Poll: Mumorpugers: Aggro!

[nbamaniac]

I have played my share of MMORPG's, the most recent one being WoW. I have played it for like 3 years until I stopped about a year ago. It has been quite the online journey.

Anyway it was on WoW that I first noticed this concept of "aggro". During raids and 5-man instances, enemy NPC's will have some sort of a calculated lock-on on who to attack because that is what he/she/it deems most threatening. Here's my view on this system.

>>It introduced (or strengthened) the role of 'tanks' or 'punching bags'

>>It makes for a more organized raid encounter - it is a tactical advantage to know who the boss will focus attacks on.

>>It makes party members focus on their roles more.

>>Nitpick: Why don't these bosses attack the ones with less armor? I mean, they're pretty much mincemeat in one hit. Even the more intelligent bosses should know this. If they keep on focusing the 'tank' as their first priority, then they're just bumping their heads against a wall.

>>I do like and enjoy some of the boses in WoW though where there were twists and sudden changes in aggro. Gives a more chaotic and exciting feel to things.

So what do you think? An explanation of your choice would by highly appreciated.

 

[madwarper]

Never played WoW, but I've played EQ, DDO and LotRO.

And, having a 'hate list' where each PC is given a numerical ranking which can be affected by the actions of the party and determines who the mob attacks is a good thing.

Otherwise, a mob would just tear into a party randomly, take out it's weakest parts and the rest of the group would crumble. Not a recipe for fun and success.

 

[Newtonyd]

I prefer the Guild Wars 2 way of doing it, where monsters attack the closest targets and hit whoever happens to be near them. Some monsters have different AI patterns and go after weak targets. There are no specific 'tank' characters.

Of course, the game isn't out yet, but I imagine the more chaotic and fun type of fight that would result may be a pleasant break from the boredom of 'tank and spank'.

 

[Jandau]

I'm generally in favor of an Aggro model as a baseline. But at the same time, I like it when the boss has abilities or behaviour patterns that don't just focus on the tank. WoW had this, bosses that changed targets, abilities that targeted anyone other than the tank, that targeted specific areas, summoning additional enemies, etc. Stuff that the rest of the party needs to handle on their own, not just go AFK DPS while the Tank and the Healer are the only ones sweating it.

In general, I approve of the tank role. It adds structure, it gives a certain predictable baseline (knowing that most attacks will land on one guy) and allows for more efficient builds (most attacks on one guy, so that guy stacks defensive stats, leaving others free to optimize for damage). But plain tank'n'spank fights are boring, especially for major bosses.