Odd Pathing Behavior for Mobs and Pets

[Sierim]

Maybe I'm only noticing this now because I recently TR'd (wizard to artificer), but I've been seeing consistent misbehaving pathing with mobs and the artificer pet. Specifically, both seem to forget that you have to go around a corner rather than through it. In addition, they seem to have forgotten how to use ramps; instead of finding the base and climbing up, mobs either walk under or faceplant into the wall that supports the ramp. Similar problems occur with alcoves, jutting pillars, etc.

While this is great for a sniping build, it's somewhat irritating from a gameplay perspective.

Anyone have an idea how long this has been going on? I didn't notice it prior to U31.1, but as I said, I did just TR.

[Coyopa]

This has been happening for a bit now, but I don't know exactly how long. Mobs also forget you can't step off ledges and not fall. This is particularly amusing in the Demon Web because they get teleported to some random place in the Demon Web just like we do when we step off the ledge and fall. I know this because I had a glabrezu nearly dead when it stepped off the ledge. I later found it clear across the map near the portal to Sschindylryn and it was still damaged like it was when it stepped off the ledge.

EDIT: However, it's super infuriating when they fall into lava or deep water and then reset.

[Nyata]

This happens a lot since the server move, used to happen before that but not nearly as noticeably. It's become kind of a reliable indicator of the server state, as it becomes worse if the server has not been restarted in a while... bright side: it should be better after today's downtime.

[sk3l3t0r]

...Anyone have an idea how long this has been going on? I didn't notice it prior to U31.1, but as I said, I did just TR.

I've noticed it for quite some time now, but cannot pin point exactly when it started to happen. I first started noticing it on my Druid life last year so at least 8-9 months ago, I TR'ed into Druid end of summer and went up to 28, did a few ePLs before cap increase to 30. When level cap went up to 30, I then TR'ed into Warlock, since then I went back up to 30 and did 2 ePLs, then TR'ed into a Sorc and recently got back into epics yesterday when I hit 20.

I've noticed since around U28, so late last year, maybe September time frame?

It's not just pets and hirelings, mobs have some wonky pathing as well. I recall doing an Acute Delirium run a while back and the bookshelves kept getting stuck in the secret alcove in the library and the reavers and beholders where trying to attack them through the wall on the other side in the hallway.

I probably still have the screenshots on my home PC.

[Sierim]

This happens a lot since the server move, used to happen before that but not nearly as noticeably. It's become kind of a reliable indicator of the server state, as it becomes worse if the server has not been restarted in a while... bright side: it should be better after today's downtime.

That's good to know. I'll do some additional testing once the server is back up and see how it compares.

I've noticed it for quite some time now, but cannot pin point exactly when it started to happen. I first started noticing it on my Druid life last year so at least 8-9 months ago, I TR'ed into Druid end of summer and went up to 28, did a few ePLs before cap increase to 30. When level cap went up to 30, I then TR'ed into Warlock, since then I went back up to 30 and did 2 ePLs, then TR'ed into a Sorc and recently got back into epics yesterday when I hit 20.

I've noticed since around U28, so late last year, maybe September time frame?

It's not just pets and hirelings, mobs have some wonky pathing as well. I recall doing an Acute Delirium run a while back and the bookshelves kept getting stuck in the secret alcove in the library and the reavers and beholders where trying to attack them through the wall on the other side in the hallway.

I do vaguely recall some trouble with the bookshelves on my druid life earlier this year, and wondered where they wandered off to. Maybe I missed most of it because I haven't played a kiter in a few lives. Alternatively, it could be because I didn't use my pets much as a druid or wizard.

[JOTMON]

There does appear to have been some screwing with mob AI..
I am seeing normally static placement archers walk off ledges and fall into water, lava, the void... then respawn back to their start point just so they can fire a couple arrows and then walk off again..

In most cases we are just ignoring them and moving on.. it becomes annoying if they need to die to open the next section..
It would be funny if they didn't just continue to respawn with full health and only die if you have an insta-killer in the party or can mass brute DPS them before they reset...

[Aedra1]

I'm not sure if it has been happening as long as the server move, but I think more within the last couple of updates.

[Cordovan]

Now that the worlds have been rebooted for the patch, we're curious if people are still experiencing this issue.

[GUTHEBA]

I play with a artificer a long time and honestly did not noticed this kind of thing.
Maybe you had made a dog with chaotic behavior, they hunt boxes and walk disoriented.
my orderly dog dont jump in lava but he attack mobs in lava.

Or maybe I have not noticed that it's really different...

[sk3l3t0r]

Now that the worlds have been rebooted for the patch, we're curious if people are still experiencing this issue.

Good to know, will be checking tonight on mobs / hires, no pets however this life...

[Deadlock]

Now that the worlds have been rebooted for the patch, we're curious if people are still experiencing this issue.

Extraplanar Palace challenges in House C were crystal clear examples where they would run off into the lava without the excuse of bad torch pathing. A possible option for this Friday's cast if you're looking for suggestions to demonstrate whether they've been fixed or not - come to Ghallanda and join us for a House C Challenge runabout

[Shoemaker]

I first noticed, and reported to developers when I noticed this while streaming one day back when Update 28 came out and I noticed the Abishai couldn't climb the ramp to get me in Subversion.

[Sierim]

Now that the worlds have been rebooted for the patch, we're curious if people are still experiencing this issue.

I haven't done extensive testing yet, but so far the pathing for enemies seems much better, with one odd exception: I went to Rushmore challenges for easy access ramps/mobs, and while the mobs now successfully path to targets on ramps/higher levels, they lose aggro if their target goes up a ramp, or if the mobs themselves fall off of one. O.o

Edit: The upper walkway in the gallery is a good example of how this happens: Shoot an melee mob from the balcony, and it will run up to the top and attack. Jump across to the other side where there's a narrow gap, and the mob will try and path directly across the gap, falling to the first floor. As soon as it hits the floor, it loses all aggro and slowly walks back toward its spawn point. I suppose that makes sense from an efficiency perspective, as it prevents resources from being allocated to an apparently impossible path goal, though it's ripe for AI abuse.

[AnEvenNewerNoob]

Now that the worlds have been rebooted for the patch, we're curious if people are still experiencing this issue.

Ran Swiped Signet before the last update (Mon evening I think).......archers jumping off the ledges all over the place. Ran it this morning......no problems at all. No suicidal archers.

[sk3l3t0r]

Ran a few quest last night with simple tests on a the level 17,18 and 19 Cleric hires (don't have the names handy) in Heroic High Road quests (Rest Stop, Lost in the Swamp and End of the Road) with a few folks in my PUG.

Mobs seemed ok, but only ran three quests with no real ledges or different elevations of terrain to notice anything weird.

Hires are still wonky, have to spam click Res / Heal to get some sort of action from them. Have to toggle attack / defend to get them to "wake up" and do something, they don't heal themselves, just sit there and get beaten to death.

For me it's not a big deal, I can self heal, have brute DPS and use terrain, CC, and DDoor to mitigate getting piled by mobs. I use a hire mostly for people in my PUG, but it is annoying nonetheless.

No pets to test, so no comment.

I will do more extensive testing in a different set of quests in Heroic / Epic content over the weekend using a few different types of hires to get a better set of test cases to report back. But from what I can see, there was no improvement in my small sample size.

[Nyata]

Now that the worlds have been rebooted for the patch, we're curious if people are still experiencing this issue.

hirelings still seem to misbehave more than usual with respect to pathing. considering it's only 2 days since the server restart and things are odd in low level quests as well it seems noteworthy.

two most noteworthy occasions I had today on Khyber, playing a level 5 cleric with fighter hire:

Proof is in the poison: after bashing that first door and going into the spider infested passage, the spider rare was actually up in the dead end to the right. so while I beat down that ugly critter I watched my hireling running running running against those large two spider cocoons blocking half of the passage instead of walking around it. like it was convinced if it ran hard enough the cocoons would fall over. or didn't even realize they were there and kept running against an invisible wall.

Tangleroot, part 6, The Deadly Package: Agent of the Darguul: Hireling decided that lowering draw bridges is for sissies, and ran straight into the water. I didn't feel like calling it to me so I just left it there, kinda hoping it would learn something. Ya know.. like water is wet, lava is hot....

edit: forgot to mention, tangleroot part 4, when I got webbed and my hireling was standing there next to the culprit spider watching how that spider champ chewed me up, though it was on attack mode and perfectly un-webbed. At least it told me how sorry it was when I died...

[khattiya]

I've been trying to run Extraplanar Mining: Buying Time - EPIC to earn Epic Mephit Wings to exchange for Epic Dungeon Tokens to exchange for a Heroic True Heart of Wood.

I submitted a bug a few weeks back.

I ran the challenge three times tonight. The first was without problems, so I was encouraged, but the second two had the same problems which make completing this challenge darned near impossible - Kobolds jumped into the tar and stood there 'til they died, and Kobolds ran into a wall, stuck, unable to figure out that the doorway was two steps to the left or right.

I've seen the same mindless pathing behavior in other quests - mobs jumping into water, drowning, teleporting back to their starting positions - rinse and repeat .... uh, literally. Also, mobs jump off of ledges in explorer zones and platforms in dungeons because they think they're better than the coyote in the road runner cartoons - they're not (the problem is they're running straight at me instead of following the solid ground from where they are to where I am).

[Sierim]

Just wanted to update: The odd pathing is back. I had Cyan never leave the foyer in Partycrashers, and instead sulk in a corner. Thankfully the quest doesn't require that she reach the end room for the dialogue to start, so I was able to finish. Lots of mobs in the quest also seemed confused about where doors were, so the tiefling ambush turned into a tiefling wall-staring contest.

In The Lost Thread, Ana similarly becomes enamored with pillars on corners if her guide gets too far ahead.

[Aedra1]

Now that the worlds have been rebooted for the patch, we're curious if people are still experiencing this issue.

For a while there didn't seem to be a problem and everything seemed to be back to normal. Recently, however, (I'd say in the last week or so) things have gotten worse.

Earlier this week (I don't remember when exactly) I noticed that the drow mobs in The Jungle of Khyber were running into the pools and reappearing to do that all over again or they would run into the corner of a wall and hide. This is just and example. I've noticed the hiding thing in other quests as well.

On 7/12 around 3:30p.m. EDT I was running Ritual Sacrifices and on of the Mystics went missing. Turns out he jumped down to a lower level and never returned.

Today (7/3) about 9:15 a.m. EDT, I was running The Prisoner when one of the The Thaarak hounds jumped over the side of the platform and never returned. As I was running the quest for favor, I didn't submit a ticket. I'll run it over again later most likely.


Mobs dropping off into water/lava pools and respawning or mobs hiding in a corner is one thing... irritating but I can live with it. Mobs jumping off platforms and making a quest unable to be finished is another. Please take some time and figure out what is going on and fix this.

I am also having an issue with hirelings watching my hit points disappear and just looking at me with a stupid grin on their face instead of throwing a heal ... or at least a rez if I'm dead.

[JOTMON]

Now that the worlds have been rebooted for the patch, we're curious if people are still experiencing this issue.

Still happening..
even the water elementals in spies are jumping down from their perches.