bots stealing megaserver spots

bots stealing megaserver spots

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Posted by: thomasgjkgwdn.4760

thomasgjkgwdn.4760

i just hung out up in frostgorge, adding a fresh batch of bots to my blocked list (for purposes of monitoring which of them i have reported already). since yesterday, i’ve added ~50 to that list. i’m sure there are more – there certainly are more of them now than before the feature patch (i had a break for maybe a couple of months). i can tell it’s the same code still, since their behaviorial patterns are identical.

but all these bots are stealing player slots, yes? it seems to disturb the cleverness of the dynamic megaservers, is what i’m thinking…

this is just to say, i do hope something’s being done. “freeloaders” messing with our fun, that ain’t good.

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Posted by: Algreg.3629

Algreg.3629

and before they occupied slots on the various server map instances. So, the difference is, apart from another opportunity to bash the megaserver concept, exactly what again?

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Posted by: Halcyon.7352

Halcyon.7352

and before they occupied slots on the various server map instances. So, the difference is, apart from another opportunity to bash the megaserver concept, exactly what again?

For one, they take up valid spots on a limited copy of the zone. That means less people ending up where they should be, and more chances of being in a less deseriable copy, with either less people you know, and/or different nodes and different events going on. Could well have missed whatever events you zoned in for, even.

Tarnished Coast Engineer and… general alt-o-holic.

For the toast!

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Posted by: frans.8092

frans.8092

Haven’t seen bots in ages …. they undoubtedly moved to near-deserted servers where nobody would notice them. And now, megaservers provide them an unwanted (and unwilling) audience.

I doubt ANet intended this side-effect for the megaservers, but it’s a nice boon.

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Posted by: Beldin.5498

Beldin.5498

Where are all those bots you talk about btw. ? Since i very seldeom have seen any bots at all there in the last year.

EVERY MMO is awesome until it is released then its unfinished. A month after release it just sucks.
Best MMOs are the ones that never make it. Therefore Stargate Online wins.

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Posted by: Max Lexandre.6279

Max Lexandre.6279

I was in PvP Yesterday, OMG 10 bots, 10!!!! I reported, came back 3hours later, they are still there!

There was people mad at the bots because we were being flooded with spam, dear lord.

I’m The Best in Everything.
Asura thing.

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Posted by: Algreg.3629

Algreg.3629

and before they occupied slots on the various server map instances. So, the difference is, apart from another opportunity to bash the megaserver concept, exactly what again?

For one, they take up valid spots on a limited copy of the zone. That means less people ending up where they should be, and more chances of being in a less deseriable copy, with either less people you know, and/or different nodes and different events going on. Could well have missed whatever events you zoned in for, even.

well, yes, just like before, I still see the problem, I still don´t see what that has to do with the megaserver.

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Posted by: Naevius.3185

Naevius.3185

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

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Posted by: Hannelore.8153

Hannelore.8153

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

Its very easy to recognise bots once you know what to look for.

They have certain behavoral patterns. The most common ones are:
- Never playing with any ally
- Not resurrecting NPCs or players
- Running away from Champions the instant they come in range
- Attacking invulnerable or obstructed mobs indefinitely
- Not jumping over obsticles or getting stuck
- Running bearbow Ranger or minion Necro

These are just a few of the obvious signs. Of course, you don’t report someone based upon just a few of these signs, you only report when you see them all. Otherwise, you risk tagging perfectly good players as bots.

Furthermore, ANet has 100% ability to verify bots, because bots will always execute actions in a certain way, for example they will not try to complete heart quests, and all of their chat (which is logged) will come off as either spam or nonsense.

There’s little risk of a legit player getting banned even if you accidentally report them because ANet carefully verifies the information beforehand.

But you still shouldn’t report unless you are absolutely sure.

Daisuki [SUKI] LGBT-Friendly Guild Leader | NA – Jade Quarry
I’m usually really sweet… but this an internet forum and you know how it has to be.
/i’m a lesbiab… lesbiam… less bien… GIRLS/

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Posted by: ghost.3208

ghost.3208

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

Because they act strangely. You’ll see them going in circles on the same area, attack foes with the same chain of skills, don’t answer you when you ask them for gold/mats…

However it was quite interesting to follow them and see how they fared up with the foes in Orr, most of them times they were able to kill any that they encountered… Well until I lured 5 risen to them >:D

Gliradda – The Lil Death – Too Drunk to Aim
Guerreros de la Ultima Alianza [GDUA]
#TeamKiel #TeamPrecipice

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Posted by: frans.8092

frans.8092

Bots used to farm in groups, typically rangers. They’d all follow the same route and act (almost) simultaneously.

Keep in mind that some of the ‘characteristics’ posted are actually behavior that is not uncommon or easily explained other wise, even the running into objects, which is a common occurrence with lagging or broken connections.

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Posted by: Halcyon.7352

Halcyon.7352

Eh, I can’t really agree with the class or build typification.

I’ve seen everything from D/D elementalists to engineers. One thing in common though is that they pretty much spam the same skills in the same order, and never deviate from the pattern – including standing still.

Another good tell is how they react when a new mob spawns – sometimes there’s a delay before they begin attacking.

Like others have said, sometimes bot routes will overlap as well.

Tarnished Coast Engineer and… general alt-o-holic.

For the toast!

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Posted by: mjhungness.8059

mjhungness.8059

Lol – I’ve seen real players play like you described!

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Posted by: Seera.5916

Seera.5916

and before they occupied slots on the various server map instances. So, the difference is, apart from another opportunity to bash the megaserver concept, exactly what again?

For one, they take up valid spots on a limited copy of the zone. That means less people ending up where they should be, and more chances of being in a less deseriable copy, with either less people you know, and/or different nodes and different events going on. Could well have missed whatever events you zoned in for, even.

well, yes, just like before, I still see the problem, I still don´t see what that has to do with the megaserver.

Before the megaserver all the people making bot characters chose servers that had very little activity out in the PvE environment. So that there would be less chance of actual players seeing them.

Now that the megaserver makes all maps overflow maps, those bots are no longer on deserted maps and more are being spotted. The megaservers aren’t generating more bots, it’s making the existing bots easier to spot.

Since every map is an overflow map now, it’s been harder for groups of friends to get into the same map to play together. Not impossible, but harder. Since the bots take up spots, these bots take up spots that friends could have used. Possibly pushing some friends into deserted maps since the previous ones had filled up.

Especially those trying to do a guild mission or such where it wouldn’t be activated on all versions of the map. Or those trying to do Teq or Three-Headed Wurm since that requires a large number of participants and require some organization.

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Posted by: BobbyT.7192

BobbyT.7192

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

Its very easy to recognise bots once you know what to look for.

They have certain behavoral patterns. The most common ones are:
- Never playing with any ally
- Not resurrecting NPCs or players
- Running away from Champions the instant they come in range
- Attacking invulnerable or obstructed mobs indefinitely
- Not jumping over obsticles or getting stuck
- Running bearbow Ranger or minion Necro
*

Except for attacking obstructed mobs and getting stuck( ok sometimes -_-) I do all this, :p

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Posted by: Inculpatus cedo.9234

Inculpatus cedo.9234

Wouldn’t bots have the same chance to be sent to ‘overflow’ or lesser populated maps, as everyone else? Just curious.

If they change maps, then they will be in line for a populous map just like everyone else. If they don’t change maps, they will have to log on after an update, just like everyone else. If they are truly automated, they would not log back in until the hour or 15 minutes or whatever time the game gives you, when an update happens, and thus, be behind everyone else logging in.

Truly, just wondering how they are able to get to the maps first.

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Posted by: Brother Grimm.5176

Brother Grimm.5176

Lol – I’ve seen real players play like you described!

I was thinking the same thing.

I know I won’t respond to someone if they ask me for gold/mats…..earn you own. I’ll help you fight, do events, JPs and clear maps, but I’m not even wasting my time talking to a beggar.

There are no “limited slots” any longer as all maps are basically overflows. If the bots take up so many slots that a zone becomes full, the server starts another instance of the map and the new players load into it. No player will never not be able to play because of too many bots.

We go out in the world and take our chances
Fate is just the weight of circumstances
That’s the way that lady luck dances

(edited by Brother Grimm.5176)

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Posted by: Slayer.4238

Slayer.4238

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

Its very easy to recognise bots once you know what to look for.

They have certain behavoral patterns. The most common ones are:
- Never playing with any ally
- Not resurrecting NPCs or players
- Running away from Champions the instant they come in range
- Attacking invulnerable or obstructed mobs indefinitely
- Not jumping over obsticles or getting stuck
- Running bearbow Ranger or minion Necro
*

Except for attacking obstructed mobs and getting stuck( ok sometimes -_-) I do all this, :p

MY GOD THEY ARE LEARNING….ITS THE RISE OF THE MACHINES!!!

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Posted by: Im Mudbone.1437

Im Mudbone.1437

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

Its very easy to recognise bots once you know what to look for.

They have certain behavoral patterns. The most common ones are:
- Never playing with any ally
- Not resurrecting NPCs or players
- Running away from Champions the instant they come in range
- Attacking invulnerable or obstructed mobs indefinitely
- Not jumping over obsticles or getting stuck
- Running bearbow Ranger or minion Necro

These are just a few of the obvious signs. Of course, you don’t report someone based upon just a few of these signs, you only report when you see them all. Otherwise, you risk tagging perfectly good players as bots.

Furthermore, ANet has 100% ability to verify bots, because bots will always execute actions in a certain way, for example they will not try to complete heart quests, and all of their chat (which is logged) will come off as either spam or nonsense.

There’s little risk of a legit player getting banned even if you accidentally report them because ANet carefully verifies the information beforehand.

But you still shouldn’t report unless you are absolutely sure.

I’d be curious to know how many times I have been reported(I have only 1 character IGN is: Mudbones[LaZy]) as being a bot(so, if you see that name and tag i’m not a bot) because I fit at least 50% of the criteria that you mentioned for being a bot.
I’m a big time SOLO FARMER running bearbow(my bear is excellent for soloing, I use my ranged black widow during events) in FGS and everywhere else, I even hop on trains I see running at the time for areas I go to for more lootz(not concerned with the coinage, just the mats from salvaging).
I would venture to say that 75% of reports on supposed bots are nothing more than people like me and only ties up dev resources on such reports when those resources could have been used to actually be working on the game.
MORE POWER TO THE SERIOUS FARMER.

I will echo your last sentance; “you shouldn’t report unless you are ABSOLUTELY sure”.

Blackgate Megaserver – [LaZy] Imperium of LaZy Nation
Mud Bone – Sylvari Ranger

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Posted by: Im Mudbone.1437

Im Mudbone.1437

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

Because they act strangely. You’ll see them going in circles on the same area, attack foes with the same chain of skills, don’t answer you when you ask them for gold/mats…

However it was quite interesting to follow them and see how they fared up with the foes in Orr, most of them times they were able to kill any that they encountered… Well until I lured 5 risen to them >:D

I’m a solo bearbow farmer and if you or anyone else messaged me or asked in say/map chat for gold or mats I wouldn’t answer you either and i’m not a bot, so, that statement doesn’t hold water and that goes for anyone else being asked for such things, I don’t feed trolls(or at least I try not to).

Blackgate Megaserver – [LaZy] Imperium of LaZy Nation
Mud Bone – Sylvari Ranger

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Posted by: Liston.9708

Liston.9708

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

Its very easy to recognise bots once you know what to look for.

They have certain behavoral patterns. The most common ones are:
- Never playing with any ally
- Not resurrecting NPCs or players
- Running away from Champions the instant they come in range
- Attacking invulnerable or obstructed mobs indefinitely
- Not jumping over obsticles or getting stuck
- Running bearbow Ranger or minion Necro

These are just a few of the obvious signs. Of course, you don’t report someone based upon just a few of these signs, you only report when you see them all. Otherwise, you risk tagging perfectly good players as bots.

Furthermore, ANet has 100% ability to verify bots, because bots will always execute actions in a certain way, for example they will not try to complete heart quests, and all of their chat (which is logged) will come off as either spam or nonsense.

There’s little risk of a legit player getting banned even if you accidentally report them because ANet carefully verifies the information beforehand.

But you still shouldn’t report unless you are absolutely sure.

I’d be curious to know how many times I have been reported(I have only 1 character IGN is: Mudbones[LaZy]) as being a bot(so, if you see that name and tag i’m not a bot) because I fit at least 50% of the criteria that you mentioned for being a bot.
I’m a big time SOLO FARMER running bearbow(my bear is excellent for soloing, I use my ranged black widow during events) in FGS and everywhere else, I even hop on trains I see running at the time for areas I go to for more lootz(not concerned with the coinage, just the mats from salvaging).
I would venture to say that 75% of reports on supposed bots are nothing more than people like me and only ties up dev resources on such reports when those resources could have been used to actually be working on the game.
MORE POWER TO THE SERIOUS FARMER.

I will echo your last sentance; “you shouldn’t report unless you are ABSOLUTELY sure”.

Even you don’t take the EXACT same route with the same pauses and actions. Really pronounced when there are more than two, following the exact same footsteps.

YB→YB→YB→YB→YB→YB→YB→most likely YB

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Posted by: Infernia.9847

Infernia.9847

I’m with “Im Mudbone”. My main is a Ranger running longbow and bear. I don’t always revive NPC’s but I’ll try to rez the players if I can get to them before they WP. Most of that list is comprised of things I’ve done at one time or another. I hate lagging out but when I do my character will be seen running endlessly into some form of obstacle or another (or so I was told by guildmates).
I also will help out others if they’re going in the same direction I am but I seriously don’t care to follow them around. I go my own way and do my own thing.
My longbow has a molten skin from a single ticket. It is the one weapon that I enjoy on that character and no matter how pitiful it performs I’ll continue using it.
I also don’t even pay attention to chat unless it’s gold or pink, or I went down and someone is kind enough to rez me; then I’ll tell them ‘thx’.
Just make sure that you are reporting a bot and not a real person trying to do their own thing. Generalizing “Rangers with bow/bear Necro with minions” has the potential to cause real problems for innocent players.

Blackgate : Level 80 Ranger, Necro, Guardian, Warrior
Devs: Trait Challenge Issued

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Posted by: Infernia.9847

Infernia.9847

Even you don’t take the EXACT same route with the same pauses and actions. Really pronounced when there are more than two, following the exact same footsteps.

That is more like it. Multiple characters following the same exact path
That description won’t cause as many problems. I agree I have seen what looks to be a single character with 5 or 6 pets surrounding them when in actuality it’s multiples running on the same path stacked on top of each other.

Blackgate : Level 80 Ranger, Necro, Guardian, Warrior
Devs: Trait Challenge Issued

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Posted by: ghost.3208

ghost.3208

I know I won’t respond to someone if they ask me for gold/mats…..earn you own. I’ll help you fight, do events, JPs and clear maps, but I’m not even wasting my time talking to a beggar.

I’m a solo bearbow farmer and if you or anyone else messaged me or asked in say/map chat for gold or mats I wouldn’t answer you either and i’m not a bot, so, that statement doesn’t hold water and that goes for anyone else being asked for such things, I don’t feed trolls(or at least I try not to).

How will I earn the mats needed for my legendary if I can’t beg?

Gliradda – The Lil Death – Too Drunk to Aim
Guerreros de la Ultima Alianza [GDUA]
#TeamKiel #TeamPrecipice

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Posted by: Bellizare.5816

Bellizare.5816

Lol – I’ve seen real players play like you described!

Yep, maybe they saw me.

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Posted by: funkylovemonkey.3097

funkylovemonkey.3097

This thread makes me wonder how many times I’ve been reported as a bot. I have 8 level 80s that all hang out in Frostforge to collect materials (I know Orr is better, but I hate Orr). For about twenty/forty minutes (depending on placement) I run each one of these characters down basically the same path from node to node, switch characters and repeat. I never play with other people (I don’t know anyone in game and PVE doesn’t require it) and I do have a ranger with a bow (although not a bear) and a Minion Master Necro (my nostalgia for GW1 showing). Depending on the champion I generally avoid them while doing this and usually avoid events as well. Heck, I even avoid killing other enemies since that just slows down the run. I only ever bother resurrecting NPCs unless it’s part of a daily and rarely run into downed players. And unless you’re an incredible observer the path I take will be almost identical every five minutes or so, including where I jump (I’ve run through that area so many times I have specific paths to get to certain areas to avoid enemies and make the runs faster).

And, most kitten ing of all, occasionally I press “r” for autorun where I know there will be long stretches, get distracted by someone talking to me or something on television, and end up running against a wall for ten seconds or so. Usually it’s just embarrassing, I had no idea it was suspicious behavior.

Guess I need to be more careful from now on.

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Posted by: Wanderer.3248

Wanderer.3248

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

Its very easy to recognise bots once you know what to look for.

They have certain behavoral patterns. The most common ones are:
- Never playing with any ally
- Not resurrecting NPCs or players
- Running away from Champions the instant they come in range
- Attacking invulnerable or obstructed mobs indefinitely
- Not jumping over obsticles or getting stuck
- Running bearbow Ranger or minion Necro

These are just a few of the obvious signs. Of course, you don’t report someone based upon just a few of these signs, you only report when you see them all. Otherwise, you risk tagging perfectly good players as bots.

Furthermore, ANet has 100% ability to verify bots, because bots will always execute actions in a certain way, for example they will not try to complete heart quests, and all of their chat (which is logged) will come off as either spam or nonsense.

There’s little risk of a legit player getting banned even if you accidentally report them because ANet carefully verifies the information beforehand.

But you still shouldn’t report unless you are absolutely sure.

I’d be curious to know how many times I have been reported(I have only 1 character IGN is: Mudbones[LaZy]) as being a bot(so, if you see that name and tag i’m not a bot) because I fit at least 50% of the criteria that you mentioned for being a bot.
I’m a big time SOLO FARMER running bearbow(my bear is excellent for soloing, I use my ranged black widow during events) in FGS and everywhere else, I even hop on trains I see running at the time for areas I go to for more lootz(not concerned with the coinage, just the mats from salvaging).
I would venture to say that 75% of reports on supposed bots are nothing more than people like me and only ties up dev resources on such reports when those resources could have been used to actually be working on the game.
MORE POWER TO THE SERIOUS FARMER.

I will echo your last sentance; “you shouldn’t report unless you are ABSOLUTELY sure”.

Disagree. Report suspect bots and let Anet sort it out. It isn’t the devs who’ll be investigating. If enough people report them then ANet can get a better idea of the extent of the problem.

Bots are pretty kitten obvious. They run the same routes over and over and over and over. Unless you perform the exact same actions repeatedly, I doubt you’d get banned.

Back when bots were popular, I used to report dozens every day. Sometimes there were so many of them they looked like schools of fish swimming in circles. Thankfully there are hardly any these days (or they have gotten better at hiding).

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Posted by: Adula.3698

Adula.3698

Anet won’t really do much against botters. I’ve seen some go around for several months before getting banned… and I’ve reported them every time. They pay money for the game, and Anet really only cares about money, not the customer’s want.

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Posted by: thomasgjkgwdn.4760

thomasgjkgwdn.4760

i’ve written about bot behavior in here before, but just to sum up:

-the ones i reported here were all warriors.
-they’re doing some sort of teleport exploit that allows them to jump around between certain spots.
-they do a jump and turn now and then, presumably to mimic player activity.
-they’re all on at the same time, all in the same place, all doing the same things.

i’m very careful not to report “false positives”.

this is only in frostgorge, though. been a while since i spent enough time in another zone to spot “botting grounds”.

it’s not at all a criticism of megaservers, quite the contrary: i’d love for these automatons to be kicked off, so there’s less work getting actual players placed together (less pieces of the puzzle, so to speak).

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Posted by: vladracul.6798

vladracul.6798

a bowbear ranger farming, this is what I call wasting of time and resources of a human being, no matter only a bot could be that brainless to make that kind of ridiculous choice to farm

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Posted by: tigirius.9014

tigirius.9014

perhaps when they open in China and this problem magnifies they’ll finally realize that operations like DR and the lack of a solid authenticator has done absolutely nothing to keep these bots at bay. Perhaps those two things will change in the future.

as a farmer I agree with the other rangers here, if someone thinks that you’re a bot because you’re going from node to node gathering they have no clue what they are talking about, however teleporters are another thing entirely. Teleporters are something you should be watching for, it’s where they port from node to node without running there.

Balance Team: Please Fix Mine Toolbelt Positioning!

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Posted by: frans.8092

frans.8092

Disagree. Report suspect bots and let Anet sort it out.

I am certain customer support will welcome the additional workload.

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Posted by: Erick Alastor.3917

Erick Alastor.3917

I’d love to know how you can be sure a player is a bot.

Aggro a Champion on their route and watch them die like flies, because they will fight that champion as it was a mere trash mob. I did a bots hecatomb yesterday. Funny moments.

“Otherwise, your MMO becomes all about grinding to get the best gear. We don’t make grindy games.”
- Mike Obrien

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Posted by: Beldin.5498

Beldin.5498

I remember when i was farming Arctodus in FGS with a friend last year, and after some time i noticed that someone was watching us, and i said to my friend already : i bet he/she thinks we are bots. And 10 seconds later i got a whisper : bot ?

However, the best where you can really notice it is when they run against an obstacle for longer time. Ok .. i know that also happens to me sometimes and i try 3-4 times to run up a hill and it doesn’t work .. however sometimes they run against something for minutes or so.

And yeah .. Bowbear is bad for farming .. Axe-Warrior for the win :p

EVERY MMO is awesome until it is released then its unfinished. A month after release it just sucks.
Best MMOs are the ones that never make it. Therefore Stargate Online wins.