World of Warcraft player discovers clever ways to punish skinning bots by using toys

One of the most frustrating parts of World of Warcraft has always been bots and AFK (away from keyboard) farmers. Some players have set up scripts to make their characters work while they do nothing, which is generally used to farm leatherworking skins and other materials without having to manually input commands. This has been a major problem for as long as the game has been around, with fans disappointed that Blizzard hasn't solved the problem once and for all.

However, one enterprising player took to Reddit to show off their comical and easy solution to bots in the game. Unfortunately, World of Warcraft: Dragonflight, in particular, has brought a major influx of bots. Although it's worse than ever, a creative player who goes by the name of u/orc_with_a_bear_mask on Reddit has a rather interesting solution.

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One World of Warcraft player has revealed how they deal with AFK bots and farmers

u/orc_with_a_bear_mask reveals their solution to the bot problem in WoW (Image via Reddit)

This Redditor, who showed a screencap of their character Cynndia, figured out a few clever ways to deal with bots and farmers in World of Warcraft. In the past, they pointed out that they’d simply steal the mobs that the bots were farming to see if that person would come back and skin them, complain, or react in any form.

However, before doing so in World of Warcraft, this player would try to engage them in lengthy chats to make sure the character was just another bot on their server. Once that was confirmed, the creative player would pull their Elusive Hornstrider summoned mobs out of range. If this was a real player, they would certainly have something to say about this sabotage.

Unfortunately, this system takes too long. According to the Redditor, it would take about an hour for the bot to notice and move to another realm to resume their 'botting.' Sadly, none of these methods are permanent and should always be followed up by reporting to Blizzard. The next few methods of dealing with World of Warcraft bots are far more enjoyable and easier.

Once you’ve confirmed that someone is a bot, there are two easy options. The first one is to drop clickable toys where the corpses are. The bots will automatically click on them and start interacting with these toys. Any toy that can be clicked on will do, eventually making the bot AFK out, phase out, or leave.

If you want to take these bots for a ride, head to the Azure Span and buy the Iskaara Tug Sled. This toy will allow anyone who clicks on it to be dragged around on the sled by you, the player. At this point, it’s simply a matter of dragging the bot to any location in World of Warcraft. You can take them to an airship so that they’re stuck going back and forth, into lava, or far off into the ocean, so they eventually die of fatigue.

Many players were grateful to learn about these strategies, but also expressed their frustration that World of Warcraft’s developers don’t appear to be doing enough to combat bots and farmers.

Unfortunately, this 'infestation' has harmed the economy, and although these methods don’t stop bots forever, it's still an action that players can easily take to ensure that fast-spawning mobs aren't farmed by bots all the time.