Mobs that don't fight back

ArchivedUser

So just like the title says. Ill use deer for this example. There were deer with glowing horns or something in earlier videos in the ashes youtube channel. So i was thinking what if there were mobs that didn't attack but instead ran away at the sight of a person. Deer make a perfect example because theyre naturally shy and afraid so its natural for them to run away from people. Basically they aren't hard to kill because theyre strong but rather because you can't catch one without stealth or something.

ArchivedUser

I am sure Ashes will have filler mobs, usually level 1 mobs that fill out the world and make it more active.
Most MMO's do this and its not that hard for them to implement.

ArchivedUser

  As Zinnie stated, it's fairly common for MMO's to put in 'Critters' to help add more ambiance to the area, or if the zone is some sort of wasteland there will be a distinct lack of critters. I am sure that AoC will be no different, although I do like the idea of having some skittish critters in the game.

 

ArchivedUser

Im not talking about fillers though. I mean mobs that have a specfic reason to run and hide from you. Not just creatures to fill the space. Its lame just walking up to something and killing it and doing the same with every monster out there. Why the hell would something like a deer try fighting back. They should run away because its in their nature and we should have to chase it if we want to kill it. Not just stand there and smack it to death while only expecting it to smack us back a couple of times.

What kinda dumass deer would let you smack the shit out of it and not run? Again deer is just the example because i've seen it in the videos. Other monsters could do similar things like a camouflaging lizard or serpent  

ArchivedUser

VoidShadow said:

Im not talking about fillers though. I mean mobs that have a specfic reason to run and hide from you. Not just creatures to fill the space. Its lame just walking up to something and killing it and doing the same with every monster out there. Why the hell would something like a deer try fighting back. They should run away because its in their nature and we should have to chase it if we want to kill it. Not just stand there and smack it to death while only expecting it to smack us back a couple of times.

What kinda dumass deer would let you smack the shit out of it and not run? Again deer is just the example because i've seen it in the videos. Other monsters could do similar things like a camouflaging lizard or serpent  

Intrepid are working on their NPC AI and they might implement something similar to what you are describing.
However, there is a fine balance between a fun mechanic, and a mob that is just plain irritating to kill and destroys the fun if you need to gather parts of that mob.

ArchivedUser

Zinnie said:

However, there is a fine balance between a fun mechanic, and a mob that is just plain irritating to kill and destroys the fun if you need to gather parts of that mob.

This. But I do think some mobs should just be annoying to kill but at the same time yield a reward for your effort. It probably shouldn't be commonplace though. 

ArchivedUser

Bucks will fight back.
Does will, too, if you get to close to their young.

In the real world, deer are easy to kill from range, if you sneak up on them.

If the creatures aren't filler, they should also attack.
But, sure, we should expect deer to attempt to run away first, generally.

ArchivedUser

Dygz said:

Bucks will fight back.
Does will, too, if you get to close to their young.

In the real world, deer are easy to kill from range, if you sneak up on them.

If the creatures aren't filler, they should also attack.
But, sure, we should expect deer to attempt to run away first, generally.

The game has seasons - it would be cool if Bucks would attack all year round, Does run off summer through to winter, but stand their ground in spring.

I don't see it happening, but it would be cool.

ArchivedUser

xPoseidon said:

Zinnie said:

However, there is a fine balance between a fun mechanic, and a mob that is just plain irritating to kill and destroys the fun if you need to gather parts of that mob.

This. But I do think some mobs should just be annoying to kill but at the same time yield a reward for your effort. It probably shouldn't be commonplace though. 

Disagree with zinnie here.
 A deer running away is a different kind of challenge then say having the deer fight. The stand in one spot and aggro mobs to you has been done to death. If you are going to farm something it should still be a challenge to do so....whether it can go toe to toe with you or it runs away from you.

Make it RNG. You tag a deer and maybe it sticks around and maybe it runs away at break neck speeds. But whatever the devs decide the game needs to operate on a different level then all the other MMOs out there.

Again, I cannot say this enough. Make the world dynamic. If you want to stand in one spot and farm sheep all day you can do that in 30+ other MMOs already. AoC needs to break ground to succeed otherwise it is just another cookie cutter MMO but with cities that grow and that is just not enough in todays market.

ArchivedUser

I am of the opinion that anything in the game that doesnt server a purpose doesnt need to be in the game.
So I would like to see natural herds being hunted by natural predators and such.
With the players being just one such predator they worry about.

ArchivedUser

Likely have animals to harvest resources like leather and such from.

ArchivedUser

It's been done in several games where mobs will run, so the possibility that Ashes will have them is pretty good; just not too many, please.

ArchivedUser

Good idea overall but that depends on the combat aswell, if we cant hit the animal before it already runs then it wouldn't work

ArchivedUser

T-Elf said:

It's been done in several games where mobs will run, so the possibility that Ashes will have them is pretty good; just not too many, please.

Just the animalistic ones that that seem least corrupted and shy in nature. 

AutumnLeaf said:

Good idea overall but that depends on the combat aswell, if we cant hit the animal before it already runs then it wouldn't work

Thats what stealth and long range are for ! of course it would suck if someone like a tank can't even approach an enemy like this so yeah depends on combat

ArchivedUser

I think this is generally a good idea and some animals should be running away making the kill little bit harder that way. Maybe some animals could run to herd somewhere close to get some help. Yeah i see there is plenty of opportunities to improve mobs and animals a.i. and not just create static fillers.

ArchivedUser

I recall reading in the book Guns, Germs, and Steel that there appears to be some genetic component to an animal's behavior of flight distance - that is, how close you can get to an animal before it flees in a fight-or-flight response. Some animals are just naturally more timid and would likely skitter away before you could get too close. Through selective breeding though, you can reduce the flight distance of an animal over multiple generations. I recall reading that the same genes for flight distance among mammals can affect spots in the fur and cartilage in the ear as well, which is why many domesticated animals are spotted with floppy ears.

While I wouldn't normally suggest emulating such a complex system into creatures in a game... it might be worth considering here for Ashes. We know that players won't just be killing animals. We'll be taming and breeding animals. It makes sense then that we should maybe consider the processes that allow animals to behave evasively. Flight distance could essentially be the difficulty setting for animal taming, with some of the most powerful pets being the most elusive. I have no idea if they've detailed mechanics for taming and husbandry... but animals having variable fight-or-flight characteristics might be an interesting approach.