Players Enslaved by Scammers in Elite Dangerous

Some Elite Dangerous players took the opportunity to be whatever they wanted very seriously. If they could become space pirates, miners, mercenaries or traders, then why not become what is essentially slavers. A group of scammers invented a way to exploit the work of inexperienced, new players. Thanks to them, the scammers managed to earn money on the extraction of valuable minerals without having lifted a finger.

The whole procedure began very innocently. During their travels in the open galaxy, inexperienced players encountered other commanders who offered them a very tasty deal. They were to go to the nearest Fleet Carrier, in order to exchange some of their basic equipment for very large amounts of cash. Then the experienced players offered them help in building a new ship, as well as information on the easiest way to obtain valuable minerals called Void Opals. They would later lead them to a remote system where they would begin mining together. At this point, encouraged newbie players did not yet know that they found themselves in a space labor camp.

Polygon learned of this seemingly indecently generous offer from a player known as Jason. He is a veteran of Elite: Dangerous and has involved his children in the game. It was his 7-year-old son who came across one of the scammers trying to use him for their own purposes. In all likelihood, he would have taken him up on the offer had it not been for his 10-year-old sister watching over him while he played the game. Her greater experience made her think the offer was too good to be true, after which she informed her dad about the incident. As a result, Jason's son avoided being trapped in a system 800 light years away from the center of the galaxy.

At this point, however, the question arises as to how the space scammer planned to trap anyone in one part of the map and stop them from simply leaving. Their plan was well thought out, however, and it began with encouraging lured players to switch ships. They gave advice on how to upgrade the machine in ways that would supposedly make it better. In reality, the main purpose of these changes was to reduce the ship's range of interstellar jumps. As a result, when it came to traveling between most systems, their owners were forced to rely on Fleet Carriers. These are large, mobile bases with a jump range of as much as 500 light years. Players who still trusted their "advisors", therefore, took a seat on board the ship, after which they were transferred to a distant star system. At this point they were already at the mercy of the people who brought them there. The place was chosen in such a way that departure from it was possible only with the help of a Fleet Carrier.

This is not the only trick that was used. Players were also encouraged to switch to PG (Player Group) mode. Under normal circumstances, it helps when playing with friends, because then we can interact only with them. In the above case, however, it was about leading to a situation in which the victimized players had no opportunity to contact anyone beyond their oppressors. These, in turn, imposed merciless conditions. There were only two ways to get out of the trap - mine Void Opals and sell them to the scammers for 1/6 of their value or blow up one's own ship and start the game from scratch.

Player reactions varied. Some of them fulfilled the demand and then left the system. Others preferred to destroy their ship and start over or abandon the game altogether. Some also tried to negotiate with the scammers, but were unable to come to any agreement. One player, however, chose the third option. He wrote a simple message to the group called Fuel Rats: "Do Fuel Rats rescue pilots trapped in concentration camps?"

The Fuel Rats are a faction of players who have made it their mission to help commanders who are stranded in space without fuel. They are an organized group that takes their duties very seriously. They recently celebrated their 100,000th rescue. However, the news regarding being stranded in a space labor camp temporarily perplexed them. At first, they thought it was referring to the issue of prison ships that appear in the game world. It soon became apparent that the matter was more serious and beyond their ability to handle on their own. So they passed the information to another organization - Hull Seals. It is a new faction, which, among other things, deals with this type of non-standard rescue operations.

Player known as Commander Modemus was responsible for supervising the operation. He prepared, with the help of joint forces of Fuel Rats and Hull Seals, a plan to rescue the imprisoned commanders. Both factions had to use many of their own Fleet Carriers to carry it out. The entire operation lasted several weeks, but allowed for the release of several players, who avoided the necessity of self-destruction or slave labor. However, some of them are still waiting for help, so both factions have not yet finished their mission.

The scammers themselves are not going to stop trying to exploit other players. In an interview with a journalist of Polygon, one of the members of the group in a very specific style admitted to their actions and announced that they intend to continue them.

The developers have also addressed the topic. In a statement, they said that they are monitoring the situation and condemn such actions. In the future, the developers are expected to intervene in cases of scamming such as those described above. It was also announced to issue an official warning against joining unknown fleets. According to the statement, less than 20 players have been affected so far.

This is not the first time that the Elite: Dangerous community has become notorious for the toxic behavior of some players. Three years ago, a case concerning an initiative called Enigma Expedition became famous. As part of it, a large group of players was supposed to make a journey to a system called Colonia, located 22,000 light years away. This kind of pilgrimage was planned as a tribute to the player known as Commander DoveEnigma13. In reality, his name is Brandon Keith and at that time he was battling cancer. Unfortunately, even such a positive event turned out to be a good target for toxic players. Some of them tried to disrupt the expedition, among others by sabotaging the main ship participating in it. However, their efforts failed to threaten the success of the initiative, which was soon joined by a very wide range of people.

On the other hand, events like this also testify to the strength of the Elite: Dangerous community. Factions like Fuel Rats and Hull Seals show how much commitment some players put into the game. It allows for joint operations that can often impress with their size. They also focus groups of people around common goals. Each subsequent incident similar to the one described in this news, can develop the game's community even more. In turn, thanks to organizations created by the game's veterans, new players are not left alone and can count on the necessary assistance. These actions are impressive even now and create captivating stories from the game world. It's not surprising, then, to see people mention similarities with another great community that surrounds EVE Online. More time is needed, however, to match the scope of thies phenomenon.

However, we should also ask ourselves why so many people were fooled by the promises of unfamiliar players. Elite: Dangerous is a specific title after all. The learning curve is steep, the beginning is not easy, and the vastness of the world, as well as the time that needs to be devote to raise one's status can overwhelm many players. In such conditions, the prospect of earning money quickly and joining a group that already owns such powerful ships as Fleet Carriers might seem very promising. The number of beginners, on the other hand, may be affected by the fact that less than a year ago the simulator was available for free in Epic Games Store. This resulted in an influx of inexperienced people who were easy targets for scammers.

Currently, Elite: Dangerous players are waiting for the release of the Odyssey expansion. It will introduce numerous changes, including some considered revolutionary for the game. It will enable the players to, among other things, explore planets on foot and fight from this perspective. This means players will be able to disembark their ships and stretch their bones on the surface of numerous celestial bodies.