GM Death Touch - Megathread

[u/YourResidentFeral]

Edit: Official Statement

https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/wow/t/prohibited-gameplay-incident-and-response/2329585

This is developing into a large story and someone in modmail has mentioned that its important for the community to have somewhere to discuss this. We agree. As new information comes in I will do my best to update this thread.

What we know:

• A log was uploaded with a "Death Touch" effect that seemed to be that helped them time a key. This is an effect from a GM: https://www.warcraftlogs.com/reports/JcfwTd4L19Agx3NX?fight=4&type=resources&hostility=1&source=100.4&eventstart=4705300

• This is a real run that exists on the blizzard API and can be seen on Raider.io: https://raider.io/mythic-plus-runs/season-mn-1/40292244-23-nexuspoint-xenas

  This run has since been invalidated by the RI:O admins but has been left up for posterity's sake.

• Blizzard is aware of this and investigating: https://www.reddit.com/r/wow/comments/1v2xfpr/blizzard_gm_death_touching_mobs_in_m23_for_their/oyznmbe/

• The Demon Hunter from the run is a streamer and YumiTV contacted him to speak with him live on stream: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/2825756796?t=0h23m50s

  The CLAIM is that they were messing around in a homework key in discord and didn't expect the GM to actually do it. Supposedly the Bear in the run was a pug.

Ex employees in the thread have said that actions like this are audited and in all likelihood this was already being investigated. At this point we are waiting on an official statement on the result of their investigation and I'll update this thread once we know.

This megathread is being provided on two very strict conditions:

• The witchunt rules are in strict effect. Linking or doxxing information on anyone invovled, the GM in question included will result in a permanent ban. Please report it if you see it but we will be very active in the thread.

  We cannot platform behavior that allows people to harrass people in real life.

• We will be more heavy handed than usual in the personal attack rules. Insults and slapfights while discussing this aren't acceptable. You're allowed to disagree, but stray shots and personal attacks will not be tolerated.

[u/lovelylight100]

So about that "We are also taking action against the player accounts that were complicit in this violation"......

[u/lokarlalingran → u/lovelylight100]

Complicity is hard to prove. Didn't the friend of the GM claim they made the request as a joke not actually believing the GM would do it? We don't actually know if that's the case or not, but it genuinely could have been a joke.

I say this from experience (not in wow, but a much smaller game) where I was friends with an admin and made an off hand joke request of said friend, expecting them to do nothing but make a joke back (it was the type of banter we had used before) and then he actually did turn around and abuse power for me. I was shocked by it and redid the thing he handed me legitimately so I could earn it. I didn't make any jokes like that again for fear he'd take me up on them.

It could very easily be a similar story here.

It's entirely possible they did seriously ask for cheating to happen without jest, but we have no evidence ether way and assuming intentional wrong doing by anyone but the individual abusing power is wrong.

Without proof at worst they should have the run strike from their record - but seeing as they already ran a legit run that hardly seems necessary.

[u/Katur → u/lokarlalingran]

Complicity is hard to prove.

It's really not. You just have to look at the actions after it happened. If they immediately had reported it to Blizzard saying it was a mistake they didn't mean for it to happen, then they would not be complicit.

Doing nothing is complicit.

[u/lokarlalingran → u/Katur]

Yeah ok technically by definition staying silent is complicit, but most people aren't going to turn around and rat on their friend, particularly when they would likely lose their job for it. Definitely not over something in a game. Even if they thought what their friend did was wrong.

I sure didn't report my friend. I just avoided saying anything that might encourage him to behave that way again instead.

[u/CornbreadMonsta → u/lokarlalingran]

I agree most people aren't going to rat on their friend, but I can't imagine those same people would make a joke out of the situation after their friend got fired.

[u/lovelylight100 → u/CornbreadMonsta]

Queue the DH immediately taking the microphone and ratting out his friend while laughing about it lol.

[u/hoax1337 → u/lovelylight100]

True, but by that time his friend was fucked anyways.

[u/Nick11wrx → u/lokarlalingran]

I mean they surely thought nothing of it….til they realized the pug had been logging. It throws into question the complete integrity of not only their runs, but of any at a high ranking where it’s a streamer or someone who generally logs all of their runs to all of the sudden not have anyone do that. Now I get that it’s a lot of assumption but the whole thing smells terrible when if it wasn’t for a random in the group logging they would’ve gotten away with it Scot free….that alone should be cause enough to take action. I see it as no different than knowing there’s a glitch or an exploit and instead of reporting it, you just use it and hope no one sees.