Blacklist Failure

Screenshot of Patch Notes.

With the implementation of servers being added to character names, we can no longer add someone to our blacklist through the following means:

• Player Finder
• /blist add "Name"

This means that, instead, players must go out and locate the person they want to block. This can be an uncomfortable to traumatizing experience for anyone who has experienced abuse in this community. Not only was this feature used to block main characters, it was also used to simultaneously block alternative characters.

Forcing players who may not have immediately blocked players who have harassed them or otherwise mistreated them to, "Go find your bully out in the world!" is upsetting and poor code design. Ideally, this can be solved the same way /tell was adjusted:

/blist add "name@server".

However, this is currently not the case. Please resolve this issue ASAP as it's important on larger servers where players have multiple characters (and important even for those who may just not have managed to block someone before panicking / logging off).

+1: I have seen a bunch of RMT spam (as well as trolling/griefing) this week, and it's annoying that /blist doesn't work.

Yes and YES!! I thought I was the only one who felt this way and didn't want to readily say anything b/c of it, so it's wonderful to hear that I'm not alone on this!!

As someone who has suffered tremendous abuse in the community, it's bad enough that my name still appears on the friendslist of these people, some of which have sent me MAIL due to such an error, now I have to sit here and actively go out of my way to blacklist these people when I would want to avoid them at all costs. I can be understanding of the fact that this change was implemented due to the oncoming world visit system and all it may bring, however, I would much rather not open old wounds and retraumatize myself by having to expose myself to these people once more.

I had to physically go out and locate someone in the game world just to blacklist them (they hadn't spoken ingame around me, but for out of game reasons I didn't want to speak to or hear from them), and I don't think I should have to point out why that is a really, really sad state of affairs, and incredibly questionable besides. Necessitating going and snooping on someone so that I can blacklist them is ridiculous. There are a few people who sporadically will bother me around expac launches, and I'd like to be able to preemptively stop that from happening when I make an alt, but nope, not possible now, I have to counter-stalk just so I don't get stalked.

Wholeheartedly agreed. This is a major oversight and the current method implemented of being able to block someone is by no means helpful to individuals in a situation of current, prior, or potential abuse. Adding a feature like the one you've suggested (/blist add "name@server") is absolutely necessary from a safety perspective as much as the convenience of blocking spambots in a chat.

Heartily agreed. If I'm being harassed or pursued by someone who makes me uncomfortable via shout chat, the last thing I really feel like doing is finding out where they are on the map so I can block them. A much quicker, quieter method would be to simply type "/blist add name@server".

Ideally it should be easier for people to deny folks a channel to harass you than for them to well, harass you!

FAQ:

"Can you not just block them from the chat log?"

Yes, however, this isn't helpful in a lot of situations. The issue with the chat log is that you still have to actively go out and find that player. If, for a plethora of reasons, you didn't block them on first interaction you cannot block them unless they whisper you again / you see them out in the world. So, say someone logs off because they're experiencing a panic attack, and don't block that person because of the interaction they had at that moment? You have to go out, find them, and then block them through the chat log (or targeting, I believe). Likewise, if you see a problematic person you don't want to associate with through other platforms or have been witness to a friend's mistreatment (so you want to block them)? Have to go find them! Want to block someone's alt after they mistreated you? Have to go find them!

Basically, any scenario -- and there are lots of them -- where you can't immediately block them through the chat box, right that second, means that you have to go out and locate them.

It is incredibly important for this to get fixed ASAP. Forcing people to find their abusers in game in order to block them is really cruel.

This is a massive oversight - especially with server-visiting on the horizon.

Adding my voice to this, it really is kind of a priority issue.

Why not just ....not blacklist them preemptively? I mean, until they say something to you, your day to day life is generally not going to be impacted. Once they do, you can block swiftly from the chat. Or if they walk up to you, same deal.

We can't currently preemptively block another person (that's what this post is about, after all). To reiterate some explanations as to why someone may not immediately block another player:

1) Say someone logs off because they're experiencing a panic attack, and don't block that person because of the interaction they had at that moment? You have to go out, find them, and then block them through the chat log (or targeting, I believe).

2) Disconnected in the midst of a situation where you'd want to block someone? Have to locate them to block them!

3) If you see a problematic person you don't want to associate with through other platforms or have been witness to a friend's mistreatment (so you want to block them)? Have to go find them!

4) Want to block someone's alt after they mistreated you? Have to go find them!

These are just some situations. Basically, any scenario -- and there are lots of them -- where you can't immediately block them through the chat box, right that second, means that you have to go out and locate them.

The idea that someone's day isn't going to be ruined on the 'chance' of someone not contacting them isn't factual. Plenty of people -- survivors of trauma or not -- don't want to deal with the anxiety of contact risk. There are those who have experienced severe enough abuse that they don't even want to see the characters. Let alone risk being contacted by one of them. There are many reasons why someone would want to preemptively block another person and they can not currently do that without locating that person in the open world. Forcing someone to "stalk" a problematic person they don't want to associate with, in order to just block them, isn't fair.

If you don't think this is a big enough deal, that's fine, this post clearly isn't for you. But, testimonies on other platforms to this being a problem are relevant. Those who have posted here are relevant. And, given the system already exists with the /tell command, there's no reason for this to not be addressed.

I don't understand why they changed that. It was already a pain to not be able to blist someone who delog and needing to wait for them to be online to blacklist them, but WHY THE HELL changing that to make it worse ???
I never got why we would stay on people's friendlist when you block them, so why making it even more complicated to /block people ?

This is not adding to anything regarding the actual problem. In fact, it seems you down really care at all. As someone who has been abused by the community, I feel I have a right to blacklist people that are known abusers without having to come in contact with them.
Your reply to this thread is at best, tasteless.
This issue needs to be addressed immediately.