An OSRS mining bot is a piece of software, implemented using macros, that automates repetitive tasks in the game Old School Runescape online game: in this case the bot is used to perform mining tasks that allow a player to collect gold (or other valuable materials) in the game. Gold can be used to buy certain abilities and desirable items within the game. Some of these objects are extremely rare or expensive to purchase within the game and this has led to real world trading (RWT) for them using actual currency which has led to an increase in the use of bots.
The use of bots and other automated playing software is explicitly against the rules established by Jagex, the games creators, and can lead to a permanent ban of a player that uses them. However, in practice, it is extremely difficult to remove bots from the game without penalizing honest players. Bot users, for example, can simply create a new player each time they are banned and continue the practice.
In general, there are two types of RWTs in the game – personal sellers and companies that have been set up explicitly for the purpose of making money from the game. Personal sellers are enthusiasts who exchange virtual items in the game for real money for their own benefit and do so on a casual, intermittent basis. Companies that engage in the practice do it on a bigger and much more organized level. They advertise their wares on forums and often create websites dedicated to advertising and selling them. It is argued that these companies use bots to accumulate gold and other items and that they are exploiting loopholes and OSRS mining bot to do so. There are also reports that some unscrupulous companies are scamming players.
Because RWT is explicitly against the rules of the game, some traders have attempted to argue that the money paid is actually for the time spent in playing the game (to achieve the item) or that that the exchange of money and items is independent of the game itself but these arguments hold little water considering that the practice is explicitly forbidden by the rules of the game.
While it appears a relatively harmful practice, many argue that allowing the ability to engage in RWT modifies player behavior in a negative way and gives players with greater real-world financial resources an unfair advantage over other players and distorts aspects of the gameplay.
