Bots (Page 3 of 4)

"Watching bots play is more engaging than actually playing" might be the most dystopian gaming take I've ever heard. That's like saying you're a football player because you watch matches on TV while your FIFA game runs in the background. Even Salazzar, who defends AFKing, at least acknowledges there's no real content worth doing manually anymore - he's not trying to pretend watching bots is "engaging gameplay."

There's that "gracefully step aside" threat again. You've gone from "I'll remove features if asked" to "well everyone's doing it" to "I'll leave if you make me stop" - all while claiming this is about enhancing the game experience. Which is it?

Remember when it was just about "enhancing PVE experience"? Now suddenly it's "automation IS playing the game." We went from basic AFKing to having bots running entire characters 24/7, and somehow that's being spun as "enhancement." That's quite the evolution from "helping with PvE" to "replacing gameplay entirely is fine."

Says the person who turned PvP into a bot war until James literally had to step in. As Supla mentioned, there was a reason nobody used PvP bots for years - it wasn't a technical limitation, it was common sense and respect for the game.

And now we're onto conspiracy theories about GMs orchestrating a bot crisis? Come on. Maybe, just maybe, like James said, they're concerned because PvP bots "make the game worse for other people." The mental gymnastics required to turn "GMs trying to stop harmful behavior" into some kind of power play is impressive.

The game hasn't "evolved" - it's been automated into something entirely different. The damage is already extensive, but that doesn't mean we should keep making it worse. When 31 out of 35 online "players" are bots, that's not evolution - that's extinction of actual gameplay. Even Mouse acknowledged that while closing the level gap might be impossible now, we still need to address the botting issue to give new players any chance at all.

You're not enhancing the experience, you're replacing it. Don't try to dress this up as some philosophical difference in playstyles or natural evolution of the game. When the best defense you can offer for automation is "well, watching bots is more engaging than playing," maybe it's time to admit this has gone too far.

The comparison to Football Manager is interesting because it actually highlights the core issue here. FM was designed from the ground up to be a management experience, while Faldon was created for active player engagement - like FIFA, where you're actively playing the game.

But Faldon wasn't designed to be a bot management simulator. When automation becomes the primary way to play, it fundamentally changes what the game is - not just for you, but for everyone. The issue isn't about your personal enjoyment, it's about how this approach to "playing" affects the entire community.

All Bots should go to Open Faldon and let Cat deal with it. 

I'll admit, I've stopped posting on IG because its rough trying to bring new players into this shit storm. Who wants to check out a game with it flooded with cheaters. I also stopped leveling due to how disheartening it is. My guild stopped getting guild tokens a few months ago and there's no way to take the areas back. Shit isn't fun for me anymore. I'm just glad I'm not alone. If this were any other game u'd be suspended, and then banned. I've been reading the dumbest arguments of all time in this thread.

Last edited by Tripp (October 23rd, 2024 11:57 AM)

Very nice.

Autoloot is exactly what it sounds like, it picks up loot automatically. It's a program ran along side other scripts to pick up loot while botting.

I really think you guys are severely underestimating the power of what saying "Don't do x or punishment is y" would do. This is a relatively small community and likely always will be. Most would likely listen and those that don't, could be banned. This isn't an issue of policing 1000's of players, if it becomes that, perhaps more advanced methods would be necessary. But in the meantime, I'd say just communicating what is/isn't acceptable would likely be the least effort to accomplish the desired direction of the game.

I do understand the irony that its well posted we can't bot, but I think it's been tacitly implied through an extended period of no consequences that its acceptable. I think we just need a clear direction what that is. What you're seeing today is a result of that,we have a "lets see what we can get away with" mentality.

Last edited by Mechanic (October 23rd, 2024 8:02 PM)

It's amusing to see you project so much insecurity when, in reality, no one needs access to your code to understand the fundamental flaws in your approach. It’s fascinating how you’re so quick to make baseless claims without grasping the mechanics at play. Let’s be clear: my bot doesn’t spam packets or cause infinite loops—those are fabrications you’ve invented, likely out of frustration. Optimizing your own process might be a better use of your time than obsessing over mine.

If your solution is so flawless, why does it break so easily? Clearly, sending just one packet isn’t the genius move you think it is, and the fragility of your approach is becoming more apparent by the day.

And let’s not even start on your accusation that I’m trying to "get your files and images." Why would I need to, when the inefficiencies in your bot are plain for everyone to see? Real progress doesn’t come from scavenging—it's about fundamentally rethinking approaches, something you’ve clearly missed while crashing your own client.

As for that time you tried to "help" me with configuring WPE packet sniffer—let’s not pretend that was groundbreaking. I don’t even use it. Wireshark has always been the superior tool for what I need. But if it makes you feel better, keep thinking that any progress I’ve made is tied to that minimal interaction. Meanwhile, I’ll keep pushing forward, while you can keep overlooking the obvious issues with your own bot.

Last edited by bullethead123 (October 23rd, 2024 9:24 PM)

hahahahahah you fkin hypocrite rob pipe down have you not afk leveled or  sold scripts!? lmfao

Autoloot finds WorldItem packets near the player and sends the interact item packet for pickup based where the bot detects the loot (X,Y,Z) or corpse. Given on OF server this is/was a fairly expensive packet to check nearby map sectors and their item listing(s), I wouldn't be surprised if "auto loot" feature has a toll on yours as well, James.

It is the client received packet 141 which lists a world location id, item id (objedit.exe itemid), and an encoded x,y,z coordinate. The Packet ID (sent to server) I believe is packet ID #11 with 90 (decimal) operator type = pickup item. Perhaps remediation by changing the encoding method of the x,y,z corords or encrypting that packet (AFAIK on legacy client it wasnt encrypted)?

What OF did is (beyond a priority queue logic for received packets and caching...) added a small delay between processing of item related packets including pickup/drop/move/use items/mail/market and naive attempts at ignoring invalid, duplicate or garbage requests beyond that datetime stamp.

I ultimately went with a dictionary lookup for "world map items" and "map items" based on world location ID and item (serial or GUID as needful) to reduce the lookup time, I think.

Last edited by Catbert (October 25th, 2024 12:27 AM)

Try this instead

Last edited by Mister Rob (October 25th, 2024 5:43 AM)

I'm just not a fan of players being able to alter packets. In my opinion and in any other game using WPE can result in large bans, most times permanently, I understand we are a small community, but I feel if everyone is on an even playing field it would encourage more to play?

If the plan is to maybe have another client one day I feel it's necessary to take the steps in eliminating boting/afk macroing. Is it a bummer for some current players? Yes im sure it is considering the time they've put in to being able to build their programs, but where else are you going to play and not catch the same treatment? It's not an unfair ask for people to play faldon legit again.