Much discussion of "alts" and their pros, cons, outright illegality and what not. But the term is too broad. There are actually several rather distinct types and I'd like to suggest some new terms. Just for laughs.....don't take it to seriously if you are truly wedded to the term "alt".


Golem: golems are probably the most common form of an "alt." They were created by their master out whole digital cloth and their only purpose is to serve. They can be farmed, used to pester an enemy guild, or assist in Banish and provide maps for Pirates. Sometimes they are formed into whole Golem Guilds that can serve as armies for their masters. Golems tend to be more fairly weak individually but their numbers can make them formidable.


Zombie: zombies are reanimated former players. The zombie is controlled by its master after receiving the correct magical words to animate them (user id and password). Zombies can be extremely powerful and sometimes the zombie becomes so powerful that it consumes its master and turns its master into a zombie that serves the now, powerful zombie Lord. There is rumor of the existence of virtual Zombie kings and queens that command a veritable host of reanimated former players. Powerful indeed.

Doppleganger: dopplegangers are a rather different form of alt, and in fact they rarely exist on the same server. Dopplegangers are controlled by one live player who wishes to replicate themselves over multiple servers. Sometimes they exist to get a peek into the life in other server. Sometimes they are created to enable a fresh start, free from the mistakes of one's first life. It is unclear what would happen if dopplegangers should actually meet each other, but the Star Trek TOS episode, "The Alternative Factor," does offer some guidance.

are there other types? The search continues.

BickleT: Zombie Killer