People who know me may wonder, is he going to quit, how can he not be mad, and all the other wonderful sympathetic comments that people offer during times of sorrow. The one thing though about me as a person and a player is that I simply believe what does not kill you, makes you stronger. Sure I am mad at the person who hacked my wife's account. Wouldn't you be? She worked hard on her character(s) to level them to where they are. I helped her and spent a lot of time investing in her characters as well. I also lost a 70 shaman (temporarily I hope) because of this, not to mention all the materials in our guild bank, but you know what? They are simply things. I can still go home at night and sit down with my wife and talk to her and see her. I can always gather new materials for the guild bank, which on a side note, the majority of the items had been sitting there not being used much anyway. I am sure eventually I will get the shaman back, although I really have not been playing him much anyway over the last year. It all comes down to the thought that I am still here, perhaps I can say even that I am still standing.
I think sometimes in life we lose focus of what is important. I am upset because a part of my game was ripped away that may never return to normal. My wife is hurt and feeling betrayed that her characters are gone. She has expressed deep sorrow and stated several times that she has no intention to go through this again. That is the part that these "hackers" have taken from me. The ability to sit down with my wife and play a game. She started playing the game to spend time with me and through that became a really great player. Sure there were times that were tense and perhaps a mean word was said between us over a difference of opinion in the game, but at the end of the day, that was the special time that we got to spend together. That makes me furious and I hope that Blizzard can restore the account and we get her characters back.
The other thing it made me realize is how blessed as a person I am in life. I have a great family (in this instance I mean the disfucntional one we call Mass Affluent Slayers). As soon as the guild had heard what had gone down, they rallied to the cause. Whispering words of encouragement, reviewing forums, looking for information, and showing a genuine friendship that many people never find in the every day real world acquaintances. One of our memebers (who I am privilaged to call friend) even blogged about it. There were offers from all members to help power level a new character for my wife, if she decided to play and we were not able to recover the account. Then this morning on the way in, I hear a local morning show that was questioning why do people play this game the way that they do? I must admit I was surprised to hear this on the radio considering they are usually talking about politics, local issues, and economic concerns. I started to laugh a little on the way in, but it did get me thinking why do I play? I think the answer is simple. I have some great friends in this game. Some I have known for years outside the confines of the little box and others I have only recently met, but when the negative things of life occur, everytime without fail, the guild has always rallied to help whatever member is having the issue.
So regardless of the evils or bad things that occurr to me and my family in this game, rest assurred, I am still standing. Perhaps even more vigilant over my guild(s) now than ever before. I do not care about the stuff, but I have seen first hand the devestation and hurt that arises and I have witnessed the outpouring of concern and hope from this group of individuals scattered across the world and it has made me that much more resolved to hold the line. So Fish, do not worry, I am not going to quit the game. I will continue on, forging ahead through whatever comes my way. They may steal my gear, my gold, my characters, but they cannot steal our guild!
On a personal note for all of my guild members, thank you on behalf of my wife. She is too angry and upset to really speak with anyone or get online, but she does appreciate the outpouring that has been shown.
This post was originally published on December 9, 2008, on the original Holy Shock blog site.