Excelsior

I just got jailed for apparently getting AFK checked standing in a dungeon with my pets on guard. I wasn't on UO i was on the internet checking facebook, yet i wasn't looting the monsters so this is not getting gold. Anyone else see a problem with getting afk checked for not doing anything?

Unlikes on Facebook.

4. Programs, macroing, exploiting:
c. When performing the following activities, you must not be away from keyboard: killing spawn (regular or champions), leveling weapons, fishing, gathering ore/wood/leather/wool/plants, or anything else that gains profit.

I believe you when you say you were on a web browser and not paying attention. It was over 5 minutes between the time +Nyx checked you and the time you responded to her. You still get tokens from kills, but that is besides the point. The rules specifically state no afk spawn killing. You were jailed for 20 minutes just so this encounter could be recorded and logged.

Everyone is afk checked when a staffer does their rounds. If the player is in a situation where they could potentially be afk while fighting mobs, harvesting materials, or leveling a weapon, then the staffer takes the time to see if there are any signs of the player being there and responsive. If it is questionable, then they do their check.

Everyone is held to the same standard when it comes to shard rules. If asking a player to follow the rules and take a warning in stride with a 20 minute jail time attached leads to losing a facebook like....then so be it.

Have a better night.

+V

+Veritas wrote:4. Programs, macroing, exploiting:
c. When performing the following activities, you must not be away from keyboard:

I wasn't away from the keyboard I was away from the UO screen responding to messages using the keyboard.

From the codex:

When killing spawn or leveling weapons: you need to be at the keyboard at all time. If you do not reply in a couple of seconds, it will be taken that you are AFK.

If you do not respond, you are 'afk' insofar as it pertains to the shard rules. Whether you are unresponsive because you are physically away from the keyboard, or if it's because you are tabbed out into another window, the result is the same. If you fail to respond to an afk check, you are considered afk and the situation is handled accordingly.

no worries reese, just a little hiccup in the game. i was jailed once for running to the bathroom. lol. now my bathroom is literally 8 steps away from the den. so i was gone for about 15 secs. it happens. yeah, i was mad for a night but i see their reasons for doing so. not trying to brown nose or anything; i'm just trying to say 'yeah i understand where your coming from'. i just brushed my shoulders off and learned if i'm gonna use the bathroom i just recall to town really quick. yeah i know that's hard to do fel side, but that's part of the game.

ah well. much lub reese. just brush ya shoulders off and pk someone in the pvp dungeon.

Im still rather new here but im gonna toss in my 2 cents. What appears to be happening is the old saying "A few bad apples ruin the whole bunch".

Apparently there has been a lot of trouble in the past with AFKers so drastic measures have to be taken. Some of these instances may appear petty on the surface but when you have a serious issue as we apparently have there really is no other choice.

that's why i brush it off. they are working very hard to insure fairness for weapon leveling, and it was my mistake for not being there. that was like a year ago.

I am on the boat with the afk checks for this one Reese. The afk killing, leveling, gathering and so on has gotten extremely out of hand. It does suck that you were nailed while checking facebook, but you cant blame the gms for doing their job. Next time, port away to a non mob spot and check facebook, or use dual monitors?

Don't get me wrong, I did get a laugh out of this but anyone who thinks they won't be in Reese's shoes before long is only fooling themselves. I will be honest, there are times when something happens in the house and requires me to leave my desk without thought and there I am standing in the middle of a dungeon and because of how ramped the afk stuff has become lately staff are starting to enforce the rules with a bit heavier hand. This means people who are not breaking that rule will be caught by that rule.

While this is not really a question for Reese but I have to wonder, if he was afk then he was not claiming probably and if he had a level 100 weapon in his hand then in this situation he was not resource gathering. I don't know the situation though, just saying.\

Good idea for a script though, much like the healing script.. this one checks to see if I haven't moved and if not it hides me.

You still get tokens, even if it's chump change to you. And with pets out even if you hide you still get tokens for their kills.

But that clarification aside - I'm kinda on the fence about the issue. I agree that the AFKing is running rampant, but its similar like what is happening to the internet these days. Draconian laws serve no purpose in the end - the people who want to cheat will find a way, while more 'innocent' (or semi-innocent rather) get the punishment. The quote "People willing to trade their freedom for temporary security deserve neither and will lose both."* comes to my mind.

*I think it was Franklin, but not sure.

Here is another 2 cents from me.

I have been afk checked at least 3 times now. In ALL 3 cases the statue (which ever GM it was) gave me fair chance to prove that I am not afk. They *know* that people are recall scripting to kill mobs. It is completely and totally allowed. They understand you might not be able to stop the script for a few seconds, and once you do you can answer the question(s) poised to you. I know this first hand because the status afk checked me and as I was trying to type the answer, I ported away. The statue simply followed me and asked it again. I was able to answer, it was satisfied and that was that.

If the statue gives you a fair chance (read: a few seconds, or maybe 3 tries) and you fail to prove you aren't afk, then the appropriate penalties follow. That's not draconian. Quoting Franklin does not apply here. +Colibri owns this server and you agreed to abide by the rules that were put in place when you decided to sign up to play on Excelsior. This isn't the same as the internet, or " My freedoms are being taken away." This is the GMs working to crackdown on the rampant afk leveling/gathering/etc that has been happening. I think that the rules were fairly stated in advance and people saw that certain rules were not being enforced as much.

If you do not agree/like/want to put up with the afk checks, either don't do something that is going to get you checked, or don't play. There is no one pointing a gun at your head stating you must play this game (at least, I would hope not). Enjoy while you play darnit, they are making things more and more fun with the dungeon revamps and whatnot !

Lol, I got popped last night with this, and I wasn't afk! I didn't know what this weird statue thing was; it kept saying "3x7". I thought it was part of the Citadel puzzle I was trying to figure out. At least I know now to talk to statues when I see them...

Ilsanor wrote:You still get tokens, even if it's chump change to you. And with pets out even if you hide you still get tokens for their kills.

ahh yeah, forgot about those

I was caught by the anti-AFK patrol same situation as Reese but only difference is that I wasn't in another tab or program. I had EX in front of me, only that my head was looking down at my tablet on the desk. It really happened fast, I don't think I even got a chance to reply cause by the moment I look up I was already in jail.

I dare not to loose sight of the monitor again cause you never know when it is going to happen. Funny thing is that the whole night I was roaming around that area and the moment I stop I got caught.... Oh well, at least I know that they are seriously cracking on the real offenders.

Larsa, I afk checked you 3x.

Each check takes about 10-15 seconds. I make the statue pop, then ask the question, the question remains above the statue's head for approximately 10 seconds, then I ask it again. I do this no less than 3 times no matter who I am checking. Essentially, every single person afk checked by me is going to have at least 30 seconds to respond, which is more than the "few seconds" stated in the rules. If you don't respond to my afk checks, you are moved to jail and PM'd a warning. You aren't actually locked in jail, nothing is taken from you, unless you have previously been warned for this same issue.

Also, for folks worrying about their macro recalling them away during a check: don't fret. If you recall away, I'm just going to follow and ask again.