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Understanding Lurers and Luring What to Do If You Are Lured

Ethical people, including myself, find it inexcusable when a “blame the victim” mentality is used by lurers to excuse their behavior: the fact that someone makes unwise decisions should not justify them being scamming. But at the same time, I must concede that too many people do behave foolishly and take unnecessary risks, and in so doing, open themselves up to being lured.

In the other subsections of my coverage of luring, I will give specific tips on how to avoid specific types of lures. First, though, I urge you to read through the following list of general tips. Following these suggestions will help you protect yourself against a wide variety of different scams:

• Keep Your Greed in Check: As with conventional item scams, many people make themselves luring victims by being greedy. If someone wants to buy a 1 million gold item from you for 2 million, and you get excited about it, you're more likely to do something stupid. This should set off alarm bells in your mind, not thoughts of profit. Check out my discussion of how emotions can make you a target for scams.
  
  
• Do Not Trade In the Wilderness: Agreeing to trade in the Wilderness is an invitation to being killed.
  
  
• Never Cross the Ditch When Trading: The new Wilderness ditch stops many of the old lures that scammers tried to use, but they aren’t giving up. Since there is a small “safe area” just north of the ditch, some lurers may try to convince you to cross the ditch to trade with them there. Doing this removes the protection that the ditch provides (see Figure 118) and always should be taken as a sign that the person is trying to scam you. There is never any reason to cross the ditch for a trade.
  

  Figure 118: No Place for a Trade

  Here I am standing on the second square north of the ditch. One more square north of here and I will be in Level 1 of the Wilderness, which makes this not a smart place for trading. The ditch was put in specifically to prevent people from being lured into the Wild—don’t defeat its entire purpose by crossing it, unless you want to go into the Wilderness!

  
  
  
  
• Never Take Expensive Items to Dangerous Places: If you've just spent six months earning and saving gold in order to buy a rare you've always wanted, then treat it with the respect that six months' work deserves. Don't take it to dungeons, don't take it in or near the Wilderness, and do not take it into the house of a player you do not know. Wear a Ring of Life, too; not foolproof, but it could save you.
  
  
• Ignore “Sweet Talk and Outrage”: Lurers are liars by definition. If you get suspicious and accuse the other person of trying to lure you, or cancel a trade over concerns because of a lure, they will not go quietly. They'll either try to convince you that they are being honest and that “they hate lurers too”, or act outraged that you accused them and call you names. Don't be swayed by these shams: an honest person would instead offer to meet somewhere that you feel comfortable with.
  
  
• Do Not Use Wilderness Shortcuts: Many lures will try to trick you by getting you to go from specific non-Wilderness areas to other ones that can only be conveniently reached by taking a short-cut through the Wilderness. A common example would be Edgeville bank and the Monastery, which is a short walk through the Wild but much longer otherwise. Don't fall for this trick.
  
  
• Don't Be Fooled By Levels: If you are level 77 and the person you are trading with is level 89, don't fool yourself into thinking you are safe in level 1 of the Wild. The lurer has a friend your level waiting for you with his freezing spells at the ready.
  
  
• Keep Accept Aid Off: Some lures involve using Tele-Other and Tele Group spells on victims. Turning off “Accept Aid” makes you immune to these scams. To turn it off, click the “wrench” icon at the bottom right of the RuneScape interface, then click the white medical bag with the red cross on it until it is not highlighted red.
  
  
• Don't Follow Strangers: There are lures that involve the scammer telling you to follow them; they then lead you to a dangerous place. There is usually no reason to have to use the “follow” feature on a person you don't know, and lots of reasons to avoid doing so. Be especially cautious if someone says they want you to follow them somewhere to conduct a trade—there is no reason for this, as you can trade anywhere.
  
  
• Never Trust Anyone in the Wilderness: The rules against lying to players to get them into the Wild do not apply once you are in there. The Wilderness is a place inherently based on dishonesty, and people will lie to you there without a second thought. Even friends sometimes get backstabbed, including members of clans.
  
  
• Don't Go Into Unfamiliar Areas Unprepared: If someone you don't know tells you he wants to take you into a “cool new dungeon” and you feel uncomfortable about this, your mind is trying to warn you of the danger. Respect that warning -find out what dangers you might face and prepare yourself before you go.

As always: be cautious, be smart and be safe.

Understanding Lurers and Luring What to Do If You Are Lured