Post Patch 73: A Study in Tracking

Awwww no more forts for cynic.

Was tracking honestly OP?

The era accurate bug that made 28 tracking or whatever function the same as GM? That was lame
Tracking from another dungeon, exploiting the 1997 era map mechanics? This was also lame.

Is putting 100 points into a skill to see what players are in a 50 tile radius, in a game with mounts that move how many tiles/second Over Powered?
Eh, I really dont think so. In the ogrelord example, you could totally close the gap from the entrance to the spawn (approximately 50 tiles) in the time it takes to cycle through the skill.

As long as the range gets un-nerfed to even 75 and the Tracking vs Hiding, and Stealth vs Detect success/failure stuff gets ironed out. Its will be a WONDERFUL change and I think it will be the most effort put into fixing tracking like ever. Is it even fixed on OSI shards yet?

This is why this is an awesome shard to play on.

I kinda like the recent changes, its a step in the right direction, but kinda feels a little bit gimped at the current state.
Previous tracking was way too impactful, and hiding/stealth didnt affect it a lot.

However.. completely agreed that Pirating is literally IM POSSIBLE now.
Id suggest 2 fixes for pirating:
- increase the tracking range on the Oceans to its old value.
- adding a captains spyglass that can track the oceans for players/boats within a certain range.

This needs to be adressed in my opinion, because fishing now is even more safer than ever before.

Peace,

Yeah, there was minimal risk on the seas before, but now it's pretty much impossible to find anyone on the seas unless you stumble across them accidentally, so it's almost completely safe on the seas now.

Dungeon tracking definitely needed to be fixed, requiring the pk's to do more leg work rather than tracking more than one dungeon via 1 tile.

Numbers updated to reflect another study done with a tracker that also has GM Detect Hidden:

Hi all, i quit uo for some time, and im returning just now. I always play stealth type characters, be them scouts, thievs, lockpickers, collect eggs if it's the season ecc, and i just want to add my 2 cents on the topic:
I have tracking on my stealthers: but i'd rather drop it out of uselessness in favor of actually being able to stealth.
The relevant thing most are missing is this: you may think that 100 track vs 100 stealth should be 50/50, or maybe 20/80 ecc, but you are forgetting that i am on foot, and on a tight and dedicated template, i dont even have resist on most of them, i rely on stealth as my main defence, wich is completely fine considering the 200+ skill points investment. What this mean is that when you find me, i am dead. Consider this: there is no real way to "assassinate" someone in this game, ie if the target is mounted and at full health no combo will do. And stealing in dungeon is still like the most hardcore thing to do in the most hardcore of rpgs. So: case 1: im stealthing and no one find me: everyone is alive. Case 2: someone (red) pinpoint track me (as was the case a years ago when i quit, every single time, to the point where stealthing in dungeon was basically impossible): i am dead, end of the story. Im saying: to those that want a 20/80 chance of finding my dedicated stealther with their pk with 100 tracking: then i want a magical dagger that has an 20/80 chance of instakill red characters when attacking from stealth. And im saying in a 10 or so tiles radius, most hotspots in dungeon only have that much space.
Pvper with tracking should be useless against dedicated stealthers. Even track+detect: you can still do that mounted, and mounts is probably the #1 factor in pvp, without you are totally screwed. I propose: vs hiding alone: whatever; track+detect vs stealth: 30/70 or the like; pvp template+track vs stealth: 1% success.

I agree with most of your points and as a rogue I find that when I compare stealth to the way tracking used to be an egregious thought. However it pales in comparison to the pure vitriol that stirs every time I'm reminded in game that the reveal spell is 100% effective 100% of the time.

I'm not so sure I agree that being on foot has to be a disadvantage against a tracker. I think it'd be an interesting proposition were being successfully stealthed quickens the criminal flag by 25, 50, maybe even 75%.

I've no actual hopes of that happening though but, I will declare that if tracking isn't addressed soon it will be at the detriment of the server's overall health.

PvP activity is vital, like it or not.

I think he's saying that being on foot (because of stealth) puts the character at a big disadvantage, which is true. He's not saying being mounted/on-foot should have anything to do with the tracking functionality.

Yes indeed

Yes i agree, i try to reformulate: tracking against non stealthers should be somewhat easier than now, while tracking against stealthers is fine as it is. Reliable tracking against stealthers should only be achievable by dedicated scouts, and even in that case, the tracker should be underdog odds wise. Being on stealth not only means the expenditure of 200 skill points alredy frustrated by a single reveal spell, but also the loss of the ability to move at mount speed. Giving every red chracter on the shard the ability to pinpoint your location from 40 tiles away (or 10 fwiw), as was prior to the change, is something i oppose.

magery/med/stealth/hiding/music/provo/(resist or eval) would be super OP if that was the case

Why is that? They dedicate 200 points and play on foot in order to still make less than a tamer and be easier to PK. Bards leave a tell-tale clue when they are hidden nearby anyway.

I almost responded to this with my own legitimate thoughts, but then I changed my mind because I remembered that if I did, every time I logged on to the forums for the next 5 days I would have a bunch of notifications that would make me want to rip my eyes out reading some dumbass, uninsightful responses.

Moving along.

notification

I dont think so. And I dont think that everyone will start playing a stealth bard as if there is no tomorrow. But let's assume that: if flooding the dungeons with no resist and/or no wrestling bards on foot wouldnt be benefical to pvp action, then i dont know what would be. Imagine the carnage a dexxer pk would bring.
(then calling any bard OP is a fallacy they dont even have all kill, but that's another story, and dont get me wrong, im perfectly ok with all kill)

What?

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Post Patch 73: A Study in Tracking

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Anyway, tracking will changes are inevitable.

Fuuuuucccckkkkk

*triggered*

Would not need to actually stealth around just the 100 points to be untrackable once you see any sort of pks recall out

The bards could still be mounted. All stealth would do is make it so you cannot be tracked. As soon as you see red recall out. Recall is a very quick spell