Flaming and reporting. These are 2 things that are (sadly) at the core of PvP and are a scare for many ppl who would play it if these factors weren't there.

This guide is meant to show you how it all really works, and why you should NOT fear reporting/getting reported, nor avoid places where flaming and reporting are oftenly done.

1) Flaming
Flaming is the act of throwing insults at other players. There are many reasons for flaming (like all the religious conflicts in RA local chat :s), but it is important to see it in perspective.

Not all builds are the same. Some builds are extremely easy to use AND are quite efficient. Examples are the touch ranger, the ride the lightning elementalist or the palm strike assassin. Some players are frustrated because these builds require no skill at all to use and still they win quite some matches. This can be a source of flaming. It is important to put it in perspective though.

Also understand that many people on guildwars are 12-15 years old. Many of these players are not polite at all, and will flame for no apparent reason. That IS a consequence of a game where all ages mix. It's no big deal

In general, ignoring the flaming works best.

2) Reporting
Reporting is a big factor in PvP. The idea is that if players do something wrong (in pvp this is mainly restricted to leeching), that you can report these people to Anet, after which a penalty will be given to them.

Now as explained above, not all players on guildwars have the maturity to deal with a feature like this, and there can also be misunderstandings. Therefore, the dishonerable system was invented.

3) the Dishonorable system
The dishonorable system works as followed: when you do something "wrong", you get dishonorable points. When you accumulate 10 or more dishonorable points, you will be disabled from playing pvp for 10 or more minutes. (1 minute per dishonorable point). Players who have this are marked with a hex (the dishonorable hex).

Dishonorable points are gathered in the following way:
*Leaving a PvP match prematurely will give you 5 dishonorable points.
**Resigning can count as leaving (and give you these points) in AB and in rollerbeetle races
**Leaving before the countdown timer starts after defeat (even if all team members are dead) will also give you 5 dh points. Wait for the timer!
*If you are reported for leeching, you will receive 2 dh points per person reporting you
*Reporting a player for leeching without at least a third (rounded up) of your party also reporting that player will give you 2 dishonorable points. For example, in random arenas at least 2 people have to report a person for leeching if the reporter himself does not want to get dishonorable points.

The last rule is meant to make sure ppl don't start reporting for no reason. It is however a disadvantage towards ppl doing the right thing with a passive team. My advice is not to report many players. Only do so if they are obvious leechers AND after you have discussed reporting them with your team. (or if somebody else has already reported the leecher, you can join in if you know that the person is in fact leeching).

Getting rid of dishonorable points is done by not accumulating any more for 60 minutes.

I would also like to point out that banning an account due to leeching is something I have never heard of. Many ppl fear reports, but due to the fact that anybody can report anybody, most reports for leeching aren't taken seriously at all. Getting banned is almost exclusively for people who massively scam people or for people who sell things for real life money.