Ok Devs... can we please take out this function?

[krimsonrane]

That autoattack turns off for any reason without you deciding you want it to go off.

As a tank it sucks, As a rogue it sucks. As a bard it sucks. It just sucks period.

You're in a huge mob fight with a full party. You can barely see with all the powers going off around you. So you click displacement, go stealth, jump into the mob, drop a web trap and bounce out. Then you spin, click power boosts followed by unbridled fury and giggle maniacally as you prepare to unload for monumental damage guaranteed to take out half the mob at least.

10 seconds in as you click different clickies you notice there's not enough sounds of bolts hitting. No screams of pain. No nothing. You retarget. Only seconds are left in your UF. Then you realize the GDMFBS#&$((* autoattack has shut itself off again and within seconds 'poof" party wipe.


It's beyond annoying.

[Coyopa]

Auto-attack only works when you have a mob hard-targeted (right-click or tab), not when you're soft-targeting. And when you have nothing hard-targeted, then it makes you look like something has aggroed you. This is why I never use it. Sometimes, in the heat of battle, you lose track of a mob and the only way I know something's still alive is the fact I'm still prepared for a fight.

[krimsonrane]

Auto-attack only works when you have a mob hard-targeted (right-click or tab), not when you're soft-targeting. And when you have nothing hard-targeted, then it makes you look like something has aggroed you. This is why I never use it. Sometimes, in the heat of battle, you lose track of a mob and the only way I know something's still alive is the fact I'm still prepared for a fight.

I have a my windows button on my keyboard set for auto targeting. all I have to do is click it with my thumb for next target.

[Baktiotha]

I also avoid auto-attack. It is only useful for killing portals where DPS sucks and you know it will be a long fight.

Hard target and all your problems disappear.

Auto-attack is actually just selecting nearest target in arc using the default soft targeting -- which changes with all that movement you're doing, as you've noticed -- and will often end up with no mob targeted at all.

So, if you are using auto-attack remember to hard target. Better, since you have to hard target anyway, just turn auto-attack off. Does complicate things since you'll have to remember to use your weapons. That can be difficult I suppose.

[Lonnbeimnech]

Not only that but auto-run stops working all the time just because the toon runs into a wall or something. Makes it difficult to alt tab over to netflix while questing.

[Coyopa]

I have a my windows button on my keyboard set for auto targeting. all I have to do is click it with my thumb for next target.

Yeah, but DDO has never been reliable in being able to hard-target the next target with just one click. The times I want to hard-target something, I usually end up having to click the button 2, 3, or 4 times before it actually does what I want. Sure, my key happens to be the default (Tab), but I can't imagine your choice is any more effective than mine since it's a programming issue and not a hardware issue.

[Uska]

Well I hated it when it would turn on automatically no matter what you did so I don't want them messing with it incase that comes back I hate auto-attack.

[Paleus]

That autoattack turns off for any reason without you deciding you want it to go off.

As a tank it sucks, As a rogue it sucks. As a bard it sucks. It just sucks period.

You're in a huge mob fight with a full party. You can barely see with all the powers going off around you. So you click displacement, go stealth, jump into the mob, drop a web trap and bounce out. Then you spin, click power boosts followed by unbridled fury and giggle maniacally as you prepare to unload for monumental damage guaranteed to take out half the mob at least.

10 seconds in as you click different clickies you notice there's not enough sounds of bolts hitting. No screams of pain. No nothing. You retarget. Only seconds are left in your UF. Then you realize the GDMFBS#&$((* autoattack has shut itself off again and within seconds 'poof" party wipe.

It's beyond annoying.

Emphasis added.

The action that turned off your auto-attack was dropping the web-trap. That is a timed function and if you were to interrupt it, by say attacking someone, you'd have to wait for the function to go off cool-down and start all over again. That doesn't sound good does it? At a minimum you're asking for coding that leaves auto-attack on, but will ignore auto-attack for the duration of time when you take an action that is, in your mind, a higher priority. You are also assuming that Turbine devs will be able to work out what the priorities should be in terms of auto-attack that addresses all player needs, and somehow not royally bug out some other system in the process.

Sorry, but no, better things for devs to do than redesign a basic function because a trap layer couldn't work out what was turning off their auto-attack and adjust their actions in response. Also because during this entire discussion I'm having flashbacks of that bug which auto-completed timed functions and how that ruined any quests with timed function objectives (e.g. lighting torches) but at least made farming Rusted Blades or disarming traps quicker (point is, if something can be broken it will and probably won't be what you're thinking of).

Also, side-note, in what world does an entire party wipe because a rogue couldn't lay a web-trap? I'm assuming in a solo party?

[krimsonrane]

There are a few things you may be misinterpreting or misunderstanding. I don't have any problems with using autoattack other than the durn thing shutting off for a number of reasons. I also know fully well that dropping a trap turns it off. Having to constantly turn it back on is a reminder.

Like I said. I use the tool given to me. I've got my keyboard set up so all I have to do is thumb once and the nearest target gets a bolt to the forehead. When I use UF on my mech for instance it's thumb, dead, thumb, dead, thumb, dead on and on for 30 seconds. When I'm not using UF it's the same thing. Thumb, locked, shoot till dead. repeat.

Now while all this shooting is going on I'm clicking clickies with my right hand and moving around with my left. Pin, dance, leg shot, boosts etc.
But when things are hectic I don't always remember that THE AUTOATTACK "feat" turns off by itself.

Why? Whothehellknows. Same thing with my bard. fascinate the mob, one gets away and chases you. You turn around, click auto attack so you can be swinging as you do your clickies and then you realize you are not swinging at diddly because fascinate turned off your feat.

[krimsonrane]

Emphasis added.

The action that turned off your auto-attack was dropping the web-trap. That is a timed function and if you were to interrupt it, by say attacking someone, you'd have to wait for the function to go off cool-down and start all over again. That doesn't sound good does it? At a minimum you're asking for coding that leaves auto-attack on, but will ignore auto-attack for the duration of time when you take an action that is, in your mind, a higher priority. You are also assuming that Turbine devs will be able to work out what the priorities should be in terms of auto-attack that addresses all player needs, and somehow not royally bug out some other system in the process.

Sorry, but no, better things for devs to do than redesign a basic function because a trap layer couldn't work out what was turning off their auto-attack and adjust their actions in response. Also because during this entire discussion I'm having flashbacks of that bug which auto-completed timed functions and how that ruined any quests with timed function objectives (e.g. lighting torches) but at least made farming Rusted Blades or disarming traps quicker (point is, if something can be broken it will and probably won't be what you're thinking of).

Also, side-note, in what world does an entire party wipe because a rogue couldn't lay a web-trap? I'm assuming in a solo party?

It was a made up example story. And yes it is possible for that to occur and similar situations have occurred running quests like TOEE1.

[krimsonrane]

Well I hated it when it would turn on automatically no matter what you did so I don't want them messing with it incase that comes back I hate auto-attack.

So you have a tool that you don't use. I consider it a valuable tool and use it often.
Tell me why you hate this thing you don't use?

[Blastyswa]

It was a made up example story. And yes it is possible for that to occur and similar situations have occurred running quests like TOEE1.

The response is still relevant though, because auto attack doesn't "randomly" turn itself off. Any time you use a timed ability, such as laying a trap or searching, auto-attack turns itself off by design to keep from interrupting your action. Since this can be desirable for many people, due to it being annoying without it to have a trap stop placing or a search stop searching because of targetting the opponent you want to hit next, I personally prefer auto-attack the way it is. If you submit a video clip or something where you actually use no timed abilities, and auto-attack magically goes off, then I would agree with that as proof that it could need a fix.

[bartharok]

So you have a tool that you don't use. I consider it a valuable tool and use it often.
Tell me why you hate this thing you don't use?

Maybe he doesnt use it BECAUSE he hates it?

[Enoach]

So you have a tool that you don't use. I consider it a valuable tool and use it often.
Tell me why you hate this thing you don't use?

Reasons why people prefer not to use Auto-Attack all the time

• Controlling buffed attacks. Boosts that buff your next attack could be used on a standard swing and not on a specific type of attack. One example of this is Adrenaline used with Smite or another special attack ability.
• Controlling what you hit/kill. There are quests and even playstyles where having auto-attack on can make things harder, be it killing something that should not die (Spiders in Let Sleeping Dust) or canceling a Fascinate or charm spell because you cycled through hard targets and hit a mob that does not need to be activated yet.

Of course it could simply be that people only find this useful when they place their character up against a wall of HP so they can go make a sandwich.

[dontmater]

the devs worked to fix the auto attack off issue with Dragonmarks.. so why wouldn't it be important with search... they should give it some love

[Duana]

Auto-attack only works when you have a mob hard-targeted (right-click or tab), not when you're soft-targeting. And when you have nothing hard-targeted, then it makes you look like something has aggroed you. This is why I never use it. Sometimes, in the heat of battle, you lose track of a mob and the only way I know something's still alive is the fact I'm still prepared for a fight.

Channeling your inner Clerks II?

So you have a tool that you don't use. I consider it a valuable tool and use it often.
Tell me why you hate this thing you don't use?

I have never been fond of auto attack. Seems wrong. Get through traps, boring ass DM text, runs to/from quests and quest givers. FINALLY we get to the good part and we want to go all mindless? No thanks.

[Cantor]

It is super annoying that any song using search etc. turns off auto-attack. Yes it should just leave auto attack on, but not attack for the time of the skill/song.

[LucidLTS]

Auto-attack only works when you have a mob hard-targeted (right-click or tab), not when you're soft-targeting. And when you have nothing hard-targeted, then it makes you look like something has aggroed you. This is why I never use it. Sometimes, in the heat of battle, you lose track of a mob and the only way I know something's still alive is the fact I'm still prepared for a fight.

Of course, the fact that targeting has been so badly borked for so long makes it hard to tell exactly what the problem is, so the real answer it to fix both targeting AND auto-attack

[Paleus]

It was a made up example story.

Ok, gonna stop you right there. If you're arguing that devs need to redesign a basic feature of the game, then you're going to have to back this up with specifics, not just by laying out made up stories to back up your position. You're spending the majority of your posts writing made-up scenarios in support of changing auto-attack. And then when someone points out the specific thing that turned off auto-attack and why it makes sense that auto-attack gets turned off in that case, you turn around say it was all just made up and so it shouldn't detract from your position. Uhm..what? No, that's not how you build a case.

Same thing with my bard. fascinate the mob, one gets away and chases you. You turn around, click auto attack so you can be swinging as you do your clickies and then you realize you are not swinging at diddly because fascinate turned off your feat.

Ok, so, so far we've identified that you're complaining about how laying traps and fascinate turn off your auto-attack. In both scenarios I can think up clear counter-examples for why turning off auto-attack makes sense. (I actually didn't check about fascinate in-game turning off auto-attack since I don't have a bard atm and auto-attack turning on and off is a complete non-issue in my mind that I couldn't be called on to remember it, so I'll just take your word on it). How about list out all of the other functions that turn off auto-attack and attempt to list out the pros and cons of having auto-attack interrupted by that function?

Because without some real meat to the bone of the argument, it honestly doesn't seem like your proposition is gaining much traction. Most people responding don't seem to care to use auto-attack anyway, and most concrete examples of when it shuts off makes sense. So why bother investing resources changing it, especially if "fixes" are almost guaranteed to be accompanied by new unintended bugs/consequences. As someone said, if you can point to an example where auto-attack shuts off for no explicable reason, or completely at random, then people will be on board with bug-fixing that. So, if you really want to argue that it must be changed then put in some actual leg work and explain in real details why it should be changed (without made up stories).

[Uska]

So you have a tool that you don't use. I consider it a valuable tool and use it often.
Tell me why you hate this thing you don't use?

Because its not playing the game(to me) also it when it turned on automatically it would interrupt things I didn't want interrupted