Vindictive "Game Masters" and mixed messages

I had one of my guilds names flagged for rename that said it was deemed offensive. The guild name was not in the least bit offensive, so I appealed the decision. The first reply I received from a GM was the canned response about the naming policy which I expected to receive. I replied asking if he could explain to me what about the name was offensive. He, apparently, did not like having his authority questioned. Within 24 hours I got a notification that several characters on my account (characters I haven’t even logged onto for months or years) had been flagged for rename and my account was now suspended.

One of the names he flagged as offensive had been previously flagged and I appealed (successfully) and the responding GM said that there was absolutely nothing offensive about my name and overturned the flag. It sends a very mixed message about the naming policy when one GM says a name is “perfectly fine and not offensive” and another GM flags you and suspends your account for it. I have attached the screenshot of the previous conversation with the GM to the account to appeal the suspension, but I suspect they can already see all of that.

What bothers me most about this whole situation though, is that if I would have just taking the guild name flag and not said anything, my account and other character names would be fine, but because I questioned the flag… I had many characters names flagged (again, characters I havent even logged on to for months to years) AND had my account suspended.

I guess you have to be mindful of names even if a GM informs you its okay? A different GM, having a bad day, may find it “offensive” and ban you over it.

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Not sure what to tell you. If you have issue with a GM’s response, use the survey provided after the ticket has been closed. Posting here won’t amount to much as these forums are more of a player supported help desk, not really a contact point to the GMs and their supervisors.

Best thing I can say is to appeal the suspension via a ticket.

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I supose the first GM upon finding the Guild name breaking naming policies couldve decided to take a look into weather or not you had a history of poor name choices not that im saying that you do but that is the GM right but i highly doubt he would risk his job over 1 player questioning his judgement.

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If those other character’s name are anything like your character who’s name ends with “slayer” then I’d say the re-names are justified.

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Some times what is considered offensive can change. Like I am sure there are likely characters called covid pre covid, that may now be flagged for renames purely because of the changing world. And society is always coming up with new slang terms for things so if you get reported and the name is deemed offensive it will hit. (and it doesnt have to be specifically vile if it alludes to anything that could be offensive it may fit in)

A suspension usually suggests youve had a history of name violations as at most a first offense would get a rename and a warning.

I’m willing to bet you guild name was borderline, and could be interpreted in more than one way.

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Pretty much this. The list of actionable names is not static. It changes as different usages of a word or phrase become more widespread. What was marginally acceptable at one time may not be currently acceptable.

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Blizzard is the party that determines whether a name is offensive. Not you, me, or any player. Appeals are always welcomed, but if they uphold the decision, then it’s time to pick a new name.

“Canned” is quite the twist. They use template responses to ensure consistency when responding to similar situations.

This is not something they will do. It’s up to you to follow the naming policy. It is left intentionally vague, to prevent players from trying to find the most offensive name still within the defined rules.

Use common sense. Use a name generator, or Blizzard’s name suggestions. It’s not hard to find a good character or guild name that is not a violation.

It has nothing to do with “authority”. Again, appeals are welcomed to ensure there was no error. But what often happens with naming violations is the GM will take a cursory look at your account, and if they find violations, they will flag them.

And if you are getting a suspension for naming violations, that generally indicates that you have had a history of offensive names.

This is a fantastic reason why the appeals process is in place. Use it, and inform them nicely that another GM overturned it on appeal in the past. They will look back into your history and find it (no screenshot needed).

First, you likely weren’t suspended because of this one name. It was a history of bad names. But onto the more important point…

This is a very human thing. GM’s are human. One didn’t find it offensive, and another one did. That’s very much a human decision. Just use the appeal process to explain this.

Yeah, that’s very possible. But when you have a bunch of offensive names on your account, the last thing you want to do is draw attention to them.

In the end, you chose the offensive names. It’s not anyone’s fault but yours.

No, you simply need to use the appeals process and explain this. It’s not difficult.

And again, it has nothing to do with a “bad day”. It has everything to do with GM’s being human, and subject to mistakes. If they make a mistake, they will correct it.

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seeing as none of the “questionable” names have been mentioned, it’s a fair assumption that you know the names were offensive.

i’ve never heard of a GM just going ahead and flagging a bunch of characters for a re-name, unless the player has a history of being unable to choose suitable names.

out of curiosity, i decided to “armory-stalk” you.
…and i can see that this is the case.
you’re not going to win this battle.
re-name your characters, you’re not funny or witty, and body parts have always been off-limits when it comes to the naming policy.

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Also, just to stem what is likely to become the next point of contention - no, searching the armory to point out that X number of other players and guilds are similarly named is not a way to validate your poor naming choices.

One, the armory has a bit of a hiccup where it won’t necessarily update folks recently changed names, or those that may disappear from the search function if it’s been some time since the last time that player logged in. Secondly, Blizzard is reactive, not proactive. Other people deemed your guild name to be offensive. They reported it. Enough folks did that it brought it to a GM’s attention and you have gotten flagged with the rename request. Not just for your guild but character names as well since you brought your account into the GM’s sphere of awareness.

And another word to the wise because others have done this and it ends badly - I would not try and just rename the guild or your flagged characters back to what they were before the forced name change. Suspensions stack and double with each upheld infraction.

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Typically the correct term is “inappropriate”. A name need not be offensive to be inappropriate for the game. Just as swear words are inappropriate in a classroom, there are certain things which are and are not allowed in WoW. I don’t know what the messages say when you have names flagged for rename, but it’s usually a standardized message that’s used as a catch-all for all inappropriate names, regardless of whether they’re offensive or not.

As to the other renames; it’s certainly not vindictiveness. You have to have pretty thick skin to be a GM, you’re not going to prompt any kind of vengeful behaviour, regardless of whether the GM in question is concerned about their job. And they wouldn’t risk their job over something like that, especially in the pandemic economy. If they flagged the names, it’s because they saw them as violating the policies they’re trained to uphold.

As to disagreement over whether some names are okay; that happens. They are human, some borderline names can be difficult to give clean verdicts on. Depends on the viewer’s background and knowledge. That’s why there’s an appeals process.

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Indeed. It’s funny to note that if I could warp space and time, and have this entire WoW thingy moved back far enough, the following would get me not only actioned but outright banned:

“Gadzooks”
“Blast you”
“Curse you”
“You Devil”
“The Deuce”

:grimacing:

Times change, word meanings change.

Guild names do not need to be offensive to be considered inappropriate. References to anatomy, sexually, may not be offensive to some but are considered inappropriate for the game.

This isn’t really accurate. Those names would eventually lead to their own account penalties when reported. Instead of 1 action for a dozen or so inappropriate names, you’d potentially face a dozen actions.

The Game Master didn’t need to review the account for inappropriate names but in doing so they have potentially saved you from future problems with your account.

Yes, I see that as well. I suspect that the Game Master who reviewed this was not aware that the name chosen was the name of a actress in adult films and I apologize for any confusion that might have caused. That’s not an appropriate character name for the game either.

I don’t think much else needs to be conveyed on this topic. Your appeals have been reviewed and upheld. If you would like to provide feedback regarding any of the interactions you had with the Game Master team you may fill out the survey provided with your ticket. Those are reviewed by the Game Master Supervisors who can offer coaching/feedback as necessary.

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