Cheats

[RagneR]

I also used a program of dubious origin which gave an advantage. This is the easiest cheat that gives a minimal advantage. It's easy to spot because it's used like this:

The first stage is you creating a game, because only the creator of the game can save it. This is what is needed. The game is saved, and the game file ends up in the maps/save folder.

This saved file is added to the program in which you can look closely to see the squares, this is a town hall, therefore this is how the spot is calculated.

How to notice: you and everyone present have a saved game file. It can be saved just like that (by accident, for example), or it can be saved for the purpose of using a cheat.

[~ToRa~]

@Mistral Any idea how these work or have you seen this before?

[Mistral]

yea ofc i know, i sended it to Ragner in 2019 lul
its prog SaveView from 1999 maked by DjinnKahn, i found it long ago in occult forum https://occult.war2.ru/files.shtml.htm
anyone could have download this prog here long ago, probably most of old players have it anyways
its actually nothing much its just open *.mlt file of saved game and gets many info from here and shows it
ironically it was used to cheat when DjinnKahn actually created this prog to catch cheaters, there was very old cheats in 1998-1999 etc, they not works now but in old days it was possible to somehow hack resources and make more units or upgrades than you can afford, so he maked that prog to check if some player have more stuff he can acutally pay. Dunno why he also added picture of a map though.

And main point is that DjinnKahn probably not thinked that someone can use it to check any info on game while game itself still going, he thinked people use this prog after game ended.
Probably because this thing is just too noticiable and very easy to catch if you know what happening. If you see some unknown saved game in maps/save folder, you can know someone saved and may use this prog itself to know who was host. So if you see that someone saved game like 2 mins in and most important not said that he did it, well its very sus.
So if someone find some sus saved games in their folders now you can probably know why.

So yea if you ask how to defend from it? U cant, unless you forbid saving games entirely. Even if not using this prog, any hackerman can make his own other prog to read save file. BUT this stuff is VERY noticeable and have main condition for use: you MUST be host, only host can save game.
Also if players check their save folder regularly and find unknown files they immediately know smething is sus.

[Mistral]

ok while writing previous post i thinked about some countermeasure
i can try make plugin that writes in chat if host saved game or something
and then add it to server in new update
what do you think about it?

[Mistral]

ok i maked
should work now
its already updated on server

[~ToRa~]

Your are the greatest Mistral!!!!!
Love you man

[Lone]

hah, cool

[Knitter]

Hi Ragner,
Thank you for your words.

Of course I was also very disappointed when I read your news.
We played a lot of 1v1. You often won the close games and yet I was never disappointed.
It was fun and I would never have thought of cheating.
We played as a team, won and lost.
We were always respectful to each other, even when we lost.
That always made me feel very comfortable at your side.

It shows greatness that you overcome yourself and talk about it here of your own free will.
Stick to it, stay honest, stop cheating.
I still remember you as a very decent young person, nothing will change that.
You are forgiven from my side.
I hope all is well with you in your private life.

I look forward to honest games in the future.

See you soon, all the best, knitter.

[Nox]

Hi Ragner,
Thank you for your words.

Of course I was also very disappointed when I read your news.
We played a lot of 1v1. You often won the close games and yet I was never disappointed.
It was fun and I would never have thought of cheating.
We played as a team, won and lost.
We were always respectful to each other, even when we lost.
That always made me feel very comfortable at your side.

It shows greatness that you overcome yourself and talk about it here of your own free will.
Stick to it, stay honest, stop cheating.
I still remember you as a very decent young person, nothing will change that.
You are forgiven from my side.
I hope all is well with you in your private life.

I look forward to honest games in the future.

See you soon, all the best, knitter.

If you want honnest games, just start by saying your a liar and i beat your ass 7-5 and the only reason your still master is because i dint request it from admin because i wanted to be cool with you, and instead to be gratefull with me you were there acting like a punk calling me a bitch and saying to everyone i was the liar.

Ragner is a man, your a punk, now i wanted you to say the truth and i want my master tag back, cuz i beat you and you lie, after, we see if there honnest games for you.

And i dont want ( A master tag ) I want YOUR master tag, cuz its actually mine and you dont deserve it anymore, ungratfull liar!

[Nox]

yea ofc i know, i sended it to Ragner in 2019 lul
its prog SaveView from 1999 maked by DjinnKahn, i found it long ago in occult forum https://occult.war2.ru/files.shtml.htm
anyone could have download this prog here long ago, probably most of old players have it anyways
its actually nothing much its just open *.mlt file of saved game and gets many info from here and shows it
ironically it was used to cheat when DjinnKahn actually created this prog to catch cheaters, there was very old cheats in 1998-1999 etc, they not works now but in old days it was possible to somehow hack resources and make more units or upgrades than you can afford, so he maked that prog to check if some player have more stuff he can acutally pay. Dunno why he also added picture of a map though.

And main point is that DjinnKahn probably not thinked that someone can use it to check any info on game while game itself still going, he thinked people use this prog after game ended.
Probably because this thing is just too noticiable and very easy to catch if you know what happening. If you see some unknown saved game in maps/save folder, you can know someone saved and may use this prog itself to know who was host. So if you see that someone saved game like 2 mins in and most important not said that he did it, well its very sus.
So if someone find some sus saved games in their folders now you can probably know why.

So yea if you ask how to defend from it? U cant, unless you forbid saving games entirely. Even if not using this prog, any hackerman can make his own other prog to read save file. BUT this stuff is VERY noticeable and have main condition for use: you MUST be host, only host can save game.
Also if players check their save folder regularly and find unknown files they immediately know smething is sus.

So basicly this is something i have said for at least 2016 while everyone was calling me crazy and retarded and tell me i have mental issues, its funny how it ruin my reputation for years while i was totally right.

I will not ask to everyone to appologies, clearly not, but i hope some peoples realise how bad they have make me feel for years while i knew i was totally right.

Thanks to finnally tell the truth after almost 10 years.

[iL]

I answered Ragner in Russian, let me give you a translation of my answer here, albeit with a slight delay:

About cheaters and cheating in the Warcraft II community

Regarding yesterday's revelations from our players:

1. Cheating in any online game is unacceptable - thereby destroying the entire atmosphere of trust between players and the healthy spirit of competition.
Cheaters are the reason why many online games lose popularity.
For example, this is the main reason why our English-speaking comrades do not want to meet newcomers and throw people with new nicknames out of their games. They prefer to play thousands of games with those they have known for a long time, instead of allowing someone new to join, thinking that he might turn out to be a cheater and break the game.
We, as the community administration, are worried and would like to change this situation, but this is not in our power: it is the players' choice to play with whoever they want.

2. Every player understands: cheating is deception.
But the forbidden fruit is sweet. I'm tempted to try it. After all, no one will know, most likely, if everything is done carefully. But one person will know for sure: the person who decided to “try.” Conscience is such a thing, it will gnaw. Today, once you outwitted the others, even if only “for testing”, “as an experiment”, you experienced a feeling of your own superiority. But then for the rest of your life you have to live with this, look these people in the eyes, even virtually. And you can’t talk about this with anyone, or open your soul - after all, they will immediately judge you, reject you, stop playing with you, and stop considering you an honest person. And my conscience gnaws! And it will gnaw and destroy for the rest of its life. Or until the truth comes out.
And think before you “try” - is it worth it to conduct such “experiments”?

3. Still, admitting to deception is much better for the person himself than keeping it to himself. Guilt greatly destroys the psyche and sometimes the body. And for what? Hide from other people and destroy yourself? Is it worth it? Yes, by making such confessions, you inevitably lose your reputation in front of others, and this is the price to pay. But the main thing is that you restore your reputation to yourself! You remove a stone from your soul. The main thing is that you understand that you definitely won’t do anything like that in the future, and you become better. Of course, you lose faith from others, but it will be restored over time, the main thing is faith in yourself!
We will not take any measures from the administration:
- firstly, if you confessed yourself, it’s much better than being “caught by the hand,”
- secondly, and this follows from the first, if you confessed, most likely you will no longer want to take the dubious path,
- thirdly, retribution still comes in the form of loss of trust of other people. But this is the price you have to pay to clear your conscience. And this retribution is ultimately necessary for the person himself in order to cleanse himself. But this is beyond the competence of project administrators.

I urge everyone who has something to confess to do so. Experiencing the consequences in the form of judging other people will be much better for the person himself than constantly experiencing pangs of conscience. However, of course, this is everyone’s personal choice.