Staff Kudos: Monster Artificial Intelligence

[jriley]

I once had a 4-day Hunter eaten by a scrab.  It was the result of some bad dice rolls on my part.

It was amazing -- think about it, a character that I had spent 96 hours building was destroyed before I could type out enough commands to save him, by one of the most abundant monsters in the game.

It has made each subsequent encounter with a scrab that much more exciting. 

I love this about arm -- each victory over the mobiles carries with it some amount of meaning. 

The best thing about the mobiles is how different some of them are, the ones that the coders have given artificial intelligence to.  Think about how different an encounter with a jozhal is from one with a carru. 

Without going into specifics, I have seen that there has been a large boost to the AI of some of the mobiles over the course of the last couple years, even in the course of the last couple of months.

I love this.  A fight with one type of monster is very different from a fight with a different monster.  They stand out. 

[RogueGunslinger]

Hrm. I'm a bit of a wasteland noob, but all the difference I ever noticed was Flee, Stand, and Chase.

[Bilanthri]

Hrm. I'm a bit of a wasteland noob, but all the difference I ever noticed was Flee, Stand, and Chase.

I'm no supreme hunter, but I can support that there's a lot of neat stuff to encounter out in the wastes. Some of it closer to home than you might like.

[Oleupata]

Feel free to drop a kudos in the request tool. Our coders will be glad to know someone appreciates their work.

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

Hrm. I'm a bit of a wasteland noob, but all the difference I ever noticed was Flee, Stand, and Chase.

Heh. You haven't seen much, then. Most basic creatures do, indeed, follow this sort of pattern. But even then, there appears to be a bit of variation in the combination and periods of various actions. Once you move into other areas, the AI can often be scary, nearly enough to convince you that there are Staff in that mob. One area, in particular, stands out in my mind, and I have always wished that that area's features had been more widely spread, and that the basic mobs had evolved on that blueprint.

[Spoon]

There's some very nicely fleshed-out mobs... As they are more recently implemented, I have a feeling things will only get better.

[Simillion]

I almost never find reason to post, but this post is where I will throw in my bump.

I love the mobile AI, always.

I play the game for the wastes, for the surprises I find. it is infinitely rewarding.

Thank you guys so much for this game.

[janeshephard]

I think my first 3-4 characters were killed by scrabs/'toks. Essentially, "trash mobs."

Technically, and people will hate this, stats matter. Otherwise spend a month RL in the 'Byn. Something I think I haven't done yet to be honest.

Longest lived for me is directly related to stats and eq selection. I wish I could make a better claim for an RPI MUD but I can't without being dishonest.

I disagree, btw, your run of the mill mobs shouldn't be so hard. Otherwise, it does lower the value of every PC in terms of survival. I suspect my post will bring out some passionate responses and I welcome them. Just don't flame me too much. It's not fun to die to a scrab or a 'tok.

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

I wish there were lessor mobs that newbs could straight up hunt without dying. I really do wish that.

But then, in the current state of things, you should make friends and stop trying to do it solo. There's always an indie hunter looking for more fodder.

[Wolfsong]

I wish there were lessor mobs that newbs could straight up hunt without dying. I really do wish that.

But then, in the current state of things, you should make friends and stop trying to do it solo. There's always an indie hunter looking for more fodder.

There are several mobs new characters can hunt without dying, aren't there?

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

I think in terms of southern wildlife, since I haven't played in the North in years and years.

And yes, very technically, in the south, there are.

In the north, there are many more.

The south needs equality.

[Wolfsong]

I'll agree with you there wholeheartedly. The south needs a little more love, IMO.

[lordcooper]

I think in terms of southern wildlife, since I haven't played in the North in years and years.

And yes, very technically, in the south, there are.

In the north, there are many more.

The south needs equality.

Disclaimer: Newbie who has only played 'naki characters.

I get the impression that the south is meant to be somewhat more brutal than the north.  Is it such a bad thing that the wildlife reflects that?

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

Is it bad?

I don't know. It certainly reflects the view that the south is harder than the north, and that I like a great deal. And if PCs were real, living and breathing people, few would be leaving the gates. But PCs do it all the time, even if most VNPCs never do.

So for those PCs, yes, I think there should be newb level wildlife in more abundance and not two rooms from a scrab/spider/gith/silt flyer/horror....



That said, I love my Allanak.

[Spice Spice Baby]

Rather than the difficulty-level of killing mobs in Allanak, what puzzles me more is how much bone and leather there is considering I can only think of two wild animals in the entire southlands that produce bones and only three that produce leather.

I guess they just kill a lot of mekillots and farm a whole stink-load of chaltons.

[HavokBlue]

Rather than the difficulty-level of killing mobs in Allanak, what puzzles me more is how much bone and leather there is considering I can only think of two wild animals in the entire southlands that produce bones and only three that produce leather.

I guess they just kill a lot of mekillots and farm a whole stink-load of chaltons.

People.





Soylent Green is people.

[lordcooper]

Rather than the difficulty-level of killing mobs in Allanak, what puzzles me more is how much bone and leather there is considering I can only think of two wild animals in the entire southlands that produce bones and only three that produce leather.

I guess they just kill a lot of mekillots and farm a whole stink-load of chaltons.

People.





Soylent Green is people.

Not people, skinnies . . .

[Aldiel]

I agree.  I love how mobs flee and charge and do all sorts of neato things.

[Scarecrow]

I have also noticed a southern beast uses kick and bash. These put a whole new level of wtfpwn when you cop a bash, get prone, then have said beast tearing into you. Lost a PC that way to an amazingly good bash, followed by a series of punishing neck and head hits. And yes I did have neck and head armor, it just went right through.

[Qzzrbl]

I have also noticed a southern beast uses kick and bash. These put a whole new level of wtfpwn when you cop a bash, get prone, then have said beast tearing into you. Lost a PC that way to an amazingly good bash, followed by a series of punishing neck and head hits. And yes I did have neck and head armor, it just went right through.

Just imagine how bad it would have been without head an neck armor.

[MeTekillot]

There are quite a few types of beasties in the south. The thing is, most of them can kill you.

[HavokBlue]

Certain desert beasties also yell at you, and have unique combat echoes. I like.

[Marshmellow]

If you're smart and your solo-ranger is smart, you can solo anywhere.  You just have to be really patient and really cautious.

[Barzalene]

If you're smart and your solo-ranger is smart, you can solo anywhere.  You just have to be really patient and really cautious.

Sadly, I'm just not that bright.

[jriley]

Sadly, I'm just not that bright.

Nonsense.  In any event, you are awesome at urban/clan based plotlines.