Many people have wondered on the forums what the Game Masters really do, why they act in such mysterious ways, or whether they even exist at all!

Game Masters will take on many roles during their travels, sometimes as a teacher, sometimes upholding the law, and sometimes investigating complicated bugs in the game. Although a Game Master is someone to go to when there is a problem in the world which needs to be fixed, Game Masters are sworn to secrecy with regards to the mysterious workings of the world, so you should never ask them for information about the game or for hints about how best to progress.

Many players enjoy the immersive nature of Azeroth. For this reason, every Game Master is taught to operate discreetly and to show themselves only when a situation strictly requires it. The vast majority of players will never see a Game Master's distinctive robes in the game world. They will typically communicate by whispers so as to minimise any disruption to Azeroth’s inhabitants. Anyone who has seen a Game Master in person will testify that, on the rare occasions they become visible, they are very quickly surrounded by curious players! A Game Master's whisper will always begin with <GM> followed by their name and so can easily be distinguished from a player’s whisper.

The Game Masters in Action

Game Masters are not specific to any realm or faction. They are neutral in all matters and they pride themselves on their impartial approach to the role. There are no amateur volunteers amongst the Game Masters. Although gamers at heart, every Game Master is a professional customer services representative with experience in the game world and training on the fairest and most effective way to resolve any issue which may arise in the course of play. The decisions made by Game Masters are regularly reviewed and are subject to strict internal guidelines so as to ensure that they are operating fairly and responsibly. This is very important for the protection of both the players and the Game Masters.

Much has been made about the use of so-called Game Master 'bots.' This is something of a misconception. When a very commonly reported issue is reported (examples being Ozzie Togglevolt or the infamous Loot Bug) which is already under active investigation and which needs no further information to be gathered, certain Game Masters will use a broadcast tool to contact the reporting players. The purpose behind this tool is to acknowledge the receipt of the reports and maximize the availability of Game Masters for issues which require greater attention, such as players who are trapped in holes, raid loot issues in Molten Core, and so forth.

'The Calm before the Storm' 'Goooood morrrrrning!' the troll's voice rang across the room, calling the wild bunch to attention. 'The reports indicate no unusual activity. The zombies have done a good job during the night and everything has been going smoothly. We'll take it from here and make sure that this day will see no harm come to the people. If problems arise, you know what to do. Remember, everyone is counting on you so don't let us down!' he said as he handed out the day's assignments. The men and women of his team made their way to their workstations and began to operate the mysterious devices mounted to the tables. Ari's eyes gleamed as he watched all the machines coming to life and giving off a low, steady hum. He was obviously pleased with the way things were going and started to punch buttons on his own mysterious little machine. Ratuk did not entirely share Ari's faith in the machines, but he recognized progress when he saw it. These were truly the finest pieces of engineering he had ever seen. Trusting Ari to ensure the smooth running of the workstations, Ratuk retreated to his antechamber and began to read over the pile of documents sent from the Stormwind guard detailing additional costs caused by the Darkmoon Faire in Elwynn.

Some players have asked about how we deal with those who break our policies, often suggesting some rather harsh and occasionally bizarre punishments themselves. We always seek to educate players wherever possible, which means that we may not suspend players from the game immediately, so this cannot be taken as evidence the situation was not dealt with. Nor will Game Masters ever discuss any account actions or details with anyone but the account holder. For more information on our penalty system you can visit this page.

Finally, the Game Masters work from a set of carefully designed and regularly reviewed set of guidelines to ensure that the game is a level playing field for all and that no favoritism is shown to anyone. Reports sent to GMs from Blizzard employees are not treated differently from reports submitted by other players, and the GM code of conduct requires that, in cases where there is a potential conflict of interest, (such as an issue raised by the guild mates of a Game Master) the report is handed-off to a neutral third party.

How to get the assistance you need

'The Little Toy' Ari was merrily punching at all sorts of buttons on his machine when Ratuk approached him. "Ari, I'm in trouble," he began. "I have a seemingly simple case but I just don't see what's wrong with it. All our attempts to resolve it have miserably failed so far." "No worries, we'll get it fixed," Ari replied. "Let's take a look at the situation to find out why it is not working." Already the lights on his machines were blinking and it was making strange noises. The world around Ratuk began to spin and only moments later, he found himself in Darnassus, seeing the world through the eyes of an elf. Slightly dizzy from the experience, he realized what Ari had just done: he had magically transformed him into the elf. Not knowing how long this magic would last, Ratuk rushed up the stairs into the room where the trainer was located. A bright question mark was floating over her head. Relieved, he quickly approached her, explained the situation and, discovered that the spell the night elf needed required the mastery of a Talent which was not yet in his book. Quickly noting down this information on his handy travel parchment, he returned to the spot where he had first appeared. Moments later, the world began to spin again and Ratuk was back in the familiar building. "That was an interesting trip," he remarked, steadying himself against the doorframe "Well, looks like it was a new talent mastery spell, it seems our records are a little out of date and the Goblins will need to write up a new volume, but thanks for helping out on this one, Ari. Although I'd rather not make use of your little toys anytime soon again," Ratuk said, quenching a feeling of motion sickness that threatened to overcome him. Behind him, Erynshar was poking him with his long bony finger. "You see, there is this rogue…" he began. Ratuk held back a sigh. This was going to be another busy shift.

It is important to provide full and concise information on the problem you are experiencing, without unnecessary preamble or irrelevancies. If you are reporting something that happened at a particular time which might require investigation, please provide your best approximation of the time, preferably in CET (realm time). Please include any relevant background information which would put your report into its proper context. Compare 'X is fishing' to 'X is using a fishing bot in an Alterac Valley Battleground to stop himself from going offline!'

If your report concerns other players, NPCs, or resources, please ensure you provide their names, spelled correctly, as this will help us to process your report more efficiently and quickly. You can easily imagine that there are several thousand quests- nearly three times more quests than the variety of creatures throughout the World of Warcraft. We don't dare try to count the items. Even the smartest invention from the Goblins won't be able to find out the name from "the centaur guy in the Barrens"

At present the European team, while capable of many languages, are not fluent in all languages and therefore only accepts submissions in English, French and German, depending upon the official realm language. Your ticket may be responded to with a request to re-submit it in the correct language if this requirement is not followed.

Out of game support

Occasionally a player feels that a GM has not acted in the best interests of fairness and balance and so a reporting system on GM behaviour is in place. WoWConcernsEU@blizzard.com is your conduit to an impartial 3rd party capable of investigating and reviewing any GM's conduct upon request. There is no character limit on reports, however, all other guidelines on concise information and times should be considered.

Should you have any issues or disputes arising from account action taken by Blizzard Customer Support Staff, such as account warnings, suspensions or bans, the correct course of action is to contact the Account Administration department.