this post is just to get some attention to a new issue that arose with the agro/bluff changes in U33.2. i have just bug reported this issue (Bug #24027-127889) and would appreciate "seen by a dev" if possible.

issue one: shiv is not working at all on red named bosses. per the description of shiv: "Melee Attack: +1/+2/+3[W] damage. On hit: Makes a Bluff check, using your Bluff skill, for one second + .25 seconds per Rogue level. On Sneak Attack: Target also gains a -2 Fortitude Save against Poisons for 20 seconds. (Stacks 5 times.) (Cooldown: 12 seconds)Passive: Reduces the threat of all your attacks by 5/10/15%" and per the patch notes regarding bluff: Bluff and Deception will no longer cause bosses to turn around. ... .Red-named bosses are still affected by sneak attack damage vulnerability.

i used nothing but shiv attacks on Bash in Blockade Buster on elite until i killed him, and never got a roll for it, never saw a debuff appear in his examination box or in the combat log.



this screenshot was taken right after an attempted shiv. the only things applied in this attack were vulnerability (thunderforged short sword in main hand) and poison (Sting of the Ninja).

I used Bash because i wanted to make sure it was possible to actually bluff my target before i attempted to test... and that revealed another potential problem. the needed DC to successfully bluff a target seems abnormally high. I did not build my rogue for bluff this life, so his skill was comparatively low. the first mob i attempted to use was the first random boss in Von3 on epic casual (CR22 drow).(i lucked out and he spawned every time i tested against him, as i tested various difficulties). a natural 20 roll with a 42 bluff skill did not succeed at bluffing him. low 40s is sufficient to stunning fist or assassinate at least some of the time in same quest on epic normal and even epic hard. low 50s is enough to disable the traps on epic hard. it seems not WAI that bluff is not working... at least some of the time. i WAS successfully able to bluff Bash on elite... but even then it was a struggle. a roll of 9 +47 skill failed (CR 23 ogre, 15th level quest on elite)


this does not seem to be WAI. hopefully a dev can weigh in and say "oh, we didn't notice that, thanks!" or "yes, sorry. that's WAI"

thank you for your time.