Should multi-boxing be against ToS?

[Shinrael]

Eh, they've never actually come down on it, there was a lot of talk about it back in vanilla and BC but i don't think they ever actually put it onto the ToS and in some cases they did punish some multiboxes for using 3rd party software but that's about it.

No, I meant that they are breaking a few rules (like the automatic key pressing for the remaining 4 characters, etc)

[Jtree]

I know what you're saying. But it's still just splitting hairs. There's what it is technically and then there's what it is in reality.

As far as Blizzard is concerned, the technicalities are the reality. If they were opposed to people having and utilizing multiple accounts at once, they would have shut it down ten years ago.

[Volitar]

Probably but every account you multibox is more money for Blizzard so its not.

Blizzard must love those guys with no friends and 40 accounts.

[chronia]

I've encountered maybe 2-3 multiboxers and i've been playing without unsubbing since May 2005. I don't really see the big deal there, they seem to be extremely rare. Not all that powerfull, sure 1 v.s. 5 or even 10 you loose, but i reckon with even numbers and organisation 10 players can destroy a 10 toon multibox setup pretty easy and in most of the relevant current end game content i dont see it working at all (Raiding, Instanced PVP, High M+), leaves leveling, Wpvp vs unorganised players and farming where a multibox setup potentially can shine. Doesn't seem that big of a deal to me, bots seem to be a way bigger problem and actually against the TOS.

[Dormie]

Do you really think there are enough multiboxers for money to be Blizzards motivation for keeping it legal?

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As far as Blizzard is concerned, the technicalities are the reality. If they were opposed to people having and utilizing multiple accounts at once, they would have shut it down ten years ago.

Blizzards opinion is irrelevant here.

[Jtree]

Do you really think there are enough multiboxers for money to be Blizzards motivation for keeping it legal?

On the flip side, do you really think it's enough of a problem that Blizzard needs to make an effort to stop it?

Blizzards opinion is irrelevant here.

I would think that Blizzard's stance is the only relevant one; all we're doing is sharing what we like and dislike.

[Gadzooks]

No, I meant that they are breaking a few rules (like the automatic key pressing for the remaining 4 characters, etc)

It's not against the rules. MBers are very aware of what could get their accounts banned. Blizzard's rule are clear, and if you doubt it, put in a ticket with a GM and discuss it with them. Multi-plexing 5 accounts with one keyboard is not against the rules, period, end of story. If you have a problem with that, take it up with Blizzard, because they're okay with it.

[Deleted]

I dont see a reason it should be against the TOS, as noone has any disadvantage from others playing that style.

[Gadzooks]

I have no idea about rules, ToS, nor legalities so this is just an opinion.
I think multi-boxing is a pay to win mechanism that makes leveling multiple characters way too easy. I'd love to have that but I can't pay it. I pay and play WoW because I dislike pay to win games (the game is supposed not to be pay to win right?). So yes imo it should be against tos.
But then again as many people already said, nowadays it's very rare and doesn't have an impact on most of our playing experience, so I wouldn't care enough to complain.

As opposed to, oh, I don't know...the free character boost you get with the game, and the paid boost you can buy?

Besides, the focus of MBing is not leveling. It's running dungeons and battlegrounds.

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I dont think having multipule accounts online at once should be against ToS. You are paying for each of them and should be able to play them after all. But I think some of the software they use to control them all at once in a strange mirror of 10 toons at once maybe should be. I don't think the orginal intention of the game was to have 10 hunters all unloading at once at some dude out in the world from one guy with 10 accounts at one keyboard. But at the sametime this is such a SMALL problem I don't see why they should focus much on it. I mean in my day I have seen it a couple dozen times in AV and maybe once or twice out in the world. That is like 10+ years of playing the game. Now if I was just hounded day and night by 10 chain gain characters sure.. let us look into this.. but it really isnt that bad.

I would say its biggest problem is I feel this is where a lot of people farm characters out to sell for RL money in the open market.

If that happens, then the player should be banned, but I can tell you from my time in the legit MB community - that's HIGHLY frowned upon there. Most legit MBers don't want to sell their characters, they want to use them.

There are shady people at the fringes of it, but the MB community has no sympathy for them, when they get caught. I havent been around those sites in years, but I have no doubt even talking about stuff like that isn't allowed.

[Kivana]

I have been on the receiving end of 5 simultaneous Lava Bursts in battlegrounds and know that unless you get the drop on them it is nigh on impossible to survive or kill one, so I vote yes, BUT, it's such a small multi boxer community in WoW that it's pointless of Blizz to action such a ban.

[Sansnom]

Simple question. The justification given is that they are still controlling all x amount of characters. Obviously there's a bit of stretch saying that, I would say we consider "playing a character" a 1:1 thing. Wondering what the general consensus is.

Don't really understand the big issue of multi boxing. I have seen some but they are not that common. In terms of gameplay, what can multi boxing do that is special?

In raids and dungeons, it would not work. In BG and Arena, it would also not work. In fact, both would be at a major disadvantage.

That just leave leveling, which hardly matters.

Are there anything that gives multiple boxing a distinct advantage over a group of players of the same number?

[Stardrift]

I've seen more players griefing with multiboxing rather than actually playing the game.

[MabusGaming]

This again? This gets posted once every few months haha.

[Shinrael]

It's not against the rules. MBers are very aware of what could get their accounts banned. Blizzard's rule are clear, and if you doubt it, put in a ticket with a GM and discuss it with them. Multi-plexing 5 accounts with one keyboard is not against the rules, period, end of story. If you have a problem with that, take it up with Blizzard, because they're okay with it.

Mate, calm down and let's solve this misunderstanding. I know it's not against the ToS. What I am saying is that logically, it should be, but 1) it isn't and 2) I don't mind it not being. Okay? Please.

[Turaska]

Simple question. The justification given is that they are still controlling all x amount of characters. Obviously there's a bit of stretch saying that, I would say we consider "playing a character" a 1:1 thing. Wondering what the general consensus is.

Multiboxers control the characters themselves, to say they should be banned is like saying "People shouldn't be allowed to buy more than 1 WoW account" or "Raiders shouldn't be allowed to use addons" since addons basically aid raiders in much the same way addons aid multiboxers. This argument got old years ago, if you don't like multiboxers then simply ignore them, their money, not yours.

On top of that, even if you did ban ISBoxer or whatever other program they use, you can literally use nothing but LEGAL addons with code Blizzard allows to control all of the characters, they're literally doing nothing against the ToS.

[Fritters154]

Blizzards opinion is irrelevant here.

Blizzard's opinion is the only relevant one. It's their game and their rules. If they don't believe multi-boxing should be against ToS then that's what goes.

[Belloc]

I multibox'ed throughout LK through MoP to level alts, so I'm for it. I don't think they should be allowed in instanced pvp though.

Instanced PVP is one of the few places where it shouldn't be a problem, since a multiboxer is at a major strategic disadvantage. Sure, they can easily insta-gib someone, but they can just as easily be disoriented and messed up. How is someone controlling 4+ characters going to break CC? How are they going to handle multiple objectives? If you coordinate, their whole system falls apart almost immediately.

[Gadzooks]

Mate, calm down and let's solve this misunderstanding. I know it's not against the ToS. What I am saying is that logically, it should be, but 1) it isn't and 2) I don't mind it not being. Okay? Please.

I'm not upset. I didn't use any language that indicates anger. I'm very curious why you have to frame me as being angry, when I was simply passing along some information.

[Dormie]

To be clear, I don't really care strongly what multiboxing is ruled as. That doesn't mean I can't argue for or against it.

Blizzard's opinion is the only relevant one. It's their game and their rules. If they don't believe multi-boxing should be against ToS then that's what goes.

Nothing we do in this thread will change the rules. We are discussing what the rule should be, not what it is. Idk why that isn't clear. Therefore, what Blizzard has as a current rule has NO bearing whatsoever on what people think of multiboxing.

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Multiboxers control the characters themselves, to say they should be banned is like saying "People shouldn't be allowed to buy more than 1 WoW account" or "Raiders shouldn't be allowed to use addons" since addons basically aid raiders in much the same way addons aid multiboxers. This argument got old years ago, if you don't like multiboxers then simply ignore them, their money, not yours.

On top of that, even if you did ban ISBoxer or whatever other program they use, you can literally use nothing but LEGAL addons with code Blizzard allows to control all of the characters, they're literally doing nothing against the ToS.

It SHOULD be against the ToS is what I'm arguing. And you can say they're controlling their own character as many times as you want but we both know it's bullshit.

[Youn]

Technically, the rule they are breaking 90% of the time is 1 keypress = 1 action. If you mirror your keypresses over 5 games and press one button to get 5 characters to do the same action. You are breaking that rule.