Are moderators banning people who take too much time to play?

[calvaria]

In my most recent game of Ark Nova (arena) my opponent claimed that they were a game moderator, that they paired with me because I had previously been reported for intentionally stalling the game, and claimed I was doing just that with them in the current match, and that they would ban me after thie game was finished.

I was indeed taking a longer time than usual, as I was very tired and my mind was away, but I did not in no shape or form wait intentionally until my clock reached its last seconds to do my actions.

My opponents' messages were weird. At first they told me to hurry, and then that it was rude of me to not play quickly. Upon me telling them that I believe we're entitled to our time and that they could play a faster setting, they said that they would kick me as soon as I would be out of time, and that they would as well use all of their time. I told them I think that's normal. Later they said "im admister of this game. i will give you panalties", to which I replied "Your english makes no sense". Up until this point their English was very sketchy, yet from this point onwards they started writing paragraphs in perfect English about how they are an admin, looking me up from previous reports, and that running down the clock unneccessarily is a violation, and that I would be immediately banned, as even then I was chatting (with them) instead of playing, and I was not feeling remorseful about it.

I ended up concedeing the game as I couldn't concentrate, and they said that they put my account on probation, meaning that if I get 3 reports I will be banned.

My question would be on whether all of this is correct, or have I just been lied to.

Thanks for reading .

[TricksyFox]

This sounds super fake. Here's a few reasons, if it helps you feel better:

1) If it's the most recent game you played, the opponent has a "normal" account type, and has only had an account since December. It seems highly unlikely that person would be a moderator or admin without some sort of profile indication.

2) I've never heard of BGA doing this kind of "review an account by playing with them" method. Why on earth would they need to play a game with you to assess a pattern of behavior, when they have access to your past games? It would be pretty inefficient.

3) Even if they used that method, why would they have revealed that information when they did? They would just notify you afterwards. And it sounds like you didn't get an email or anything from the system, just the messages in chat from this player.

4) The logic of "Oh you just got a warning and that's why you haven't heard anything OFFICIAL" is classic scam behavior. Anything that's real is documented. Either it's documented and you'd get official notification, or it's not at that level yet and you wouldn't know anything. The idea of a middle ground is absurd.

All in all, it sounds like they were bullying you, and impersonating a staff member. I would report it.

[nik592]

I'd agree with the analysis of TricksyFox and report it. It seems very unlikely just based on your description (but made worse by the fact that that user has a 3 month old account). As far as I'm aware moderators also have a indicator on their profile under their name, it says "This player is a moderator." and that player certainly doesn't. Besides, if you were playing within the time you're allocated (not running into the red consistently), then you're within the rules of BGA anyway, and there's nothing wrong with such behaviour.

The other point is if you look at that player's history, they ONLY play Ark Nova and there are lots of conceded games (conceded in their favour) on their profile. I suspect this is a tactic they've used before.

[Cile]

You were correct that you are entitled to every second of your time clock. Mods will not punish a player for going down to 1 second remaining on every turn.

That said, if you do exceed your time other player's a perfectly justified in ejecting you from the game, but rude comments from them are a violation of the site rules and should be reported.

They were definitely lying about being a mod and you should report them for it.

[ufm]

100% fake. Report them.
FYI, anyone can check the moderator list here: https://boardgamearena.com/team
Also, AFAIK 'BGA mods of an individual game' do not exist yet.

[Jellby]

1. You're entitled to use up to the last second of your time. Every turn. There's no "running down the clock unnecessarily".
2. If you use more time than you're allowed to (you run into the negative), any opponent is entitled to expel you. There's no "violation" or reportable action on any side.
3. If a player thinks you play very slow and they don't want to play with you again, they can just give you a (personal) red thumb, no need to make a big fuss.

So the claims make no sense, and you should report the player for lying and harassment.

(There are some "dirty tricks" one can play with the timer, which may be reportable, like purposefully stalling the game to make the opponent run out of time or give up, but that's a different issue from what is being discussed.)

[cigma]

I fully agree with all said here.

But I would also like to thank you for reporting it here. It seems very likely that this method was also used against other players. It seems very important to me to disclose such practices and to advise other players on how to deal with such situations.

[RobertBr]

1. You're entitled to use up to the last second of your time. Every turn. There's no "running down the clock unnecessarily".
2. If you use more time than you're allowed to (you run into the negative), any opponent is entitled to expel you. There's no "violation" or reportable action on any side.

To re-iterate what everyone has said, this is absolutely right - use as much time as you like, if you go over the time they can kick you. And if anyone harasses you in the chat about it - report it immediately - misuse of the chat to harass players is absolutely something the real BGA mods do care about.

[TsPeacock]

I wish.

[Cappa]

In my most recent game of Ark Nova (arena) my opponent claimed that they were a game moderator, that they paired with me because I had previously been reported for intentionally stalling the game, and claimed I was doing just that with them in the current match, and that they would ban me after thie game was finished.

I was indeed taking a longer time than usual, as I was very tired and my mind was away, but I did not in no shape or form wait intentionally until my clock reached its last seconds to do my actions.

My opponents' messages were weird. At first they told me to hurry, and then that it was rude of me to not play quickly. Upon me telling them that I believe we're entitled to our time and that they could play a faster setting, they said that they would kick me as soon as I would be out of time, and that they would as well use all of their time. I told them I think that's normal. Later they said "im admister of this game. i will give you panalties", to which I replied "Your english makes no sense". Up until this point their English was very sketchy, yet from this point onwards they started writing paragraphs in perfect English about how they are an admin, looking me up from previous reports, and that running down the clock unneccessarily is a violation, and that I would be immediately banned, as even then I was chatting (with them) instead of playing, and I was not feeling remorseful about it.

I ended up concedeing the game as I couldn't concentrate, and they said that they put my account on probation, meaning that if I get 3 reports I will be banned.

My question would be on whether all of this is correct, or have I just been lied to.

Thanks for reading .

report them for impersonating a moderator