Request: Option to turn off auto attack

Please keep Auto Attack since there are clearly many people who like the system very much.

But if it is technically possible, I'd really like the option to turn it off as well.
I'd prefer to have 100% control over my actions during battle.


Sorry if this seems like a double post -- I asked in the General Discussion section if it is -possible- to turn off Auto Attack. But since there is no setting for it, I wanted to make a request for the ability to do so here.

There is already a thread about it at feedback forum! ^^ Toss some words of support there too! ^^

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...-on-off-option.

I don't get it, you still get full control over your combat with or without Auto Attack since Auto Attack does not use any TP at all. With Auto Attack off, you press 1. And now with Auto Attack, you don't need to press it.

Its all about the way you want to play. Just this. If some like pressing the button to attack, why not? If some think AA is slow and that manually attacking for a faster pace would be cooler, then why not?

IMO the game still can be perfectly balanced even if the players decide playing manualy or automatically. It would be the "flexibility x speed" choice...that's why i want basic attacks to have action slot cost now...this way the player would need to choose between using AA and more actions for a more strategic performance or reducing the actions and equipping basic actions for a faster, manual damage output.

The basic of what i've been suggesting is hto add action cost to basic attacks and make them reset AA delay so those using basic attacks wouldn't have AA triggering unless they stop manually attacking long enough.

I support the "Play however you like" phrase from Yoshida being more than just a pretty phrase and actually reflect into battle system and all other future content from now on. The more options you add the more flexible the game will become, always making more and more people happy...when you replace content, tho, you have a chance that those who didn't like the old one also not liking the new one and those that actually liked the old one also not liking the new one...so, in short, instead of adding more people who like the game you gamble those who liked it in a try to hit those who didn't.

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Originally Posted by Lienn

IMO the game still can be perfectly balanced even if the players decide playing manualy or automatically. It would be the "flexibility x speed" choice...that's why i want basic attacks to have action slot cost now...this way the player would need to choose between using AA and more actions for a more strategic performance or reducing the actions and equipping basic actions for a faster, manual damage output.

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Well, it's a good thing you aren't designing this game, because this is complete rubbish. One way is always superior, thus there is no choice. Short fights favour the old system, long fights perhaps not. In any case, they're not even remotely balanced for every combat situation.

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Originally Posted by Frein

Well, it's a good thing you aren't designing this game, because this is complete rubbish. One way is always superior, thus there is no choice. Short fights favour the old system, long fights perhaps not. In any case, they're not even remotely balanced for every combat situation.

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it's nice to see someone else pointing out how the old system was superior even though it was not their intention. good job.

It won't happen. Stop asking for AA toggle. The perfect game is one with less options. You may not think so but it's true.

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Originally Posted by darkstarpoet1

it's nice to see someone else pointing out how the old system was superior even though it was not their intention. good job.

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No, it was not superior from a design perspective. How you get that impression from my post is a complete mystery.

Well I like the AA system and don't see the point of toggling it off to manually press the attack button.

That being said, as OP mention if some would prefer it that way they can add this toggling AA off and then the Attack action (would still cost 0 action point) would be shown on the action bar and you would have to press it to attack but it would have a cooldown corresponding to the AA delay (weapon delay + haste buffs and all).

Both of them would end up being the same if the manual AA person would spam click/press the attack button so they don't lose a fraction of a second to perform the attack but if that's what they find fun then good for them.

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Originally Posted by Frein

No, it was not superior from a design perspective. How you get that impression from my post is a complete mystery.

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One way is always superior, thus there is no choice. Short fights favour the old system, long fights perhaps not.

that was your own post. you say one way is always superior and pointedly state on the normal mobs we fight on a daily basis the old system is better. you say it may not be better in long fights, but since even late in the fight with low stamina it took less time to attack than the cool down timers and auto attack then it is still better.

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Originally Posted by MattyWS

It won't happen. Stop asking for AA toggle. The perfect game is one with less options. You may not think so but it's true.

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Dude this is a tremendous ignorance! Lemme be extreme a bit...so you mean that if we had 1 mage class, 1 melee class, 1 ranged class, 1 gatherer and 1 crafter it would be a better game...i'm just removing options you see? Its just a nonsense, man!

People is differente...so the more options you add the better the chance of everyone finding something they like there. I'm all up for a better balancing regarding old system...i'm still trying to keep hope up regarding battle team noticing they can do it perfectly....after all, as FFXIII player, i know Hope is always the last one to die! (sorry...but i just love this phrase! lol)

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Originally Posted by MattyWS

It won't happen. Stop asking for AA toggle. The perfect game is one with less options. You may not think so but it's true.

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pong

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Originally Posted by darkstarpoet1

that was your own post. you say one way is always superior and pointedly state on the normal mobs we fight on a daily basis the old system is better. you say it may not be better in long fights, but since even late in the fight with low stamina it took less time to attack than the cool down timers and auto attack then it is still better.

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Superior as in the player can frontload a ton of abilities with a full stamina bar, making short fights easier. That has nothing to do with superiority from a design perspective.

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Originally Posted by Lienn

Dude this is a tremendous ignorance! Lemme be extreme a bit...so you mean that if we had 1 mage class, 1 melee class, 1 ranged class, 1 gatherer and 1 crafter it would be a better game...i'm just removing options you see? Its just a nonsense, man!

People is differente...so the more options you add the better the chance of everyone finding something they like there. I'm all up for a better balancing regarding old system...i'm still trying to keep hope up regarding battle team noticing they can do it perfectly....after all, as FFXIII player, i know Hope is always the last one to die! (sorry...but i just love this phrase! lol)

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Do you realize that implementing an Auto-attack toogle would require to also reimplement the stamina bar? The stamina was what limited the amount of attacks you could spam. with that gone we could just spam to the nausea.
That is not going to happen.

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Originally Posted by Ashgarth

Do you realize that implementing an Auto-attack toogle would require to also reimplement the stamina bar? The stamina was what limited the amount of attacks you could spam. with that gone we could just spam to the nausea.
That is not going to happen.

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No it isn't. The stanmina bar and the action cooldown are exactly the very same thing...the difference is, basically, that recast timers areare like you having mini stanmina gauges...one for each action and you using all the gauge when you use that action...once you understand the mechanics its pretty easy to see they are pretty identical...the recasts are just "easier" for players to control.

Want the old stanmina gauge converted to recast (which isn't even needed)? Give player a cooldown counter where you can store up to 10 minutes of cooldown. Once you use an action, you consume the cooldown from this stored value in order to have the action ready again...if you don't have enough time stored you can't use it.

You see...i'm in no way asking stanmina gauge back...i do think just the cooldown is enough and that stanmina gauge was a redundant restriction...it was like having 2 recasts on WS and spells...on individual recast and one shared recast. It does was a bit troublesome to control in a MMO game (if this mechanic was used in an offline game it would certainly work way better...because what killed stanmina bar was the server latency...people just would think a command failed due lag or something and use it again).

This game does can have AA toggle without the stanmina gauge or any other restriction other than cooldown. That's what the basic attacks are there for...just go play ARC a bit and you will see a class with AA off in the current system ^^

There is no need to re-implement the stamina bar.

What I'm hoping for is a simple setting to turn off auto attack while leaving everything else as-is -- meaning my character will not attack or do anything at all, unless I intentionally select some other action from the action bar.

For example, one big frustration right now is having auto attack kick in and whacking the monster with my jade crook right after I cast Sleep on it. ><

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Originally Posted by Mikita

There is no need to re-implement the stamina bar.

What I'm hoping for is a simple setting to turn off auto attack while leaving everything else as-is -- meaning my character will not attack or do anything at all, unless I intentionally select some other action from the action bar.

For example, one big frustration right now is having auto attack kick in and whacking the monster with my jade crook right after I cast Sleep on it. ><

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Indeed. I already did this so many times now every time i play mage i just keep target locked on myself and seek monsters with sub-target only.

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Originally Posted by Mikita

There is no need to re-implement the stamina bar.

What I'm hoping for is a simple setting to turn off auto attack while leaving everything else as-is -- meaning my character will not attack or do anything at all, unless I intentionally select some other action from the action bar.

For example, one big frustration right now is having auto attack kick in and whacking the monster with my jade crook right after I cast Sleep on it. ><

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Instead of asking for a toggle on/off the AA, why don't you just wait for the next patch where you'll be able to cast spells in passive mode so you will not attack your sleeping target? If really that is the only reason you are asking for a toggle.

adding a toggle is pretty near impossible as it would break the mechanics that the devs worked hard on. There are more important things to worry about atm like jobs, chocobos, airships, (apparently water...) and the field in general.

Are you really serious? lol non sense

Well, I see no problem in having a toggle mechanic. It wouldn't hurt the current battle system at all...actually it would add more flexibility to the game...if it was so impossible ARC would have AA ("THE" AA i mean...not the melee bitchslap)...and still ARC does not require stanmina bar or any other additional mechanic to be playable.

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Originally Posted by Mikita

There is no need to re-implement the stamina bar.

What I'm hoping for is a simple setting to turn off auto attack while leaving everything else as-is -- meaning my character will not attack or do anything at all, unless I intentionally select some other action from the action bar.

For example, one big frustration right now is having auto attack kick in and whacking the monster with my jade crook right after I cast Sleep on it. ><

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This is actually completely different from what people ended up discussing in the thread and I can completely sympathize with this. I sometimes end up auto-attacking things without meaning to when I buff myself. Non-offensive abilities really shouldn't initiate AA.

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Originally Posted by Lienn

Indeed. I already did this so many times now every time i play mage i just keep target locked on myself and seek monsters with sub-target only.

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Yes, I do that too. ^^
Unfortunately it then precludes us from using non-subtarget attacks like Spirit Dart, Elemental Shroud, Nature's Fury, and the Thaumaturge equivalents to conserve our precious MP.

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Originally Posted by Perrin_Aybarra

Instead of asking for a toggle on/off the AA, why don't you just wait for the next patch where you'll be able to cast spells in passive mode so you will not attack your sleeping target? If really that is the only reason you are asking for a toggle.

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Casting Sleep is just one example of when auto attack is less than desirable, but not the only reason.


At any rate, there are now several threads about this on both the English and Japanese forums. I'm sure that SE is aware of the topic and will do whatever they think is right for the game.