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Aggroing of drones with new NPC AI....
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Chip Whittley
The Scope
Gallente Federation
#1 - 2012-12-04 19:26:58 UTC  |  Edited by: Chip Whittley
Anybody else noticing this today? In level 4 missions, in my Domi, I throw my drones out after all npcs lock me, and almost immediately they're switching aggro to the drones, and the drones are dying. Some missions more than others, but it is in every mission. I don't usually lose drones, but I've lost a bay's worth of them just this morning....
marVLs
#2 - 2012-12-04 19:29:09 UTC
Dude read patch notes, but yeah it's terrible how they agro drones and insta kill
Durzel
Questionable Ethics.
Ministry of Inappropriate Footwork
#3 - 2012-12-04 19:29:21 UTC
Reading patch notes is hard.
Toku Jiang
Jiang Laboratories and Discovery
#4 - 2012-12-04 19:29:46 UTC
Chip Whittley wrote:
Anybody else noticing this today? In level 4 missions, in my Domi, I throw my drones out after all npcs lock me, and almost immediately they're switching aggro to the drones, and the drones are dying. Some missions more than others, but it is in every mission. I don't usually lose drones, butI've lost a bay's worth of them just this morning....



Read the patch notes, and the dev blogs from some time ago. The new AI will have the NPC rats switching targets now. So you can't just warp into a mission, collect all the aggro on your domi, then pop drones and eat popcorn. The NPC's will switch up, target your drones and kill them, especially frigates.
Jame Jarl Retief
Deep Core Mining Inc.
Caldari State
#5 - 2012-12-04 19:32:14 UTC
Yeah, you're a little late to the party. There's a 2-month-old whine-a-tron thread, 30+ pages long, in the Test Server Feedback forum about this same issue. Namely new AI and old sucky drones and their clumsy UI. It's too late to complain now, should have done a better job of it earlier before they locked it in for deployment. Now it's too late, we'll have to wait for drone review before it gets better.
Missile War
Caldari Provisions
Caldari State
#6 - 2012-12-04 19:33:08 UTC  |  Edited by: Missile War
Chip Whittley wrote:
Anybody else noticing this today? In level 4 missions, in my Domi, I throw my drones out after all npcs lock me, and almost immediately they're switching aggro to the drones, and the drones are dying. Some missions more than others, but it is in every mission. I don't usually lose drones, but I've lost a bay's worth of them just this morning....


Same here, and since I'm fighting sansha, it's REALLY annoying since I can't hit the TD'ers with my turrets...(it's fun going from 45km range to 15km range max...)

Edit: I knew this change was coming, but hadn't thought it would be this bad with pretty much half of the NPC fleet changing to my drones...
Rengerel en Distel
#7 - 2012-12-04 19:34:14 UTC
Release drones, don't send them. When they get aggro, recall them. Wait a sec, then relaunch them. You've now got aggro until the next wave.

With the increase in shiptoasting, the Report timer needs to be shortened.
Jess Maine
Caldari Provisions
Caldari State
#8 - 2012-12-04 19:35:21 UTC
CCP's next step in eliminating drones from the game.
Jame Jarl Retief
Deep Core Mining Inc.
Caldari State
#9 - 2012-12-04 19:36:26 UTC
Rengerel en Distel wrote:
Release drones, don't send them. When they get aggro, recall them. Wait a sec, then relaunch them. You've now got aggro until the next wave.


That is a bug, a known one, confirmed by CCP. Which leads to 2 questions:

1. When this bug is fixed, what will you do then?
2. If you exploit the current bug, does that count as an exploit, and is it punishable? I don't want to eat a suspension or a ban for this.
Alysa Taal
State War Academy
Caldari State
#10 - 2012-12-04 19:36:45 UTC
Been playing this all day, its wierd but basic rule is if there are frigs on the field drones are pretty much gonna get nuked seconds afer launch (passive drones included), all other ship sizes and turret emplacements ignore drones exactly as they used to.

Since my understanding is in mission drones are the answer to frigs if you're in a BS then this is now a problem :(

I dont mind and I have already adapted (dont use drones if frigs are around) however this really is bad.

For me this hasnt made missions more fun as I had hoped, its ruined them.
Hongus Gwag
Doomheim
#11 - 2012-12-04 19:38:45 UTC
I've found that my drones get aggro rarely from null anom npcs, nothing that's gunna change my ratting.
Rengerel en Distel
#12 - 2012-12-04 19:39:46 UTC
Jame Jarl Retief wrote:
Rengerel en Distel wrote:
Release drones, don't send them. When they get aggro, recall them. Wait a sec, then relaunch them. You've now got aggro until the next wave.


That is a bug, a known one, confirmed by CCP. Which leads to 2 questions:

1. When this bug is fixed, what will you do then?
2. If you exploit the current bug, does that count as an exploit, and is it punishable? I don't want to eat a suspension or a ban for this.


It is a known bug which they said is a workaround until they actually get around to fixing all the other problems this new AI has caused. Recalling drones can hardly be considered an exploit.

With the increase in shiptoasting, the Report timer needs to be shortened.
Chip Whittley
The Scope
Gallente Federation
#13 - 2012-12-04 19:42:39 UTC
Toku Jiang wrote:
Chip Whittley wrote:
Anybody else noticing this today? In level 4 missions, in my Domi, I throw my drones out after all npcs lock me, and almost immediately they're switching aggro to the drones, and the drones are dying. Some missions more than others, but it is in every mission. I don't usually lose drones, butI've lost a bay's worth of them just this morning....



Read the patch notes, and the dev blogs from some time ago. The new AI will have the NPC rats switching targets now. So you can't just warp into a mission, collect all the aggro on your domi, then pop drones and eat popcorn. The NPC's will switch up, target your drones and kill them, especially frigates.


Well, I'm actively doing the missions, selecting targets, and keeping an eye on drone health bars, not "popping drone and eating popcorn". They're still dying especially with heavies, on targets that are 20K out.

So are drone boats just useless and broken now, until further notice? Should i just start training for that CNR? ....
Hast Semah
Doomheim
#14 - 2012-12-04 20:00:31 UTC
Knowing it was coming, I tried out a few missions today. These changes bode ill for drone pilots.

I was constantly watching the drone status, soon as one got aggro, I'd pull it back in. Most of the time, I'd loose it before it came back. I doubt remote rep would help.

This is a more realistic AI, but there isn't much point in drone ships for PvE now. I can't say I'm pleased after the SP investment in drones, but it is a matter of adapting and moving on, as I doubt CCP will buff drones anytime soon.
Sol Kouvo
Doomheim
#15 - 2012-12-04 20:02:43 UTC  |  Edited by: Sol Kouvo
Hast Semah wrote:
Knowing it was coming, I tried out a few missions today. These changes bode ill for drone pilots.

I was constantly watching the drone status, soon as one got aggro, I'd pull it back in. Most of the time, I'd loose it before it came back. I doubt remote rep would help.

This is a more realistic AI, but there isn't much point in drone ships for PvE now. I can't say I'm pleased after the SP investment in drones, but it is a matter of adapting and moving on, as I doubt CCP will buff drones anytime soon.
When I was researching EVE before subscribing one of the things I read was that Gallente drone boats made missions fun and profitable because while they weren't the fastest way to run a mission they were the most layed back, guess CCP ruined that too.

Funny thing is it looks like they added a few drone boats in the same expansion that they ruined them, nice one CCP. lmao
Some Rando
University of Caille
Gallente Federation
#16 - 2012-12-04 20:04:42 UTC
Huh, maybe CCP are trying to move L4s back to group activities.

CCP has no sense of humour.
Dracones
Tarsis Inc
#17 - 2012-12-04 20:10:11 UTC
It's pretty much going to be an adapt until they do a review pass on drones thing. Options may be to try to do things which generate a huge amount of agro on the new AI(possibly try remote repair and EWAR).

Or just start training blasters/rails and start working towards that megathron fit.
baltec1
Bat Country
Pandemic Horde
#18 - 2012-12-04 20:11:50 UTC
Some Rando wrote:
Huh, maybe CCP are trying to move L4s back to group activities.

Or at the very least make them slightly more risky.
Kenneth O'Hara
Sebiestor Tribe
#19 - 2012-12-04 20:11:59 UTC
Welcome to the life of a wormholer. I'm not even sure if the bug works against sleepers since they have been doing this since they came around. It's about time you missioners had a challenge. Oh, what's that? I've never done lvl 4s because I live in w-space... let me just say before this patch, lvl 4s were way easier to solo than even a c2 wormhole anom.

Bring Saede Riordan back!! Never Forget! _"__Operation Godzilla Smacks Zeus"  ~__Graygor _
Ocih
Space Mermaids
#20 - 2012-12-04 20:16:13 UTC
Just another example of cart before the horse. Drones weren't designed to take full aggro and they are the only way to really kill frigates in a level 4 mission.
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