Guild Wars 2

Gaile must be using the synonym for “evaluate” that rhymes with “a press” (either that, or she’s just gotten a new baby cat, who loves to sit on the keyboard).

What about a dodge jump macro? It’s a single action that requires 2 keys and it’s a useful skill.

Gaile Gray.6029:

Guild Wars 2 players are permitted to use macros as long as the macros are programmed with a 1 key for 1 function protocol.

1. This means that if you program a macro, it must require one keystroke per action. You may not program a single key to perform multiple functions.

A key is the physical switch on a keyboard, while a keystroke is the action of pressing and releasing a key on a keyboard. They are not the same. Which is it?

Am I allowed to program a single key to do multiple actions if it takes 1 keystroke to do one action? For example, can I program a single key to output an escape keycode on press and output a control keycode on press and hold? They keycodes would never output simultaneously.

On the topic of macros I think you should add an “aside from doing repetetive tasks such as opening bags, converting snowflakes etc.”. You can’t seriously think it’s fun to klick 14634677447735779 times on the same pixels to open ones bags from, let’s say, halloween. Since there’s no use/open all feature many bind a left klick to a repeatable key or the mousewheel. That should be legal and not fall under prohibited as atm.

So you telling if i set, lets say alt+f1 to open my inventory and cannot appoint my mouse button to execute alt+f1?

Gaile Gray.6029:

Our development team is not able to review third-party programs to kitten their components or give them any sort of approval.

So that just happened again

But just to be on the safe side, if I use AutoHotkey to rebind my mousewheel to left-click, that is ok?

Right?

Gaile Gray.6029:

Macros

Guild Wars 2 players are permitted to use macros as long as the macros are programmed with a 1 key for 1 function protocol.

1. This means that if you program a macro, it must require one keystroke per action. You may not program a single key to perform multiple functions.
2. For example, if you Press A and it results in the casting of a single skill, you’re ok. If you Press A and it casts multiple spells, you’re not ok.
3. You cannot program a macro to perform the same or multiple actions on more than one account at a time.
4. You cannot program an “auto-clicker” macro that, for instance, opens chests while you play elsewhere.
   .

I would also like clarification on this, as in my opinion this was worded and structured poorly. Are you simply talking about an “autoclicker” to open bags while you sit still doing else or a programed macro to be used while you perform other activities?

If the first, why is using a keystroke for a macro alright, but a mouse click is not for opening bags? How do you differentiate an autoclick program from say Logitech Gaming Software, where you can program your mouse buttons to perform any task you want? If by definition that use the program for that purpose the entire program is considered an illegal 3rd party app and you’ll be forced to deal punishment to thousands or more users. Especially since with enough knowledge you can create a powershell script to achieve an autoclicker, or are you about to say that Windows/Microsoft is now considered an illegal 3rd party app?

Sadly it’s a normal common policy.

By this definition:

Running forward by one single keystroke, in this case W, can be bannable.

->You do not need to be activly involved into the game for holding a key on your keyboard.

-> You can play other games, run other programs while keep a key down.

-> Autorun violates said policies. You do not even need to be present for a few seconds.

Silly examples, yes, but so would be defining everything in detail.

“Does this program allow someone to play faster, better, longer, or more accurately than someone who doesn’t use it?”
“Does this program allow the user to gain undeserved rewards?”

What’s an undeserved reward? Better graphics (SweetF, Reshade)? Better usability (Who’s talking, gw2efficiency)? Better self awareness (DPSmeters, Overlays for positions)?

Akuni.8604:

On the topic of macros I think you should add an “aside from doing repetetive tasks such as opening bags, converting snowflakes etc.”. You can’t seriously think it’s fun to klick 14634677447735779 times on the same pixels to open ones bags from, let’s say, halloween. Since there’s no use/open all feature many bind a left klick to a repeatable key or the mousewheel. That should be legal and not fall under prohibited as atm.

You could bind mouseclick to a keyboard button and simply keep it pressed.

Someone on reddit wrote: “Playing the game violates the rules” – he/she wasn’t wrong.

I’d never expect some kind of testing from A-Net for every single program out there. However they might aswell could put a list with every tolerated program up. Of course with the usual “If something goes wrong – don’t ask us for help” phrase.

On another note I don’t see anything about reading/accessing/modifying game memory.
Was this dropped? Is it referred to as “hack” in the legal notes?

Is a DPSmeter that does not access game memory violating the policy because people playing in high resolutions can’t use it resulting in a disadvantage?

Reverse question:

Does a DPSmeter that reads game memory violate the policy when it can be used from everyone – so each and everyone of us has the same advantages?

Point being:

People are afraid of using 3rd-Party-Programs because of these vague policies.
You can bend them however you please.

So what I’m politely asking for is:

A simple list – visibly stickied – with the most commonly used, known and tolerated programs in the way they are supposed to be used. Usual safeguards for A-Net included.

I do not ask for testing by A-Net. Meaning: We are on our own if things go wrong.

It would be transparent for us customers & safe for A-Net.

Thanks for reading!

the only thing that i want to know is if a auto left klick allowd , i mean srsly it is like Auto run and i dont get any benefits from it , just that i hadnt to buy a new mouse every couple weeks :o

Just making sure I understand.

I have a stack of salvage items, let’s say amber.

I program my mouse to left click 250 times instead of once when I left click.

I select my salvage kit, activate my macro, and salvage 250 amber.

Is this allowed or disallowed?

If this is disallowed, are their plans to reduce clicking or mouse movement for inventory management? If not, how you you plan to combat wrist health concerns?

So, technically speaking according to the rules any VoIP software is considered against terms of service as it allows someone to play faster, better, longer, or more accurately than someone who isn’t using it.

These terms are too vague. Stop skirting around the issue and make a decision. Is the Jaxnx DPS meter legal to use or not? To be clear it’s the one that takes a screen shot of your combat log, analyzes it, and posts your DPS. This in no way shape or form reads from game memory.

I wouldn’t worry about the macros as long as you activate the sequence whichever way you want. The one keypress thing is baloney with too many loop hole and corner cases.

What they intend with the macros prohibition is for stuff like raptor farming from gw1.

Problem with Gaile’s post is it is incredibly difficult in translating the spirit of the rules into concise and definite actions.

There are many things prohibited above which will help regular and disabled folks play and control the game fluidly that is not possible with built in mechanics. They are not going to ban you over a lame auto clicker. I guarantee you this will generate more bad press and revenue lost for something petty as heck.

People are using addon programs to fix shortcomings in the game that anet’s designers neglected. If they are not funding the work, they need to allow the user community to more readily develop mods.

Really they should take a clue as to what is priority.

Gaile Gray.6029:

Dual- or Multi-Boxing

1. You may use more than one account at the same time.
2. You may use more than one computer at the same time.
3. You must be actively playing on each account.
4. And as stated above, you may not program your keyboard to perform functions on more than one account at a time.
   a. For example, if you press W on your keyboard to move forward, a single character on a single account should move forward. The keystroke or mouse click should not perform functions on more than one account.

The third one there seems sort of contradictory. You can’t actively play two accounts at the same time, as it would require macros/software that are clearly against the rules. If you could elaborate on what you mean by “actively playting”, it would be appreciated.

edit: Also, is binding “double click” to a single key considered an advantage? Why has Arenanet consistently been so vague on this one issue? I get that creating a thing where bags are opened for you while you are off making coffee is bad. That’s completely understandable, but why can’t Arenanet come out and say “We understand there are a lot of bags to open, here are ways that are acceptable to do so:”? Why can’t they confirm that binding double-click to a single key is or is not considered an “advantage”?
People joke about getting wrist injuries from all the clicking in this game, but at the rate things are currently, it is not a joking matter. Users have been requesting click-fest alternatives for a long time now.

I understand that you can’t pass a ruling on every third party program that pops up. However, you should be able to give us specific answers on some of the most prevalent and controversial questions. Can we please get a clear answer on DPS meters in general? Are they okay, not okay, okay only if they don’t read memory? The community has been discussing the issue for quite some time and it’s a legitimate question about the terms of service and legal contract we signed.

The guidelines here don’t do much to answer the question, because they cover everything from Team Speak to SweetFX, which I know you aren’t against using. So please, what is arena net’s official stance on DPS meters?

Akuni.8604:

On the topic of macros I think you should add an “aside from doing repetetive tasks such as opening bags, converting snowflakes etc.”. You can’t seriously think it’s fun to klick 14634677447735779 times on the same pixels to open ones bags from, let’s say, halloween. Since there’s no use/open all feature many bind a left klick to a repeatable key or the mousewheel. That should be legal and not fall under prohibited as atm.

It makes me wonder about a macro that binds a key to a double click. Holding it down would plow through stacks of whatever it would be thrown at. My mouse’s software allows me to bind mouse buttons or a combination of mouse buttons to a double click. So is it technically considered a macro at that point?

And then taxi macros. I don’t think it’s possible to play or do anything else while trying to taxi into a map (cannot be in combat and it uses the mouse). It does not really give an advantage either since there is a limit to how many attempts one can do within a certain amount of seconds. A macro would only serve to avoid doing the same repetitive action over and over again, but would not allow to do it faster than someone doing it manually.

So I’m not sure where these things stand in the macro policy. I also understand that they cannot just blanket approve of “things that only get rid of repetitive UI interactions” and that they also won’t address specific cases. But it would be nice to know.

Dhan Rahl.8493:

I would also like clarification on this, as in my opinion this was worded and structured poorly. Are you simply talking about an “autoclicker” to open bags while you sit still doing else or a programed macro to be used while you perform other activities?

I find this particularly intriguing since either the wording describes something that cannot happen, either we’re talking about physically doing something else while the macro is doing its thing. In the first case, if for example you use a macro to open a stack of bags, your mouse has to stay on the stack of bags to work, so you cannot do something else with your mouse while it’s opening bags (you’re also going to have to take care of that inventory). It is the same thing for taxiing. In the second case, besides outright botting, there is very little that can be done automatically in this game where you can just walk away from your computer or do something else. Off the top of my head I would have said trading post stuff, but it would be super intricate and I wouldn’t entrust my money to a macro rofl (Ever accidentally bought now a bunch of things when trying to overcut a buy order by 1c? Yeaaaah….).

rhodoc.2381:

So you telling if i set, lets say alt+f1 to open my inventory and cannot appoint my mouse button to execute alt+f1?

Technically you could appoint your mouse button to press any of the F13-24 keys and have the game bind it to that key.

It would REALLY help if GW2 allowed for XMB+key bindings. Then it would stop such grey areas.

Seriously guys, it’s much simpler that what you think. Stop trying to reinvent the wheel and apply the logic.

Macros
A single action must be activated by a single keystroke, so that means that any key (any amount of keys related to a keystroke) cannot activate 2 actions.
Double clicks requires 2 clicks, so automating this actions in a single button is bannable.
Opening 134 bags requires 134 double clicks, 268 buttons pressed. Anything less than those 268 button activations is bannable.
Dodge+jump requires 2 button activations. Linking that to only 1 button is bannable.
Other combos, like back+Phase Retreat+back, behave the same (3 buttons for phase retreat combo).
Software aside, it doesn’t matter if it’s a mouse or keyboard software or a autoclicker. If one keystroke is registered and more than 1 actions are performed, then it’s bannable.

Autorun and other ingame features
As these actions are available for all players, they don’t give an advantage over others, so they’re not bannable.
Autorun as itself is an action. Autorunning for a second or for 3 hours count as a single action.
Pressing continuously a key can count as multiple keystrokes, as mice and keyboards send information continuously.

Multi Boxing and active playing
Playing actively means it is you who activates the actions, not a software. If you have a client in the background and you press 1 button to do an action it is fine.
If you have 2 clients, you can press to buttons to move both players, but not one.

General 3rd party software
Taken from rules, it is not allowed:
- software that reads areas of computer memory or storage devices related to the Game.
- software that intercepts or otherwise collects data from or through the Game
- software that redirects communications from any Game or Service
ftware not provided by ArenaNet which creates or maintains any communication to the Game or Service, including but not limited to any software that emulates the Game or any part thereof as well as any server that emulates the Service or any part thereof

Basically, if the DPSmeter does anything from above, it is bannable. Also, it is to emulate the game using software not provided by anet (meaning the game can only be exectued through any of the game clients provided in the official anet web).

Well there is not that many ‘popular’ 3rd party programs here so what about we will make some short list and Gaile will say yes or no.
Some of that can have different interpretation lets say dps meter. It do not get me any advantage immediately but it help me get better over time.

Gaile Gray.6029:

Macros

1. You cannot program an “auto-clicker” macro that, for instance, opens chests while you play elsewhere.

sorry, but this is unacceptable for the click horror on chests. Either introduce in the next patch/update a “Use10/25/50/100/150/200/all” option for the rightclick dropdown or remove this paragrapgh for chests until it’s fixed in a good way, that doesn’t require the player to burn through their, sometimes very expensive, mouse

best regards

Gaile Gray.6029:

While this thread is also present in the Account and Technical Support Sub-Forum, it seems worthwhile to share it here in the General Discussion Sub-Forum as well.

Third-Party Programs

ArenaNet cannot approve or review or “vet” any third-party programs. Our general policy is that anything that gives advantage is forbidden; anything that imbalances the game in favor of one player over another is strictly disallowed. With that said, we are aware that some utilities help players without impacting others, that is, they do not give anyone an advantage over someone else.

Our development team is not able to review third-party programs to kitten their components or give them any sort of approval. We make our policies clear in our User Agreement, Rules of Conduct, and the Conduct Breaches and Outcomes document, which you can find in the Legal Documentation section of our website: https://www.guildwars2.com/en/legal/ You should know the following:

1. If you chose to use any third-party program, you do so at your own risk.
2. We cannot offer support if the third-party program impacts Guild Wars or Guild Wars 2 and, for instance, makes the game unplayable.
3. If you choose to use what you believe to be a “benign,” or non-advantage-giving program, be sure to get it from a legitimate source to protect yourself from the possible addition of cheats or key-loggers.

The best way for a player to kitten whether a specific third-party program could have any impact on another player or a PvP opponent is to ask:

• “Does this program allow someone to play faster, better, longer, or more accurately than someone who doesn’t use it?”
• “Does this program allow someone to ‘play’ when he/she is not at the computer?”
• “Does this program allow the user to gain undeserved rewards?”

If the answer to any of these questions is “yes”—or even “maybe”—then we strongly recommend that you do not use the program because to do so may place your Guild Wars or Guild Wars 2 account in jeopardy.

Macros

Guild Wars 2 players are permitted to use macros as long as the macros are programmed with a 1 key for 1 function protocol.

1. This means that if you program a macro, it must require one keystroke per action. You may not program a single key to perform multiple functions.
2. For example, if you Press A and it results in the casting of a single skill, you’re ok. If you Press A and it casts multiple spells, you’re not ok.
3. You cannot program a macro to perform the same or multiple actions on more than one account at a time.
4. You cannot program an “auto-clicker” macro that, for instance, opens chests while you play elsewhere.

Dual- or Multi-Boxing

1. You may use more than one account at the same time.
2. You may use more than one computer at the same time.
3. You must be actively playing on each account.
4. And as stated above, you may not program your keyboard to perform functions on more than one account at a time.
   a. For example, if you press W on your keyboard to move forward, a single character on a single account should move forward. The keystroke or mouse click should not perform functions on more than one account.

What about musical instruments? I cannot quote the post but I belive ANet pushed out policy stating macro’ed music is not a competitive advantage and therefore Okay. Same question would apply to account multiboxing with music.

Voramoz.6790:

What about musical instruments? I cannot quote the post but I belive ANet pushed out policy stating macro’ed music is not a competitive advantage and therefore Okay. Same question would apply to account multiboxing with music.

Getting an advantage over other players, macros and actively playing in multiboxing are related to gameplay situations.
They don’t consider playing a musical instrument as gameplay so, in this situation, policy related to third party software is not applied.
https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/archive/audio/Sad-truth-of-playing-the-ingame-instruments/first#post4546267

Gameplay situations are tided to content or combat, and playing musical instruments is not content per se, neither it involves combat.
Another story would be, for example, a competition based on playing musical instruments that rewarded the winner. In this case, the 3rd party software policy would be valid.

Gaile Gray.6029:

• “Does this program allow someone to play faster, better, longer, or more accurately than someone who doesn’t use it?”

By definition, then if I used a 3rd party program that helped reduce eyestrain because of eye problems so I could get two to three hours of gameplay instead of 20 to 30 minutes, then I could get banned because without the program I wouldn’t be able to play as long?

Or if I used sweetFX or other graphics enhancing mods so I had a reason (the pretty graphics) to come back and play longer, more hours, and run around even though there’s barely anything being added otherwise, or if I used a keyboard that required a 3rd party program and has custom keybindings so that I get less hand strain playing engineer, I’m clearly advantaged to having more hours than other engineers, so that’s bad? Should I stop using this keyboard and get carpel tunnel doing condi engi rotations in raids?

Mystletainn.6285:

Gaile Gray.6029:

• “Does this program allow someone to play faster, better, longer, or more accurately than someone who doesn’t use it?”

By definition, then if I used a 3rd party program that helped reduce eyestrain because of eye problems so I could get two to three hours of gameplay instead of 20 to 30 minutes, then I could get banned because without the program I wouldn’t be able to play as long?

Or if I used sweetFX or other graphics enhancing mods so I had a reason (the pretty graphics) to come back and play longer, more hours, and run around even though there’s barely anything being added otherwise, or if I used a keyboard that required a 3rd party program and has custom keybindings so that I get less hand strain playing engineer, I’m clearly advantaged to having more hours than other engineers, so that’s bad? Should I stop using this keyboard and get carpel tunnel doing condi engi rotations in raids?

Faster is taking less time to cover same distance, or to complete an action.
Longer is more distance using the same skills.
Better means having more stats than normally, making passive things they should not be.
Accurately mean with more precision than a human being can do.

SweetFX and other similar softwares don’t do anything that improves the gameplay.

Ansau.7326:

Double clicks requires 2 clicks, so automating this actions in a single button is bannable.

This is where Anet needs to make an exception and openly state it as such (CLEARLY state it).
A “double click” is a single action as far as the OS is concerned. Some people can click twice very fast, others can’t. This is why mouse software often has settings that allow the user to vary the click speed, or assign it to a single key.
Additionally, the issue of Repetitive Strain Injury is very real. There is justification when it comes to multi-key macros that fire off multiple skills in succession etc., but binding double-click to a single key should be an exception, as it is arguably a single function (even though you have to physically click twice to register it).
Again, there are many arguments about this.

I am simply challenging Arenanet to have the intestinal fortitude to step up and say “binding the action ‘double click’ to a single key is acceptable”, but all they want to do, it seems, is be broadly vague about it.

Are bots that dont provide any advantage forbidden?
Back in the days when I played Lotro, I made a bot that did nothing apart from running around the main roads and waving at other players, primarily as an intellectual exercise in coding.
Would such a bot be banned in GW2.