Yelling the Rumbler: What is an Exploit?

by: Tony "RadarX" Jones

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Exploits are a part of every game, but what we don't hear discussed is what really is considered an exploit? Are they ok because something isn't working right? How do they get fixed and what type of communication is necessary? What happens when the exploit gets out and how do the players react?

Many people may not be familiar with the Rumbler from Emerald Halls or the importance it played in changing a major mechanic in every Echoes of Faydwer raid zone. Even fewer people are familiar with the soap opera style drama that erupted at EQ2 Flames, creating an epic tale not soon forgotten. This 3 month tirade finally came to a close last week as an accurate response of what really happened was posted by a former SOE employee.

First a little bit of a rundown for the uninitiated on Emerald Halls and the Rumbler. Emerald Halls is a level 70 X4 epic zone consisting of three floors and multiple bosses. In addition to these bosses, there are multiple randomly spawning nameds which will assist the bosses if not killed, and literally hundreds of trash mobs. The first floor has a boss called the Tender of the Seedlings (Thanks to Aaden of Befallen for verifying the exact name for me) who must be eliminated in order to proceed to the second floor. The second floor has a boss called the Gardener, who must also be defeated to proceed to the third floor, allowing the raid to face Wuoshi.

Wait, there is more! Also on the first floor, there is a randomly spawning named called the Rumbler which will assist the Tender unless handled separately. The Rumbler is a ring event. Without getting into the specifics of how the event works, let's just say it was a little too hard of an encounter. It was widely known that using the /yell command would make the Rumbler considerably easier and basically despawn him.

On a Cold Dreary Night...

On December 15th, Dissolution of Nektulos zoned into Emerald Halls and began to clear the first floor before encountering the Rumbler. Dissolution had to make a decision, use what could be considered an exploit, or waste 5 hours and eat a 5 day lockout timer?

Two members argued not all methods of defeating the Rumbler had been exhausted, and that bypassing it was an exploit. The raid leader disagreed and argued the content was broken and blocking progress justifying it.

What happened next, would create a drama that only daytime TV could truly appreciate. Dissolution yelled the Rumbler, and all hell broke loose.

Where is the Line Drawn?

This event begged a very important, frequently ignored question. What exactly defines an exploit? We could yank out a dictionary and debate definitions but most people would agree its an inappropriate manipulation of game mechanics. Are there times, like when mechanics are inherently broken, that it's ok to utilize exploits? Are there different levels of exploits?

Many would agree duping money is wrong, but would buying money from the secondary market be just as wrong? Some would say the first is exploiting, the second just breaking the rules. So was what Dissolution really wrong? It didn't hurt anyone, and since it was instanced, didn't affect anyone but them, right?

This was the center of the debate drawing hundreds of participants into a frenzy of posting. One of the former Dissolution members claimed to have a PM from Dymus (Lead Designer at the time) claiming it was an exploit. The raid leader however, claimed to have an Instant Message from Dymus stating what Dissolution wanted to do was ok. Personally? I called it an exploit and felt I was justified in my assessment later when it was announced the /yell command would no longer work in Echoes of Faydwer raid zones.

The Epic Revisited

As the /yell changes finally made it to Live servers, heated discussions regarding this old event surfaced and the debate began anew. Something was different this time, however. Now Dymus stepped in to clear the air. On EQ2 Flames he stated:

“Was the rumbler broken?

No, not really.

Was the rumbler too difficult for the floor it's on?

Yes, certainly.

Should the rumbler have blocked Emerald Halls progression instead of the Tender?

No. But it did.

Was it an exploit to /yell the rumbler in order to kill the Tender and progress?

Technically, yes.

Did it really matter in the grand scheme of things?

No. Not really.

Would things have been done differently if all of this drama and wailing and gnashing of teeth could have been predicted and avoided?

Yes, most definitely.

So for those who said it was an exploit to /yell the rumbler. It was.

And for those who said that it was justified in order to get past something which was obviously out of synch with the intention of the zone. It was.

Just don't make exploiting a habit or assume that this is a license to do it because it can be done. Both the changes to /yelling in certain zones / encounters and the changes to the rumbler and Emerald Halls itself were done to address both sides of this issue. It's a moot point now and I'm sure there are other things to continue to debate and argue about. Or you can flame me for designing such a drama inducing situation and not changing it until the whole thing could be resolved at once. At least that will be more entertaining than seeing a poor horse beaten post-mortem. “

Now, what did all this mean? It meant nobody was right. What!?! Yes, what Dissolution did was an exploit, but it was not working as SOE meant it to be, so it was justified. The most important statement Dymus made was that people shouldn't make exploiting a habit just because it can be done.

Finally, the most interesting aspects of this was, the events of one guild set in motion changes that affected every raid zone in EoF. What was a fairly simple event became public and was drug through the mud, forcing SOE into action. Could it have been avoided? Possibly, but if we saw one benefit of all this it was: Exploits exist in every game. While they may not be clearly defined, it's up to the community to be aware of them and take a stand in what they believe in.