Originally Posted by
Raederle
Speaking as a programmer that would be a nightmare to maintain, and is not going to happen.
Personally? @Torc
0) Keep the pack aggro mechanic but continue tweaks to make assassins/stealth playable again.
1) Scale back bluff slightly until the highest levels, and give it a forgiveness range like disable traps. Young rogues do not need perfect disable, open, hide, move silently just to function so why bluff?
2) Fix shiv/bluff/deception to allow sneak attack damage on red names. We can live with the no turning bit, but cutting out half a solo rogue's boss dps is just wrong. Likewise a high sneak ranger. If you need to tone down rogue packs, make it so if YOUR shiv/bluff/deception isn't on the boss, no SA damage. That would presume that they stick separately. There's no effort to tone down warlock packs so why beat up rogues?
3) Fix traps, our tried and true method of splitting groups up was web and hypnosis and some damage off the top, all broken now, even with hella good disable.
4) Fix single/double assassinate so that it is spot based, not listen based. If they can see their friend die, HUNT KILL MODE. But if they all have their backs turned, and continue to do so for a few seconds, it's stealthy and non aggro. If on an attempt for a double kill one fails, HUNT KILL MODE. That might or might not fix double assassinate, currently broken at least in epic content. That too should be fixed, now that the aggro mechanism means I only get one chance on the ubiquitous pack of 10 anyway.
5) ======>>> Eliminate the FINGER OF GOD. I'm OK with an alerted pack who saw their friend get hurt roaming around looking for me with elevated spot/listen levels. I am not OK with them spotting my 72 hide/move silent in a level 20 epic hard (CR30 odd) FROM THREE ROOMS and TWO WALLS AWAY, again and again and again every 10 seconds like clockwork. Why the heck did I invest in maxxed skill, maxxed gear, and destiny twist slots for this?
Last - If I can catch one of the pack now racing around the halls alone, sneak up behind him, and stabbity, why oh why should he be immune to assassinate then? He's busy racing down to where his buddy two rooms away is shouting OVER HERE because 8 seconds ago I was there and the FINGER OF GOD told all his friends so.
Put all this together and playing an assassin rogue will be harder than pre U33.2 but still playable. Ignore this and I'll do some of the other toons for a while, but the one advantage DDO has over all the other MMO's out there, a real stealth game, is gone.