Player Features and Ideas Discussion

This is a broken mechanic for multiple reasons that I won't go into. You know what they are, I know what they are, anyone who's spent time in nullsec knows how broken it is, and why.

Here's a simple solution. Implement an in game module, function, or whatever, to detect when a player is afk. Maybe have an icon next to a player when he's afk, that indicates that he's afk.

You could even go further and add this to the watch list feature. IE: you can view whether people on your watch list are afk or not. This would prevent people being able to see if half of local is afk at a glance. And it would require some preparation (adding a cloaky camper to watch list) to use.

This has no major drawbacks like some of the other proposed solutions. It fixes something that is slowly but surely killing nullsec as everyone and their brother gets more and more cloaky alts, to camp more and more of the ratting systems. It requires no mechanic changes, so there are no potential balance issues.

Problem solved.

Do you like botters? I'm going to assume you said no.
Why don't you like botters? Because they're getting some sort of in game benefit while not actually playing the game?
Guess what? A cloaky camper gets in game benefit while not actually playing the game.
What benefits can one have while afk you ask?

Well say I wanted to start a war with someone. We all know the best way to attack someone is where they make their money. AFK cloaky camping does exactly that. Without you being at the computer, you are stopping someone else from making isk.

I already know your argument to this, "If I'm not at my computer, I can't kill you". True, now how do I know whether or not you're at your computer? I don't. You know when I'm at my computer though, because you can see me ratting. Therefore the advantage is 100% in your hands. And there's nothing I can do about it.

That is a broken mechanic. It's as broken as tracking dreads. It's as broken as the original doomsday was. It's as broken as the original FW changes were.

If this broken mechanic is not fixed, one day I will be able to failcascade an entire alliance by myself with my army of cloaky alts. An alliance that makes no isk is a dead alliance.

But why should you be given notice? This is basically a recreation of the same problem with local and why afk-cloaking exists in the first place. People are given notice that a hostile is no longer afk and they dock up... waiting for the afk flag to come back. Rinse and repeat.

If people really want to put this issue to rest... then address local being used as "infallible" intel first.


A "few seconds" is barely enough time to scan someone down, warp to them, and point them. Remember... as soon as you make a keystroke or click your mouse, the afk flag goes away. Everyone in system then docks up or logs off.
And you can't see an "opportunity" to strike someone unless you are
- sitting in a complex to begin with (which requires warping to it, getting rid of the afk flag)...
- sitting in a belt (you still need to approach the target, getting rid of the afk flag... and moving while cloaked is SLOOOOOOOOOOW)...
- sitting at a jump bridge (doable, but most JB are on "deathstar" POSs making such an attack suicidal)...
- sitting on a gate (this will probably be the only viable thing you can do).


I guess we should declare market trading, PI, manufacturing, moon mining, and a plethora of other activities "exploits" as they all directly affect people without a player being at the computer (or even logged in).

Might as well be consistent if you're so anti-afk, eh?

Ok, first of all, AFK Cloaking™ IS a counter. It is countering Local Chat's flawless intel reporting capacity.
If it was not for local chat's Amazing Intel™, a pilot who was both AFK and cloaked would not be known at all, much less interrupting anyone's activities.

As to wormhole space, I certainly do not want to see that here.
I would miss my med clones, my market access, being able to dock, having a hangar which is just my stuff, and let's not forget predictably reliable gates to enter and leave through.

I do admit, the no local thing is kinda nice, but it simply is not worth sacrificing the rest like that...

Ok. If afk cloaking is a counter, then what is the counter to afk cloaking?

Agreed, covops and recon are fine. I quite like bombers, and I'm quite fond of the dual web rapier's ability to completely pin an opponent. I don't feel these ships need to be changed in any way. This is why I think my suggestion would work quite well. It requires no ship changes. No mechanic changes. All it requires is a simple feature get added to the game, which has minimal drawbacks. Don't like the instant intel tool? Go to wormhole space. It might be wise of you to go take a look at my killboards. Because the very thing you're telling me I'm getting caught by and I hate. It's the very thing I do.

It isn't cloaking that's the problem. It's not cloaky camping that's the problem. It's the ability for an afk cloaker to completely shut operations down, with minimal effort, that's the problem.

All of the suggested counters to this require multiple people. What does the cloaky camper require? One person, and a ship that costs around 50m. And you just walk away from the keyboard. That is far from balanced. And I say this from the perspective of a cloaky camper.

I know a fix to afk cloakers.....

OP quit the game / HTFU

Implying nullsec is the most dangerous space in the game. What is an afk cloaker? Oh, that's right, a risk averse player. He takes no risk while sitting in local all day cloaked up.