[7.3] Azortharion's Hunter Guides

[Keyimin]

Just got back after a ~8month break... and what the heck happened to us?

I can't be that naive to think no one else found these blatant bugs with hunters in beta and they couldn't fix them.. right?

For BM alone; half the tooltips display cooldown reductions that aren't correct, DB cancels my auto attack animation (Don't have swing timers, not sure if it cancels the actual auto attack) and the annoying whistle every 9 seconds makes the bread and butter ability so clunky and annoying, Volley doesn't seem to always trigger on auto attacks or maybe it just doesn't work in old raids(?).

The new pet AI is unbelievably bad and i am assuming they changed Assist mode so it no longer attacks things that hit you or you don't hit? My pet randomly runs ahead 30 yards when im standing still and pulls unnecessary mobs... this feels like im playing a VERY early alpha class build.

Yep, collectively, we've been complaining about all of these things since the beginning. Broken pet stance stuff is FINALLY being worked on, but "Pet AI is tricky" according to Ion, so who knows when that will be sorted. Until then, it's all about those macros tho :P

[Reloe]

tbh I don't see a big difference in Pet AI? and BM hunter is basically all I played in WoD(where I did challengemode all the time) and Beta.
i'm using this macro to target-switch:

/petpassive
/petattack
/petassist

That way pets won't switch targets unless I specifically tell them to do by pressing that macro again. Also since pets are still on assist, they don't run back to me if their current target dies, they attack the next one. With that its pretty easy to be attacking something 50yards away from your pets without them following you.
Yes I have to press a button everytime I want my pets to target-switch but I like this way more than the normal assist mode, as it offers better min/maxing.

[Keyimin]

tbh I don't see a big difference in Pet AI? and BM hunter is basically all I played in WoD(where I did challengemode all the time) and Beta.
i'm using this macro to target-switch:

That way pets won't switch targets unless I specifically tell them to do by pressing that macro again. Also since pets are still on assist, they don't run back to me if their current target dies, they attack the next one. With that its pretty easy to be attacking something 50yards away from your pets without them following you.
Yes I have to press a button everytime I want my pets to target-switch but I like this way more than the normal assist mode, as it offers better min/maxing.

Except if your pet is on assist, they will run back to you if the current target dies unless you're micromanaging them with a macro. That's fine in group content (and far less noticeable obv), but the stance difference is easy to see when you're in open-world content pulling a bunch of mobs yourself (without micromanaging). If a target dies and you do nothing with /petattack, they will not only run back to you, they will take a beating the whole way there and not give a shit. I'd much prefer to have assist stance working properly for when I want it to and being able to micromanage via macro in instances as I choose.

In any event, the issue has been acknowledged as unintentional behavior that's being worked on.

P.S. And it applies to all pet classes. Locks have been complaining about it as well.

[Reloe]

guess you didn't 100% understand what i'm trying to say.
With that macro i'm using, they are NOT behaving like being on assist-mode but they technically are still on assist.
Whenever I press that macro my pets will attack my current target, if I then switch the target and attack it with any abilities, pets will not change their target, they will continue attacking what I told them to first. Even Kill command will be cast on the 1st target while I am attacking the 2nd.
Whenever their target dies, they switch back to the normal behaviour of assist-mode. I just tested this to be sure and it works exactly like that.
don't ask me why it works this way, since the last command in that macro is /petassist but it does.
So this is basically using a /petattack /petassist and /petpassive /petattack in one macro.
And thats EXACTLY what I want my pets to behave like.

[Keyimin]

guess you didn't 100% understand what i'm trying to say.
With that macro i'm using, they are NOT behaving like being on assist-mode but they technically are still on assist.
Whenever I press that macro my pets will attack my current target, if I then switch the target and attack it with any abilities, pets will not change their target, they will continue attacking what I told them to first. Even Kill command will be cast on the 1st target while I am attacking the 2nd.
Whenever their target dies, they switch back to the normal behaviour of assist-mode. I just tested this to be sure and it works exactly like that.
don't ask me why it works this way, since the last command in that macro is /petassist but it does.
So this is basically using a /petattack /petassist and /petpassive /petattack in one macro.
And thats EXACTLY what I want my pets to behave like.

I did understand what you meant; I was just saying that assist should work as it's supposed to in the absence of macros

[Effinhunter]

I did understand what you meant; I was just saying that assist should work as it's supposed to in the absence of macros

Well, it's not really important what "should" or "should not" be implemented into the game. What we have to do is deal with the actual implemented mechanics, and that macro is a good way to overcome the problems with the in-game AI.

[Thursley]

Just got back after a ~8month break... and what the heck happened to us?

I can't be that naive to think no one else found these blatant bugs with hunters in beta and they couldn't fix them.. right?

For BM alone; half the tooltips display cooldown reductions that aren't correct, DB cancels my auto attack animation (Don't have swing timers, not sure if it cancels the actual auto attack) and the annoying whistle every 9 seconds makes the bread and butter ability so clunky and annoying, Volley doesn't seem to always trigger on auto attacks or maybe it just doesn't work in old raids(?).

The new pet AI is unbelievably bad and i am assuming they changed Assist mode so it no longer attacks things that hit you or you don't hit? My pet randomly runs ahead 30 yards when im standing still and pulls unnecessary mobs... this feels like im playing a VERY early alpha class build.

If you're having issues with cooldowns on tooltips it's probably an addon, or you just aren't noticing something that's happening with your haste. I haven't seen any issues with this, or heard anyone else talking about it, so almost certainly not a bug (post specific information if you disagree). Most abilities override the auto-attack animation, some things delay auto-attacks (intentionally), either way those aren't bugs. The DB whistle isn't a bug, but it was quieted in a hotfix anyway, and saying THAT is something that makes the ability "clunky" makes it clear that word has no real meaning. As for Volley, maybe it can't trigger if you're 1-shotting low level enemies with auto attacks or something like that. I guess you could call it a bug, but it's hardly a game-breaking issue blizzard needs to prioritize right away, if you're 1-shotting things anyway multi-shot will be plenty anyway.

Pet AI is the one thing on the list that is actually a serious issue, but there was a hotfix yesterday for petassist so it should be better.

[Cheze]

guess you didn't 100% understand what i'm trying to say.
With that macro i'm using, they are NOT behaving like being on assist-mode but they technically are still on assist.
Whenever I press that macro my pets will attack my current target, if I then switch the target and attack it with any abilities, pets will not change their target, they will continue attacking what I told them to first. Even Kill command will be cast on the 1st target while I am attacking the 2nd.
Whenever their target dies, they switch back to the normal behaviour of assist-mode. I just tested this to be sure and it works exactly like that.
don't ask me why it works this way, since the last command in that macro is /petassist but it does.
So this is basically using a /petattack /petassist and /petpassive /petattack in one macro.
And thats EXACTLY what I want my pets to behave like.

maybe there's something I'm not getting, but how is this different from the default 'assist' behavior?

[Keyimin]

Well, it's not really important what "should" or "should not" be implemented into the game. What we have to do is deal with the actual implemented mechanics, and that macro is a good way to overcome the problems with the in-game AI.

I guess you missed my first post, which was only in response to someone inquiring about assist being broken:

Yep, collectively, we've been complaining about all of these things since the beginning. Broken pet stance stuff is FINALLY being worked on, but "Pet AI is tricky" according to Ion, so who knows when that will be sorted. Until then, it's all about those macros tho :P

I'm quite aware of the need to use macros to overcome the problems. My original response was merely to confirm for the person who asked that it is indeed a bug, not "actual implemented mechanics" that's being worked on. And according to the post after yours, there was a hotfix for it yesterday. I can't get in game to test until later.

[Reloe]

maybe there's something I'm not getting, but how is this different from the default 'assist' behavior?

default assist behavior would make pets switch their target whenever you do.
some macro people use is: /petpassive /petattack which makes your pets stick on the target you used it on even if you switch your target, but when their current target dies they run back to you since they're on passive.
The macro I use also makes pets stick to the target you used it on, however after it dies they follow the normal assist behavior instead of passive behavior.
also default assist behavior has some delay in switching targets which often causes your KC to go on the old target.

[Cheze]

right but like, doesn't the pet behave the same way if it's on assist and you just use the manual /petattack command by itself? It certainly seems like it causes the pet to 'stick' until the target dies.

I haven't observed the target swapping behavior closely enough I guess

[Alvarie]

If you're having issues with cooldowns on tooltips it's probably an addon, or you just aren't noticing something that's happening with your haste. I haven't seen any issues with this, or heard anyone else talking about it, so almost certainly not a bug (post specific information if you disagree). Most abilities override the auto-attack animation, some things delay auto-attacks (intentionally), either way those aren't bugs. The DB whistle isn't a bug, but it was quieted in a hotfix anyway, and saying THAT is something that makes the ability "clunky" makes it clear that word has no real meaning. As for Volley, maybe it can't trigger if you're 1-shotting low level enemies with auto attacks or something like that. I guess you could call it a bug, but it's hardly a game-breaking issue blizzard needs to prioritize right away, if you're 1-shotting things anyway multi-shot will be plenty anyway.

Pet AI is the one thing on the list that is actually a serious issue, but there was a hotfix yesterday for petassist so it should be better.

The issue with Cool downs is not a UI issue.


Says 30 seconds, and if i am understanding the wording correctly, every DB should reduce the cooldown by 30 seconds but instead its only doing 12 seconds.

DB does feel clunky and un "Beast Master" like but thats just personal opinion, the animation for it is slow and over exaggerated ontop of being loud (I understand they lowered the volume for it last hotfix, but still...) and i just feel like they could of done so much more towards the visual appeal of an ability that we will essentially be spamming all expansion - assuming you play BM.

The one-hitting mobs not triggering volley makes since, i wish it still worked even if you hit them but as you said i could just multishot to the same effect.

[Thursley]

You're totally right, I forgot about Bestial Wrath's tooltip, it's wrong. But that's exactly 1 ability, not "half the tooltips" as you said, and it's not so much a bug, just a tooltip they haven't updated after an intended change to the ability (they can't push tooltip updates as easily as other changes, this has been the case for a while).

As for Dire Beast you may be able to lower the volume further by messing with the sound files, but I haven't looked into that. Personally, to the extent that I care at all (admittedly not much), I think it's better that actual abilities have exaggerated animations that override the auto-attack, and summoning a bunch of beasts seems as 'beastmastery' as it gets to my mind, but of course everyone's different. Look into Glyphs if you want to change what beasts get summoned (one uses your stabled pets, one uses only spiders, one uses victims of Nesingwary), and/or you can use the Dire Frenzy talent also.

[Azortharion]

Basically, we'd love more people on board with testing the SimCraft module programming for errors and whatnot.

You can find the post and its links directly in the official Trueshot Lodge Hunter Discord server, available here: https://discord.gg/yqer4BX

[Laurix]

I apologize if this has already been answered, I tried looking on your guide on IV and didn't find an answer.

What's the exact order of talents we should be putting into the Marksman Artifact bow?

[Deleted]

What's the exact order of talents we should be putting into the Marksman Artifact bow?

fastest way to "Gust of Wind" (not because it's a good trait)
then left to your 1st Gold from there
after that right - up - right to your 2nd gold
and then up - right to your 3rd gold.

You'll get your first Gold fairlry late (1+ weeks in after reaching 110(?)) that way, but all 3 with all the good traits the fastest.

You could get your first Gold trait as soon as you finish Suramar (basically shortly after reaching 110) if you are willing to delay the others or give up on +10% Crit damage on AiS for Turtle %HP heal for the first ~9 weeks, doing that however, will push the Trueshot CD recude Trait back even further.

[Laurix]

fastest way to "Gust of Wind" (not because it's a good trait)
then left to your 1st Gold from there
after that right - up - right to your 2nd gold
and then up - right to your 3rd gold.

You'll get your first Gold fairlry late (1+ weeks in) that way, but all 3 with all the good traits the fastest.

Ah, I just read somewhere else that going for Bullseye first is better than Legacy of the Windrunner (no idea if it's true).

Also, if I follow as you said, after bottom left when going for second gold, am I skipping "rapid killing" when going for Bullseye?

[Deleted]

I wouldn't

[Azortharion]

Neither is "better", you'll have 21-22 traits going into raids and going for both is 20 traits, therefore it's the same either way.

[Noocta]

THere was some nice pictures with paths oln artefacts posted a bit earlier in the thread, you can refer to that I'm sure.