Since it seems to be a increasing problem, here is a little set of general guidelines.
When finding a thread made by a suspected or obvious troll, do not reply. Ignore it.
-Do not try to reply with a witty comment, it gives the thread more replies than it deserves, and often leads to the thread simply being locked instead of deleted as it should. -Do not reply with "You are a troll", "This is fail.", "You are an idiot", "This is so locked", "/Thread" or similar. Do not reply with images of facepalms or FAILs either. Again, it is unnecessary replies to a doomed thread, and it gives the troll a reason to reply/continue trolling.
The 'do's: - Report it to a mod.(*) - Wait.
(*): This needs to be done only once, and if you see someone else reporting it on a moderator or admin's profile, you do not need to report it again, unless you notice another mod come online.
Generally ignoring the thread is often the best plan, as the troll does not get any responses and the thread dies naturally. This might lead to discouraging the troll as well, so the trolling will not happen once again. It might also cause a spamming troll, which is also a thing to ignore. If the troll is persistant, it will help the mods if the users simply leave the section quiet for a while, so that the troll/spam threads are easier to locate. Another reason to leave would be the decreased temptation to make a witty remark on the thread when you can't see it.
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All this counts whether there is a mod online or not. If there are none online you should report and ignore, if there are any online, report and ignore.
This thread: worded by Cenere, proofread and corrected slightly by Zophia.
Hmm, fascinating how this is said to work when there are still people "indulging in the game" when they are conscious of the user being a troll. If some are unknowing of the user being a troll, it is all fine, but if they actually know it is a troll and does not care about this, or rather posts to give the troll what he wants....
In Internet slang, a troll is someone who posts controversial, inflammatory, irrelevant or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, chat room or blog, with the primary intent of provoking other users into an emotional or disciplinary response or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion.
In Internet slang, a troll is someone who posts controversial, inflammatory, irrelevant or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, chat room or blog, with the primary intent of provoking other users into an emotional or disciplinary response or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion.
Hm, yes, I guess ignoring is the standard advice. Also since this is ArmorGames, you guys should know that we have a relatively low troll tolerance. They don't last long, and the kind that like to suicide accounts because they try to come back after they got permabanned don't count- those are wannabe trolls, if you can understand what that even means.
In any case, I'm here to provide some Advanced Advice on How to Respond to Trolls. It may seem strange that I claim to know about trolls as the mods here have a reputation of having lives etc. but rest assured, there was a time that I didn't really have a life
1) Trolls generally know that it's unlikely EVERYBODY is going to ignore them, especially since "ignore the troll" posts are failing at precisely that.
2) Therefore they will exploit any opening they get, most times.
3) "Troll check": ask yourself "is this guy seriously trying to piss me off?" If you're not sure, compare their posts before anybody responds to them, and after. If they deliberately taunt anybody that responds to their comments, then they're more likely to be "trolling" and therefore you should know better than to actually get pissed off.
4) Also, since I'm a moderator posting this, I know that it's really tempting to post witty comebacks or even try to generate more laughs but in the big picture, if the user is somebody we regard as harmful to the site (this may vary), we'd much prefer it if nothing was said.
...we won't stop you from egging on trolls for teh lulz elsewhere. We're only concerned with what goes on in AG itself. I mean... I know I've done it for teh lulz myself <_<
The way we (the mod team) respond to trolls is to encourage the culture on ArmorGames that already exists: one built around constructive discussion. We may occasionally look like the Thought Police in the process, but you'll thank us when you explore other forums and realise that, for the most part, the "great marketplace for the free exchange of ideas" doesn't exist- it's been washed over by roaring oceans of flame and spam.
