So, how is CoT going to handle collisions?
Here's my idea.
1) Normally, no collisions between PCs, NPCs, mobs, pets, etc. This prevents all sorts of griefing and makes moving about easier. Plus collision processing takes a lot of server resources.
2) Collisions turn on when in combat. Everyone collides with everyone else within a combat. Collisions let combat be more tactical. Team positioning becomes important. Melee fighters can physically block mobs from getting to the squishies. Or stop them from running away. And mobs can do the same thing to us. You simply can't run through the mooks to get to the boss. Collisions also put a limit on the effectiveness of area-effect powers.
To make my idea clear, let's use an example. The team has PCs Alice and Bob, plus Bob's pet Rover. There's another PC Charlie. And there's a mob spawn of Xander, Yma, and Zook. Initially, everyone can run through everyone else--Xander and Yma can walk through each other, Bob and Charlie through each other, etc.
Then Zook and Rover wander too close to each other, and a fight starts! Now, everyone involved in the fight can collide with everyone else. Alice, Bob, and Rover can collide with each other and with Xander, Yma, and Zook. And vice versa. However, Charlie, who's not involved in the fight, can run through all of them.
We get the best of both worlds--easy movement, low server processing under most circumstances. And tactical combat for when collisions really matter.
[size=1]Kickstart Backer # 771[/size]
Collisions during combat also lets crowd control be more interesting. Slowing a few mobs can make it harder for the others from getting up close an personal. And knockback becomes more tactical as well.
I'd like to suggest another power side effect: push. Imagine a punch that moves its target back a bit. Doesn't cause in any knockdown or knockup or otherwise interrupt, but simply moves the target back a meter or two. With collisions during combat, melee lines can form (which is awesome all by itself), and pushes will help keep them fluid.
[size=1]Kickstart Backer # 771[/size]
Collisions never particularly bothered me, although it was incongruous that the NPCs could push my characters about as though they were cardboard cutouts, unless masterminds were involved. Even playing by myself it could be irritating to deal with my pets until they removed the collisions. With more than one mastermind on a team I've had it happen (rarely, I admit) that I sat out fights because I couldn't get past the MM pets. At a minimum I'd want to be able to push them out of the way so that I don't become stuck in a room because there are a dozen pets in the corridor.
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[font=Pristina][size=18][b]Hail Beard![/b][/size][/font]
Support [url=http://cityoftitans.com/comment/52149#comment-52149]trap clowns[/url] for CoT!
When not in combat, pets should not collide with anything. We need to be able to get around easily.
But once combat starts, pets should collide with everything else. That may mean teams have to use better tactics than simply bum-rush the mobs.
[size=1]Kickstart Backer # 771[/size]
In that case I'll simply state, assuming situations similar to those in CoH and as obvious as it should be from my previous post, that I'm not a fan of this idea.
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[font=Pristina][size=18][b]Hail Beard![/b][/size][/font]
Support [url=http://cityoftitans.com/comment/52149#comment-52149]trap clowns[/url] for CoT!
I want collision in at all times. I want fewer needs to use kiosks so that this won't be a problem.
Doors should be large enough so that even 10 giant characters cannot successfully block entrances.
I don't want to be a ghost .. ever. I am ok with SOME ghost pets but overall I think they should be corporal.
Crowd Control Enthusiast
The rationale behind that decision was the notion that PCs would [i]courteously yield right of way[/i] to Civilian NPCs. The real reason though was that PCs were (supposedly) controlled by Intelligent Players (an assumption that wasn't always true), while NPCs were controlled by a very limited AI that basically just followed Pathing Routes and thus wasn't set up well to handle diverting around obstructions. Giving priority to the Civilians then eliminated the possibility of creating a PC Griefs NPC(s) circumstance just by being a deliberate road block.
It may have looked stupid and may have *felt* stupid to get pushed around like that, but it honestly was a decision that solved more problems than it created.
[center][img=44x100]https://i.imgur.com/sMUQ928.gif[/img]
[i]Verbogeny is one of many pleasurettes afforded a creatific thinkerizer.[/i][/center]
No doubt. Not that it prevented huge conga lines of pedestrians forming, anyway. Especially in Independence Port, as I recall. They were sometimes amusing and sometimes annoying, especially in missions, but mostly harmless (although I didn't care at all for being able to target them in mayhem missions). I presume that today somewhat better AI pathing is de rigeur.
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[font=Pristina][size=18][b]Hail Beard![/b][/size][/font]
Support [url=http://cityoftitans.com/comment/52149#comment-52149]trap clowns[/url] for CoT!
My opinion is either have collsions on all the time or not at all. I would personally would like to see them in the game, but its not a big deal in the grand picture. I want it easy for the coders that way things happen quicker, if it turns out that adjustments need to be made add/delete collisions then it will be a simple patch update and we move forward.
Smoker6- Fire/Ice blaster-Protector
Avenger of Heroes- Broadsword/inv Scrapper- Protector
If I recall right, the Devs had already decided to split Knock into two components - one for position and one for falling-down.
Be Well!
Fireheart