Dancer Archive
Thread: I guess it's nothing new, but man... it hurts.
DaraShaku wrote:
I've got my wake up call, and I hope you all have gotten yours. Stop AFK macroing today.
You're preaching to the choir
Kick them out of your groups.
Many of us do. I do.
Post your feelings to your correspondent on the boards.
We have, and things are about to change, it's just going to take a little time.
the Devs are in no hurry to address our concerns...
Actually, AFK Macroing is one of their top priorities right now.
Where have you been?
Sinda wrote:
Actually, AFK Macroing is one of their top priorities right now.
Where have you been?
Really? Really??
(sings) Oh joy! Oh joy! Oh joy! Oh joy! Oh joy... 
"Kick them out of your groups"
I don't kick them out of my groups because if they're grouped with youtheir presencehelps people to heal faster and they help apprentices get XP. While I think something should be done to stop AFK macroing, I think that in the meantimeit'scounterproductive for playersnot to get the most experiencethey can get from a group. IfI only had myself to consider,I'd kick them. But a lot of my youngapprentices need all the help they can get. It would be wrong to kick AFKers unless I was asked to do it by a consensus of the group. Making a dictatorialdecision that adversely affects the entire group AND all the customers is just not my style.
DaraShaku wrote:
Sinda wrote:
Actually, AFK Macroing is one of their top priorities right now.
Where have you been?
Really? Really??
(sings) Oh joy! Oh joy! Oh joy! Oh joy! Oh joy...
I'm with DaraShaku-- It is??? I think I missed the memo.
The last message I got from a dev via PM indicated that entertainers were the least important thing on their list.
I'm choosing to remain skeptical until I actually see a change. But I'll be one of the happiest entertainers on Eclipse if they do finally resolve the AFK macroing issue.
Yesterday afternoon, I was hopping around Tatooine, and the towns were dead. No entertainers in the cantinas, andno one around to chat with or heal, if there were. I thought to myself, "maybe I'll hit Anchorhead - they've got that cozy little club, and there're bound to be people around there needing help..."
(I can already see some of you shaking your heads sadly at my naivete 
)
What do I find in the Anchorhead cantina? Oh, about 15-20 entertainers... most Masters, all AFK. Churning out music and dance like some sort of lobotomized, organic zombie fountains. Truly, I've never seen anything like it. I thought I was going to puke. And now with the Mind buffs coming up...
I've got my wake up call, and I hope you all have gotten yours. Stop AFK macroing today. Kick them out of your groups. Post your feelings to your correspondent on the boards. Ask your customers to /tell you personally if they need you on a far off world. When in a cantina or hotel, register your location. Encourage players to use the Search feature to find us. Don't hassle people for tips. We're a small part of the population, and as such, the Devs are in no hurry to address our concerns...
...Our fate is in our hands...
Dara Shaku
Wandering Entertainer of Kettemoor...
DaraShaku wrote:What do I find in the Anchorhead cantina? Oh, about 15-20 entertainers... most Masters, all AFK. Churning out music and dance like some sort of lobotomized, organic zombie fountains. Truly, I've never seen anything like it. I thought I was going to puke. And now with the Mind buffs coming up...
That's just so sad, but I guess it happens, I also had a request to come to Anchorhead because many masters were there but I didn't go. My regular customers appreciate me too much in Mos Eisley for me to consider moving elsewhere just for the extra experience. There were 2 Master dancers and a Master musician that passed through the cantina in Mos Eisley this weekend and they all performed with me, with one of them I put on a clothes swapping show for a few hours on friday, I tried to constantly match her outfits after she changed them using her special light effects. She visited again on saturday and after a short dance she stayed to heal me (apprentice entertainer) and a few novice entertainers.
Customers appreciate real entertaining entertainers, they love it when i sweettalk to my tailor for a new outfit and then they give me compliments and make small talk while I dance or play music or just walk around the cantina talking to patrons or fellow entertainers while my action regenerates.
One of my entertainer friends was in Anchorhead and he called me, I told him "no, I can't leave my regulars" so he came to me instead, after an hour or so he went back because he wanted more experience, 20 minutes after he left a master musician came to play with us and shortly after that I had two other novice entertainers join in and I danced while they played music, we interacted with eachother and our customers and we all had great fun and tips
Kristania,
I too agree with you.
Frankly i will not train, nor group with any afk bots.
First off i am capped at Dance XP and Healing XP. i have been for a very long time. (About 3rd week after release if my memory serves)
I don't need exp. If i see "AT THE KEYBOARD" novice entertainers i will invite them to group with me First time i see the afk sign go up and they didnt announce it and dont come back buh bye. First time they come up for air and ask for training.
Macro your way over to the trainer and pay for it. Oh i forgot you can't pay cause nobody tipped you pity
I will not i repeat i WILL NOT share my XP bonus that i give a group with someone macroing. All of the posts i have on this particular problem if i were to do it would make me a hypocrite. Not gonna happen. You want dance XP stay playing.
You want sympathy cause i wont train your afk macro butt. Tell it to the NPC trainer. Cause frankly i don't care.
Syl
"Beery soz but I have to disagree with you. Yes grouping with afk macros may increase your exp by a bit but also gives them experience thus creating more bots. In the long run you hurt yourself and help them in the end."
Help them in what way? Surely if I get them to Master fast enough, they'll leave the profession (like most Master Dancers seem to do) and possibly, given that no other career is aseasy to AFK in, they'll leave the game, or actuallystart playing it. If they don't get Master fast, they'll just stay on, AFKing their little hearts out. Let's get these bozos out of the cantinas as fast as possible.
Dont encourage this behavior by being experience greedy."
Erm... I'm a Master Dancer. I don't need experience.
Unless that PM came from a dev who's name started with a K(which I'm 99% sure it didn't), that PM doesn't mean Jack. And yes, it is a big concern of theirs, the problem has gotten out of hand and we all want it fixed.
Pendarin wrote:
I'm with DaraShaku-- It is??? I think I missed the memo.
The last message I got from a dev via PM indicated that entertainers were the least important thing on their list.
I'm choosing to remain skeptical until I actually see a change. But I'll be one of the happiest entertainers on Eclipse if they do finally resolve the AFK macroing issue.
Pendarin wrote:
I'm with DaraShaku-- It is??? I think I missed the memo.
The last message I got from a dev via PM indicated that entertainers were the least important thing on their list.
I'm choosing to remain skeptical until I actually see a change. But I'll be one of the happiest entertainers on Eclipse if they do finally resolve the AFK macroing issue.
You have to know the super-secret password and have a decoder ring to get the memoes
Ravenmist and NewJedi (the musician correspondent) have been wonderful about letting us know what's going on. They can't always tell us everything, but that's ok. The message we're getting is that SOE realizes the damage AFK macroing is doing to the game and they're going to do something to either discourage it or put a complete stop to it.
When that day comes, I'm throwing a party. It may end up with fewer entertainers in the cantinas, but that means better tips for those of us who actually play the game.
Hey, thanks for the inspiring story, DenisaGalen! And Ravenmist, thank you for the info!
And Beery, I see your point; kicking possibly innocent, ignorant people out of a group isn't for everyone - nor should it have to be. In a perfect world, we wouldn't have to do it. But I'm not sure I'm with you on the whole 'newbies need all the help they can get' angle. I know some people are power-achievers, but wow... is making Master in record speed that important to everybody? Maybe we need to take a poll! I started my character one week after release, and I just recently made Novice Dancer! But then, I like running around in the field, too...
But anyway, look at it this way; perhaps if the AFKers weren't welcome, the Masters might come back... that'd get the XP poppin'! 
I don't like the AFKer's, at all. But I don't mind them either....
If you aren't a master yet, they can help you gain XP.
If you are, they are easily ignored, insignificant fluff. If you have a room full of them, you can have fun dancing through them, knocking them over and watching them twitch on the ground like upside down bugs.
If nothing else, having them around increases the tips to the live ones (in my experience at least). Any dancer with any style at all can easily capitalize on their brainless presence.
I won't miss them if they disappear, but I don't hate them either.
Now, AFK band leaders, those I despise!