Typical Troll Tactics
now, first off lets make clear that there is a sharp difference between trolling and a troll. trolling (v.) is simply the act of baiting for an argument. a troll (n.) is someone who attempts to disrupt and destroy all discussion in a forum, for whatever personal malfunctions. anyway, with that clarified, trolls seem to always follow the same pattern, and use the same tactics. ive always been fascinated with these individuals and what drives them, particulary their feeling of superiority and diabolical genius, when in fact they use the same tactics every time. it is my intention, with your help, to compile a comprehensive list of typical troll tactics.
very important: this is not a thread for calling out trolls. like the idiotic debating tactics thread, this is not intended for use in personal assaults.
just state your observations on constants and patterns in the methods by which trolls attempt to manipulate others. with your help this should be a great and informative discussion.
also,
its inevitable that trolls will feel called out by this thread and interfere with the hope of getting it closed. for the sake of this discussion, please ignore their silly 'fail' pics and all the other ebaumsworld hotlinks that they feel clever in posting.
so lets get the ball rolling:
a few that come to mind are:
-reversal of blame- harass and insult other members, and when someone replies in kind, play the victim. which of course leads to:
-abuse the 'report' function. self explanatory
-cry 'group think' or "herd mentality".... if everyone cant stand your obsessive annoyance, it must mean that they are brainwashed drones following the orders of some mysterious leader. after all, in a normal and constructive social setting harrasment and stalking would be welcomed and encouraged
-play 'Savior of the forums'.
they always do this and its a dead giveaway. whenever someone signs of claiming to want to bring peace to the forum, get ready for some trolling as they will attack contributing veterans and accuse them of killing discussion. one failed attempt after another to rally everyone behind them.
-sock puppeteering. we're all familiar with the term 'sock', but it originates with the act of registering a screenname which is seemingly identical to that of a troll's victim. so lets say someone wanted to sock troll me, they would make an account called something like "Schector" and copy my avatar and sig and post in my name in an attempt to assassinate my character.
ok, anyone wish to contribute?