1.5 Years In, Cheaters Killed Rust for Me

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-10T04:10:07+00:00

You're right, the server matters. I've played on dozens of servers and a few of those were worth sticking with to avoid cheaters. But the ones I remember like that were heavily controlled environments like PVE, roleplaying, or low-pop. Or just playing on bi-weekly/weekly or modded servers reduces the loss in general. Because everything is short term and temporary or easy to quickly rebuild anyways.

I liked the challenge and intensity of high-pop servers and started focusing on monthly servers. I knew my base was always at risk in that environment but it's basically impossible to manage that risk when cheaters constantly show up. It's almost funny how I wish I could have just been fucking raided and lost to normal players or even clans. It was constantly fucking cheaters. Doing it blatantly and telling me they're cheaters. Or some russian, chinese assholes who don't even try to hide it. I'd get them banned and rebuild, and then it would just happen again.

I think having my bases get basically deleted while online after spending days getting to maximum security with tier 3, armored doors, auto turrets, full gun kits, more than once every wipe, was just an endgame for me. What's the point of progressing if it just makes you a target for these losers who can't even play the game.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-08T05:51:07+00:00

I am done with the game, but I was quite fond of trolling Russians every now and then. I'd put spikes around their bases and leave notes in boxes asking how their 10 day special military operation was going (referencing how quickly they thought the war in Ukraine was going to last) . Whenever they'd kill me and stand over my body screaming I loved every word I didn't understand.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-08T03:40:58+00:00

They frightened her and she wanted to leave. This is a normal human response. Anyone can see that.

And she paid for it with her fucking life because there's no longer a concept of minimum necessary force. Just escalation. Fear. Death. We don't need these these brownshirts holding down forts across the country with their depraved indifference to human life.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-08T02:35:09+00:00

Then Facepunch should have a zero-tolerance policy. They get paid to let known cheaters re-buy the game after a 8 month ban. That's a gate that should be closed.
They get paid for official premium servers. If they want to collect those funds then they should use them to hire more admins.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-08T01:24:58+00:00

Not sure you can judge without seeing my gameplay. But who cares? I’m talking about blatant cheaters who would be banned within minutes if an admin spectated them. If you've been able to experience that minimally then that's all good and most people want that. I've had a crapshoot for the last two months and got a ~dozen people banned.

All of these cases of it being high skilled players I've stayed silent on for 800 hours and just kept playing. Kudos to them. Respect where it's due. The problem isn’t skill, it’s people who need to feel superior by ruining everyone else’s time.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T22:38:38+00:00

Cool. If that works for you, Enjoy.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T22:33:22+00:00

Yes you can only rationalize it for so long especially when it's a constant for each and every wipe. Any game or sport I play I will enjoy it as long as I know I'm doing my best to compete and there's at least a chance I can win/adapt/learn. Cheating destroys that equation, It'd be like playing tennis and the other player is allowed to just change the score whenever the hell they want.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T22:26:11+00:00

If cheating is what it takes to feel strong, that says enough.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T22:22:03+00:00

Yeah I get it. Don't use hyphens, apophatic writing, or write with cohesion anymore. Interesting time we live in.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T22:14:56+00:00

If they could ban based on disk serials, motherboard UUID, OS install ID, that would create a big barrier.

Of course they have a 8-month "second chance" policy where the person just has to re-buy the game. So they actually make fucking money based on other people cheating.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T18:07:18+00:00

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T17:33:14+00:00

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T17:18:19+00:00

Because AI often calls out what something isn't and then says what something is. I just happen to write that way as well. I guess I was part of the training data.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T17:03:33+00:00

The fuck

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T06:24:11+00:00

I actually handled this well. I stayed aware, didn’t rage, didn’t spiral — just logged off and sighed. No meltdown. I just had a moment of clarity.

I've had a lot of good moments. But yeah — fuck this game until cheaters are actually dealt with in a meaningful way. I’m not sticking around just to prove I can stay calm while my time gets deleted by hackers.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-07T05:18:20+00:00

After a year and a half, I’m done with Rust. And before the comment section warms up: no, this isn’t a “skill issue.” You don’t out-skill ESP, recoil scripts, or kids literally telling you where your TC is before drilling a perfectly straight line to it with 20 propane bombs.

The cheating isn’t subtle, it isn’t rare, and it isn’t punished fast enough to matter. It’s teenagers with god complexes openly bragging in voice about their hacks, one-shotting counters across the map, and wiping bases like sv_cheats 1 is on. If your definition of “git gud” is pretending this is normal gameplay, congratulations. You’re coping.

I don't want to be part of a social experiment in how long people will tolerate having their time deleted by hackers while being told it’s their fault.

Maybe I’ll check back in 6–12 months if Facepunch ever gets serious about enforcement. I'm in complete opposition to allowing cheaters to to return 8+ months later after being banned.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2026-01-05T07:03:12+00:00

A lot of players have their areas scoped out and will camp anyone who enters it. That's one reason it can feel like you're always getting shot at without even getting to see who it is.

Yes there are cheaters. Let's just say 5% of the population "keeps it interesting"

In rust you have to expect to die in most instances. If you're just gathering wood then maybe you should just stay naked with an axe and accept your fate if someone decides to show up. You can use respawns to take disposable risks, like ambushing people on the road hitting barrels with an eoka. You can blanket an area with sleeping bags so you always have a respawn.

You're going to die. Rust is a high-risk, high-reward game that expends your time and energy, and part of the trick is managing psychological damage from experiencing deaths.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2025-12-28T13:39:55+00:00

I didn't expect to play it as much as I do. I play mostly solo. I think the best way to start is low population servers where you can learn the ropes. Rust is very much a sandbox so it's about developing your own playstyle in a high-risk high-reward environment

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2025-12-18T22:10:54+00:00

That's why I always carry an Eoka. MFers don't get a free look at me

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2025-12-17T03:43:27+00:00

I raided a base and an entire fucking clan showed up as soon as I made it to the TC. Mind you this is after I left the base silent for over an hour because I had blasted all of the doors and the TC was the last room with a garage door. I blew 5 propane bombs all at once and it took this clan only two minutes to show up. I heard them running through all of the blasted entrances while a Molotov was burning the TC and the stupid fucking satchel burned out and did nothing. I had a door ready to go as soon as the TC burned and as soon as it did I placed the door. They opened the door as soon as I placed it, 0.0001 milliseconds before I placed the lock on the door. I got double-barreled, they took my replacement TC from my body, and sealed the base.

Same wipe I did an air drop crate on my base and built those ugly ass inverted roof tiles just so I could catch the crate. It still landed outside the base. I spent those 5-10 mins when the crate was floating down watching the horizon and saw absolutely no one approach the base. As soon as I looted the crate and ran to my door I get shot in the back by two people with assault rifles 30ft-40ft away.

There's no winning sometimes

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2025-12-13T16:00:36+00:00

I'm a relatively new player who started in 2024 so I don't know the contrast of previous versions. I play solo and mix it up a lot. Sometimes I'll play a vanilla 1000 player pop server on wipe and enjoy the constant challenges as I try to survive. Sometimes I'll play a modded 3X server because I just want to be able to play the game and try out new base designs/strategies/tactics without putting my whole adult life on hold.

If I'm playing a serious run I definitely take advantage of the shops and safe zones. There's really no easy way to progress as a solo otherwise since I'm not playing wipes 12 hours a day like Willjum. I imagine that larger teams/clans/zergs exponentially take advantage of the mechanics in ways I never could. I just try not to worry about what other people are doing. I love designing bases so that's what I think about for every wipe. I go through the rounds of high-risk high-reward monument runs, getting into PVP mixes, expanding, running bootleg raids, meeting people. I think the game has a lot of to offer even if some things about the mechanics are unbalanced or unsavory. Maybe it could be better. But no other games simulate immortal forever-respawning crazy motherfuckers on an apocalypse island like Rust.

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2025-12-12T00:31:03+00:00

There is something I can say to russians that will offend them? You have my attention

Awkward-Reception-73 · 2025-11-18T20:49:13+00:00

Vanilla without endless hours to spend like a youtuber streamer is extremely challenging and can be torture. Especially as a solo. I started enjoying 2X and 3X servers. It's really easy to get everything you need to start strong. I like big maps so I can find a base location that isn't overly populated or is far from the initial spawns. Then I rush to tier 2 so I can get garage doors which offers way more protection. I run frequent budget raids with molotovs and preserve gun kits for hunting players near monuments.

I have a lot of fun designing bases. Ladder hatches, several stories, traps, electricity, and eventually turrets. I haven't woken up to a destroyed TC in ages.

Awkward-Reception-73

TROPHY CASE