Good players are usually snobs. – How to fix!

I have found that skilled players (myself included) generally are acting in a way that is unkind and degrading of players that are trying to learn the game, or who don’t understand what you’re trying to do.

For instance, you’re building a specific tower, in a specific way, in a specific spot, with the angle of the sun hitting it just right with the stars aligned to form the perfect awesome that is what you're constructing. Then, someone comes along and starts building with you (ruining your awesome). Then (you) rage at them to stop ruining your tower, spike pit, or death-machine-of-awesomeness or whatever. What usually happens next is the player that was (helping) goes from someone willing and wanting to help, to a Griefer. (I have watched this happen multiple times to others, and to myself).

I believe THAT THIS, THIS is where most of the griefers are coming from! People coming into the game wanting to learn how, so they “help” people that look like they know what they’re doing (to learn how) then they get raged at. I believe we need to fix this reaction of raging out at people who do not know what they’re doing. (if you don’t have a problem with doing this, stop reading this post, or give me suggestions for this thread :S ).

Here are some things I suggest you do when someone does anything like: building on your tower in a bad way, door spams, digs spike pits during the building phase, puts up a 1x1 thick tall tower with no back wall, deforests the area during build phase, or anything else (nooby).

Stop,
(1) Hold on a second.
(2) Stop please.

Ask,
(1) They’re in the way of your tower: Can you move? I need to build here. =S
(2) They are messing up your tower: Can you stop for a moment please? – What are you doing?
(3) They're digging a spike pit during build phase: You know you have infinite resources during the build phase right? Why are you digging then-help me build this!

Teach,
(1) Show them what you mean, and the reasons for not placing 2-over9000 doors in a row. =S

Patience,
(1) They aren’t getting it and continue: Please stop, I’m trying to help/show you something.

Understanding,
(1) Not everyone is good at everything, including understanding, be sure the said player you’re helping understands what you’re trying to do, and present yourself with an air of helpfulness, kindness and respect.

Find help,
(1) You have tried all of the above, and they still will not listen/keep griefing ect. Then it is time to seek help. Call a votekick for this person by saying to your team that the said person is griefing or Hit ESC, then click on Chat and call a guard via in-game IRC by typing "!guard", then tell them the server/player name ect.

I hope this thread will be helpful to us all, and maybe it will reduce the amount of Greifing! Because why would anyone greif if we don't give them a reason too?

 

While that maybe so, I think you're underestimating the number of griefers that grief just for the hell of it. The reason is, it's fun to grief. Most people will find it fun. Why do you think we laugh at griefing videos of games like Bf3 or tf2, because it's funny. It doesn't make it right though.

 

I've seen instances like in my example multiple times where the player turns around and griefs. I still think everyone would benefit though from trying to control themselves a little more. I always tend to be a very picky builder, and my pet peeve is when someone builds onto or nerfs my tower in some way or another, I usually flip out. If anything this thread is only to help me.

Yes, sometimes it is fun to collapse things and such, but I find myself mad at the griefer, more than I laugh with him.

 

I can try, but it doesn't help that most people you speak to don't reply or reply abusively back to you!

 

That, sadly is also true. In which case I go find a gaurd (if they grief). I'll put that in my post.

 

Haha, do you know why I rage at new players? I've tried so many times to be constructive and helpful in steering them to polite co-operation and stuff like that but it ends up in me just getting told to "fuck off". So I tell them so outright. I hate that every builder thinks he can just throw down stone on what you're building. Its incredibly impolite. If I want to build on something with someone I ASK people need to get some god damn manners. Its common sense, I have no idea what they are building and how dare I have the audacity to assume that what I build on their stuff will be instantly better than what they have planned considering they've probably designed the tower for a specific purpose.

Thats why I rage. I've put a lot of effort into my tower designs and when some snot nosed little newbro strolls up and tries to "improve" it with no idea of what they're actually doing. I've tried diplomacy. But no more.

There are rare occasions that I don't ask if they want my help. If they're building a bridge or workshops or some other such single purpose building. Those are pretty straightforward things and I can assist them without hindering them.

 

But why would you assume there would be any sort of code of etiquette in a game like this when you first pick it up and start playing? I don't see why you assume that someone building on your tower thinks they know better either. I still find personally, that at least half of players doing something pretty objectively wrong will respond to being told nicely why they shouldn't, whereas raging rarely gets you anyway. Even clueless people rage, and there's alot of people of that ilk that will rage without having any sort of idea what they're talking about, so when you start playing a game there's no good reason to listen to people raging cos they could for all you know know nothing, whereas most people that are genuinely helpful seem to have some insight into what they're talking about. Plus pretty simply if someone's been a dick then your not exactly inclined to listen to them regardless.

 

I have this all the time and I start to build things and other people start adding to it i used to tell them to go away now I just turn around and leave, and maybe fix up peoples buildings.
Also i'm sick of people placing "shops" just in the open because some noob "accidentally" lets a bomb rip and BOOM all you shops are gone then I start to curse

 

I disagree it's usually when they're in some specific clan and then they get elitist...I know multiple people and they were often kinder when they weren't in a well known clan. I don't find snobby people in this game to be a problem much, part of why I play is because it's kind of a casual thing.

 

I have literally never intentionally griefed in any video game I've played. I guess I understand why people would receive entertainment from it, but it's much more entertaining to me to create than to recklessly destroy without cause...I think it the ability to rise above it really defines a person's maturity level and degree of respect.
Which brings me in agreement with potato. Many players have lost sight of important values of respect, honor, manners because everything is done with anonymity. It's easy to see other players as anything but human.

On the subject, I also never trash talk or let arrogant cockiness loose. Although I play from behind a computer screen, usually in seclusion, I will never let it take from me my good sense of morales I try to maintain through all walks of life. So many good players are full of themselves, it makes me sick. It's as though they cling onto a sliver of something they have in life, something they can excel at or claim.. where they are held on a pedestal for their frivolous skills, and they become drunk on this power. Which, inevitably spirals them into a moronic powertrip they are never going to leave. It's actually very saddening...

Anyways.. of course, I can get angry on occasions, but it's always short lived and I never lash out at a player. Great guide though, I hope it helps with the manner issues and whatnot.

 

Generally is someone starts building along side me I let them, since it has a good bottom already it generally turns out fine, I may have to attach some things, and then I comment on the integrity of the wall, let them know how good they did.

 

I initially thought that gold members (giggity!) usually where the most competent players since they went out of their way to buy the game they play everyday, Ive grown to realise that is NOT the case. Many times have I seen players with the prestegious gold nametags who play like they are plum retarded while someone who is a "normal" players fight like they could hold their own against the rest of us. So i never take anyone for granted just because they are gold users.

Though i cant deny the sense of comradeship i feel when i fight alongeside someone who also spent money on the game.

 

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I'd really like to be polite and explain anyone in 5 paragrapghs the future consequences of their actions. The problem with that, though, is that you miss all the building time. I generally say a single phrase like "Move please" or "Don't spam doors", or if they are obviously griefing for pleasure, call the team to kick. But one should never stoop to their level and start insulting. Not because it is against the rules or is a very immature decision (neither of those reasons matter a lot nowadays, do they?), but because that's exactly what they want.

Put yourself in their shoes. If griefers wanted to see things collapse, they would have entered the sandbox, or even better, they would be playing other than a 2-D game with (intentionally) outdated graphics. "Don't feed the troll" is a smart comparison: by raging at the griefer you are giving him exactly what he came for, insults, and encourage him to continue.

In the case of novices with good intentions (which I don't believe are the most), if they really wanted to be helpful, they would head to the forums, ask other people or simply get their hands off the keyboard and watch how the other people build. Building unknowingly is not acceptable, regardless of the intentions. If you perform surgery on a friend without any medicine knowledge and kill him you are all but a good person, in spite of how good your intentions were.

 

Let's examine the logic here, and start at the end:

If A, X occurs
X is a bad consequence
Therefore, A is bad.

You're saying if A (Surgery without knowledge), X (Death of a friend) occurs. Your friend dying is a bad consequence, therefore surgery without knowing what the hell you are doing is bad. That's fine, a classical syllogism.

So let's extend that logic- hyperbole is not your friend in this case. Trying to compare the death of a loved one to fucking up in a game for a little while is so amazingly absurd that it crossed the line from hilarious to disconcerting.

This becomes argumentum ad consequentiam, or appealing to the consequences.

I'll stop there with any sort of critical analysis, but yeah. It's easier to teach people for a few minutes and have a not so good game while they learn, than to totally shut someone out and yell at them for not meeting your standards.

 

You need to learn the game? Hell I just jumped in and picked it up naturally. Y'know, like every game I play.
<- gamer.

 

Griefers wreck stuff for the lulz and pretend to be newbies to avoid punishment; Newbies wreck stuff without knowing the difference and look like griefers. A willing-to-help person who's doing badly isn't considered a griefer. They won't get punished for that. Sometimes it's hard to tell between the two and the quickest way to find out is just to call griefer and see what answers you. As rude as it is.

I dunno, a lot of people are surprisingly cordial when I ask them to move. But when teamwork means so much in this game, the stress level goes a little high and people snap. There's no time to teach someone ze fine art of architecture, just shut up and get out of the way, thar be enemies at the doors.

 

@Jamburglar -
This is what we all strive for, but I haven't found myself to be as restrained as this. I am very elitist, and I find it hard to control that sometimes. It isn't that I'm in an awesome group of friends (moles) that I'm elitist, but it is my own way I play games, I find the best strategies, and the best structures and improve them as best as I can. This is the way I am.

@BlueLuigi -
This explains a lot about why I made this post, I felt like many people in the community could benefit from this, and sadly not as many people as you would think are as level-headed when playing a game to realize they're not helping. So maybe brute force is the only way to make some people understand.

@ Rayne -
This happens to me sometimes too, but instead of leaving I usually cut the stuff off and explain why. Half of the time the people grief my tower when I do this.

@ Acavado - "There's no time to teach someone ze fine art of architecture, just shut up and get out of the way, thar be enemies at the doors."
That is exactly how it is, thank-you for pointing that out!