Community Q&A #1

Community Q&A #1
Answered on 01/01/2021

How far along is the autoban, is there an expected due date for it?
A lot of progress has been made in regards to the autobanner, and parts of the system have been in place for a few months now. Some hacks that were previously possible are now disconnecting the player when they are attempted. Most of the other hacks which are possible are being monitored as we adjust the system based on false positives, and once those false positives are ironed out and we are comfortable with the accuracy, these other hacks can also be set to disconnect and ban players. Ensuring full accuracy within the system is of vital importance so that we can be sure that legit players will not be affected. As you can imagine the autobanner is not a simple task, and requires the use of complex calculations to validate player and monster movements, while at the same time ensuring we account for any latency issues. So it has unfortunately been quite a time consuming process to get to this point, however we have definitely made progress towards getting something in place which we feel will have a big impact on the issue of hackers. That being said, we cannot give an expected due date.

Regarding the hacker situation, are there any plans (and if are any, when) to implement any counter measures, even if they're temporary?
We do, and will continue to implement counter measures wherever possible. For example, we have recently been brainstorming methods to deal with some of the recent issues that have been affecting particular leeching spots, and will have something in place by January 5th.

Is there a plan to compensate players who have been incorrectly blocked for a long time?
Although we don't have a rule in place about compensating players who have been incorrectly banned, we have in rare cases given compensation to individuals, this is usually in the form of a 1.5x or 2x exp/meso/drop coupon. Having a set rule in place could lead to it being exploited, so I believe we will need to continue with this method of compensating on a case-by-case basis.

Would it be possible to outline a road map so the community has a realistic idea on what to expect in the upcoming months or year? It doesn't have to be specific, just in general so players can stay in the loop.
Things planned to be implemented in the coming months are (in the following order): Release the updated terms and conditions as well as reporting guidelines, give GMs access to more tools to be able to deal with a broader range of issues, release a new modernised website, add new content to the game in the form of a new area for levels 100+, have the autoban fully functional, and then add Pink Bean. We are unable to provide a more specific timeline than this.

Is there any plans for updating the server's library, if yes what is it and is there a set timeline?
Yes, once the new website is complete and our main developer Karven has finished working on the more important tasks such as giving GMs more autonomy and fixing the autoban, we will then get to work on providing new and improved Library and Rankings pages.

While many of us are appreciative of the work done by Karven, we think is too much work for one guy. Are there any plans for succession or more staff to take the burden?
Karven does indeed have a lot on his plate right now, but unfortunately the majority of the work requires in-depth knowledge of the game client. The knowledge required is something that essentially needs years of hands-on experience, and so isn't something that can easily be learned by members of staff. It is also very difficult to outsource any of the work that needs doing because there just are not many people in the world who have the knowledge to do so. However, when it comes to things like scripting (NPC's, Quests, etc) or wz editing (map editing, editing/creating items, etc), those are things that can be learnt, and all of those things are already being done by other staff members

Are there any plans to add more (Staff) roles?
Yes. We have discussed recruiting people who are interested in testing bugs, giving game balance advice, and potentially WZ editing. Once we finalise exactly how we want these roles to work alongside our current roles and implement the necessary groundwork, we will be begin the recruitment process.

Also, with autoban working, can we expect some major updates and even pink bean?
Absolutely, Pink Bean has been discussed for years now, and we have been putting it on hold to ensure the autobanner is in place first. Once development of the autobanner is complete, not only will we be able to release Pink Bean, but we will be able to focus more on other things and help churn out gameplay updates more quickly.

There was an extensive discussion about the Shaolin exp (ratio) nerf but it seems abandoned for now. Did Staff reach a conclusion?
Yes, we have had an extensive discussion regarding Shaolin, and our internal dialogue differed from the desire of the community vote. Therefore we have put the idea on hold for now.

Any hope for Chaos Zakum or Horntail in the (distant) future or are these bosses not considered for implementation ever on this server? If the latter, why?
We have no "plans" on adding this at the moment. The reason is that it has not been a very popular request and we have more prominent issues to focus on.

Spoiler: Original Post

Hi Royallers,

In response to popular demand, we are going to try something new: A monthly Q&A session where you get to ask Questions, and we provide Answers (to the extent that we can).

For this first Q&A we want to expedite the process, which will mean a shorter question session of 1 week, and a shorter time frame for compiling answers (another week maximum).

The only stipulations are that the questions must concern the game in some way; whether that be related to its content, bugs, development, community feedback, forum, website, or community as a whole, and that they must abide by the forum rules and guidelines. The questions should not be aimed at specific individuals, as we the Staff will decide on replies through cooperation and by majority vote.

We will select up to 10 questions each month (if they are not duplicates of previously asked questions, and we deem them to be of high enough quality), at our discretion, but also with respect to the interest shown by the members for different questions.

We also remind everyone that you may only post questions in this thread; not reply to other people's comments.

 

Answers have now been given to 10 of the questions from this thread. The first post has been updated with our responses! Thank you for taking time to post questions, and we look forward to answering more in the next Q&A session.