Once again the game forum was rife with controversy this week following the shooting on The Sacred Empire, after around six of the crew members went on vacation right in the middle of the kill rampage! This was swiftly followed by each and every crew member who had “opted out” getting banned by Head Moderator Riserva.
Player upon player roared aloud that this was not in fact a game rule, and that the bans were unfair.Many questioning that other players had not been banned for the same “feature abuse”, others puzzled by the line "Using the Vacation feature in order to prevent your account from being killed is not permitted and is considered a bannable offence." being added to the Additional Rules sticky on the Game Forum almost 20 minutes after the bans took place.
Many more saw this as a cowardly act from The Sacred Empire six, with one player Tops stating “Nice to see how many real members they have, a lot went into vacation” and Cudi echoing much the same with “Most going on vacation! That’s not the crew spirit.”Only time can tell if this has caused more than loss of life to the stats crew.
As High Council of The Sacred Empire I asked SharpKnife if he felt he had any extra responsibility and should have stood with his crew rather than jumping ship at the first signs of danger and what else he had to say on the matter.
I never leave TSE I never left they are my home I have given them everything I have and would gladly die for them. {sic} I didn't disappear its just an account on vacation there was nothing the account could have done anyway I never left the ship.
As far as the rule goes it wasn't a rule when we did it, {sic} and then 10 minutes later Riserva adds one sentence to the rules stating you can't. {sic} He banned us on false terms. It should not be a bannable offence it’s a strategy to keep crew alive.
SharpeKnife said
Other crew members who went into vacation mode confirmed they were aware of other crew members doing the same thing, although they all stated they did not believe it was a bannable offense. TosserG stated “Why should I prefer to get banned in stead of getting killed?”.
As there were no current Moderators online at the time of the bannings other than Riserva himself, I took the opportunity to ask a few ex-Moderators what their take on the situation was, and if they had ever known this to be a rule, or enforceable in the past.
People have always "abused" the vacation feature as long as I can remember. A few years ago it was coded so that accounts on vacation would not have a crew drop to them. I do not ever recall this being a rule nor can I recall personally an account being banned for this reason. It makes sense the rule itself does but this is a newer thing and not something that’s been around for ages. If that were so many more accounts would have been banned due to this.
VooDooDoll said
I was aware that people could get banned for using a feature other than it was intended, yes. {sic} I can't remember people going on vacation when their crew got shot 'en masse' like now. That might just be a memory glitch though.
Rod said
Soon after the bannings took place, a new post emerged on the Game Forum from Riserva himself, it clarified the reason behind the bans and stated that as this was in fact a new sub-rule that the banned players would, on this singular occasion, be unbanned.
Vacation feature - Getting killed
Due to there being a large number of questions in regards to this rule, I have decided to make a post and make things clear.
You CANNOT use the Vacation feature when your crew is getting shot in order to prevent your account from being killed. You are to use it only when you go on genuine vacation. Anything else, is considered feature abuse.
The accounts banned today will be unbanned (pending an investigation) and removed from vacation. From now on, anyone who goes on vacation in order to prevent them from being killed will be banned.
Riserva said
This once again caused a controversy with many players saying the bans should stick with Tops voicing his opinion of “ I also want to state that the people that were banned must remain banned if you ask me. There was already a rule that explained it. {sic} It was clear to me so why not for them ?”
Later when I had a chance to catch up with the Ban Man Riserva I asked him what he has to say about the whole epidemic, questioning on behalf of the players where this “new” rule actually came from and he told me:
The exact rule which was directly aimed at the Vacation feature was put in place after the bans were issued, due to so many people asking for an explanation.
The rule, which I based my bans on was, however, present in the Additional Rules from the time of 5litre (as he wrote it), which clearly states:
[quote]Features are to be used as their purpose intended. If you use them for a purpose other than what they are intended you can get banned. (For example, but not limited to, transferring cash via car purchases)[/quote]
Riserva said
So there you have it folks! It is an actual rule that you cannot enter into vacation mode as a defence when your crew is being shot at! Your only protection is, well, it’s your protection! Anyone seen to be doing this in the future will be given a permanent ban. You have been warned!
