Seriously though? This one is epic:[quote] [url=http://www.bungie.net/News/content.aspx?type=topnews&cid=13641][b]How Not To Get Recon[/b] (Or "Luke's Not Here, So Shishka Gets to Make Fun of the Internet Today") Since my glorious return to Bungie's shining towers and churning pits of magma, I've seen a lot of requests for the ever-elusive recon armor. While I appreciate the honest and direct approach of asking, it's not really the best approach to getting the armor because we're not giving it out by request. There are a few ways to get Recon, but the best way is to do something awesome that doesn't just impress Bungie, but entertains or betters the community as a whole. However, some people (understandably) have trouble with our rather vague ruleset for Recon and try different approaches. For example, when recon was given out for a rather hilarious video of death by way of street cone, people thought "Oh, in order to get Recon, I have to be killed by a street cone." Not quite. You see, the reason Recon was handed out in that instance was that the video spread through the community and found its way to Bungie. Everyone was talking about it because it was so damn funny, and that is what earned it recon. Even still, there are other people who wish to get recon, but lack the scruples to get it legitimately. These people attempt to trick their way into getting Recon. These geniuses attempt to lie to us to get Recon, as though we're not going to figure them out. For example, check out this message I got on Xbox Live a week ago: "Hi I lost my recon armor and frank connor said I should message u to get it back" Lost it? Maybe you left it at your Mom's house. The truth of the matter is that we control who does and who doesn't have recon, and we are able to tell exactly who and who shouldn't have it. So, saying you lost it isn't going to work because we can look you up and know there's no reason as to why you should've had it to begin with. You may as try telling me that you're actually me and that I need to mail myself my social security number because I forgot I was going to do that yesterday. It's obvious to us, and we're going to know. It's stupid to even try. The worst I've seen so far though, is coming up. But first, let's talk about The List. Most fans see the Recon situation as a pair of lists; those who don't have Recon, and the shorter list of people that do. I'm not so nice. For me, there are three lists. The two mentioned above, and then the list of people that will never have Recon. Take for example the following case. A Bungie employee recently received the following message over Bungie.Net: Hello, my gamertag is [Omitted] and my names [Omitted], im 15 and live in Michigan. Anyways, I'm a big fan of Halo, as a matter of fact i sold my PS2 o buy a Xbox, Halo2, and Xbox LIve. I spend so much time on this game. It's my life. Just last week my older brother who is 21 deployed to Iraq. Last Monday he died in action, =(. It's been miserable these last few days. Now, this is not a lie, my brother who also played Halo wanted Recon. He would always be like "I wish i had it" BlahBlahBlah. Ever since he passed, I've been thinking of ways to remember him. And it hit me, Recon Armor. Now, Now, I know what you're thinking: "Some other little kid asking for Recon" One, i could care less about the armor, I just want it to honor my brother who died fighting for us. =( This is not a pathetic attempt to get that dreaded armor. I know you will probably block me, or just flat out ignore me. But, before you do just please put yourself in my position and think about it. It would mean so much to me. And more than likely i wont receive the armor, could you at least reply explaining why? It's not a lie what kind of sick person would lie about something like this for video game armor?! Once again, please don't just ignore it. and at least reply. If you even read this which i doubt. Please consider this. Thank You, Sincerely [Omitted] =( Present company excluded, we're generally not in the business of being skeptical, and this really pulled at our heart strings. It's impossible to imagine how such a tragic loss must feel. Unfortunately for our friend, we have a sharp memory. The young unnamed person above had pasted this exact message in a window directed at every person on Bungie.Net with gold text. This in and of itself is not a bad thing. However, what is a bad thing is that he had done the same thing with his previous version of the message several months ago: Hello, my gamertag is [Omitted] and I've been a fan of Halo since Combat Evolved and really love the series and everything you guys produce. You guy's are the reason I sold my playstation in order to purchase Halo and an Xbox. I love you guys! Last week my cousin also a Halo fan Gamertag: [Omitted] passed away. I made a thread about her in the forums and it got over 300 replies. She was awesome and loved Halo. It's been really tough this last week without her. I have been grieving ever since last Wednesday. This is not a lie, I'm telling the truth and just need something from my friends at Bungie. I've not tried taking L337 screenshots, or faking videos for Recon Armor, I'm a great member of the community and have done nothing wrong. The reason I want Recon armor is because my cousin [Omitted] who I love and miss oh so much, wanted Recon so very much. I just want it to honor her, and remember her. I want Recon for her. I don't want it to run around saying 'Hey I got Recon' I want this armor for my late great cousin [Omitted] ='( Thank you, Bungie -[Omitted] This isn't something a good person does. This is something a terrible, terrible sub-human does in an attempt for something as petty as a visual for a video game. And this is something someone wants to do if they want to guarantee to themselves that they'll never, ever have that visual. And, for the would-be heroes out there, I did confront the above user on the topic and he confessed. When I told him that he was put on the list to never receive Recon, he tried to bribe me. The List is not a happy place. If you're on it, you'll never have Recon. If we were to flip a switch one morning and unlock Recon on every 360 in the world, you would still not have it. People who are caught lying end up on The List. People who are caught cheating end up on The List. People who are banned from Matchmaking for any period of time are on The List. You don't want to be on The List. On the ligher side, we do give out Recon for good deeds, awesome film and film clips and map variants. It's not all doom and gloom over here. It's just easier to point out what won't get you Recon, rather than what will. To be clear, the following: * Asking a Bungie Employee over XBL or Bungie.Net * Asking on the forums * Asking AT ALL * Repeating exactly or closely what previous people have done to get Recon * Lying * Cheating * Complimenting my figure Will NOT get you Recon. They will, however, earn you varying levels of ire, and two of those (Lying and Cheating) will get you on The List. And now that you know about The List, perhaps you should rethink your Recon strategy if you've been going about it the wrong way.[/url][/quote] [Edited on 07.28.2009 2:44 PM PDT]