Glorious Alpha Two Testers!
Alpha Two testing is currently taking place five days each week. More information about Phase II and Phase III testing schedule can be found here
If you have Alpha Two, you can download the game launcher here, and we encourage you to join us on our Official Discord Server for the most up to date testing news.
Alpha Two testing is currently taking place five days each week. More information about Phase II and Phase III testing schedule can be found here
If you have Alpha Two, you can download the game launcher here, and we encourage you to join us on our Official Discord Server for the most up to date testing news.
Keeping Ashes Clean: My Thoughts on Smart Enforcement
OutSiDeR304
Member, Alpha Two
Seeing the recent video about "Tracking Data" posted a few months ago now by the official ashes youtube channel " – really got me thinking. Data is awesome for game design and balance, sure, helping you figure out what weapons are popular or how to tweak combat. But what if we could also use that data to catch out the bad actors?
From what I've seen in the alpha, and honestly, from years in other MMOs, Real Money Trading (RMT), griefing, and exploiting are huge threats. If they aren't dealt with quickly and decisively in Ashes, it's going to hurt the game's success. I know reports are one way to deal with it, but GMs only have so many eyes, and Intrepid only so many resources.
So, here's an idea: a data-driven approach. Hear me out, tell me what you think.
Smarter Detection: How Data Can Help
Let's break down player behaviors into categories. Take RMT, for example.
We could track things like how much gold players have compared to their game time. Anyone holding a massive amount of gold compared to everyone else at their playtime would pop up. It doesn't mean they're RMTing, but it flags them for a closer look. Think of it as a funnel – each filter narrows down the possibilities.
Then, we could look at patterns:
Frequent, high-value gold trades, especially multiple times a day.
Trading gold to a small, tight group repeatedly, or, on the flip side, to a wide variety of players they've barely interacted with – that could signal a seller.
Combine these patterns with the "gold index," and you get a probability score that puts certain individuals right at the top for review. You could even filter trades and look at their history to see who's consistently involved in suspicious gold movement.
Catching Griefers: Beyond Just Reports
What makes someone a griefer? We can use the game's own rules to define it. Let's say a high-level player keeps attacking a lower-level, unflagged player – that's one-way harassment. The data could look at:
Frequency: How often is it happening?
Level difference: Is there a significant gap?
Attack types and locations: Are specific abilities or zones being abused?
Group harassment: If one player is constantly being targeted by different people from the same guild, that's another red flag.
And for mob training, if you're tracking aggro events, it seems pretty straightforward. You could see if mobs are consistently attacking players outside the "trainer's" party or raid. If mob trains are being sent onto other groups repeatedly, especially by a player who's over-leveled or a class known for it, that would definitely trigger a review.
Empowering GMs: Real-Time Monitoring and Transparency
I'm not sure if any of this is already in the works, but the idea is to give moderators tools beyond just player reports. A live, exception-based dashboard would be amazing.
Imagine a GM getting a notification about a potential culprit in game, clicking their name, and instantly being teleported into a secret spectator view to watch them. The GM could then take immediate action if it's blatant, or record it for later. And if the system flags innocent players, the GM could feed that back to the dev team to refine the algorithms.
The need for swift action can't be overstated. Most players who get targeted by bad actors won't complain; they'll just quit, as we've seen in so many other MMOs. A few loud voices, sure, but a huge silent majority just moves on because their game experience is ruined.
Finally, transparency would go a long way.
If a GM takes action, the targeted player should be told their behavior has been flagged and is under review, or that action has been taken.
And when bad actors are dealt with, shout it from the rooftops! Maybe a "Wall of Shame" in a node, where culprits' names are displayed with a bit of fun. Something like, "RMTGooner, caught peddling black market fool's gold," or "Joespeedyspeedy, trapped by Wile E. Coyote trying to break the sound barrier." It could make a fun scene.
Sometimes, just a warning that their behavior is being watched might be enough to stop them. But consistent follow-through and transparency would really calm people down about these common MMO issues.
So, what are your thoughts? Do you think a data-driven approach is the best way to detect and stop bad behavior? Would you want to see how many actions Intrepid is taking against bad actors? Or do you have other ideas on how to keep Ashes moving forward as intended?
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Comments
Trading gold to a small, tight group repeatedly, or, on the flip side, to a wide variety of players they've barely interacted with – that could signal a seller.
Combine these patterns with the "gold index," and you get a probability score that puts certain individuals right at the top for review. You could even filter trades and look at their history to see who's consistently involved in suspicious gold movement.
This reminds me of the fright everyone kept having in WoW - trading gold between friends could result in bans!
In general, I am all for Intrepid keeping tabs on trades made... That seems about mandatory. But high value gold trades multiple times a day is very common among both small and big communities. They better be very careful that they do not start banning people for trading with friends and guildies, because that will come back and bite them very quickly.
This just creates a pattern that gold sellers then need to try to emulate.