Struggling to find a reason to stay

Okay, So I'm a relatively new player, I've bounced around a few servers here and there and I've sort of settled for this one. However.

Day 1 Life One: Bought my car license, bought a car as it spawned some troll jumped in front of me as I pulled out, I didn't injure him in the slightest but I still got out to see that he was okay and I was immediately met with hostility. I carried on with my business, only to find said troll tracked me down and started ramming my car, somehow he glitched and killed himself #ArmaKarma, Only for him to track me down again and delibretly destroy my vehicle, and myself.

Day 1 Life Two: Respawned, bought new car headed off somewhere far where I could earn some money in peace, only to be chased by a dude in an ambulance car (it definitely had the ambulance skin on) I made a turn he ran into the back at me and immediatley started screaming about me ramming him which obviously never happened as he was behind me the whole time.  both my life and my vehicle were terminated and more of my starting money lost.... #EndOfDayOne....

Day 2: Life 3, I log on making another attempt at life on the server there's only 25 players on what could possibly go wrong on this vast open space. EVERYTHING. more trolls trying to steal my car and when I finally escape them, I'm chased by two guys in a car who don't say anything at all, start ramming my truck causing it to blow up killing me again. I know this to be VDM and Low Qaulity RP but....

I don't have video proof to go into a player report. I don't record my gameplay because I don't want to have loads of junk running my framerates into the ground especially with ARMA. and it's not worth putting an player report in because without the video it will just get closed. which doesn't make sense to me because I've spent time administrating A2 RP servers and I've never needed video footage to come to a reasonable conclusion.

I know this comes across as a bit of ranty post and I didn't really want to because this is a lovely community with good servers but so far my experiences haven't been great and I want to experience the positive sides. Is just bad luck or is it a case of no one really cares enough to tackle the trolls and non-rp'ing players on the server?  I hope its not the latter....

Tezz, I recommend avoiding the Kavala area until you have settled in and started to get some money..

It's not an easy island to stay on and you must think ahead in every situation, only thing I can recommend is joining a group or the police and giving that a try if you are not enjoying the standard civilian life? 

i suggest doing salt runs... you are up the top of the map out of the way and also unmc like to protect guys doing salt runs..... IF YOU COMPLETELY fill a hemmet box truck u get around 1.1-1.2 mil and it takes around an hour to complete. 

failing that use @Clarity's money making tutorial guides they will help you settle in and make things alot more enjoyable.

Don't go near Kavala, don't do drug runs unless you have some friends on, maybe buy once you have enough money a rook so you can kill these trolls if they find you,remember to initiate, I'd recommend doing salt runs as no gangs check salt and the UNMC will protect you, if you want to do things around Kavala you can always ask the police to escort you. Soon as you have rebel liscense and around 3mil and then join a gang

hope this helps 

Try using the in game ‘call police’ feature if you need assistance or are being chased and would like some protection.

failing that, if you believe people to be intentionally vdm’ing/trolling, there is also an ‘admin request’ button in your ‘y’ menu. That way an admin will usually respond and come watch over you, so even if you don’t record, they can deal with rulebreakers them and there.

I agree w you mate, the quality of life for new players is starting to go downhill, but if you ever need help just ask a respected rebel or someone who looks experienced to help you on a run or find a police officer that is willing to help, hopefully someone will come along and protect you if you want to do a salt run or oil or something like that

I understand you very well. It is not easy to survive. I agree with the people who have given you tips. Try to see it from a different perspective. Make friends, ask people who also want to survive. Get tips, try see how it goes. Believe me, everyone is gone through this process. Eventually you come out there. If you really do not come true and you have it really tough, I want you to best help and explain. I'm sure everyone here for you ready to help you.

-Martinez

Well, mate for me personally how I overcame the starting barrier was like this; I was doing an aluminium run in my zamak, got to the mine and I of course started mining. Suddenly a group three of people came with big Hemmt Box trucks and lots of good gear. When they pulled up I just kept mining and then we engaged in a conversation, after I was done I asked them if I could tag along for protection. They allowed me to tag along. So we finished the processing, and sold the aluminium after. We chatted for a bit after then next thing I know I am in their discord and they actually kitted me up, gave me money for a Hemmt, rebel training, guns... Unfortunately the group leader Rory got baned for discrimination after some gang kept killing him, and the group fell apart.

Also, for the reports use Nvidia Shadowplay, takes like 3 frames off my game but is valuable asf. It automatically records the last 5 - 15 minutes of gameplay, that way you don't have to deal with 2 hour long videos.

As my time has progressed on here, I have noticed a steady drop in RP causing me to be far more alert when doing anything at all. However, once you get off your feet and start getting some more advanced gear you will find that you're left alone by trouble-makers far more - and avoiding the sort of trolls becomes somewhat of an instinct.

I must ask @tezz311, how do you expect the staff team to make informed decisions on player reports without any evidence? If someone kills me and I claim RDM but have no proof and they deny my accusations, I don't see any way for the staff to judge the case properly without showing prejudice towards the accused or the accuser.

It does not matter how slowely you go as long as you don’t stop. 

What i did when i first started was just jump on ts and go to the public channels i met a few people and i went around with them for a bit and they even taught me what was right from wrong. Dont give up try make friends that you can do runs with but this is the best roleplaying server BY FAR so keep trying

step 1, try make friends and do runs with them

step 2. learn the rules to avoid getting yourself into trouble if you are stuck or need help the staff are always available to help out with any questions that you may need answered

step 3. Dont get too annoyed and just try have fun in the process if you are getting robbed dont be salty make it enjoyable for you and the robber and if u make them laugh or anything to lighten the mood they might even give you some of your money back

Haywire said:

I must ask @tezz311, how do you expect the staff team to make informed decisions on player reports without any evidence? If someone kills me and I claim RDM but have no proof and they deny my accusations, I don't see any way for the staff to judge the case properly without showing prejudice towards the accused or the accuser.

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Without being disrespectful to the staff team, I was an Administrator for an A2 Island Life server for 3 years, In that time I had managed to succesfully solve many problems without relying on video evidence. Personally I feel the relience on video evidence full stop is just lazy and shows that the staff aren't confident or willing to make judgement calls for themselves and it is biased towards players who's hardware cannot keep up with recording whilst playing. It should be easy for the staff to judge the case utilizing statements at hand and determining from playing patterns and behavioural tendencies whether a statement has merit. I wasn't seeking punishment nor compensation I was just aiming to make the staff team aware of this sort of behaviour was occuring and that it should be monitored appropraiately which is what administrators should be doing. by rejecting the application I'm basically being told that it never happened and that this particular player could continue to harass and troll players which shouldn't have even been happening in the first place.

tezz311 said:

Without being disrespectful to the staff team, I was an Administrator for an A2 Island Life server for 3 years, In that time I had managed to succesfully solve many problems without relying on video evidence. Personally I feel the relience on video evidence full stop is just lazy and shows that the staff aren't confident or willing to make judgement calls for themselves and it is biased towards players who's hardware cannot keep up with recording whilst playing. It should be easy for the staff to judge the case utilizing statements at hand and determining from playing patterns and behavioural tendencies whether a statement has merit. I wasn't seeking punishment nor compensation I was just aiming to make the staff team aware of this sort of behaviour was occuring and that it should be monitored appropraiately which is what administrators should be doing. by rejecting the application I'm basically being told that it never happened and that this particular player could continue to harass and troll players which shouldn't have even been happening in the first place.

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I hate to tell you this but not everyone in life is honest and unfortunately evidence, like in life, is required before we can make an informed decision. Calling us “lazy” because we don’t take people’s word at face value tells me a lot. Got that server name?

I do wish we all lived in a perfect world were everyone was honest and kind to each other but if we did there would be no reason to ban anyone in the first place. 

tezz311 said:

Without being disrespectful to the staff team, I was an Administrator for an A2 Island Life server for 3 years, In that time I had managed to succesfully solve many problems without relying on video evidence. Personally I feel the relience on video evidence full stop is just lazy and shows that the staff aren't confident or willing to make judgement calls for themselves and it is biased towards players who's hardware cannot keep up with recording whilst playing. It should be easy for the staff to judge the case utilizing statements at hand and determining from playing patterns and behavioural tendencies whether a statement has merit. I wasn't seeking punishment nor compensation I was just aiming to make the staff team aware of this sort of behaviour was occuring and that it should be monitored appropraiately which is what administrators should be doing. by rejecting the application I'm basically being told that it never happened and that this particular player could continue to harass and troll players which shouldn't have even been happening in the first place.

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No disrepesct either but I have managed a far larger server than most and we tried the whole no evidence thing and it really did not work, it tended to lend to people getting reported out of revenge then further wasted time by admins who was watching people who realistically done nothing wrong.

On top of that you assume if a report is rejected it will mean no one will watch anything that’s not always the case, since you have administrated life servers before I would imagine you know that there a lot of duties for staff besides just looking at player reports.

With regards to your comment about not understanding why footage is needed; if staff haven’t seen it with their own lies we cannot trust that the events you’ve stated are 100% true. When people are reporting others that they believe to have wronged them, they often don’t look at it from an objective standpoint or the other perspective, thus not painting the full picture for them. If we as the staff team went by the singular written view without watching the video then we aren’t getting the true story.

This ensures that all reports are dealt with fairly and the staff member that deals with the appeal doesn’t matter; as accusations of bias and corruption would skyrocket if we went solely by written word.

tezz311 said:

by rejecting the application I'm basically being told that it never happened and that this particular player could continue to harass and troll players which shouldn't have even been happening in the first place.

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Additionally, this isn’t true as we wouldn’t just say “we cannot see it therefore it didn’t happen” it’s just we cannot action what we cannot see. This is to maintain a fair and even approach to the whole ‘report a player’.

Currently the staff team is at a high for the amount of staff we have, so if you send a teamspeak/in-game admin request to staff then they can spectate and possibly action against the players you’ve stated to have wronged you (if they see it for themselves). Half time they’ll be watching he server and as by design, you won’t even know they’re actually there..

If you find a couple UNMC soldiers in game, we wear a dark blue uniform, try asking us if we could help you on a run, if we aren't busy at the time, you'll probably get a yes.

Samatlewis said:

 if staff haven’t seen it with their own lies we cannot trust that the events you’ve stated are 100% true.

 as accusations of bias and corruption would skyrocket if we went solely by written word.

Additionally, this isn’t true as we wouldn’t just say “we cannot see it therefore it didn’t happen” it’s just we cannot action what we cannot see. This is to maintain a fair and even approach to the whole ‘report a player’.

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1. If staff have good judgement they can determine an appropriate response to a complaint that isn't recorded on video.

2. Accusations of bias and corruption would not skyrocket, again this is a judgement thing. If its obvious its one party is wrong then by all means take the appropriate action, if you can't decide put the complaint on hold and tell both parties you will be watching for further contraventions of the rules. this will let them know you are watching and should mitigate further issues. If neither party commits any contraventions then its a case of application rejected with corrective measures successful.

3. You've basically already contradicted yourself. I filed a report which was rejected due to "lack of video evidence" which is basically translating to, we didn't see it happen so it never happend". If I recorded the actions I saw yesterday I wouldnt have even known who the guys name was until the medics  revived and I directly got up and looked at him. All you would have seen on my screen is a ambulance car flashing between my mirrors then slamming into me at a ridiculous speed destroying my vehicle. without a way to identify the player that report would no doubt be denied. with the reason "We didn't see player X ram a car up your ass so we aren't going to punish player X, complaint rejected"

tezz311 said:

-Shortened-





 

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If you're going to make an unbiased, just decision then the evidence is required. You don't see courts sentencing people for a crime there is no evidence of.

If staff were to do what you were talking about, they would have to assess the attitude of people involved in the report which is just a messy and highly unreliable. What if someone is a really good liar? What if someone has been banned before for a similar offense but was completely innocent of the rule break he was being accused of? Your system literally requires staff to make decisions from a point of bias in favour of the person they feel is more likely to tell the truth, it's just silly.

For your third point, if a scientist makes a claim we expect it to be backed up with evidence. It may be true that the sun is larger than the Earth, but without the evidence, we can't just assume it to be true. In the legal system, we can't just assume someone committed a crime because they're an ex-inmate being accused by a respected lawyer or something. They're not saying "we didn't see it so it so it never happened." They're saying, "we have no evidence of it, therefore, it's impossible for us to know what really happened and make an unbiased decision."

tezz311 said:

1. If staff have good judgement they can determine an appropriate response to a complaint that isn't recorded on video.

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Without proper evidence to back up our judgement then there is full grounds for a complaint, regardless of their argument is ‘valid’ in sense of non political terms. We go by evidence, period. It prevents further issues, heresay and what people think aren’t solid grounds. We keep it professional with this approach to keep it all level and fair.

its up to you if you deem “lack of evidence” to translate to “so it never happened”. That’s your own perception and way of reading between the lines. If there is not enough evidence to action a report but staff still feel as though there was a level of merit within it, it could potentially still be added to the offending players notes and noted to other staff to watch said player in-game. So it’s not always as plainly as it being thrown out and forgotten.

tezz311 said:

If I recorded the actions I saw yesterday I wouldnt have even known who the guys name was until the medics  revived and I directly got up and looked at him. All you would have seen on my screen is a ambulance car flashing between my mirrors then slamming into me at a ridiculous speed destroying my vehicle. without a way to identify the player that report would no doubt be denied. with the reason "We didn't see player X ram a car up your ass so we aren't going to punish player X, complaint rejected"

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If there is no name to go by and it doesn’t state who downed you due to the fact it was an act of VDM then there’s obviously nothing we can do and therefore we would have to reject the report. We don’t know everything. If you had a video then we could still potentially compensate yourself for what was lost if you had adequate evidence to backup the items you claim to have lost.

Its just the way it’s done here. If you feel as though there are better ways for us to administrate this community then by all means put a well constructed suggestion post on the forums explaining why your way is better than ours; however we’ve been here 3 years and our way is quite efficient.