Can we take action against Bard Macro Player yet?

[KageTokage]

The macro player is essentially loading inputs directly into the game client, so it would stand to reason that it would prevent AFK kicks as well.

The thing I don't get is why sometimes you'll run into bots that are actively going around and gathering, fighting, etc while maintaining the AFK chair as it implies there's some kind of distinction between inactivity for the purpose of maintaining the chair and inactivity for the purpose of getting kicked from Novice Network or the game entirely.

Would be nice if SE determined what the distinction is so they'd have a reliable method of detecting AFK avoidance via use of third apps or botting.

[Bocajjjjj]

AHAHAHAHAHAHHAAA... wait you're serious?

[Penthea]

But what bothers me is when you pretend you ARE playing songs and acting as if you are so great because you let a third party tool play it for you.

Literally never seen a bard brag. Just seen them bow, thank people for their time, or take song requests.

[Mango2020]

lol How is this bothering you so much?
Bard music isn't a competition, if you play well people will listen whether or not you're using a program or not.

[Sunhwapark]

so it would stand to reason that it would prevent AFK kicks as well.

It certainly seems to prevent AFK kicking, I've been crafting near a bard for the past 3 hours who has been playing the exact same song on loop without any breaks.

[Saidosha]

I always found the musician UI clunky and can subsequently understand why people who want to make better music turn away from it in disgust. Subsequently, that same problem can foster a sense of hostility when someone does decide to "master" this awkward system and sees someone can bypass it.

Like others, I think we need to take a different approach and allow people to script their own music. I get it, SE is afraid of the RIAA and other lawsuit happy individuals, but there are still avenues of free use and transformative work at play that shouldn't be a burden. Especially with the absence of lyrics. The cool thing is if that the user generated method is handled properly, XIV could actually go on to help people learn both reading and composing music. Whereas right now, it's just pressing some buttons and hoping it doesn't sound like nails on a chalkboard.

Being an older gamer, I've had my moments where I'd like to recreate old tunes from my youth just to trigger someone else's nostalgia or get them curious about what they're hearing.

[Packetdancer]

Like others, I think we need to take a different approach and allow people to script their own music.

Can we get chords, too? Please?

Honestly, the one and only time I've performed an original composition of mine in this game, I ended up making a game-performance-suitable MIDI of the composition and playing it via Bard Music Player, because trying to play it any other way was a path to frustration and fury. Muscle memory tripped me up using a MIDI keyboard (because, as noted, chords), and I find the alphanumeric keyboard method aggravating.

[Acelyn]

This is some of the weirdest rage I've ever read. And sadly all it's done is pushed me to actually look this bot or whatever up.

[ilichu]

lmao what who cares if they use program or not ...is not like people are giving them millions cause they are talented or giving them a trophy. besides ppl usually play existent song from actual musicians
if you want to show off then compose your own song. chile

[Kanehana]

I can kind of understand the frustration of being a musician and knowing that there's someone else who can play via machine or third-party tool and get tips for it. It feels like a false performance and just not that special to me, and I do prefer wanting to tip actual performers that play with an actual keyboard instead of a script, because I like music!

But it's difficult to feasibly take action against macro players; the people that use this TPT are simply rampant in public spaces and SE can't peek into anyone's desktop because it's a privacy breach, and the only thing that can punish these people, is that if they break rules/policy (they play non-FFXIV/non-FF music, or as of today, play Answers, Dragonsong, or Revolutions, or any original composition. Yes, no original composition allowed,) or if they straight-up admit in-game on the very chat logs themselves that they're using a third-party tool. A lot of the time things fly by because people don't really read that, or they avoid mentioning that altogether.

I imagine as more people come in and blindly record themselves breaking TOS it might become a raised issue but for now, I'm sorry to say that the majority of people simply do not care.