====================================
------------------------------------

       PHANTASY STAR ONLINE

CHEATING AND STEALING TECHNIQUES FAQ

------------------------------------
====================================

Written by: Joshua Dallman
Character name: Jones (Level 92, Miranda)
Email: jones soda at yahoo dot com

FAQ Version: 1.3.21, 3rd Edition
GAMEFAQS.COM EXCLUSIVE






===============
i. TESTIMONIALS
===============

WHY YOU NEED TO READ THIS FAQ:



"I ran into a thief ... last night on PSO and ... I was able to detect he's a 
thief ... just happen that I read your FAQ earlier"

"Two other guys in the game whom I just met didn't take my warning and ...[lost] 
their rare items to the thief"

-- Frank Shaw, Unsolicited Email



"Two sore thumbs up!"

-- Siskel and Ebert,  Imaginary Email



"When I was a newbie I was hit by thieves ... thank you for your article, I was 
unaware of some of those tricks!"

-- Ginger Roby, Unsolicited Email



"First, I wanted to thank you for writing the cheating/stealing FAQ because, 
unlike a lot of FAQs people put together, it's both informative and funny as 
hell."

"... had my weapon taken once ... The scenario outlined in the 'playing with 
someone else's character' section actually happened to me a little while ago. If 
only I'd read your guide before..."

-- Miaka, Unsolicited Email



"Thanks to your FAQ, I've only had one Double Saber stolen, and the thief was 
the BSOD."

-- Archangel, Unsolicited Email



"The greatest trick the devil ever played was making people believe he didn't 
exist."

-- Keyser Soze



"... cheating used to be fun until you and the SegaPolice came along, now all I 
have left to do is to play a thief character that steals items from other 
players ... The good thing, though, is that only a small percentage of players 
have read your pointless, poorly written drivel ... mwahahahahahahaha!"

-- Chris Brazelton, Unsolicited Email



YOU'VE READ THE TESTIMONIALS, NOW SEE FOR YOURSELF!  ORDER YOUR VERY OWN 
CHEATING AND STEALING FAQ FROM GAMEFAQS.COM FOR THE LOW LOW PRICE OF FOUR EASY 
PAYMENTS OF $0.00!  NOT AVAILABLE IN STORES!  AND IF YOU ORDER IN THE NEXT 
TWENTY MINUTES, WE'LL THROW IN A BEAUTIFUL BSOD FAQ, A NEARLY $000.00 VALUE, 
ABSOLUTELY FREE!  OPERATORS ARE STANDING BY!






====================
I. TABLE OF CONTENTS
====================

i.   TESTIMONIALS

I.   TABLE OF CONTENTS

][.  LEGAL

]I[. INTRODUCTION

     THE POINT
     THE COUNTER-POINT

IV.  THE CHEATS

     INTRODUCTION

     CHEATS SUMMARY

     GAME/LEVEL CHEATS
     TREASURE CHEATS
     BOSS CHEATS
     PLAYER CHEATS
     ITEM CHEATS
     TRADING CHEATS

V.   GREETS






=========
][. LEGAL
=========

This FAQ is Copyright 2001 (c) Joshua Dallman and may not be distributed in 
whole or in part by electronic or other means without the expressed written 
permission from the author except for personal use.

This FAQ may not be posted on any website except for GAMEFAQS.COM.  If you would 
like to have this FAQ on your website, please do not email me; link to the PSO 
page on gamefaqs, but do not link directly to the FAQ itself.

This FAQ may not be modified in any way, shape, or form.  Please see GAMEFAQS 
for the most up to date version.






=================
]I[. INTRODUCTION
=================

---------
THE POINT
---------

Phantasy Star Online is not just a video game.  It is a virtual community.  
Thus, when you cheat against the video game, you are cheating the community -- 
and by extension, since you yourself are part of this community, you are 
cheating yourself.

This FAQ was written not to instruct people how to cheat, but rather to alert 
players as to potential ways that their less-than-genuine party members may be 
pulling one over on them.

I have logged far over 200 hours into Phantasy Star Online (PSO), and the one 
thing that I preach to people over and over is this:

PSO is supposed to be fun.

It's simple, yet overlooked by the vast majority of power-and-item-hungry 
players.  If people would be less concerned with what weapon they have and level 
they're on, and worry more about just sitting back, having a Jones Soda, and 
enjoying themselves for a few hours, the game would be a lot more fun for 
everybody.



-----------------
THE COUNTER-POINT
-----------------

I also feel obligated to remind all players, both the honest ones and the 
theives, that the architecture of PSO was designed such that theivery is not 
only possible but encouraged.  "I will steal double saber!" reads one combo of 
many possible from the game's multilingual canned chat.  In fact, there are even 
theives guilds that exist; groups of players whose sole purpose is to steal and 
cheat items out of players -- organized online crime.  Players who commit these 
deeds of theft and deceit against their fellow gamers may find themselves 
accelerating through the game much more quickly than one who takes the honest 
road.

It is your choice how to play the game.  This FAQ is, afterall, only 
information.  How you use that information is up to you.






==============
IV. THE CHEATS
==============

------------
INTRODUCTION
------------

The "cheats" section is broken down into catagories, such as level cheats, boss 
cheats, treasure cheats, etc.  Within the section are multiple cheats, each 
describing the cheat, how it's performed, warning signs of what to look for to 
see if someone is a cheater, and what you can do about it.  Some cheats may 
belong more to a section other than the one its listed in, so the section 
headings are to be used for vague organizational purposes.

A new "summary" list has been added so that one go into as little or as much 
detail as desired for any particular cheat.

Since most of the time there is little recourse against cheaters, the best 
advice I can give to players is this:  find people you enjoy playing with and 
can trust, trade cards, then play password protected games from that point on.  
I have zero doubt as I'm laying bleeding on the cave floor surrounded by baddies 
that my Soul Eater +35 is as safe as can be.

As it is the best solution for almost all of these cheats, I refrain from saying 
"play password protected games to keep the unscrupulous players out" in every 
"what to do" section as that would be repetitive.

If you have a new cheat to alert users about, or are a cheater yourself and 
would like to contribute one of your own nasty schemes, feel free to email me at 
jonessoda at yahoo dot com.

As a rule, when I'm describing the cheat and I talk about the "player" that is 
the user who is cheating, whereas the "party member" or "party members" are the 
other players NOT performing the cheat, often the victims.



--------------
CHEATS SUMMARY
--------------

======= GAME/LEVEL

------> Player Kill
        Another player kills you and takes your item

------> Deleting your Character on VMU
        Another player causes your VMU file to become corrupt

------> Joining a Password Protected Game
        Player enters a password same as game or character name

------> Leading Party Members Down the Wrong Path
        Player leads party members down wrong path, then backtracks
        in order to get a treasure room to themself

------> PSO Gleaning
        Player enters game and goes to already-completed levels in
        order to pick up all the items that party members left

------> Freezing Up A Team's Game
        Player enters and leaves game repeatedly in order to
        freeze up the party member's game

------> Walking Straight Through Walls
        Player walks through locked doors to skip ahead and/or
        get treasure to themselves

------> Walking Through Beams
        Player walks through locked beams to skip ahead and/or
        get treasure to themselves

------> Telepipe Traps
        Player sets down telepipe in room full of enemies or
        bombs such that party member taking pipe will die

======= TREASURE

------> Always Sharing The Chests ... But What's the Catch?
        Player takes items but leaves money since money quantity
        tends to be low and item value tends to be much higher

------> Wow, That Player NEVER Takes Any Items!
        Player takes good items then drops bad item in its place
        so as to appear that nothing has been taken

------> Treasure Island
        Player drops several 1-meseta boxes on opposite side of
        room as treasure boxes to distract party members

------> This is the BSOD, Freeze!
        Player "fakes" BSOD and does not move or respond hoping
        that party members will quit leaving treasure to player

------> Your DC No Longer Plays Games
        After player casts a spell on you, your DC no longer plays
        games, your microwave overcooks food, and your dog dies

------> Frozen Water Pipes
        Player purposely freezes slimes causing them to split and
        distract party while player goes back and gets treasure

------> Setting Down Telepipe Near Treasure
        Player sets down telepipe before treasure room and insists
        that all party members go up while player grabs treasure

------> The "Bravest" Player
        Player is always first to run into room but never hits enemies
        rather running straight to treasure boxes and grabbing them

======= BOSS

------> Player Kill not in PSO1?  Don't Need it!
        Player purposesly hits Dark Falz when Falz has a party member's
        soul in order to kill party member and take their weapon

------> Fighting the Boss Alone
        Player runs ahead and activates boss transporter alone

------> Boss Box Greed
        Player casts magic to open all boss boxes at once then
        runs around indiscriminately grabbing every box contents

------> False Confidence
        Player talks low-level characters into a game they know
        party can't handle in order to kill party and take weapons

------> Boss Weapon-Stealer
        Player does not strike at boss, rather waiting for a party
        member to die so that player can take their weapon
        
------> Boss Invincibility, Guaraunteed
        Before a boss fight, player visits an OLD defeated boss
        area in order to have their mag make them invincible

======= PLAYER

------> Don't worry, I'll Resta you all!
        Player insists they will cast Resta on androids, then
        purposely allows android to die in order to take weapon

------> May the Force of Suicide be with you
        Player will run out of TP and rather than use a fluid, they
        unequip their weapon and purposely die, allowing you to res them
        
------> Chat-Kill
        Three players "gang up" on one party member and fill the
        screen with chat balloons, causing vision impairment and death

------> Helping New Players Kill ... Themselves
        Player finds level 20 characters for hard and level 40 for
        vhard and takes them to Ruins where they die, then steal weapon

------> Free: Double Saber, Cost: Guilt
        Player follows another player around waiting for their death
        so that they can take their weapon

------> Free Holy Ray +30, No Strings Attached
        Player accepts a duped weapon :P

------> Follow the Yellow Brick Road ... of Doom!
        Player sets up a road of meseta leading straight to a room
        full of enemies and traps, causing party member's death

------> Experience Points "Theft"
        Player hits every enemy only once, afterwards making little
        to no attempt to actually kill the enemy thus getting exp.

------> A Present With Six Claws and Your Name on It
        Player collects a dozen enemies into a group then runs
        straight into a party member, thus surrounding and killing them

------> Playing As Someone Elses's Character
        Player creates character with same name and physical
        appearance as another character and pretends to be them

------> Getting Free Items from Traders
        Player creates character with same name and appearance as
        a well known trader, then takes advantage of customers

------> I can use ANY Weapon! (God/Equip)
        Player claims to have God/Equip and asks for other player's
        weapons in order to prove the claim

------> I work for SEGA!
        Player claims ability to create custom weapons due to PSO server
        access, party members then give materials which player then takes

======= ITEM

------> Snatch!
        Player sees party member giving another party member an item
        and runs between them, taking the item first

------> Telepiping Ups and Downs more Frequent than the Stock Market
        Player telepipes up and down repeatedly in order to find
        rare weapon and/or items in the shops

======= TRADING

------> 3, 2, 1...Rip-off!
        During a trade, player requests to count from one to three
        before dropping items; takes party member's item then runs

------> Buying A Double Saber at Used Car Prices
        Player offers a very inexpensive double saber; player takes
        party member's money then runs

------> Buying a Level 200 MAG for the Price of a Pack of Ragol Gum
        Player offers a very inexpensive high-level MAG; player gives
        party member a very low level mag, takes money then runs

------> Getting The Sweets From the Newbies
        Player trades valuable yet obscure item (Del's arm) with
        newbie for far more common item (Varista)

------> Waaah, Someone Stole my Double Saber!
        Player pretends they lost a valuable item due to theft
        of BSOD and exploits the sympathy of another user

------> So Long and Thanks for the Handgun
	High level player joins game with newbies, takes their
	weapons when they die just to spite them

------> Stealing Fifty Dollars from your Checking Account
        Your checking account mysteriously looses US$50.00



-----------------
GAME/LEVEL CHEATS
-----------------

------> Player Kill <------

DESCRIPTION:

Another player kills you and takes your item.  This is somehow acheived by the 
player hacking the game and casting Resta while they are dead, which then causes 
an INVERSE Resta to occur, sapping life instead of giving it, killing you.

This is currently an UNVERIFIED cheat despite numerous "first-hand" reports of 
it happening, though I will continue to investigate.

WARNING SIGNS:

* your character is loosing life although there are no enemies onscreen

WHAT TO DO:

Heal yourself as quickly as possible, hit ^ START, and QUIT -- do not just leave 
the game and go to ship or lobby, because the spell may be cast there as well.  
If possible, note their name and contact Sega technical support.



------> Deleting your Character on VMU <------

CREDIT TO: Shadow Jess

DESCRIPTION:

Players with GameSharks and Xploders perform magic and drop items IN THE LOBBY, 
and this has been verified.  For example, a player might drop 7 million meseta 
in the lobby, or cast Resta on lobby players.  One player (Bazzam) corrupted his 
save file picking up meseta from the lobby (AKA black money) and as a result 
lost his character, and if you were the recipient of the Resta spell, you could 
lose your character too.

WARNING SIGNS:

* player is casting magic in LOBBY or on SHIP

* player is dropping items in LOBBY

WHAT TO DO:

LEAVE IMMEDIATELY.  DO NOT PICK UP ITEMS.  If possible, note their name and 
contact Sega technical support to report the violations.



------> Joining a Password Protected Game <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player joins a password-protected game despite knowing nobody in the party and 
not being invited.

WARNING SIGNS:

* nobody in your party knows the player

WHAT TO DO:

Preventive measures -- never make the password the same as any of your character 
names, the same as the team name (duh!), or something basic such as "pso".  
You'd be amazed how often you can get into password protected games because 
someone failed to follow the most fundemental of security precautions.



------> Leading Party Members Down the Wrong Path <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player, having a map of the level from a magazine or strategy guide, or from 
knowing the level variations by heart so well, knows that there is a sweet pile 
of unopened chests in a nearby room.  The player then says something such as 
"follow me", or, being the sheep that most players are, party members just 
follow the player without them saying anything.

The player will lead party away from the treasure, then suddenly (without 
stopping) double back, run to the boxes, if they're smart use a Zonde-series 
technique to open them all at once (thus reducing the time party has to realize 
what happened), then grab the goods and run back to where party is, sometimes 
adding, "sorry got lost".

WARNING SIGNS:

* a player leads party back the way they came, even though there is an 
unexplored room up ahead, then suddenly doubles back

* a player leads party into a room with enemies, lets party initiate attack, 
then suddenly doubles back not just into the hallway for safety but far back to 
the unexplored room

WHAT TO DO:

Since many of the maps are admittedly easy to get lost in, this is a very 
difficult thing to spot a player doing.  You will only be able to accuse the 
player if you notice a specific pattern of behavior across multiple levels.

Again, about all you can do is to ask if the player is doing this on purpose, 
request that they share the treasure with you, and affirm to them that you'll do 
the same so that it'll be beneficial for both of you.  This can work, because 
sometimes a player is just paranoid that they won't get their piece of the pie, 
but often take the whole thing in erronous over-compensation.



------> PSO Gleaning <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player connects to PSO, selects a ship/block, and upon viewing the list of 
available teams to join, selects the furthest one to the top of the list, which 
means it has been played for the longest amount of time, and thus all or most of 
the levels have already been defeated.

After entering the game, when the other players say "take red pipe, ruins 3", 
the player instead does not reply (or pretends to be Japanese -- classic!) and 
instead goes to Forest 1.

The player then goes from level to level picking up all the items that the other 
players didn't pick up, didn't want, or missed, occasionally having to fight an 
enemy or two, and telepiping back and forth between "their" level and the ship 
to sell items.

WARNING SIGNS:

* party's game has been in progress for a long time (they can't see your own 
game on the list so they don't know how high up on the list it is) and players 
enter but don't join the rest of your party

* a player does not respond when spoken to, but party can see them walking on 
ship

* the player's telepipe leads to a level party has already defeated

WHAT TO DO:

If you don't mind, then don't do anything.  Afterall, the items you left you 
didn't want or need, and if they're a lower level character they may find them 
useful.  On the other hand, the player is taking a valuable space (remember, 
only 4 players per game), and you may want someone who could help you to join 
in, especially if you're at a boss or want a friend to join.  

You can of course ask them to leave.  You could also try to convince them to 
join you, saying "the items are far better in the level we're in, and we could 
use your help", although most of the time this is the type of person likely to 
steal YOUR items upon death.  If you're at Dark Falz (or whatever) and really 
need to open up that 4th space, you COULD try following the player around 
grabbing items before they do to prove your point that there are greener 
pastures elsewhere so that they leave, but this is probably too much trouble.



------> Freezing Up A Team's Game <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player enters a team's game, then returns to the lobby, then re-enters the 
same game, then returns to the lobby, and repeats until desired effect is 
achieved (which is of course immediate).  Team members playing the game are 
completely "frozen" while their screen says, "PLAYER is joining game, please 
wait a few moments".

The motivation for this can range from "revenge" for something a character did 
(like having a double saber +20 stolen) to just plain adolescent mischeif.

WARNING SIGNS:

* a player enters and re-enters a game more than twice in a row, faster than 
could ever possibly be attributed to "disconnection", and continues to do so

WHAT DO DO:

Quit your game and round up your team members on another ship, or better yet 
another server (which will do the trick in "hiding" you as long as the other 
player doesn't have your card).  At its extreme, call the SEGA technical support 
number in the back of the PSO manual to report the harrassment, which is 
strictly against SEGA policy and could result in that player's account 
termination.



------> Walking Straight Through Walls <------

DESCRIPTION:

There is a locked door (whether red or with four red circles) and a player 
either unequips their weapon so they are punching/kicking, or equips a double 
sabre, then walks straight through the locked, unopened door, leaving the other 
members behind and grabbing the goods for themselves (if applicable).

WARNING SIGNS:

* player equips a double sabre or nothing at all

* they walk through a locked door, though rarely will do this in front of you 
(visibly)

* you notice on the map they are in an impossible location

* you tell them to "get on a pad" to open the door, they ignore you and walk 
straight through it alone

WHAT TO DO:

If they're grabbing the treasure, ask them to share using strategies outlined 
above.  However, if they're doing it just to short-cut through the level, and 
you're OK with that, ask for a pipe, then pipe to the ship and take their pipe 
down.  You *could* ask them to show you how to do it, but chances are they won't 
as it's one of the most closely guarded secrets in the game that only a few 
(including myself, heh-heh) know how to do.

Don't automatically label the person a cheater though, because you do NOT need 
GameShark to perform this maneuver, and often they are just looking to help the 
team out with a shortcut.



------> Walking Through Beams <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player sees some boxes protected behind some beams, and WITHOUT turning off 
the beams first by using the switch walks straight through the beams and grabs 
the treasure.

WARNING SIGNS:

* you see a player walk through beams (although they will usually not do this 
visibly in front of you)

* you come to an area where there are beams, but the boxes behind them are 
broken AND the items are gone

* you see a player on the map in an impossible location (where beams forbid you 
from being without turning off first)

WHAT TO DO:

The ONLY reason to walk through beams is to grab treasure, so unlike walking 
through locked doors, this person is cheating you out of your share.  Again, the 
player does not need GameShark or anything else to do this, and again it is 
among the most closely guarded secrets in the game (which I also can do, 
hah-hah), but be upfront in your disapproval of this since it could be the thing 
keeping you from that much sought out weapon you're looking for.



------> Telepipe Traps <------

DESCRIPTION:

You are told to "take the green pipe" and when you go down, you are either 
immediately ambushed by a multitude of enemies, whacked by a piston, blown away 
by traps, or trapped behind beams or a dead end room locked on both sides with 
no way out but the pipe.


WARNING SIGNS:

* you are heavily encouraged to take a certain pipe repeatedly

* this is usually followed by school-girl giggling or manical laughter

WHAT TO DO:

If you are ambushed by enemies, the other player may have on purpose put the 
telepipe in the center of a room with many enemies hoping that you would die so 
that they can then run up and take your weapon and money.  To keep this from 
happening, ALWAYS carry at least ONE scape doll, so that hopefully you will res 
yourself and be able to pick up your items before the other person runs in and 
does.

If you are blown away by traps, the other player may have found a room with 
many, many traps, avoided them (but not set them off or exploded them), then set 
the telepipe in the center where you were most likely to trigger the most of 
them unknowingly.  Again, carry a scape doll to prevent this.

If you are whacked by a piston, take an aspirin and chuckle.  They do minimum 
damage to you (if any) and this is usually done as a practical joke.

Behind bars or in a dead-end room, again, someone set down the telepipe after 
using a "walking through wall" trick in order to have a chuckle.  Harmless fun, 
take the telepipe back up (or create your own) and leave.



---------------
TREASURE CHEATS
---------------

------> Always Sharing The Chests ... But What's the Catch? <------

DESCRIPTION:

Player opens chests, and seems to only take their share of things per the size 
of the party.  They always leave money for you to pick up, and rather take items 
which you probably couldn't have used anyway.

Sounds fine, right?  Well, your average amount of money in a box is usually a 
few hundred AT BEST, whereas the average price of an item sold in the shops can 
be upwards of a few thousand AT WORST.  Additionally, if they die and haven't 
picked up any money, they won't lose any money if someone decides to steal it -- 
and they'll keep all the items to sell later.  Thus, at the surface level, it 
seems that they're not taking EVERYTHING, but money-wise (and especially in the 
case of SPECIAL WEAPONS, item-wise) they're getting far more than their fair 
share.

WARNING SIGNS:

* whenever you go to an area with boxes or where there were boxes, there's ONLY 
ever money there

* NOTE: if the person who created the game has a YELLOW secion ID (yellowboze), 
this WILL occur naturally, as you will find more money than items

WHAT TO DO:

Again, confront the player about "sharing", and if all else fails, quit.



------> Wow, That Player NEVER Takes Any Items! <------

DESCRIPTION:

What a swell guy!  Player always goes ahead to treasure rooms and opens all the 
boxes, but when party members get there, nothing has been taken.  In fact, there 
seem to be LESS empty boxes than usual, but it's normally money or healing items 
in them.

What the player is doing is opening the boxes, TAKING the good stuff, then 
DROPPING items of money of a less value so that it APPEARS that they didn't take 
anything by the time you get there.

WARNING SIGNS:

* you're never finding orange or blue items (weapons/armor) in boxes

* boxes seem to be empty less of the time

* the placement of the items on the floor does not match up to where the boxes 
were (or should have been)

* tends to happen particularly in two side rooms right before Falz as those are 
rooms that everyone "knows" has numerous special items

WHAT TO DO:

Again, confront the player about "sharing", and if all else fails, quit.



------> Treasure Island <------

DESCRIPTION:

Following a player, a party member enters a room.  Upon entering, the player is 
no longer in this room, but there is a huge pile of money in the center.  The 
party member walks to the pile of money and takes it, but they are all only one 
meseta.  Often the party member will stop and say, "What the heck?  What's all 
this money?"  When the party member catches up to the player, the player is in a 
room with treasure chests, the contents of which are now gone.

The player knew there was a treasure room nearby, so to get all the boxes to 
themself, they purposely DROPPED many 1-meseta boxes on the other side of the 
room, so that when the player entered the room they go and take the low-value 
meseta instead of following the player to the potentially higher value boxes.

WARNING SIGNS:

* there are more than four yellow items on the floor

* there is meseta where there were no boxes

* a treasure room is nearby, and the player you were following is there

WHAT TO DO:

Leave the 1 meseta yellow items and follow the player to the real stuff, adding 
something to the extent of "wait up" or "hey man, share".  If you suspect they 
did this on purpose to dupe you, this is probably a person you will never find 
any good items with because they will always be grabbing them first.

Note:  this isn't always done with ill intentions.  I personally love doing this 
for purposes of provoking humor or relieving boredom, ie waiting for other 
players to come down from ship when I'm at a boss portal.  It's harmless, looks 
pretty neat on the ground (especially if you drop a hundred of them!), and fun 
when they finally DO get down there ("What the heck...?!").



------> This is the BSOD, Freeze! <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player is in a game with only one other party member.  The party member is an 
obvious vet of PSO and familiar with both the BSOD and BSOD warning signs 
(reference: see Black Screen of Death BSOD FAQ on gamefaqs.com).  Near a room 
with treasure, the player suddenly and inexplicably stops moving, just stands 
there.  The player does not respond to the party member when the party member 
talks to them.  The party member, fearing the worst (BSOD) instead of the best 
(disconnection or doorbell), exits the game immediately.  The player is then 
reanimated (it's a miracle!  I can walk again!) and goes to the room with the 
treasure, claiming exclusive dibs.

WARNING SIGNS:

* player stops talking AND moving

* you suspect BSOD, however, you can STILL PICK UP ITEMS

* you suspect BSOD, howver, you can STILL TALK

* other party members are in the game, and they can move and talk fine

WHAT TO DO:

Remember, before a BSOD hits, you CANNOT PICK UP ITEMS (or talk).  To test this, 
drop a meseta and try picking it up again.  If you can, then don't worry; the 
player is either trying to trick you, got disconnected legitimately, or (as is 
most often the case) just took that much needed 
once-every-eight-hours-of-straight-gameplay bathroom break.

If you think your player is really that devious, try dropping an item near them 
("I found a double saber, here take it") and watch how quickly they come back to 
life (the item you really want to drop of course should be just a standard 
throw-away weapon).



------> Your DreamCast no Longer Plays Games <------

DESCRIPTION:

You are playing PSO offline.  You are buying some dimate when another character 
approaches you and threatens to ruin your game if you don't give them money.  
You refuse, explaining that it's impossible for them to do that since they don't 
exist.  They then cast a spell on you ON THE SHIP!  Suddenly your screen goes 
black and text appears on the screen, in green monotype: "Hello, Neo.  Follow 
the white rabbit."  

Your DreamCast unit then shuts off and and will only allow you to play Barry 
White CD's backwards.  You walk to your kitchen, and your microwave will no 
longer fully re-heat burritos, and scorches every bag of popcorn.  Your phone 
rings and on the line a voice asks "What's your favorite scary video game, 
Sydney?"  You run outside screaming and your dog has been killed in a freak 
ping-pong ball accident.

WARNING SIGNS:

* you are OFFLINE and an online character begins speaking to you

* the character makes threats that seem outlandish at the time

* the character steals famous scenes from pop-culture movies and inclues them 
albiet twisted in his threats

* the NPC character casts magic on you ... ON THE SHIP

WHAT TO DO:

Jump up and down on one leg while rubbing your belly and patting your hea... oh, 
nevermind!



------> Frozen Water Pipes <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player leads the party into a room with slimes.  Instead of attacking them, 
the player freezes them on purpose, which causes them to split in two.  While 
the rest of the party now wastes time ridding Ragol of the watery pests, the 
player runs back and grabs treasure in an unexplored room.

WARNING SIGNS:

* player ignores a side room with treasure and leads group into room with slimes

* player freezes slimes instead of attacking (though some newbies don't know 
better)

* player leaves room after freezing slimes

WHAT TO DO:

Standard treasure-stealing tatics, it would be best to follow the user back out 
of the room to get your share of the items too, if that is indeed their 
intentions.



------> Setting Down Telepipe Near Treasure <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player, having a map of the level from a magazine or strategy guide, or from 
knowing the level variations by heart so well, knows that there is a sweet pile 
of unopened chests in a nearby room.  The player then says something such as 
"let's go to the ship to buy supplies and heal" and will open a telepipe.

The player will then wait for everyone to go up, then they will go up, but they 
will GO BACK SECONDS LATER.  This, of course, closes the telepipe so that they 
have no competition when they go to grab the treasure.  They will then set up a 
SECOND telepipe in the same place, and because party members are busy in the 
shops, nobody will notice it was missing for a few seconds.

WARNING SIGNS:

* a sudden, usually unwarrented call to "go to the ship"

* insistence that EVERYONE go up, not just one or two players

* player waits for everyone to go up first

* telepipe disappears, then reappears on ship telepipe area

WHAT TO DO:

Again, there's not much recourse you have here, short of the above 
reccomendation to be firm yet polite and not immediately accusational with the 
player.



------> The "Bravest" Player <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player runs into a room full of enemies without fear (or being slowed down by 
walk/blocking), busts open treasure boxes, then returns to the doorway to fight 
with you (all without breaking the run).  They are able to do this by pressing 
the ^ START button while running (or by pressing the trigger while having no 
"attacks" mapped to secondary keys), which keeps you from walking slowly (and 
can also save you in many situtations, especially the first spikey form of 
Falz!).

WARNING SIGNS:

* you notice that the player isn't automatically slowed down (walk/block 
defensive stance) when close to enemies

* player strikes boxes before they strike the enemies

WHAT TO DO:

Again, ask the player to fight FIRST, grab items SECOND, and reassure that you 
will do the same and will always share with them equally.



-----------
BOSS CHEATS
-----------

------> Player Kill not in PSO1?  Don't Need it! <------

CREDIT TO: Chris Allen (Khris, Level 80)

DESCRIPTION:

The party has made it through the Ruins on hard or vhard and is about to take on 
Dark Falz.  Player joins party and offers to help.  All goes well until the 
final form.  Suddenly Dark Falz performs the attack where he borrows a party 
member's soul for a while.  Rather than leave him alone, player pelts Dark Falz 
with everything they've got, damaging party member in the process.  Inevitably 
party member died, player takes their weapon, beats Dark Falz, claims all the 
items too, and buggers off.  If the player's soul happens to be caught, they 
simply unequip their weapon so that party can't return the favor of killing them 
and stealing their weapon.

WARNING SIGNS

* player is reluctant to hit Dark Falz in final stage except when someone's soul 
is taken (except their own of course)

* player stays near party member to intercept their weapon before someone else 
reverser's them

WHAT TO DO:

It's a good idea to use mid-level rare weapons with Dark Falz (or any boss) 
anyway, since there's always the chance of dying during a boss fight no matter 
HOW confident you are of your abilities.  I got smacked down by the dragon on 
hard with my level 65 character once -- I didn't see that coming!  Use 
Varista's, DB's, and Clubs of Laconium and you won't have to worry about getting 
your goodies stolen.  However, if you insist on using that Glass Sword against 
Falz with people you don't trust, load up on Scape Dolls, or if players are 
hitting you when Falz has your soul, then quick unequip it so you won't have to 
tempt them as you're lying dead on the ground.



------> Fighting the Boss Alone <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player runs to the boss pad alone, and answers "YES" to "ARE YOU READY?".  The 
player does this only if they know they can beat the boss alone.  The player 
then recieves all the treasure without having to share it, which is a quantity 
greater than if they played a single player game.

WARNING SIGNS:

* none, this comes without warning

WHAT TO DO:

* sadly, there is nothing you can do but cross your fingers that the character 
is weaker than they believe and will be killed by the boss.  Since players that 
purposely do this will often leave the game immediately after the boss, there is 
little recourse (save for verbal abuse).  The only protection you can provide 
yourself is to get your team on the boss pad BEFORE sending a telepipe to a new 
player entering the game.



------> Boss Box Greed <------

DESCRIPTION:

Once a boss is defeated, the player will use a Zonde-series technique to open 
ALL the boxes immediately, then sprint the area pressing the "A" pick-up-item 
button as quickly as they can, indiscriminately taking items.

WARNING SIGNS:

* none -- just because a player opens the boxes with lightning, it does not mean 
they intend to "gun-run" all the treasures

WHAT TO DO: 

Grab as many items as you can as soon as you hear the far-too-rapid sound of 
items being picked up, then talk to the person openly about it, and offer to 
share your bounty if they'll share theirs.  Otherwise, there's really nothing 
you can do.



------> False Confidence <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player encourages a fight against the level boss despite the fact that the 
other party members are dangerously under-leveled to and inadequately prepared 
to fight the boss.  There are reassurances from the player to the party of 
"don't worry, I'll heal and res you".  The player sets up a telepipe before the 
boss portal, unequips their weapon (making sure that all money is in the bank), 
then immediately upon fighting the boss commits suicide and returns to the ship. 
 Once at the ship, they take the telepipe back down to in front of the boss 
portal and wait for the other teammates to die.

Once all party members are dead (and have cursed thoroughly), they return to the 
ship thinking they can just take the telepipe back down to the portal to get 
their weapons, however, discover that the telepipe is no longer there (because 
the player went down).  The player then enters the boss portal alone (weapon 
unequiped), grabs everybody's weapons, then dies again and returns to the ship 
to either sell the weapons, bank them, or bribe the teammates if they want them 
back.

WARNING SIGNS:

* player enters boss arena with no weapon equiped, or an obvious throwaway 
weapon (ie "handgun")

* player makes little or no attempt to hit the boss and instead dies without 
remorse

* player DOES NOT WAIT TO BE RES'D, and instead returns immediately to the ship

WHAT TO DO:

Don't fight a boss you know you are not ready for, no matter how much "talking 
into it" another player tries to get you.  If you're not ready, you're not 
ready.  That's different from the boss being a challange of course -- the boss 
shouldn't be TOO easy to beat, but not IMPOSSIBLE.  Most importantly, if you've 
brought a good weapon to the boss and you see someone who's died and returned to 
the ship and you suspect it's for this reason (hint: were they the one to lay 
down the telepipe in front of the boss?), then unequip your good weapon and die 
cutting your losses, or equip to a throw-away weapon so you won't lose anything 
valuable.  Better still, make sure to have a Scape Doll on hand at all times 
when carrying good items.



------> Boss Weapon-Stealer <------

DESCRIPTION:

Player enters boss arena with either no weapon or a throw-away.  Player makes no 
attempt to fight boss, but rather protects just themself.  Player does not cast 
RESTA as that will (at higher levels) give life to teammates -- player only uses 
the -mate family to increase life as that only heals them.  Player then waits 
for anyone -- ANYONE -- to die, and steals their weapon, sometimes even getting 
away with all three other players' weapons.  Player then DISCONNECTS the line 
and immediately dissappears, or unequips weapon and commits suicide in order to 
return to the ship and then the lobby.

WARNING SIGNS:

* player enters boss arena with no weapon equiped, or an obvious throwaway 
weapon (ie "handgun")

* player makes little or no attempt to hit the boss and instead dies without 
remorse

* player does not res other players, either with a reverser or moon atomizer, 
and makes no attempt to heal or help them whatsoever

* player usually tends to be quiet and not speak much, if at all

* player may have a pattern of stealing earlier in the game, ie someone dies and 
they run up and take the weapon and money, only to realize that it's not a good 
weapon, so res the party member and give item back

* note: if a moon atomizer or reverser is mapped to the RED "A" button, then 
this "stealing" is usually an accident and the player will apologize and give 
the item/money back right away

WHAT TO DO:

Spot the warning signs early, though often they'll go unnoticed even by 
experienced players.  Don't use your absolute best weapons against bosses of an 
even moderate difficulty, because no matter how high level you are there's 
always that possibility you'll get caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.  
Carry Scape Dolls so that hopefully you can beat the thief to your items.

Variation (CREDIT: The Silver Bard): Your party is already fighting a boss and 
you had wisely put down a telepipe in front of the boss teleporter in case your 
party all dies.  Player enters game, sees that you are at boss, and waits to see 
if you all die.  If you do, player takes YOUR telepipe down, unequips weapon, 
takes boss teleporter, takes all your weapons, then quits/dies (or beats boss 
alone and claims reward).  



------> Boss Invincibility, Guaraunteed <------

DESCRIPTION:

Party is at the 2nd, 3rd, or final boss portal waiting for player to get down.  
And waiting.  And waiting.  Player keeps insisting, "on my way", "just a sec", 
etc.  Eventually player comes down, but when they do, they are invincible as 
evidenced by spinning mag and colors on character.  Player joins you in boss 
portal and is invincible for beginning of boss.

Some mags have a chance of making their owner invincible during boss fights.  
However, even for a level 200 mag with a 200 IQ and 120% synch level, getting 
invincibility is far from guaraunteed during a boss fight. This tends to be most 
critical for the first form of Falz, those annoying spikey things.

In order to GUARAUNTEE invincibility, what the player did was leave a pipe in 
front of an OLD defeated boss terminal, then took that pipe (dropping another 
one in its place), went to the empty boss room which then made them invincible, 
then took the teleporter back to the ship, then the telepipe back down to where 
the party is.  If however, they weren't made invincible during the first 
attempt, they repeat: telepipe down to old boss portal, drop pipe in its place, 
take boss portal, take teleporter back to ship.

WARNING SIGNS:

* player is taking more time to get ready than a [sexist analogy truncated]

* when player does come down, suddenly they're invincible

WHAT TO DO:

There's really nothing you can do except ask the user not to take so long for 
the next boss and threaten to leave without the user, citing that the group is 
powerful enough that invincibility is a convenience but not a neccessity to be 
sure.



-------------
PLAYER CHEATS
-------------

------> Don't worry, I'll Resta you all!  <------

CREDIT TO:  TJ Burke (Valkerye, Level 95)
 
DESCRIPION:
 
A player (usually Force) tells party members who are androids to not worry about 
healing themselves with -mates, since the player will cast Resta on them 
whenever their life drops.  The player then is faithful to their word by casting 
Resta repeatedly on the androids whenever their life drops, such that the 
android party members no longer heal themselves.  The player then waits for a 
large group of enemies to surround the android and purposely DOES NOT cast Resta 
and allows the party member to die.  The player then takes the party member's 
money and weapon.

WARNING SIGNS:
 
* the player does not resta you the second your HP drops below half
 
* the "healer" stays close to you -- this one actually has a bit of logic to it, 
because they can claim that the reason they are so close to you is that they 
want to heal you if you start taking damage
 
* the player announces that they will cast Resta and not to worry

WHAT TO DO
 
Make sure you have plenty of items to heal youreself, or if you can, just cast 
Resta on yourself when you're running low.  Ask the other player why they're not 
doing what they said they would.  Many times, once they find out that someone 
else has the ability to heal other members and don't mind doing so, they either 
leave or stay and don't heal anyone. 



------> May the Force of Suicide be with you <------

DESCRIPTION:

Player, usually a force, will unequip a weapon and commit suicide by running 
into a group of enemies without attacking.  A party member will then res them.

When the character is res'd, not only is their life bar filled (obviously), but 
they have all of their technique points back (so they don't have to spend it on 
a -fluid) AND their photon blast will be more charged up.

So basically, they get a free power-up at the expense of your own TP to res them 
(not to mention the life you risk getting to their dead body).

This WOULD be a great technique against bosses where TP is very critical and you 
can easily run out of -fluids, because you are esentially filling another 
character's TP completely at the expense of your own, but they can then turn 
around and do the same to you.

Fairly pointless tatic, except perhaps for Forces who are too cheap to buy 
-fluids or use TP draw weapons.

WARNING SIGNS:

* a character, typically Force, will die at very regular intervals (ie every 
time their TP is gone) with no weapon equipped (so if thieves come they have 
nothing to lose but money) and often with a telepipe they laid down in the area 
(so if they have to go back to ship because nobody will res, they can easily 
re-join the party)

WHAT TO DO:

If you notice the pattern, and are certain they're doing this to skip using 
-fluids, it's simple; don't res them.  If they want to go through the trouble of 
dying every five minutes and telepiping back down, that's fine.

A variation of this is instead of dying, just telepiping up, running ALL the way 
to the nurse, blowing the ten meseta, then running ALL the way back, and 
repeating every time they run out of magic.  If the player is an asset to the 
team, offer to buy -fluids for them if the reason they're doing that is just to 
save cash.



------> Chat-Kill <------

DESCRIPTION:

A party member enters a game and takes a pipe down.  Their screen is immediately 
filled up with empty chat balloons from the other three players, the party 
member cannot see anything, and either hit some bombs are are surrounded and 
killed by enemies.  Someone takes your weapon and money and laughs manically.

This is similar to the telepipe trap trick, but the variation here is that three 
"buddies" all have a macro with 75 spaces (a full, large, empty chat balloon) 
which they are continuously streaming to your (and their own) screens so that 
you cannot see.  They are in a safe place, you are not; you die.

WARNING SIGNS:

* you take a telepipe down into a room with bombs

* you take a telepipe down into the center of a enemy circle

* your screen is flooded with blank messages or large graphics that don't cease

WHAT TO DO:

If you suspect that your teammates set this trap for you to walk into and they 
they're not just incredibly intellectually dull, then hit ^ START and open up a 
telepipe (technique or item) to get the heck out of there.

This is of course ineffective against bosses.  I often find myself trying to 
placate the verbal urges of my party members during boss fights because I can't 
see, and they don't realize it.



------> Helping New Players Kill ... Themselves <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player in a lobby finds a character near the breaking point between 
normal/hard, or hard/vhard.  In other words, they find a player in the low 20's 
or in the low 40's, and convince that player to join them in a hard or very hard 
game respectively.  The player then goes straight to the Ruins where the party 
member has no chance and the party member dies immediately.  The player grabs 
the party member's weapon and money, then leaves.

WARNING SIGNS:

* if you are in your lower 20's or lower 40's, there is little chance for your 
survival in the LAST level of that series, so you should stay away anyway

* if someone significantly higher than you wants to go straight to the Ruins (or 
Mines for that matter, where you'd be easily as whupped) and finds the Forest or 
Caves out of the question (where you could probably hold your own), it might be 
a trap

WHAT DO DO:

This is a hard one to spot, because often high-level characters will 
legitimately help out the newbies because when they were new somone came into 
one of their games and helped THEM out and so the circle is complete.  However, 
if you have your suspicions, equip a shoddy weapon and carry under a hundred 
meseta, then die on purpose and see if your "big brother" takes your items and 
ditches you or leaves your items and res's you.



------> Free: Double Saber, Cost: Guilt <------

DESCRIPTION:

Player enters game, asks if anyone has a double saber.  One party member does, 
but says that they only have one and that they're using it so it's not for sale. 
 The player then joins the party, and fights exclusively with the party member 
with the double saber.  If the party member should happen to die, the player 
immediately snaps up the saber and leaves.

WARNING SIGNS:

* player is quiet except for comments regarding the double saber, ie "for 
sale?", "nice saber", etc.

* player follows the character with the double, literally clipping the graphics 
of the two characters

* player heals only using -mate family, never using Resta as that would heal the 
party member with the double saber whom theh player wants to die (exception: 
androids with no TP)

WHAT DO DO:

Spot the warning signs early, they're usually GLARING.  I can always spot a 
thief in a party I join, they're unusually quiet, they follow a specific 
character around, THEY TEND TO TALK IN ALL CAPS FOR SOME REASON, and they grab 
as many items around them as they can even though they have barely contributed 
to the battle except for protecting their own tush.

Carry a scape doll if you're going to break out the good weapons in 
non-password-protected games, and beware of being overwhelmed by enemies.

I have seen many, MANY double-sabers stolen from party members by unscrupulous 
players, and it kills me every time.  Be careful, and don't have too much pride 
to be shrewd enough to only use your good stuff OFF line.



------> Free Holy Ray +30, No Strings Attached <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player is giving away unbelievable items: Holy Ray, Real Agitos, Double 
Sabers, Mag Cells, and tons of money.  They ask for nothing in return, and in 
fact leave after dropping the items.

WARNING SIGNS:

* mass quantities of free special items -- need I say more?

WHAT TO DO:

Well, if you have no qualms with disrupting the natural global flow of the game, 
thereby corrupting a delicate virtual ecosystem previously perfectly balanced by 
video game mathematicians and scientists, then hey, go for it.  The items were, 
of course, either GameShark cloned or duplicated through the aid of a 
little-known bug in the game which is a highly guarded secret as it does NOT 
require the use of GameShark or other cheating device and thus cannot be 
detected by Sega.  GameShark or not, remember, you're disrupting the balance of 
a global community, the game equivilent of "inflation" whereby even a Holy Ray 
then becomes worthless because everyone's got three in the bank.

Otherwise, if you're a straight shooter like myself, then simply don't take the 
items.  If you're feeling VERY reactionary, then take all the items before other 
players do, create a game, drop the items, then quit -- so that the items have 
been annhilated into the void of PSO cyberspace (the equivilent of "burning 
money" to stave off inflation).  I wouldn't reccomend this later strategy, 
though, since any morale high ground you gain is likely to be out-weighed by 
your new-found enemies.

Addition (CREDIT: Shadow Jess): People with GameSharks and Xploders make level 
999 mags, mainly being Chaos, Robochaos, Pians, and opa opas. These fake mags 
will prohibit you from entering or creating teams.  Dupped Items cause the same 
thing.



------> Follow the Yellow Brick Road ... of Doom! <------

DESCRIPTION:

Upon walking into an area, a party member sees what appears to be a "road" of 
yellow meseta.  They grab each meseta and follow the road, grabbing each 1 
meseta as the go along, possibly uttering "what the heck?" as they're doing so.  
At the end of the road lies a hallway with multiple bomb traps which kills them, 
or, leads them into the dead center of a room where enemies spawned while they 
were too busy counting the money and then kills them.  The player then comes 
into the room and takes the party member's weapon and (ironically) meseta.

WARNING SIGNS:

* there's a trail of yellow meseta on the ground

* the level you're in could kill you if you played it alone

* when you ask what the meseta road is, there is no reply, or urges to "follow 
it"

WHAT TO DO:

Sure, take the meseta, but use trap vision and be as cautions following the END 
of a trail into a room as you would if you were entering the room alone without 
the distraction of the meseta.

Most of the time, this is done harmlessly again out of boredom or fun.  
Sometimes, it actually aides as a navigational element.  One time, my party all 
went to the ship while I stayed down and fought through a few rooms.  So that 
they could find me from the telepipe more easily (which wasn't my telepipe), I 
left a trail from the TP to the room I was currently battling in, which they 
dutifully followed (after a few moments of confusion and laughter).

Again, the ubiquitous solution of a Scape Doll would work nicely here.



------> Experience Points "Theft" <------

DESCRIPTION:

Ahh yes, the old "experience points theft" trick.  One that we're all guilty of, 
knowingly or not.  The way the game was designed, if one player inflicts 10 
points of damage onto an enemy, and another player inflicts 950 points of 
damange onto an enemy, they both recieve an equal number of experience points 
when the enemy dies.  Thus, you can have two players, one who does 95% of the 
work, the other who does 5% of the work, at the exact same level.

This tends to occur naturally with Force characters through no fault of their 
own, due to their weaker HP total.  It will also tend to occur in a game where 
there are one or more players WAY out of their league in a level, and again, 
this isn't neccessarily cheating.

What *IS* cheating, however, is purposly entering a room, striking every enemy 
ONLY ONCE, then returning to the safety of the doorway while the other party 
members do the real work, for the specific intention of getting the experience 
points.

WARNING SIGNS:

* a player is using a quick firing melee weapon (handgun) and only doing 1-hit 
combos to every enemy in the room, then running to safety (what DO you call a 
one hit combo?  it's not really a combo, afterall...)

* a force character is using a multiple-enemy hitting technique (zonde-series 
typically) only once, then returning to safety

WHAT TO DO:

If you suspect a person is "using" your game to build experience, all you can do 
is politely ask the user to do their share of the work or leave.  Afterall, 
they're taking up a valuable space in your game that someone else -- who would 
help your team -- could be taking instead.

If that doesn't work, then do nothing.  Go no further in the game.  Just stand 
there and wait for them to leave.  Since they are basically "weaklings" at heart 
(no matter if their Level indicates otherwise), they will never blaze a trail 
and enter new rooms alone -- thus, they will quit your game and move on to 
greener (less informed) pastures.



------> A Present With Six Claws and Your Name on It <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player will enter a room, usually with the "Booma" series enemies in it, and 
lure them all into one huge group following them.  When another party member 
enters the room, the player will then run STRAIGHT INTO the party member 
(graphics clipping their bodies) and into the doorway -- the party member will 
then be surrounded by all of the baddies, and if even a moderate level 
character, will have a high probability of dying if they can't ward them off.  
If this happens, the player then snags the party members weapon and money, then 
leaves.

WARNING SIGNS:

* none.  This is actually a legitimate fighting tactic when equiped with weapons 
that can hit multiple enemies (Swords and the like), and it is possible that 
after getting THAT many enemies on their rear they may feel they can't take them 
on afterall and run for safety, but they should help YOU out once your're in 
trouble instead of just standing there waiting for you to die

WHAT TO DO:

Chances are you yourself are not properly perpared to fight against that large a 
group of enemies alone, so the best thing would be to duck back in the door 
along with the player.  Otherwise, carry a Scape Doll as always in case things 
get ugly (or a telepipe mapped to a key for an emergency exit).



------> Playing As Someone Elses's Character <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player notices a "friendship" between two players, and notes both of their 
names and physical descriptions ("tall skinny HuMar, red hair, black clothes").  
A player then creates a character with the same name and physical description 
and goes to the same ship/lobby to find his "friend".

When he finds the "friend", (being careful to make sure the "real" one is not 
online), he explains that he lost all of his items, his character, etc.  The 
"friend", being the nice person they are, then gives the player plenty of money, 
items, and other goodies.  The player thanks his "friend" then leaves.

WARNING SIGNS:

* your "friend" is typing differently, both speed and langauge usage

* your "friend" doesn't remember specific things you've done togeather

* your "friend" skips the small talk and goes straight to asking for items

* (CREDIT: Kirei) when you run a search on your friend's guild card, it shows 
that they are not online -- but a guild card is linked to the Sega DreamCast's 
S/N and/or the PSO S/N, NOT any one specific VMU character, so unless your 
friend bought a new DreamCast or a new copy of PSO, it SHOULD show that they are 
online and in your room; otherwise, it is an imposter

WHAT TO DO:

The BSOD (Black Screen of Death) has destroyed many a player, but that's no 
reason to not check for ID before parting with that beloved Twin Brand +20.  
Make sure they are who they say they are before you give them anything -- or 
pretend to not give them anything and see if they protest.  If they don't 
protest, it's probably your real friend.

(CREDIT: Kirei) Also, if you suspect an imposter, ask for their guild card.  
When you receive the guild card, it should NOT create a new guild card in your 
list; it should over-write the exact same card onto your real friend's.  In 
other words, if after getting the person's guild card, you now have TWO guild 
cards of characters with the same name (such as 'Nei' in your listing twice), 
the second one is the imposter.



------> Getting Free Items from Traders <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player goes online and notices a recurring room on a specific ship/block 
called something along the lines of "ItemTrader" or "WeaponsForSale".  The user 
enters, notes the weapons dealer's description and name, then leaves.

A period of time later, on the same ship and block when the "weapons" game does 
NOT exist, the user creates a new character with the weapons dealer's name and 
physical description and creates the game with the same name.

Most of the people entering the room "know" the dealer and have established 
trust with them.  When the person puts down the weapon or money, the "fake" 
dealer takes it and leaves.

WARNING SIGNS:

* the weapons or items dealer is a level 1 character, or very low

* the weapons or items dealer is a lower level then before

* the weapons or items dealer does not put anything "down" to let you look at it 
first, insisting that you put yours down first

WHAT DO DO:

Leave, and tell the real one about the fraud when you see them.  Warn other 
users in the game lobby if possible.



------> I can use ANY Weapon! (God/Equip) <------

CREDIT TO: Frank Shaw (scraTchy, Level 91)

DESCRIPTION:

Player claims to have God/Equip and says that they can use any weapon (force 
could use hunter/ranger weapons in addition to force weapons).  Another party 
member says "prove it".  Player says, "No problem, let me see your weapon".  
Party member drops their weapon.  Player picks it up and leaves.

Whether or not the player HAS god/equip (or for that matter whether or not it 
even exists!) doesn't matter -- the player is hoping to challange the party 
member ala calling McFly "chicken".

WARNING SIGNS:

* player makes claim and asks for your weapon to prove it

* player does not give you their guild card

* player does not want a "regular" weapon (Rifle) but something "good"

WHAT TO DO:

Don't give them an item, or, give them a throw-away item such as a Rifle.



------> I work for SEGA! <------

CREDIT TO: Frank Shaw (scraTchy, Level 91)

DESCRIPTION:

Level 100 player enters game, equips a very rare weapon (ie Glass Sword, Sonic 
Knuckles) that most people haven't seen and joins party members.  Once 
togeather, party members ask what rare gun/sword/weapon player has and how 
player aquired it.

Player offers the information that they are employed by Sega of America (SOA) or 
Sega of Japan (SOJ) and have access to the PSO servers; thus, player claims that 
they "made" the weapon themselves and that it is an entirely unique weapon which 
nobody else has.

Party member may say something to the extent of, "since you work for PSO, you 
must have everything", and the player the proceeds to show everyone what he/she 
has has (most likely other stolen items).

Party is impressed and starts asking player questions and about 
rare items.  Player answers all questions authoritatively.

Player then offers to make VERY rare item for party members if they give player 
something speical.  Party members go to bank, get the best items they have, and 
give to player.  Player then takes items and leaves.

WARNING SIGNS:

* player claims to work for Sega

* player claims to work for Sega

* player claims to work for Sega!!!

WHAT TO DO:

Call out "bull#$%!" and leave.  Don't bother asking for their guild card.  Don't 
bother asking what city they live in and attempting to match it to Sega's HQ.  
This tatic has so many holes in I could write a whole 'nother FAQ just on how 
ridiculous this is.

Variation (CREDIT: Chris Brazelton):  Instead of offering to make them a special 
weapon if they give you rare weapons, player informs party member that as a SEGA 
employee they have detected that the party has duped weapons; however, they 
cannot tell specific items unless the items are dropped.  Party drops all of 
their items, player then takes all items, gives some of them back, thanks for 
their cooperation, and leaves



-----------
ITEM CHEATS
-----------

------> Snatch! <------

CREDIT TO: Jeff Harjo (Emperor Bako, Level 56)

DESCRIPTION:

Party member #1 says to party member #2, "Do you want ITEM?  I have extra ITEMs 
or cannot use."  Party member #2 responds in the affirmative, and party member 
#1 drops said item.  Player then runs between the two party members and picks up 
item.  If it is something such as X MATERIAL, they will use it immediately so 
that it cannot be given back.  If accused, they deny that they "got" the item 
and that it is not in their inventory, or if material, apologize but regret that 
it cannot be given back.

WARNING SIGNS:

* you openly offer another party member an item while you are standing near each 
other, and a third player is standing near you

* while you and the other party member are PERFECTLY STILL because you are 
talking or checking inventory, the THIRD player keeps walking slightly forward, 
back, forward, back -- anticipating the dropping of the item

WHAT TO DO:

To prevent this from happening, use simple mail to direct the other player to a 
particular area (ie Principle's Room) so that the item may be dropped reletively 
securely and without the knowledge of the other players.  If you DO get an item 
stolen, again, there's little you can do about it.



------> Telepiping Ups and Downs more Frequent than the Stock Market <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player joins your party, then telepipes up, is gone for about a minute, comes 
back down, but then goes back up immediately, gone for a minute, comes back 
down, repeats.

Since special weapons, special armor, and special items (scapes, grinders) 
appear in the shops with about the same probability as appearing in item boxes, 
the player is "resetting" the odds every time they go back to the ship, 
"spinning the wheel" if you will.

WARNING SIGNS:

* up, down, up, down... 

WHAT TO DO:

First, especially if they are a Force, ASK them what they need.  It could just 
be they're out of Trifluid and are having bad luck at it appearing in the store. 
 This being the case, sit out their absense or go help them to double their 
odds.

However, if someone has joined your game EXCLUSIVELY to do this (because they're 
under the mistaken impression that there's any difference in shop itmes for 
normal/hard/vhard or forest/caves/mines/ruins), then tell them they they have 
the SAME odds in a single player game alone if you really need that 4th space 
open that they're taking up, or just let them do their thing and they'll 
eventually leave on their own.



--------------
TRADING CHEATS
--------------

------> 3, 2, 1...Rip-off! <------

CREDIT TO:  TJ Burke (Valkerye, Level 95)
 
DESCRIPTION:

A person who wants to trade items decides that he wants to do it in a manner of 
counting down from 3.  On zero, you are to drop your item and it's an even 
exchange.  Sounds fair, doesn't it?

Not only is this the *worst* trading method in the game, I've seen millions of 
people try to rip me off from it.  They either haven't dropped thier item or 
dropped something that isn't it, or dropped a legit copy of the item and then, 
when trading with the person, drop something else.  I've caught so many people 
trying this one it's unbelievable.
 
WARNING SIGNS:

* THE PLAYER DOES NOT GIVE YOU THEIR GUILD CARD WHEN ASKED FOR IT
 
* the person is offering too many or too good of an item for it to be worth it

* the player posisitons themselves near the exit in the hunters guild so they 
can run by, get the item you dropped and disconnect

WHAT DO TO:

ALWAYS GET A GUILD CARD WHEN TRADING WITH SOMEONE.  Even then it will not 
guarauntee a fair deal.  But it makes sense beyond the initial trade, since 
you'll likely go back to that person again for more trades if the first one was 
successful.  You can always suggest another trading method as well.  Again, if 
you get ripped off trading, there is little you can do about it.



------> Buying A Double Saber at Used Car Prices <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player offers to sell their double saber for a set amount of money, or to 
trade it for an item that a party member has.  The party member wants to see it 
on the ground before they drop their money.  When the party member sees it on 
the ground, it says "?SPECIAL WEAPON" with the sword icon.  The player assures 
that it is a double saber because they have seen it equipped, the party member 
drops the money and takes the weapon.  The player takes the money and leaves.  
The item is actually a common DB saber after being tekked.

WARNING SIGNS:

* the item on the ground has not been tekked

* they are selling the double saber for under 200k (it took me 160 hours to find 
ONE; yes, without GameShark, it really is a quite rare weapon -- well, for most 
section ID's anyway!)

WHAT TO DO:

I would strongly reccomend against ever buying or selling double sabers.  For 
some reason (thanks Lucas!) everybody wants one even though they're not THAT 
powerful and can really get you whupped in a hurry against a pack of baddies.  I 
have personally seen more people get ripped off by double saber deals gone bad 
than any other weapon, by far.  If you want one, find one, or trade with someone 
you trust absolutely.  I actually LOANED my double saber to a friend for 24 
hours because he didn't have one and wanted to try it out; yes, I did get it 
back, but only because I had played with him for dozens upon dozens of hours 
prior in password protected games and there was a high level of trust involved.



------> Buying a Level 200 MAG for the Price of a Pack of Ragol Gum <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player offers to sell their level 200 MAG to a party member.  The party member 
agrees.  The player drops the MAG, the party member sees it on the ground, drops 
the money, then picks up the MAG.  The player takes the money and leaves.  The 
MAG turns out to be a low-level MAG.

There is an incredibly easy way to accumulate MAGS for free in this game, though 
it is someone tedious.  Simply create a new character, enter a game with a 
friend, drop the MAG, quick, come back as your "real" character, and take the 
MAG.  The new character is then deleted and the process is repeated for up to 
six mags, after which they mysteriously disappear when dropped on the floor.

Therefore, since this is within reach of all people to do, they don't care about 
"losing" a low level MAG despite the relatively infrequent "in-game" finding of 
one, because they have an endless supply of them anyway.

WARNING SIGNS:

* a legitimately raised MAG to level 200 (without the assistence of GameShark or 
other cheat) is a very, very valuable item -- and even moreso if it's a superior 
MAG, like Bana or Asparas.  Therefore, beware anyone selling one for under 
500,000, as they may be pulling one on you OR have GameSharked the item

* the name of the MAG on the floor is not kosher to what a third generation 
MAG's name should be, which you would need a game guide to verify

* the player does not want you to actually PICK UP and LOOK at the MAG's stats 
until you have dropped the money (although this is tricky because they could be 
worried about YOU taking the MAG and ditching)

WHAT DO DO:

You need to pick up and look a the MAG if you suspect it's not what the person 
says it is.  If they don't let you do this, and you can't tell by looking at the 
MAG's name on the ground, then forget the deal and go somewhere else.  

Better still, raise your own MAG to level 200 -- it's not that difficult if you 
keep an analog watch or clock around, and every time the big hand is on a number 
(ie every five minutes), feed the darn thing.  It only took me two full nights 
of "not playing" (playing the easy levels) and just "feeding" to a watch to get 
mine to level 200 (Bana!).



------> Getting The Sweets From the Newbies <------

DESCRIPTION:

A player asks a group of mid-level characters (20's, 30's) if anyone has a rare 
item such as a DelSaber's Arm, which most people don't know what to do with.  
When somebody who doesn't know what it is says yes, the player offers to give 
them a low-level special item (Varista, DB) in trade for it.  The player agrees, 
but asks what the Arm does, since Tekkers won't tell you.  They are told that 
the arm is, "a lame item, it's a green box item so you need two of them and it 
will then act as Trimate and Trifluid combined but you can only use it once", or 
something to that extent so as to downplay what it really is.  The party member 
agrees, and makes the trade happily, feeling they got the better end of the 
deal.

Well, perhaps this isn't so much a game cheat as it is just outright lying, but 
nonetheless I feel the neccessity to warn new users against this.  There are 
many items that cannot be Tek'd which are FAR more rare than ?SPECIAL WEAPON 
items -- DelSaber's Arm is one of these, of course, but there are others.

If you DO want to get rid of it because you don't want to go through the trouble 
of an offline quest to change it into the cool weapon it is, make sure you 
understand the true market value of it and be sure to get the best deal possible 
-- a Del's arm is worth at MINIMUM a DragonSlayer or Crush Bullet.

WARNING SIGNS:

* player enters game and immediately asks if anyone has any of non-Tekable items 
(S-Beats, Del's, etc.)

* player offers only DB's or Varistas in trade for it, and outright lies about 
what he plans on doing with the item, or why he is seeking one

WHAT TO DO:

Again, this is simple.  Know your options, and know the true rarity of these 
much-maligned un-tekkable items.



------> Waaah, Someone Stole my Double Saber! <------

DESCRIPTION:

This trick is even older than the "stealing someone's double saber" trick.  
Player enters game with other party members who tend to be of a higher level.  
Player then moans to the party members that they had just gotten their one and 
only double saber (or insert weapon here) STOLEN by a neferaous user.  The high 
level party member, feeling sympathic, gives the user a double saber and tells 
the user to join them down below.  The player then leaves.

The player, of course, never had a double saber let alone had one stolen, and is 
merely prying on people sympathy and generousity to manipulate one out of them.

Variation (CREDIT: Archangel/Khinsath/Navahl): whining that BSOD took the item 
from them instead of another player, and for finishing touches equip a water 
pistol (handgun, to show that you can only do 7pts damage) and low-level mag, or 
no mag/weapon at all

WARNING SIGNS:

* player seems too low a level to have had said weapon (Lv19 with a Spread 
Needle, no way)

* player joins game and immediately whines about said weapon, but takes no 
actions towards joining your party in battle

* if player's comments are not responded to with a gift, player goes as far as 
to ask for the donation outright

WHAT TO DO:

It's a tough call, you can never really tell if they lost one or not unless you 
saw it with your own eyes.  If you've got tons of said weapon, offer a fair 
trade that tips to their side slightly, but I'd reccomend against outright 
donations unless you're just unloading  extra DBs and Varistas.



------> So Long and Thanks for the Handgun <------

DESCRIPTION:

High-level player enters game with low-level party members.  Player then steals 
party members' weapons when they die (as low-level characters inevitably do).  
The weapons are not valuable -- handguns, sabers and the like -- but to the 
low-level character it is all they have.

WARNING SIGNS:

* you are level 1 and a level 100 character enters your game

* the high-level character never heals or helps you

* the high-level character never attacks enemies (they don't need to)

WHAT TO DO:

Don't assume the worst at first.  Again, I frequently perform acts of "charity" 
by joining low-level games and helping them by healing/res'ing them for a map or 
two so that they can build experience -- it's occasional fun, it's good for the 
ego, and if they go high level some day they might have that DelSaber's Sheild 
you've been looking for as repayment.

However, if you suspect the worst, go ahead and ask they player why they decided 
to join your game instead of playing at their own level.  Their answer -- if any 
at all -- should be very telling of the situtation.

If you do get your beloved item stolen and are desperate for another, quit the 
game you're in, then create a new game, go to forest, open up those first six 
boxes, if there's no weapon in them then repeat; quit, new game, forest, open 
boxes, etc.  If you have meseta, you should bite the bullet and just buy a 
weapon at the store.



------> Stealing Fifty Dollars from your Checking Account <------

DESCRIPTION:

Company designs flawless, highly addicting multiplayer RPG.  Company then has 
drastic financial losses, and instructs programmers prior to game's release to 
insert a bug which causes the game to freeze and to remove at least two levels 
and several key game features.  Game is released onto public and quickly rockets 
in popularity, though game bug is causing heartache among followers.

Company then waits until the next quarter and re-releases the original game 
without the bug and with the original levels and features, however, taunts US 
consumers by releasing it only in Japan and teasing that it might not be 
available in US, further driving up demand.  Comany finally releases it in US, 
and voracious consumers immediately devour re-released edition.  Assets in party 
member's checking account drop by fifty dollars.

WARNING SIGNS:

* software is released with promised features missing

* software intuitively "feels" like it is missing a few levels

* software has a single, conveiniently un-fixable-on-server-side bug which 
causes drastic inconvenience and/or damage to consumer

* company technical support refutes existence of said bug until marketing 
posters are ready for the re-release

WHAT TO DO:

Write me hate mail ignorent of my sense of sharply sarcastic humor, then go 
pre-order your copy of PSO1 v2.0 and SUPPORT OUR SEGA!






=========
V. GREETS
=========

No FAQ -- much less an online multiplayer FAQ -- would be complete without a 
"greets" section.  So, greets goes out to a small but growing number of people:



------------
CONTRIBUTORS
------------

Dusk, Neon, Scavenger/Sage, Valkerye, Emperor Bako, Khris, scraTchy, Shadow 
Jess, The Silver Bard, Archangel/Khinsath/Navahl, Kirei, Chris Brazelton

Thanks for helping everyone, and remember to email jonessoda at yahoo dot com if 
you would like to become a contributor yourself!



-------
FRIENDS
-------

* CROJO -- my lost friend (where are you?!)
+ quote: "Man, I can't stand these Q3 online teenagers playing PSO!"

* DUSK -- great minds think alike, right pond-skipper?  Boxes.  Clear.
+ quote: "wow, you talk just like a 200-year-old japanese kung-fu master!"

* NEON -- my official right-hand "yes" man
+ quote: "you da man!  hey everyone, Jones is da man!  you rock Jones!"

* SCAVENGER/SAGE -- my own personal "WeaponsDealer" in the rarez
+ quote: "How bout some HOLY RAY Jones?! ... How bout some HOLY RAY Falz?!"

* AZURATH -- a far-too-infrequent teammate and valuable ally
+ quote: "hey, that was YOU that wrote that FAQ on gamefaqs? cool!"

* Z -- a player I would like to Z more of in the future
+ quote: "I may not like Emily @#$!enson, but I do like Alfred Hitch@#$!"

* JONES -- me
+ quote: "wait...traps...clear...wait...traps...clear..."



THANKS FOR READING, AND BE SURE TO WRITE!

HAPPY HUNTING,

-- JONES



  o
 /|\
<END>
 \|/
  o
