Problems with Magician Pets
Brian Rutherford
Hi all,
I enjoy playing a Magician very much, but some problems with how the pets
work are starting to annoy me. I may be doing something wrong here, or it
may be something with the game... I don't know. Anyway, the most annoying
thing that happens is when I am in a closed place like Crushbone (slave area
or castle) or the hedge maze in Unrest. My pet always gets lost... I'll
walk through the tents in the slave area and my pet will start walking all
the way around Crushbone trying to follow me... and this is even when I
press the Pet Follow hotkey I have every time I move. Secondly, they're
very inconsitent with killing themselves. One time I was going behind the
throne in Crushbone, and my pet killed itself in plain view of me! Other
times I have gated across a zone and my pet would find me on the other
side... is there something I'm missing? I also wish that pets would change
targets... there have been many times where I would be fighting something
and tell my pet to attack it. Then, as I'm fighting that something comes up
behind me and starts wailing on me. Instead of being able to tell my pet to
switch targets to get them both locked on it, it keeps fighting the original
monster while I try to get away long enough for my pet to help me. Is there
something I'm doing wrong, or is this just the way they act? Don't get me
wrong.. pets have saved my life many times, but other times have caused my
death... I guess it balances out hehe but any help would be appreciated with
how to get better control over them.
Yildaen,
Magician of Povar
ka...@wwwaif.net
>
>Hi all,
>
>I enjoy playing a Magician very much, but some problems with how the pets
>work are starting to annoy me. I may be doing something wrong here, or it
>may be something with the game... I don't know.
In case you wanna skip my long, boring reply, the answer is: no, you aren't
doing something wrong - it's just part of the game. Pets are arguably the
most powerful of the magicians' tools, but they aren't pushbutton, and there
are always going to be some zones and situations in which they are more
hindrance than help.
Anyway, the most annoying
>thing that happens is when I am in a closed place like Crushbone (slave area
>or castle) or the hedge maze in Unrest. My pet always gets lost... I'll
>walk through the tents in the slave area and my pet will start walking all
>the way around Crushbone trying to follow me... and this is even when I
>press the Pet Follow hotkey I have every time I move.
Yup, Conventional Mage Wisdom Item #1 - pets are useless at best - and a
walking bullseye at worst - in dungeons and other close quarters. They have a
bad habit of wandering around, no matter how many times you order them to
/follow, which means that they aren't there to fight when you need 'em, and
may well bring a new friend or two back with them when they *do* track you
down. Unless the good folks at Verant issue us with Elemental Leashes, there's
no way to get around this.
Secondly, they're
>very inconsitent with killing themselves. One time I was going behind the
>throne in Crushbone, and my pet killed itself in plain view of me! Other
>times I have gated across a zone and my pet would find me on the other
>side... is there something I'm missing?
Pets don't like it when they can't see you; I'm not sure what happened with
your pet in Crushbone, however. Were you anywhere near a zone? Could just be a
location-specific bug.
As for gating in-zone, I do it all the time to save time on the trip back from
Centaur Village to the Treehouse in South Karana, and my pet usually turns up
a few minutes later. I wouldn't try this in a dungeon, of course, or any place
else with lots of aggro roaming mobs. Just know what to do when you see that
fateful message "Taunting Attacker Master".
I also wish that pets would change
>targets... there have been many times where I would be fighting something
>and tell my pet to attack it. Then, as I'm fighting that something comes up
>behind me and starts wailing on me. Instead of being able to tell my pet to
>switch targets to get them both locked on it, it keeps fighting the original
>monster while I try to get away long enough for my pet to help me. Is there
>something I'm doing wrong, or is this just the way they act?
I've never successfully managed to *tell* my pet to disengage with one mob and
switch to another. Usually, I'm too busy running frantically in ever
diminishing circles, praying that it kills the first mob before the second one
kills me. Sometimes, if you're very lucky, the second monster will get tired
of chasing a frantic uncasting mage around in circles and help out his buddy
with the first mob, but in that case, you better be prepared to cast like
crazy so you can kill at least one of 'em before the pet dies.
Don't get me
>wrong.. pets have saved my life many times, but other times have caused my
>death... I guess it balances out hehe but any help would be appreciated with
>how to get better control over them.
Just be aware of the limitations of your pet, and try to work around them, and
you'll be fine.
K
Dan Harmon
on something, beat on the SAME something. I know it's distracting to be
beating on something only to have your head pounded on from behind, but if
you attempt to attack the new critter solo, you will surely die.
This is good group strategy as well.
Supposedly hitting F1 twice will target your pet. After you target your
pet, type /assist to make sure you're beating on the same critter.
One magician + 1 pet is more than a match for 2 blues (at lower levels
anyway).
One magician vs 1 blue, and 1 pet vs 1 blue = dead magician.
Brian Rutherford <stryk...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:3l6j3.65277$Fz2....@news.rdc1.az.home.com...
> I also wish that pets would change
> targets... there have been many times where I would be fighting something
> and tell my pet to attack it. Then, as I'm fighting that something comes
up
> behind me and starts wailing on me. Instead of being able to tell my pet
to
> switch targets to get them both locked on it, it keeps fighting the
original
> monster while I try to get away long enough for my pet to help me. Is
there
> something I'm doing wrong, or is this just the way they act? Don't get me
Dolm
You can manage pets in dungeons with a lot of care.
You need to master the use of not only /pet follow me but /pet guard
here. /pet guard here will sit your pet down and he won't get up
unless attacked or he sees that you are attacked.
So, you run though a dungeon, hitting /pet follow me and making sure
that he is right behind you all the time. When you stop, hit /pet guard
here (or /pet sit down) and your pet will stop just like he does in
outside zones, without the dangeous pacing.
If you lose you pet and you see "Taunting Attacker Master" head for the
zone unless you are sure that he didn't pull something you cannot handle
alone (depends on the zone and your experience there).
Lastly, if you and your pet are fighting something (say a blue MOB), and
another MOB starts beating on you, you need to make a quick decision:
- Kill the MOB your pet is beating on
or
- Run for the zone line, or nearby groupmates/friends/guards
DO NOT try and kill the "new" MOB because you and your pet's damage will
be diluted and you probably will both die.
-- Dolm
D Moore
First of all, in order to get your pet to switch targets, you have to
first tell it to back off, then tell it to attack the new target. You
can't just select the new target and tell it to 'attack', that won't
work. Also, if the elemental gets hit again after you tell it to back
off, it will continue to fight the original target - it wants to
play.
Now, your pet is dumb. If you run around crushbone or unrest or any
dungeon and expect your pet to follow you without keeping an eye on
it, you are gonna get killed. So don't do this. Have your /pet follow
me and /pet sit down command macroed, and keep a close eye on your
pet. Don't ever get more that twenty feet away from your pet, as it
will get confused and start "PSS"ing (Pet Spazz Syndrome) on you. If
you are meditating, ALWAYS tell your pet to sit, as this will keep it
from wandering to and fro around you and possibly training some
nasties.
Just some advice.
Dave