a general insult for incompetence in EQ and I'm sure other games.

Second is that if there is a market in RL cash for in-game items then it means that some people will pay the game as a means of earning that cash - effectively the game becomes their job. Such people tend to be less than fully considerate of other players since they are not in it for the enjoyment - just the cash.

It has yet to be seen how much effect this can have on EQ2 as yet. SoE seem to have tried fairly hard to make it unrewarding for such but I don't think it can be prevented. There will always be a market for people who want short-cuts. There was a level 8 in Antonica the other day whining that it "wasn't fair" that horses were so expensive and "how was he supposed to get around". That is the sort of person who will buy in-game currency if they can afford it.

"make a big deal"
"It's just the way it goes"
"If soe really didn't want those things done <they would stop them>"
"It's my money...my choice"

Phrases like these are typically the rationalizations that folks give to substantiate something they know is poor practice.
It is a big deal...because as someone just said earlier...to the folks who make money off this type of activity it is a business, one they take seriously and it ceases to be a game.
This is not "just the way it goes" damn it. If you accept things you don't like "just because" that's the way it is, then you let your rights and enjoyment of something get tainted by the less-ethical folks out there (and there are plenty of them on these on-line games).
SOE "allowing" something is not the same as them endorsing it. Their EULA is only a form/contract as good as the person agreeing to it. Violating it and not suffering any immediate consquences is not the same as acceptance that it is ok. Stealing someone's automobile because they left the keys in the ignition does not make it ok. Because you can..does not mean you should.
And yes, it is your money and your choice...but your rights end where mine begin. Play all the single player games out there you want, but bring criminal practices and unethical playing styles to a game where thousands are any given night, and your actions do affect others. I have met very few people who openly admitted they got their character or items from Ebay, and the ones who did admit it, didnt want to take the time to learn the game...they just wanted to have the stuff. Stay out of my way if you fit in the latter category.

OK, all the ethical discussion aside, the simplest definition of an Ebayer is someone who bought their character account. This usually results in someone playing a high level character, but having no idea how to really play that character. I, myself was given my primary account about 4 years ago by my friend who wanted to get me into EQ (thanks for starting me down the road of EQ addiction, Svetlana, heh). That account had a level 51 wizard on it. That character is still level 51, as I never really got the feel of playing it. The only thing I learned by playing that wizard was how to make level 52, and then get killed and lose a level, about 50 times!
Subaru, I totally agree with your comments, especially your last paragraph. If I had decided to make that wizard my main, I would have been a terrible wizard. As it is, the only times I log her on are to port people to Hate or Sky...
So, I went on to create my own druid, and worked long and hard to level him to 67. I have the satisfaction of earning each and every level, and as a result, can play the druid well. So, if you see a high level toon being played badly, it's probably an Ebayer.

Edited, Tue Jan 11 00:42:47 2005 by Warrenmjr

Edited, Tue Jan 11 00:39:53 2005 by Warrenmjr

I've never e-bayed, but I just don't see the big deal. I wouldn't do it, because it wouldn't be fun for me.

But if I had tons of cash and really wanted to play game x, and my friends in that game were high level, I would definitely consider it. What's the big problem?

Yes its usually unfortunate when that player who doesn't know how to play the character ends up in your group. The solution is to boot them for being incompetent.

So you earned your weapon and that guy bought his, so what? You can take pride in your efforts, he can't. Why is that such a big deal?

Why did you let his playing style ruin your enjoyment of your achievements? That doesn't make any sense to me.

In EQ2, if some guy buys 100pp or whatever on E-bay, and buys the most expensive house and the most expensive horse, and the most expensive equipment and weapons, it will have 0 effect on me. I will still enjoy the game as I play it. If he ends up in my group and brags about his stuff, I simply won't group with him anymore. Other than that he really can't affect me more than any other player can.

You choose how you react. You choose to tolerate bad players - and not all bad players are e-bayed, some just simply suck at playing their class.

In EQ1 there was a cleric I grouped with that would never sit down, she made me heal (I was a shaman), because she wanted to melee the whole time, but didn't tell us this until after the LDON started. The group didn't invite her to melee, they invited her for her superior healing abilities. After the LDON was over (we barely made it, my mana pool wasn't really up to a hard ldon healing), we split up, because of her. Then some of us reformed and found a cleric that actually healed.

She wasn't e-bayed, I remember her sucking like this back in the 20s too, but gave her another try in the 40s. She still sucked. She was just a bad player, she had obviously picked the wrong class and wasn't willing to start over.

The point is, bad players aren't all e-bayed, and not all e-bayed chars are badly played (I can give examples of this too).

A poorly played char is just that, poorly played. If they are in your group, get rid of them. If they are nearby causing havoc, move on to some other instance or another zone.

You can only control your reactions and behavior, not anyone elses.

I understand the point you are making Ianini, I think I do anyway.

But once again, please explain 2 things to me:

1. how do you tell the difference between an e-bayer and an incompetent? And what difference does it make whether they can't play worth a crap or just got the char two hours ago? Actually the e-bayer has more potential, they still might learn how to play the char well, the incompetent has been that way for a while and still can't play!!

2.


Only if you let it make you feel cheated. Only if you let it upset you. Why does someone else getting handed stuff affect how you feel about accomplishing that same item on your own?

I quested the Berik sword (for those that don't know, a fairly decent 1hs weapon that's an involved quest reward). If my buddy who plays the same class as me gets a different sword off the broker, and that sword is better than my Berik, do I feel cheated? No. I worked hard for my sword and am proud of being able to have a pretty decent sword that I got on my own. His weapon, whether its better or not, has no effect on my enjoyment.

That sort of envy I've seldom understood. If player x is able to get a bunch of plat because they figured out that quest such and such makes for real good cash, and they buy a nice weapon and a horse and whatver, why would that matter to me? That's what I don't get.

I know I worked for everything I have, and am happy in my achievements, what other people do or don't do has no impact on me. I'm never first at anything, I'm never the first to earn that level or that item or that tradeskill etc. It doesn't bother me. I play to have fun, what other people do doesn't make a difference.

Don't let it mess with your head and it won't!!

All very excellent points that people should remember. whether this issue is right or wrong, these things Eater mentions are what really should count to you.


One more thing... can someone explain this "botting" to me? is it a program that people have come up w/ that will play for you while you are afk? how does it know right when the mob will spawn? say its a tough mob w/ 8 creatures, how can a group (that the mob isn't grey to) successfully take such a mob if they are not actually at their keyboards and not coordinated in their efforts?

Edited, Thu Jan 13 13:02:33 2005 by EQbubs

botting has many definitions.

Some people use botting to mean a character is being played while afk, but that's not the more common definition.

Usually botting or hydraing or boxing (there's loads of terms for it) is used to indicate a character that isn't being played full time, as in, you play two characters at once, you are botting one of them. They aren't going to be played to full potential, they are often "healbots", i.e. a healer class that just follows a fighter around and throws a heal occasionally.

Those of us that enjoy botting think its great, there's some out there that treat botters like lepers.

Pros:
I can "solo" a lot more
I don't need to worry about some idiot getting me killed
I can do the quests/activities I want to do, when I want, I don't have to accomodate other people

Cons:
Some say that a bot is taking a "legitimate" players place in the group
Some botters feel comfortable taking loot for each char, which makes some non-botters very angry
Some say that since the bot isn't played to full potential (you can't pay full attention to two chars) that they aren't contributing

However, many bot players respond that without their healerbot, the group wouldn't have any healer.

Most healerbots will be removed from a group if a "real" player comes along.

A lot depends on the attitudes of the botter and the other people, how open you are, how you deal with loot, etc.

Now, I am pro-bot personally, but I understand some of the things botters do that annoy non-botters (loot is a biggie).

I read about 6-botters, I mean a real guy that has 6 computers with 6 chars set up, not the macro thing that people are screaming about. I think that's a bit insane :)

EQ1 I 3 botted, once I even 4 botted, EQ2 I'm 2 botting and having a ton of fun too!