Topic: Recent NPC AI Changes

It's fair to say the change to make it impossible to farm NPC's that couldn't path to you was needed in order to balance beacons, but I mean seriously, was it actually tested? We've already had half a dozen bug fixes relating too it, but bots are still randomly self destructing as they decide they can't path to you despite the fact you're on entirely flat terrain, quite a few times today while missioning i've wandered over to my mission objective, opened fire, only to have the mobs look quizically at me and then simply self destruct for no mission credit or loot.

Irritating to say the least.

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Try having observers with portal guns.  Oh look NPC on the other side of the mountain.  NOPE!  On top of your *** head now!  Demob, ***... ***... ***....

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Ville wrote:

Try having observers with portal guns.  Oh look NPC on the other side of the mountain.  NOPE!  On top of your *** head now!  Demob, ***... ***... ***....

Tell me where the sequer touched you, owait it didn't because the observer stopped you catching it

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4 (edited by Cassius 2014-03-24 18:06:54)

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Zoom, seriously, this needs to be corrected. Your desire to nerf mass farming of beacons has led to simple basic game mechanics like LOS and kiting to be obselete. Forget beacons, all these new players will have no chance of farming basic spawns ... I don't want easy mode, but impossible mode?!? Have NPCs do things that regular players cannot, like teleport, is not the way to fix. Your balance attempt has gone from one extreme to another, and added a host of what I hope are unintentional side effects ... Can you at least comment on this? Since this change you haven't said boo. And ask WMM if its safe to undock Scarabs at Tellesis.

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

I'm literally terrified of observers now.

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Working on it.

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Problem seems to be that whenever on an unpassable terrain for mechs, the NPC wayfinding algorithm seems to return negative and initiate the teleportation. I haven't ran any tests but just writing my observation.

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

I am alone here who thinking that killing observer must be challenge for group of players that have top gear and lot of experience. I remeber days when it was so. And how i think for last years we start think in wrong direction. Thats why game lost any part of team work except pvp. Rly why i need corporation if i easy can do all by my self?

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Rewards should be adjusted accordingly then though. I think the game definitely needs group combat PVE content and beefing up observers and their loot might be it.

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Trinch wrote:

I am alone here who thinking that killing observer must be challenge for group of players that have top gear and lot of experience. I remeber days when it was so. And how i think for last years we start think in wrong direction. Thats why game lost any part of team work except pvp. Rly why i need corporation if i easy can do all by my self?

+1 NPCs were becoming way too easy, you tend to keep people around if there's a challenge, and need to team up.

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

I think you guys missed the point.  When I am hunting Observers its fine.  It's when your like, "Ohai there is an observer, 700 M away, oh no worries I will just OMFG WTFBBQ??? HE'S RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME DEMOBING AND OH MY *** GOD...  I'M DEAD.  I'M *** DEAD.  WTF??  WHEN DID THAT MOTHAFCKER GET A GOD DAMN PORTAL GUN!!!   /Rageoff

I have lost more robots to NPCs in the past two weeks, than my entire PVP career the past year combined on all my accounts.

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12 (edited by Celebro 2014-03-26 16:22:14)

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Ville wrote:

I think you guys missed the point.  When I am hunting Observers its fine.  It's when your like, "Ohai there is an observer, 700 M away, oh no worries I will just OMFG WTFBBQ??? HE'S RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME DEMOBING AND OH MY *** GOD...  I'M DEAD.  I'M *** DEAD.  WTF??  WHEN DID THAT MOTHAFCKER GET A GOD DAMN PORTAL GUN!!!   /Rageoff

I have lost more robots to NPCs in the past two weeks, than my entire PVP career the past year combined on all my accounts.

I dunno Ville, I did attempt an HM observer had no issue killing it.

Now if you get distracted that's another issue, no signs of portal guns yet.

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Ville wrote:

I have lost more robots to NPCs in the past two weeks, than my entire PVP career the past year combined on all my accounts.

Lol, to make things worse, they teleport to you and then explode. lol

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Ville wrote:

I think you guys missed the point.  When I am hunting Observers its fine.  It's when your like, "Ohai there is an observer, 700 M away, oh no worries I will just OMFG WTFBBQ??? HE'S RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME DEMOBING AND OH MY *** GOD...  I'M DEAD.  I'M *** DEAD.  WTF??  WHEN DID THAT MOTHAFCKER GET A GOD DAMN PORTAL GUN!!!   /Rageoff

I have lost more robots to NPCs in the past two weeks, than my entire PVP career the past year combined on all my accounts.


I need try to kill one.

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

I agree with Ville. It's not about too easy or too hard. The NPCs are simply doing things normal game mechanics cannot do. And this negates CORE GAME PRINCIPLES LIKE LOS. I'm fine with making them harder, observers that s-demob at 300m and with optimals at 850m, and lock past 1000m, all while dropping only T3 loot ... Ok they are ampped up, but at least their core mechanics are still in line with how the game plays. Right now the ONLY playstyle that can kill them solo is Tank, or you could get help with some Ewar help to make it easier. Just forget green bots using cover, or trying to outrange them, these normal playstyles are obselete.

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Keep as it is. Adjust the reward.

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Cassius wrote:

Just forget green bots using cover, or trying to outrange them, these normal playstyles are obselete.

Maybe I am on a different client, but I do just this above ^^, and I don't notice anything strange.

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18 (edited by Cassius 2014-03-26 20:47:03)

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Celebro, are you shooting roaming observers on Gamma?

The toughest in game are the Theo then Numquiol, which ones are you shooting? The ones from artifacting are not as difficult, nor are the ones on Beta.

I guess I will test it more and get back to you.

Also, are you farming solo, with one bot?

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Cassius wrote:

Celebro, are you shooting roaming observers on Gamma?

The toughest in game are the Theo then Numquiol, which ones are you shooting? The ones from artifacting are not as difficult, nor are the ones on Beta.

I guess I will test it more and get back to you.

Also, are you farming solo, with one bot?

Yes solo, but the ones on beta  Seths btw. But I'll try and find some on gamma.

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Wait till it teleports to you and says Surprise. Lol

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Typical Dev's Fix. Try to correct so Far to the right, without testing, or any serious thought. The mobs aren't patrolling like they used to. They spawn get stuck in an area... then JIHAD!!!!  they blow up. Or the tp to you yell JIHAD and blow up. im all for harder mobs, but if you could but a little thought into what the affects might be before you change something that would be groundbreaking.

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Mancs is Beta testing atm.

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

ZOOM FIX THIS.

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Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

Disaster.

Re: Recent NPC AI Changes

There is a fix out on the test server, please try it if you can.

As it turned out, pathfinding used heavy mech slope calculation for all NPCs. This has been like this for probably quite a while, just noone noticed it before because they would just sit around and do nothing if they couldn't reach you. Now with the teleporting feature this became apparent, because they could jump on you even when the slope wasn't right for them. And they suicided because they thought they were stuck on an impassable slope. So there is something good in this after all, otherwise we would have probably never noticed this.