User talk:Joe Kimmes/Archive May 2009

Keep it up

just wanted to say good job on all the fixes and such and the adding of the stylest! Zesbeer 23:42, 5 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks! - Joe Kimmes 00:50, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Rezs and heros

how exactly do heroes and hench use rezs? it feels like they like to use them when they have no heath and are the last people standing. Zesbeer 01:43, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

Generally, heroes use their rez regardless of the battle situation, particularly if they can get a healer back up. Sometimes this can mean that they rez allies in a no-win situation, but I think it's best that they err on the side of rezing too much, given how important it can be to get party members back on their feet. - Joe Kimmes 23:09, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

it feels like they don't rez enough or they just don't react quick enough, just the other day i had died and none of them rezed me and instead let the rest of the party die.-- Zesbeer 00:18, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

I noticed recently when running a gimmick in PvE that heroes seem to be reluctant to resurrect party members on 60% DP. I had to constantly micro my heroes to resurrect other heroes that I had saccing to death using BiP, is this intentional? Misery 08:46, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

then I have a bug to report: my paragon hero doesn't use Signet of Return unless half the team is already dead, when he should have been the first person to start ressing. And another one: for some res skills, heroes won't leave their flag even when commanded manually, where other skills will cause them to walk nearly a compass even when flagged. 145.94.74.23 11:03, 22 May 2009 (UTC)

Please post this to the AI bug page: ArenaNet:AI_bugs - that will help ensure that I remember it when I'm fixing AI issues. - Joe Kimmes 16:53, 22 May 2009 (UTC)

XTH 2.0

I'm quite sure you didn't code the front end of the new page, but may have had a hand in the back end workings for the new Tournament House. That being said, QP is a terrible way to sort, especially in 1v1. In GvG it's nearly just as bad when major guilds win a bare minimum 20-25 QP and stop playing for a whole month (or smurf) then go on to win the tournament. Let the web team know they should display rank along with QP (sort rank by default) and give the option to sort by QP. Other than that, they did a good job. 68.219.225.28 01:44, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

I also think that sorting by rank, as was the way before, is better. (but I think that Joe isn't the one you want to talk to. More like Regina.) — Poki#3 02:31, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

Sorting by rank made it very easy for the PvP ignorant among us to make predictions- just log on to XTH shortly before closing time, and drag over the first 8 names into the 8 prediction slots! --BramStoker (talk, contribs) 07:03, 8 May 2009 (UTC)

I actually had nothing to do with the new XTH page - you'd be best served to mention this to Emily. - Joe Kimmes 17:59, 9 May 2009 (UTC)

I don't understand, you're shunning me away. You're my hero, not Emily! 68.154.126.233 03:52, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

Ping Gem in Obs

→ moved from User talk:Linsey Murdock

Is it possible for us to get the ping gem moved in Observer Mode? Right now it is forced into the lower right corner and can't be moved, probably overlooked when you guys made it moveable everywhere else. Moriz brought it up on Guru, and it seems like a relatively minor thing to get changed, so I figured I'd bring it up here. DarkNecrid 23:48, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Might I ask why you think they should spend their valuable resources on this? (86.82.36.54 01:21, 8 April 2009 (UTC))

Because it isn't something that could take a whole lot of resources to do considering they've already done it but forgot to set it as moveable in Observer, and the current position is very horrible as that is where a lot of people will set one of the party windows for ease of use. It seems like something that was just overlooked or forgotten by the programmers. Being able to see the latency is still useful for observer mode. DarkNecrid 01:39, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

This enhancement should rank around 9,872nd in terms of priority order in my opinion.

Dude, it's just making a part of the UI moveable that they've already made moveable before but overlooked in one spot. The UI is way more important than "9,872" priority. DarkNecrid 18:58, 8 April 2009 (UTC)

This is a code thing. - Linsey talk 21:46, 7 May 2009 (UTC)

PvP Equipment Templates

Hi, I'm wondering how big of a hassle it would be for you to include all 4 weapon sets in PvP Equipment Templates. I'm not sure why this wasn't done in the first place, but it would be a godsend to the many people that reroll PvP chars tons of times per day! I know I've personally got the mouse movements and clicks necessary to create a caster spear and shield down to a science, but that doesn't make it any less annoying to do! Thanks. 74.181.200.229 02:01, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

I know it's a bad work around, but the work around I've been using is to save all 4 templates and go f1, load, f2, load, f3, load, f4, load. Still have to make all your shield sets though. Misery 11:50, 10 May 2009 (UTC)

It's unnecessary. It would take a lots of coding time for very little effect. Boro This user's suggestions on the game can be freely used by ArenaNet. 12:06, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

another pet question

my pet got lost some where probably stuck on a box or something, how possible would it be for when that happens to change the skill charm animal to have a recall ability mainly for pve?-- Zesbeer 06:21, 11 May 2009 (UTC)

You can use Strike as One for that now, by targetting yourself.'You'll have to keep using it though, because the pet stops moving if you don't use it on an enemy. But it works. 145.94.74.23 10:59, 22 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks again

I just wanted to say thank you again for all of the recent changes to the HoM. The folks in my alliance are loving them! Pkohler01 02:58, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

007 Heart of Shadow

Okay, how did you miss THAT one?! I mean, I have heard of killer ninja skills, but that is a bit silly. Alright, but seriously, why/how was something that big missed? Katherinezoltin 00:40, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

The nature of the HoS crash caused it to only happen under certain conditions that, unfortunately, are far more common on the real servers than they are on our testing servers. - Joe Kimmes 01:10, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Aura of the Lich

Joe - When the functionality for Aura of the Lich was changed recently, why wasn't the hero AI also changed so that heroes would keep it up as they do other enchantments like Elemental Attunement? Perrin42 14:45, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

I think for the same reason enemy AI wasn't updated for RoJ... and Hero AI for Weapon of Warding. Boro 17:00, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

In the case of Aura of the Lich, it's a very different spell from Elemental Attunement. It can be maintained, yes, but its primary effect is animating minions. If a hero casts it every time the 45 second cooldown is up, they could miss chances to get more than 1 minion.

I'm not saying I'm in any way satisfied with the Aura of the Lich AI, but please consider that 'use this on recharge' is seldom the best use of a skill for the AI. It might be for Aura of the Lich, but I hardly think it's as simple a case as enchantments that only have a buff effect. - Joe Kimmes 18:42, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

OK, thanks for the info!Perrin42 14:50, 19 May 2009 (UTC)

Like you say it's not a simple case, but I think letting them maintain it makes the most sense. Consider that if they charge into battle with the skill active, it's likely to expire at a point where there are plenty of corpses available. If they cast it at the start of the battle you'll probably be already on your way to the next mob by the time the skill is recharged. What's more is that the skill should definitely be renewed when it's still active, but I'm not sure if the AI is capable of detecting skills that are about to expire? The way I see it the hero has a small time window between the skill recharging and the enchantment expiring, so anywhere within that window it should look for the optimal time to cast the skill again. That basically means waiting for corpses to become available, and failing that just cast the skill a few seconds before it expires. --Draikin 23:28, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Or, you could micro it once every 45 seconds and then people who want their heroes to use it at good times won't have to disable it. Misery 23:36, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

Eh misery there are defiantly times were they dont use it well.-- Zesbeer 23:54, 15 May 2009 (UTC)

I think the current AI is inadequate no matter when you think the heroes should use it, I was just explaining the considerations for this skill in the AI.

As an aside, the AI not renewing enchantments just before they expire is a known problem, and one I'd like to address, but due to the way buffs are tracked/expire it's not a simple change to make. - Joe Kimmes 00:26, 16 May 2009 (UTC)

And why didn't you fix RoJ scatter problem? the problem that monsters don't scatter. Boro 05:24, 16 May 2009 (UTC)

roj dose non typed damage they are not suppose to scatter the burning is a effect after the non typed damage. also if they changed it it would nerff smite monks again and poor smite monks its been so long seance they were useful in pve.-- Zesbeer 06:24, 16 May 2009 (UTC)

RoJ 's damage type is holy. It's just not in the list for the AI to check what skills damage them. Boro 06:26, 16 May 2009 (UTC)

As seen here, confusion over whether RoJ should cause scatter and/or why it doesn't, combined with the April build taking priority, delayed a fix. I can't promise a fix by a given date, but it is something that has my attention. - Joe Kimmes

Thanks Joe! Boro 12:00, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Most of the complaints about RoJ come from the fact that it instantly caps shrines in JQ/AB. There is NO issue with scatter. The fact that it does not cause scatter is the only reason that it's better than Savannah Heat. The proper fix to the above problems is to give JQ/AB shrine NPCs the full 480 base HP instead of the 350 (it's very very close to this number, RoJ at 16 smite deals 352, RoJ at 15 smite doesn't kill) they currently have. Why do they have this low in the first place? Fix the HP, fix the real problem. Fix the AoE detection and you're just fixing a symptom and weakening smiting yet again. 67.34.237.156 21:02, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Edit before people tell me how RoJ does more damage than SH at the same attributes. SH comes in a line of skills that deal better pressure and spike damage over the long term, that's why RoJ needs to compensate. It's the only reliable skill in a line that leans more towards poor damage/poor utility/poor healing/great bar compression. If RoJ takes a nerf, you might as well go fire ele and have a line that does almost nothing but great damage. 67.34.237.156 21:08, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

personally i would rather they make it so the Quarry shrines act like the ab shrines were you have to stand there and cap it. were the other ranger shrines act the same but another way to fix the jq problem is just to make it so the npcs have a little more space in between them. -- Zesbeer 21:30, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

I've said this before, but it bears repeating: I don't work on the game's skill balance. When it comes to fixing a bug, I will fix it regardless of balance considerations - if a skill is currently balanced/imbalanced because of a bug, then the bug should be fixed and the skill adjusted to compensate. - Joe Kimmes 22:35, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Well said. I'd wish more people thought that way. Backsword 22:47, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

(Reset indent) Just in this general vein, are you aware of Category:Bugs? I don't know how useable it is with the current wiki licensing stuff, but I don't know if you are even aware of that category or the associated tag as most Arenanet staff members don't wikilurk half as hard as the players. Misery 22:52, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

And Misery must know for she is a wikilurker. ^___^, well, me too, and I lurk the bug category before everything else. Ɲoɕʈɋɽɕɧ 22:53, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

I don't look at the wiki's bug list half as much as I'd like to be able to; I have a full plate of things to fix without even checking the wiki, unfortunately. Our QA department checks the bug lists on the wiki and reports them to the designers/programmers when they're verified, but this process can take awhile. Player reports of bugs are incredibly helpful though - QA does an amazing job, but their team is only so big compared to the number of players. I'm very appreciative of the community's efforts to document bugs on the wiki, and hope that in the near future I'll be able to bring the bug count on these pages down. - Joe Kimmes 01:07, 19 May 2009 (UTC)

Completely understandable, I just didn't know if you were even aware of that category as some bugs that have been well-known (or even infamous) in the general community have appeared to be a surprise to ArenaNet staff in the past. I sort of had to run to bed after leaving that comment before Noctarch chewed me out for still being awake -_- Misery 14:55, 19 May 2009 (UTC)

Merchant in GToB

You can blame Linsey for this one, she said it was your fault. The Merchant in GToB (Ai Tei), for some reason doesn't sell the full range of merchant items, for example Superior ID kits. Intentional or oversight? Anon-e-mouse 14:42, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Oversight. As above, I can't promise a date that it'll be fixed by, but I'll put this on my to-do list. - Joe Kimmes 19:44, 18 May 2009 (UTC)

Linsey and Regina

Sorry to bother you but can you tell me why are they away from the wiki? Boro 17:08, 19 May 2009 (UTC)

Bear in mind that employees who post to the wiki are doing so on their own time. That said, recently Linsey and Regina have been quite busy looking at the feedback from the April build and making plans for the next big build, so I wouldn't be surprised if they've been unable to take the time to respond diplomatically to questions on their talk pages. - Joe Kimmes 23:06, 19 May 2009 (UTC)

Would you mind telling them that I have no more viable builds left to use on my ranger and warrior?72.64.8.217 00:01, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Would you mind not being incorrect and trolling? Misery 00:06, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Well... No content update helps if the game itself is unplayable. Boro 10:36, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Are you saying that Guild Wars can't be played, or that you don't want to play it? If you have bugs to report I'm happy to hear about them; I can't help if you're bored of the game or disagree with balance updates. - Joe Kimmes 18:18, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Linsey has also posted on her Journal as of yesterday with a fairly complete explanation of why she hasn't been around the wiki much since the update. As for your complaints regarding the skills update Boro, this is NOT the place to post them, and Joe is NOT your messenger boy. I'm sure they are all sorry you are unhappy, but suck it up already. -- Wyn 18:21, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

Thanks Wyn, sorry Joe. Keep up good programming. Boro 19:28, 20 May 2009 (UTC)

In Regard to Hero Enchantment Renewal

I'm unfamiliar with the coding obviously, but in any case. Perhaps you have a general enchant AI method that is broken down and hero behavior references portions of this depending the type of enchantment. Maybe it's all hardcoded individually, I don't know. What I think would work though is doing something similar to active enchant icons with duration set to flash while under a set remaining amount of time. I don't see why something like this could not be applied, unless it would interfere with other calls within the AI causing unforeseen bugs, which I'm guessing is where most AI issues lie.~>Sins WDB 16:54, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

Without going into details of how the game is coded, the core of the issue here is that there are two sides to the game - the Client (your computer) and the Server. Icon flashing is something the Client does, because it doesn't have to display many buffs on your screen. The Server is tracking thousands and thousands of buffs, across every player, mob, hero and instance. So, the Client can easily afford to make additional calculations for a buff, but for the Server, even if the question 'can this be coded?' is answered, the question 'how much will this affect server performance?' has to be answered. - Joe Kimmes 17:43, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

Would I be correct in assuming it would affect server performance, and not in a good way? — Jon Lupen 17:46, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

So it would be more IFs that the server must process for everyone is basically what your saying? And that would greatly slow performance of the servers since the checks have a high frequency of occuring and must occur for many players?~>Sins WDB 20:28, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

It goes beyond just IF statements, but essentially yes. - Joe Kimmes 22:41, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

Well that would explain why we get AI fixes in spurts.~>Sins WDB 22:47, 21 May 2009 (UTC)

Soo lucky you :D

A great Job at a great company with great collegue's. From my point of view you're sooooooo lucky. TY for the nice things you all are creating for GW. --Silverleaf Don't assume, Know! 12:32, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Well... not all of them are great. The balance department is... (You know what I would have said) Boro 12:50, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Understaffed? -Auron 12:55, 26 May 2009 (UTC)

Doing an amazing job that every single person is really happy with? (Satanael 18:21, 26 May 2009 (UTC))

Let's hope that I will be able to say yes next month Satanael! Boro 18:48, 26 May 2009 (UTC)