NT range "exploit" and the 40m cap, my thoughts [i](also posted in NT forum)[/i]

[meriweather]

What gets me is the fact that this so called "exploit" where hundred's and hundred's of NT's, who all happen to play on the test server apparently (well, there had to be hundreds of them really, because they where obviously owning everyone in PvP for Funcom to decide it was a major balance breaking issue) was never documented in any of the previous patches? Yeah, you heard it here folks, with the introduction of 13.0 on the test server, hordes of NT's where able to target people outside of visual range and nuke them from afar, so, FC in their infinite sageliness, decide to nerf our range enhancer buffs and cap our distance @ 40m.

Why hasn't ANYBODY stopped to think and ask why wasn't this documented and dealt with in the previous 4 months that the game has been running? NT's have to have been able to do this from day 1 right? and they're only discovering it now yes? Wrong. I'll go out on a limb here and guess that this exploit was only introduced as part of 13.0. Yeah, you guessed it, the patch was screwed up, people found the loophole on test and exploited it, instead of fixing it prior to release on live, FC just nerf's our entire class. Thousands of players on the live servers get shafted because FC screw up - again.

Anyone getting annoyed yet? I'm off to my doctor to see if I can get a Prozac prescription. Lol, can someone cast a calm nano on me plz? Thanx.

[___________Ananomous]

While I don't want to be misconstrued as flaming, I did want to make some comments...

Number one is the explanation of people being attacked by NTs from so far away they can't be seen. I can understand that, but there is a little flaw. The cap is set to 40m. Problem is, the character view distance slider goes up to 80m. Why is the cap set to half the view distance (based on this explanation)?

Number two, the 40m cap can be better explained with PvM. Quite simply, mobs' field of vision only extends about 40m. Beyond that, they can't see you. The explanation is that NTs could attack outside of the visual range, thus preventing the mob from going aggro. There is a problem here too, though. Wouldn't it make more sense for the attack itself to make the mob aggro, rather than the fact of it seeing you? I'd rather have every single mob I root go instant aggro than have my range capped.

While I'm elated that the NT range NFs are now working, I'm a little disturbed that our main line of defense (distance) has been limited. Against Enforcers and their root-breaking NF, we're dead meat. Our only other defense was the distance from us to them.

[meriweather]

About the only way I can think anyone could possible have done this was to have gone into 3rd person mode and zoom way out so their fov was 360 degrees. By some manipulation of the camera controls they where then able to spot players and/or mobs outside the normal range of 80m and target them and cast. I still don't get it tho, even with a qlx Mega-Uber Range Increaser and the best range buff available, theoretically they still shouldn't have been able to cast beyond this distance anyway. Even that is a no-goer because the range enhancer buffs that I tried never worked anyway. I tested it numerous times with and without my range increaser equip, it never made a difference.

As for the mob scenario then that would only have been an issue on mobs that aggro. If an NT attacked first it was instant aggro, be it root or nuke, regardless of whether or not you where within the 40m perception distance. The drawing distance is gimped anyway, many a time I've been strolling along ina deserted area and had mobs appear and aggro on me from 20-30m away, no radar warning either. I find it difficult to believe that they where new spawns, not in a deserted area that already had its allotment of mob spawns already.

Jeez, I don't know. I'm getting more annoyed about this by the minute. We got no chance to raise a stink about this pre-patch. Stealth nerf's are the worse form of bad customer relations in a MMORPG, citing the PvP so-called "exploit" as the excuse behind this action is pathetic, how many NT's are on Rubi-Ka 1 & 2? Out of those NT's how many PvP? Out of those that PvP how many play on the test server? Out of that no doubt tiny minority of players, how many of them knew and used this exploit? It's a bunch of crap. I want some answers FC. Look at the uproar from most of us NT's here and also think about the one's that don't frequent the message boards and then decide whether an un-nerf or an adjustment is warranted. Better think fast because I for one ain't gonna wait too long for satisfaction.