In this special recap episode, Boss Mode revisits the best stories and insights from Season 1: The Roots of Chaos. From MUD pranksters and EverQuest corpse runs, to guild saboteurs, trade chat wars, roleplay scandals, and the psychology of trolling, this is a full-circle look at how MMO chaos began.

Inside this episode:

· The very first trolls of MUDs and Ultima Online.

· Infamous griefers and guild implosions that shaped early MMO culture.

· Trade chat battlegrounds and corpse-camping chaos.

· How design flaws and anonymity enabled trolls.

· Vigilante justice: blacklists, bounty guilds, and in-game trials.

· The strange balance of punishment and redemption in player-driven justice.

This is the story of where the madness began, and why trolls became legends in the worlds we loved.

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"We’re going beyond the patch notes… and pulling the mask off the madness.”

Before the banhammers. Before Discord mods. Before GMs roamed the servers like digital sheriffs, MMO communities had to police themselves.

In this episode, Boss Mode takes you back to the Wild West of online gaming, when players built their own systems of justice: vigilante guilds, public blacklists, trade chat courts, even full-blown in-game trials. Sometimes it worked. Sometimes it went hilariously wrong.

Inside this episode:

· Ultima Online’s Sheriff Guild and the first “walls of shame.”

· Kill-on-sight lists in MUDs and EverQuest vigilantes hunting griefers.

· WoW blacklists and RuneScape’s trade chat “courtrooms.”

· Vigilante guilds that became heroes… and others that became villains.

· Balmung’s infamous in-game trials and public executions.

· How community-driven justice shaped the moderation systems we use today.

Before there were mods, there was us, and the justice was as chaotic as the games we played.

Episode Sponsor:
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"We’re going beyond the patch notes… and pulling the mask off the madness.”

Alts. Burners. Double lives.

In this extended episode, Boss Mode dives deep into the secret world of alternate characters and burner accounts, how they started as harmless side projects and evolved into weapons of chaos. From innocent experimentation to guild-destroying scandals, alts have shaped MMO culture in ways few players realize.

Inside this episode:

• The EverQuest healer who lived a double life as a rogue saboteur.
• Burners used for forum flamewars, Discord spying, and guild sabotage.
• Balmung’s infamous triple-romance scandal and Rust’s alt tribe betrayal.
• WoW guild bank robberies, Black Desert coups, and how alts implode entire communities.
• Redemption arcs where alts gave trolls a second chance to respec their reputation.

Whether you see alts as creative freedom or digital WMDs, one thing’s certain: the rise of alt accounts and burners left a permanent mark on MMO history.

Episode Sponsor:
Boss Mode Fashion — because even if your DPS is trash, your fit doesn’t have to be. Find your next respawn-ready outfit at bossmodefashion.com.

Got a grief story or redemption arc worth sharing? Email podcast@mmomadness.com — your tale may end up in a future episode.

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"We’re going beyond the patch notes… and pulling the mask off the madness.”

Episode 10: The Psychology of Trolling

Why do trolls troll?

In this extended deep dive, Boss Mode pulls back the mask to explore the psychology of trolling in MMOs. From the harmless pranksters whispering fake raid strats, to the sadistic corpse campers, to the redemption arcs of trolls who “respec’d” their behavior, this episode unpacks what drives players to chaos.

Inside this episode:

· The Online Disinhibition Effect, why anonymity unleashes hidden sides of players.

· EverQuest’s Ninja-Loot Emperor and ESO’s infamous bank heist.

· WoW corpse campers, Rust betrayals, and Balmung’s tyrant king.

· The line between roleplay and cruelty, when masks reveal more than they hide.

· Redemption arcs: trolls who turned from villains to mentors.

Dark, funny, and a little uncomfortable, this episode shows how trolling isn’t just pixels on a screen, its psychology, community, and sometimes, a mirror of ourselves.

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.

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"We’re going beyond the patch notes… and pulling the mask off the madness.”

Roleplay servers were supposed to be havens of immersion — places where your character’s story mattered more than DPS meters or loot rolls. But in practice? They became the soap operas of MMO culture.

In this episode, Boss Mode dives headfirst into the chaos of RP servers across WoW, ESO, and FFXIV. From Goldshire’s scandal factory to Balmung’s royal meltdowns, you’ll hear the funniest, weirdest, and most dramatic tales from the MMO stage.

Inside this episode:

• The “forbidden romance” that tore apart a knightly guild.
• The chicken spy who clucked his way into guild secrets.
• Royal families, fake divorces, tavern trials, and coups.
• Burners, catfish, and players dating… their own alts.
• How RP servers still manage to inspire community, creativity, and redemption.

Whether you love them, fear them, or just peek into Goldshire for the memes, RP servers remain the most unpredictable raid bosses in MMO history.

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"We’re going beyond the patch notes… and pulling the mask off the madness.”

Behind every MMO troll, every griefer, and every legendary meltdown lies a mask: anonymity.

In this episode, Boss Mode dives deep into how anonymity fuels both the chaos and the creativity of online worlds. From the early days of MUDs and EverQuest to the sprawling drama of World of Warcraft, Elder Scrolls Online, EVE Online, and ARK, anonymity has always shaped player behavior.

We’ll explore:

• How avatars and alts free players to roleplay—or to grief.
• The rise of burner accounts, guild spies, and double lives.
• When anonymity turns ugly: scams, harassment, and guild meltdowns.
• The surprising good side—freedom, reinvention, and redemption arcs.

Expect darkly funny grief stories, shocking betrayals, and a few moments where the mask actually led to healing.

Is anonymity the soul of MMO culture—or the root of all toxicity? Let’s find out.

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"We’re going beyond the patch notes… and pulling the mask off the madness.”

Episode 7: Legendary Trolls of MMO History

Some trolls are just pests. But a rare few? They become legends.

In this episode, Boss Mode dives deep into the rogues’ gallery of MMO history—from the player who assassinated Lord British in Ultima Online, to the chaos of WoW’s Corrupted Blood plague, to modern-day ESO bridge bombers and ARK’s dino cartels.

We’ll explore the trolls who didn’t just ruin raids—they carved their names into gaming folklore. Plus, a few fictionalized “listener submissions” share their own griefing war stories.

Love them or hate them, these legendary trolls left scars, laughs, and unforgettable chaos across the MMO landscape.

Tune in for grit, humor, and a reminder that in the world of MMOs… sometimes the trolls are the real bosses.

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"We’re going beyond the patch notes… and pulling the mask off the madness.”

Episode 6: Toxicity by Design (How Devs Accidentally Enable Bad Behavior)

Some MMOs are practically built for trolls—and not the dungeon kind. In this episode, Boss Mode digs into how developers, often unintentionally, create mechanics that fuel griefing, gatekeeping, and pure chaos. From loot systems that pit guildmates against each other, to chat tools that double as trolling megaphones, we’re breaking down how design choices can turn a game into a breeding ground for bad behavior.

But it’s not all doomscrolling—we’ll also share some darkly funny grief stories and a few redemption arcs that remind us why we keep logging back in, even when the salt runs deep.

Got your own MMO war story? Send it to podcast@mmomadness.com
—it might just end up in a future episode.

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"We’re going beyond the patch notes… and pulling the mask off the madness.”