Ranger Archive

The one change I don't like is the one where maskscent breaks when you initiate combat. Against the creature you are attacking this is fine and dandy (as they immediately come after you along with their mob), but I don't think it should just autobreak for everything. It is very helpful for staying alive on dangerous worlds like dathomir when you have gotten yourself into trouble (bitten off more than you can chew) and you are trying to get away, but you run through some of those pesky baz nitches (or spiders or whatever) And maskscent keeps you alive since they do not attack you.

I'll give you a real world example: Hunters typically use some deer phermones/scents to help camoflauge themselves. Now when they shoot at a deer, that deer they are attacking knows where they are, but the scent has not gone away like magic - it still lasts until it wears off with time. That way they can setup in another spot after a success or failure. I believe that the way it works now is most realistic and helpful to Rangers in the field.

/agree -Absolutely - 100%

I had no idea this was a proposed change being taken seriously. I sincerely hope that this does NOT get implemented, and feel very strongly that it shouldn't.

This is the way it was always supposed to be and was until they started messing with the skill. I believe this is a good thing actually and closer to how these things work.

Also just being in combat does not make it break. You have to take a certian amount of HAM dfamage either from the MOBs damaging you or from specials.

thats not true - did you not read my example from RL?

also, as I stated, maskscent doesn't break, but whatever I'm attacking still comes right after me, along with a mob.

Your example only holds true for ones that do not attack you back. If the animal you are hunting attacks you and mauls you before you kill it your phermones are now useless. That is what I was refering to.

The adds have never taken masked scent to effect on adding. I do not like this but it has never been that way.

"The one change I don't like is the one where maskscent breaks when you initiate combat."

As /maskscent uses no resources at all, having to reapply it after combat doesn't seem to be a very large issue, or am I missing some subtle point here?

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I can see players complaining about /conceal as it uses resources. That is why /conceal should probably not be used on a constant basis.

Rather it has specific uses:

• Concealing Support members to keep them from drawing aggro (especially those that don't have /maskscent themselves)


• Sneaking past humanoids

For everything else... There's /maskscent.

I'm not sure anyone knows for certain what maskscent and conceal do or, more importantly, are supposed to do. These two skills keep changing with each iteration of patches. One patch maskscent never breaks, the next it never works, the next it aggros creatures that wouldn't ordinarily attack, the next even highly aggro creatures ignore you, the next it gives too much xp, and the next it gives no xp at all. Why so many changes???

Somebody needs to sit down and figure out exactly what the goals of these to skills are? What should +100 maskscent be able to do? What should it not do? The same goes for concealment (and please realize that values above +100 are possible, perfect example being Bothan Master Rangers who would have a base camouflage skill of +115). How should it function against large groups of creatures? What about high level creatures? Low level creatures? What about using it with large groups of players? How will you make this feasible (resources used vs. benefits gained)?

One thing is clear, neither of these skills should be a liability to use and in the past that hasn't been the case. Many people don't use them at all and I've been in groups where I was asked specifically *not* to use them.
Part of this may come from the skills being constantly changed (i.e. nobody knows what they really do now). There should be some measurable benefit to using them and currently (for me) it's easier to avoid aggros than to trust my ever changing maskscent/camouflage skills.

As to the maskscent/concealment breaking for combat - I don't think this change should go in with the rest of modifications. Fix the skills first, watch what happens for a few days and thensee if it's necessary to add it.

Hey NRass

what I'm referring to primarily is the /maskscent command. The way it works now is that if you have it "on", and attack some critter, it stays on. This is very helpful on especially dangerous planets, where reds spawn all over the place and on top of you. If you are in the middle of combat with something and you are running around, and a red group spawns on you, then you have a good chance of not getting killed if maskscent stays "on". By just auto-ending it when you initiate combat, you now run a much larger risk on these dangerous worlds (and part of the problem is with the spawning and warping), but as things stand right now I don't want to see it auto-break. The creatures you are attacking still come after you, which is fine and as it shouldbe, regardless of whether /maskscent is on or off.

Chasepp - thats fine, I have no problem with a creature attacking me. It still attacks me if I attack it whether I have maskscent on or off. I just don't want maskscent to break automatically because I initiate combat, for reasons listed above in various places.

"but as things stand right now I don't want to see it auto-break."

I don't believe this will change.

While testing, I have had /conceal break during combat...

Any creaturesthe Rangerhas already checked against will not attackimmediately, unless they are assisting the creature beingfought.

Once the battle is complete, simply /maskscent or /conceal...

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From my experience, critters not engaged in the battle will continue to ignore the Ranger until their individual scent timers wear off...

By whichtime you should probably have moved away from them.

ok thats good - i misunderstood the TC notes then regarding this issue. Thanks for the reply

I'm not sure anyone knows for certain what maskscent and conceal do or, more importantly, are supposed to do.

Including the developers. That's why it changes every other week.

Many people don't use them at all and I've been in groups where I was asked specifically *not* to use them.

I think we all need to come to grips with the fact that the developers will never make it such that simple noobie avoidance techniques won't suffice. As such, maskscent and camo kits will always have marginal benefits.

Heck, I don't even know if I should use them, let alone my hunting partners. When I'm traveling about hunting, I think "I'd better not use maskscent, I don't want to have to fight something right now", rendering the skill utterly useless to me.

As to the maskscent/concealment breaking for combat - I don't think this change should go in with the rest of modifications. Fix the skills first, watch what happens for a few days and thensee if it's necessary to add it.

Nah, we need to have some maskscent/camo kit fix for the next Big Patch.

I still think the bar is set to low here. As it stands a few specials will break my "aplication". I pop off a few rounds with old bertha and im sure that would cover the "assigned ham loss". With my tactics and luck things are usualy stuck in a trap, me adding pop shots, and bleeding and dien no where near me.

If things go bad and they get a few good licks at me, i can concede my mask scent, or camo would drop.

I guess the core of this concern is that the damage assesment be maintained to dmg taken from the oponent, not your specials. This would give them thier "realistic feel", but still hard code something that allows the ranger to maintain a certain offencive status while he is concealed, or mask scented.