Concentration Checks and other skills.

[Talon_Moonshadow]

I think Concentration checks should be used to determine if a char is forced out of sneak mode due to taking damage.

If I'm sneaking toward the bad guy cleric and I happen to be next to Bob The Agro Magnet and the bad guy casts greater comand on him......I fall to the ground, but I remain in sneak mode and usually don't die from it.

If I'm sneaking up to a mind flayer next to my trusty pal Bob and get caught in the mind blast cone aimed at Bob, I am stunned but still stealthed and don't usually die because of it.

But If I get caught in a mass inflict wounds spell.....I'n instantly unstealthed.
If I stray between Bob and a gnoll archer and get hit (or even a near miss) from an arrow...I'm unstealthed and exposed to the world.

Seems to me I should be able to suck up the pain and remain in the shadows if I mae my Concentration check.

In general, I think skills should be more useful in DDO.

The Devs need to put things in dungeons specifically to use skill checks.
In general they should be optional, not required for completion.

But the high skill check goals should give nice rewards IMO.
Especially if it is a skill rarely used by players.

Also please increase the duration of Mermaids Splash spell.
This spell actually could be of great benefit in some places in this game....if it just lasted longer. Especially that shadow quest.
Or change the mechanic to allow casting it while swimming.

I also think that any Open Locks skill the char has should stack with the Knock Spell DC. It would make knock more useful. I'm all for Rogues, but no class should be required in a quest.

More optional secret doors. (random?)

Change the Find Traps spell to actually be useful for clerics. As is, the search DCs are too high for a cleric to ever reach even with this spell. Even a cleric who spent all his skill points on search and wears a search item will still not get his search high enough to ever warrent this spell in the game.

More uses for Listen. (Optional)

Skill DCs that are useful to a char who does not have the skill maxed, but has some points in it would be nice.

[MrCow]

But If I get caught in a mass inflict wounds spell.....I'n instantly unstealthed.

Damage spells generally do not unstealth you, including the negative energy line (Inflict and Harm).

Physical Attacks made upon you unstealth you.

I also think that any Open Locks skill the char has should stack with the Knock Spell DC.

Do realize, this is probably not going to solve the problem. The only class who can get Open Locks as a skill in DDO are rogue. That would also make being a rogue required to boost Knock to be able to reach the high DC's. If a rogue is already capable of opening locks it is unlikely that they care that they have really high aptitude with the Knock spell.

[Impaqt]

I also think that any Open Locks skill the char has should stack with the Knock Spell DC. It would make knock more useful. I'm all for Rogues, but no class should be required in a quest.

First, what Lock in this game that is "Required" to get past via Pick/Knock?

Second, If you make them stack, Which would be interesting due to MrCows Point, Wouldnt that just simply change the "requirement" from "Need a Rogue" to "Need a Rogue or Rogue/Wizard"?

[Thrudh]

I think Concentration checks should be used to determine if a char is forced out of sneak mode due to taking damage.

If I'm sneaking toward the bad guy cleric and I happen to be next to Bob The Agro Magnet and the bad guy casts greater comand on him......I fall to the ground, but I remain in sneak mode and usually don't die from it.

If I'm sneaking up to a mind flayer next to my trusty pal Bob and get caught in the mind blast cone aimed at Bob, I am stunned but still stealthed and don't usually die because of it.

But If I get caught in a mass inflict wounds spell.....I'n instantly unstealthed.
If I stray between Bob and a gnoll archer and get hit (or even a near miss) from an arrow...I'm unstealthed and exposed to the world.

Seems to me I should be able to suck up the pain and remain in the shadows if I mae my Concentration check.

In general, I think skills should be more useful in DDO.

The Devs need to put things in dungeons specifically to use skill checks.
In general they should be optional, not required for completion.

But the high skill check goals should give nice rewards IMO.
Especially if it is a skill rarely used by players.

Also please increase the duration of Mermaids Splash spell.
This spell actually could be of great benefit in some places in this game....if it just lasted longer. Especially that shadow quest.
Or change the mechanic to allow casting it while swimming.

I also think that any Open Locks skill the char has should stack with the Knock Spell DC. It would make knock more useful. I'm all for Rogues, but no class should be required in a quest.

More optional secret doors. (random?)

Change the Find Traps spell to actually be useful for clerics. As is, the search DCs are too high for a cleric to ever reach even with this spell. Even a cleric who spent all his skill points on search and wears a search item will still not get his search high enough to ever warrent this spell in the game.

More uses for Listen. (Optional)

Skill DCs that are useful to a char who does not have the skill maxed, but has some points in it would be nice.

Good post...

I especially would like to see more flavor Spot and Listen checks.

I love the Crucible because of all the skill checks...

[MrCow]

At the heart of the post, I agree that I would like to see skills have a larger optional part to play within quests. Maybe use disable devices to "blow up" one of Sannyasi's puzzle tiles, or bluff Sor'jek Incanni as a lich to delay mephit spawns for an extra minute, or a diplomacy check on our favorite surly fire paragon kobold which takes the amount of spawned monsters down by 1/3, just for some module 8 examples.

I especially would like to see more flavor Spot and Listen checks.

I would also like to see the flavor spot checks to stop coming in on the characters I have with -9 to spot.

DM Text: "You noticed a trail of blood going through the wall."

Really, interesting, my spot checks are worse than that of an ooze and I somehow manage to notice these little details via the DM voice.

[Talon_Moonshadow]

Damage spells generally do not unstealth you, including the negative energy line (Inflict and Harm).

Physical Attacks made upon you unstealth you.



Do realize, this is probably not going to solve the problem. The only class who can get Open Locks as a skill in DDO are rogue. That would also make being a rogue required to boost Knock to be able to reach the high DC's. If a rogue is already capable of opening locks it is unlikely that they care that they have really high aptitude with the Knock spell.

Guess I got some of this wrong.

If I could add an escape item's + to OL to my Knock DC it would go a long way.

OK.....how about cleaves then? I know I've been knocked out of stealth by baddies all the time, that did not actually know I was there.

I don't study my combat log well.....it scrolls too fast to refer to it when the action dies down. Difficult to know exactly what happened to me at the time.

I'm learning to avoid some of it. The archers for instance.

Maybe I'm confusing what happens in the Vale when I assassinate something and his spell casting friend agroes on me.....he casts a spell on me that knocks me out of stealth....maybe it's because I was actually being targeted. But now all his friends can see me when they couldn't before.

Oh well....thought I had something there.....guess not.

[MrCow]

If I could add an escape item's + to OL to my Knock DC it would go a long way.

The current problem with that is that OL is a N/A skill. However, if somehow it was implemented to work regardless, the knock spell cast with such an item on would allow arcanes to eventually open any lock in the game that is on dry land. Whether or not that is a good thing or bad thing, I'll leave that up to you.

[Lithic]

I would also like to see the flavor spot checks to stop coming in on the characters I have with -9 to spot.

DM Text: "You noticed a trail of blood going through the wall."

Really, interesting, my spot checks are worse than that of an ooze and I somehow manage to notice these little details via the DM voice.

Some DM text things are spotted with very low spot checks because either the monsters WANT you to see them (Secret door leading to ambush, mobs put a sign saying "no door here, trust us kobolds"), or they are a requirement for quest completion (secret door to get key in catacombs pt 2).

Are those the ones you are talking about, or are there real spot DM texts that you see even with -9 to spot?

[MrCow]

Are those the ones you are talking about, or are there real spot DM texts that you see even with -9 to spot?

I'd have to take the time to actually come across them again to list them.