Avatar AI problems that need to be addressed

[Imakun]

Pet modes: Have an option to set your avatar on passive or aggressive. If passive, it will not auto-attack. Problem solved. If aggressive, it will auto-attack as it does now.

This is what I always wanted too. I had problems in Dynamis or other group events when my Avatars decided to go "screw you summoner, I want blood".
Make the aggresive stance the standard one and add two pet commands to chose the stance we want.

[Korpg]

The only time an avatar will auto-attack any monster is if, and only if, the Summoner is on the top of the hate list.

The only way to be on top of the hate list is if you are cure bombing the sleeper. You shouldn't have to cure bomb the sleeper because the sleeper can cure bomb themselves. Or the WHM. If you are there as a main heal, you shouldn't have your avatar out in the first place, and your party is doomed to fail anyway.

The Auto-attack is not a problem with SE, it is a problem with the stupidity of the Summoner. Only the Summoner can fix that problem.

[Sasaraixx]

That is a gross oversimplification Korpg and not entirely accurate. Sometimes you will have to heal. There is no way to deny it. And sometimes you may have to heal a lot. Things happen. You have to adapt and be willing to help. If you've played this job/game long enough, you're bound to have found yourself in such a situation.

We've also given you examples outside of curing where you would not want your avatar to auto-attack a target and it has nothing to do with stupidity either. You're being far too judgmental. Not being able to control when your pet attacks CAN be a problem.

As I said, it is not a huge problem because the examples are few and I'd rather developer time be spent resolving more important issues. Nevertheless, I can understand why some people would want it addressed.

[Korpg]

I'm not going to deny that there are very few times where I had to help heal, but I also made it a point to not main heal nor heal the BLM in charge of sleeping.

I expected the BLM in charge of sleeping to actually cure himself.

I also won't deny the oversimplification of my post, but it seems like Tan doesn't understand enmity and avatar's actions.

However, if the Summoner thinks that by curebombing the person who can cure themselves is a great idea, then that is stupidity of that Summoner. No amount of "fixes" will cure of that Summoner of that stupidity.

[Tarage]

BLM should not be wasting MP on curing themselves. I don't know why that is so hard for you to understand. Have you ever played with a BLM before?

[Korpg]

BLM should not be wasting MP on curing themselves. I don't know why that is so hard for you to understand. Have you ever played with a BLM before?

Maybe not in the same way as you. See, I figure, a BLM who cures himself when needed is one who is able to continue to nuke stuff. A BLM who doesn't cure himself or use Drain often usually finds himself asking for a raise.

But we play BLM differently, don't we? That is, assuming that you have BLM even leveled.

[Tarage]

Maybe not in the same way as you. See, I figure, a BLM who cures himself when needed is one who is able to continue to nuke stuff. A BLM who doesn't cure himself or use Drain often usually finds himself asking for a raise.

But we play BLM differently, don't we? That is, assuming that you have BLM even leveled.

It was my first job.

I have to wonder how many high end events you have been to. Asking a BLM to cure themselves with their limited MP pool is wrong. Yes, they 'can' do it, just like as a SMN I 'can' melee my enemies to death. Should I? Hell no. A BLM's job is not to look after themselves. Keep track of hate and not overnuke? Yes. Cure themselves? No. That's what support jobs are for. And SMN is a support job, even if you don't like it.

I don't like it either, but it IS the job.

[Korpg]

It was my first job.

I have to wonder how many high end events you have been to. Asking a BLM to cure themselves with their limited MP pool is wrong. Yes, they 'can' do it, just like as a SMN I 'can' melee my enemies to death. Should I? Hell no. A BLM's job is not to look after themselves. Keep track of hate and not overnuke? Yes. Cure themselves? No. That's what support jobs are for. And SMN is a support job, even if you don't like it.

I don't like it either, but it IS the job.

I'm not saying you should main heal as a BLM, nor melee as a SMN. I'm saying that you should cure yourself (hint: notice the bolded word, you have ignored it so far) to save the WHM MP for curing those who can't cure themselves or cure the tank.

BLM's job all depends on what is needed. Not to overnuke, yes. To keep a group of mobs slept, yes. Why are you lazy to cure yourself?

SMN is a job that supports damage dealing. They give buffs to the party and do decent damage to the mobs. They can kite stuff if needed, and can effectively turn a bad situation into a salvageable one. That is their role. To cure everyone is not.

[Arciel]

the avatar's auto-attack instinct is a feature of the SMN job, not a flaw.
it is one of the few things that sets a SMN apart from other pet jobs, and is something you have to learn to control as part of the job, just like hate management and MP control.

honestly, it is one of the most useful defensive tools for a SMN.

pros:
-avatar instinct allows SMNs to carbykite / avatarkite from great distances. without it, SMN cannot solo bombs or worms effectively/safely.
-the auto-attack upon aggro is a useful tool to provide protection. even if they miss, their "first strike" generates enmity away from the master.
-if you're in a group and your pet starts auto-attacking, then you'll know that you need to manage your enmity better - or some form of hate reset is at play

cons:
-avatar may attack mobs you don't want them to attack, that are being slept or whatever.
-you want avatar to retreat, but it refuses to and keeps attacking a mob because you still have main hate.

solutions:
-Assault command takes higher priority. If your pet is already assaulted on a mob, it's instinct will not kick in
-its usually useful in solo play, but if you want to like kite/pull a mob and not have pet attacking, simply make their hate level higher than you (so that they're tanking), do a good strong BP that will help them solidify hate and you can Retreat do whatever.

trivia:
all pet jobs pets have their own form of instinct.
SMN avatars have the auto-attack instinct when SMN is on top of hate list.
BST pets, when engaged, will only choose to fight whoever is hitting them the hardest, or giving the most hate.

DRG and PUP is more mechanics based..
DRG wyverns cannot be ordered to engage and only assist their master.
PUP automatons don't really have any instinct.. they're the most 'obedient' of pets in terms of engaging mobs. Only one would be that maton that starts nuking won't stop just because it is retrieved.

[Tarage]

I'm not saying you should main heal as a BLM, nor melee as a SMN. I'm saying that you should cure yourself (hint: notice the bolded word, you have ignored it so far) to save the WHM MP for curing those who can't cure themselves or cure the tank.

BLM's job all depends on what is needed. Not to overnuke, yes. To keep a group of mobs slept, yes. Why are you lazy to cure yourself?

SMN is a job that supports damage dealing. They give buffs to the party and do decent damage to the mobs. They can kite stuff if needed, and can effectively turn a bad situation into a salvageable one. That is their role. To cure everyone is not.

And I'm saying that BLM shouldn't even be curing themselves unless it's a dire situation. Enemity is but one issue.

Look, I want you to go to the BLM forums and ask them if they cure themselves on a regular basis when in an alliance for an event. I guarantee you the majority will say no.