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Planar Protector
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: UK
Posts: 2,560
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Classic issue: NPC Casters shouldn't be casting most of the spells that they are
Hey guys,
Since I started on P99 I recall NPC casters not working the same as I remembered them on Live back in the day. Specifically, they are much harder and cast a variety of spells that they classically did not.
I was not able to find anything in the Bug forum on this so please point me to an existing thread if you know one.
I couldn't find specific patch evidence to support this change, as it seems not to have been mentioned in the notes. But I have tracked down several extensive threads about the changes, and they seem to have been made in the June 6th, 2002 patch, obviously outside of this server's timeline.
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06-06-2002, 01:04 PM
One of the big things in the last patch was the AI enhancment and I haven't seen anybody bring it up here.
Some items from my personal experiences last night.
1. Frogs in Sebilis now have the Ice Comet nuke.. I was hit by more than 1 IC in the short time i was there last night.
2. Chetari in Dragon Necropolis. I have hunted here before and never encountered the spells that some of the rats were casting last night. People were getting hit with EBolt, Splurt, root, snare, debuffs. Made for a much more interesting trip that's for sure.
I am also an avid reader of the safehouse since my primary alt is a level 60 rogue. Some input from posts there like....
1. Revenants (Enchanter mobs in PoH) are casting Tash, chain AE stunning, and Mezzing PC's
Basically everything I have been reading on caster mob ai suggests that they have recieved a monumental damage upgrade in their spells.. often casting even the higher level spells from subsequent expansions. The mobs in OS and HS must have been camping their velious spells during server downtimes...
so now caster mobs can melee like warriors and chain cast their classes best spells. I have directly heard reports from friends in game mobs using alot more AE spells like Tears of Prexus(600x3 ae rain). When they do this near other mezzed mobs that mez is broken.
while it is still too early to tell, and I am sure additional balancing will be forthcomming regarding mob AI... it appears that caster mobs have gotten seriously upgraded.
IMHO, this certainly plays to our clerical skill set since not only more healing will be needed, but things like chain stunning will be more worthwhile.
opinions or personal experiences?
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06-08-2002, 07:53 PM
Lady Nevederia charmed our Main tank tonight. Thats always fun
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06-11-2002, 12:25 AM
As Alan's already said, the driving idea behind these changes to NPCs is to make them more interesting to fight. Previously, especially toward the high end, it's no secret that many caster NPCs were considered free targets. They spent the majority of their time casting ineffective spells, and frequently the same ones over and over again.
Originally, they were given exemptions to the normal spellcaster rules to make up for their shortcomings. It only makes sense that the average NPC should be a challenge for the people who can gain experience from its demise. However, we think it should instead feel like they're playing from the same rulebook as player spellcasters.
Making them challenging within a similar framework to the one that players use, we feel, provides for more rewarding victories. Conversely, let's face it, the argument, "Of course NPCs cheat -- They're NPCs." really doesn't make anyone feel better when they've just gotten themselves obliterated. Yes, dying is painful, but doing so in a fair fight is much more tolerable.
None of this is an attempt at "Making EverQuest Universally Harder." We'd like our NPCs be a little smarter than they were previously, yet an encounter with them should still feel challenging, but fair.
In last week's patch we introduced a significant enhancement to the "Challenging" half of that, which from observations on the Test server appeared to be mostly fair. However, we feel confident enough in the NPCs' newfound strengths that we've taken a look at some of the special bonuses that they get just for being an NPC.
With that in mind, we've internally tested some changes to address the "Fair" half, and they'll be available for public testing on the Test server over the next few days, in the hopes of reaching a balance between player and spellcasting NPC. Ideally, we would like to have a balance which leaves them a challenge; something to be mindful of, but not inordinately unfair.
There are some that we're still internally debating, but we all agree that we'd like to see them in action in front of a wider audience before we make any final decisons.
NPCs are now bound by the same Line of Sight rules as player characters. (An NPC must be able to "see" you to hit you with a spell.)
Neither NPCs nor player characters will use mana on targeted spell casts that do not connect due to Line of Sight.
NPCs are now bound by spell casting distance rules. Meaning, an NPC's spell will no longer connect from halfway across the zone. (We want spellcasters to be challenging -- Not a deathtrap that a person has no ability to run away from.)
NPCs now have a chance to be interrupted by normal combat when casting newer spells.
NPCs that are extremely green have had their potential casting damage reduced using a similar mechanic to the one that player characters' level differences use.
NPC Wizards no longer have an inherent bonus to their fire and cold based spells. They appear to be doing just fine on their own.
Most NPCs that had previously had their spellcasting level inflated to make up for poor spell selection have been brought back into line with their actual level.
NPCs no longer automatically get free access to rarely dropped spells, such as Garrison's Superior Sundering and Funeral Pyre of Kelador.
We've begun looking at NPC pure caster hit points and melee damage, and will continue to watch how this plays out over the coming weeks, making adjustments in some cases. Some adjustments are already visible on the test server.
Even this balance may not yet be where we'd like it, but please rest assured that it will continue to be tuned. Most of us enjoy playing the game as well, and what we would like to see in our own playtime is NPCs that are a reasonable challenge.
- Scott Hartsman
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Source:
http://www.eqclerics.org/forums/showthread.php?t=5657
A 'fix' for this NPC caster AI enhancement (it seems to have led to some casters casting Luclin spells like Funeral Pyre of Kelador) went out on June 12th, 2002, and is visible in the patch notes:
Quote:
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June 12, 2002
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** NPC Spell Caster Changes **
- NPCs are now bound by spell casting distance rules, meaning that an
NPC's spell will no longer connect from halfway across the zone
- NPCs now have a chance to be interrupted by normal combat when
casting newer spells
- NPCs that are much lower level than their target have had their
potential casting damage reduced using a similar mechanic to the one
that player characters' level differences use
- NPC Wizards no longer have an inherent bonus to their fire and cold
based spells
- Most NPCs that had previously had their spellcasting level inflated
to make up for poor spell selection have been brought back into line
with their actual level
- NPCs no longer automatically get free access to rarely dropped
spells, such as Garrison's Superior Sundering and Funeral Pyre of
Kelador.
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Source:
http://everquest.allakhazam.com/hist...es-2002-1.html
So, it seems NPC casters should not be casting things like root, debuffs, snares, etc. They should be like "warrior mobs with a few spells", ie small nukes.
Anyone care to help me follow up on this? We don't have classic caster AI on P99 right now, it would be great to document and fix it. |
12-28-2016, 08:10 AM
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