Ground Markers, and Avoiding them.

[Belvisa]

I consider myself to be a decent level of gamer, enough that when i see a red marking below me, i move. However 1/3 times an enemy lays one of these power moves at my feet, despite being clear of the attack i still take damage from it.

 

I thought at first this might be server lag, connecting to Balmung (NA) from the EU, so i kind of stopped worrying about it, however when i went to go and play on Cerberus (EU) for a few hours earlier i found the same thing happening there.

 

Is there some sort of bug with these abilities at the moment? or is it just something i'm failing to understand?

 

B

[Bloodtruffle]

I noticed this too. It's since improved a little since the updates yesterday, but still. You have to move IMMEDIATELY. Even if your character gets out of the way of the red marking while it's still on the ground and while the mob still 'appears' to be casting, I still wind up receiving damage 25-50% of the time. 

 

I'm playing Balmung and am in NA--so lag shouldn't be too much of a problem.

 

I'm in your same boat.

[Magellan]

There is a yellow bar that fills up as the mob is 'casting'. If the yellow bar fills up while you are still standing in the ground marker, regardless of the mobs animation, you will get hit.

 

Some mobs cast faster than others. Also, I am sure some of the timings might be off and need tweaking.

[Belvisa]

Perhaps its just server strain with so many people playing at the moment. i'll give it a few weeks and see if its fixed or whatever, time will tell

[Rhylund]

You need to be clear of the red marker by the time it disappears. I think a lot of people believe that so long as they aren't in the area when they 'see' the spell being cast they're safe, but that's not the case. If you're standing in red the moment the marker disappears, you're going to take the hit.

[Dravus]

It's best to play it safe and ensure you're not at the edge of the ground marker when a nasty ability is being cast.

[Belvisa]

This is neither of those things, i'm taking about getting well clear, and well before the ability/spell is completed

 

I have found however that moving behind the casting NPC tends to work better than moving away any other way, but i don't know if thats just an optemistic guess

[Qhon'ra Chalahko]

I've noticed some of the timings are off, on cast bars versus the red markers. Some of the mobs, you have to be on the move the second they start casting. Others, as long as you're out of the red before the cast bar is gone, you're okay. I think there are some cast times they'll need to adjust eventually.

[Miseria]

This is neither of those things, i'm taking about getting well clear, and well before the ability/spell is completed

 

I have found however that moving behind the casting NPC tends to work better than moving away any other way, but i don't know if thats just an optemistic guess

 

I've definitely noticed this as well  I often get totally clear before the cast bar finishes and still take damage. The only way I've found to avoid it is to start moving the second I see it.....but that sucks when trying to finish my own cast (even when I should have enough time to do so and move)

[Lost River]

That casting bar has been the bane of many people's existence. I've been hit a few times, no issues... now when it comes to the Bombs. If you don't run, most likely they'll insta-kill you on detonation. THAT, especially in a dungeon is annoying and frightening.

[allgivenover]

It's latency again. The EU servers are actually hosted in Montreal, Canada with the US servers. I know, it's silly.

[Adolar]

Aren't both the EU and NA servers hosted in Canada? That might partially explain why you're experiencing the same amount of lag on both regions.

 

EDIT: ^^^^ Already explained it.

[Shae'ra]

Most times, if I move clear away from it, I can manage to miss it. I have learned moving just barely out of range usually ends up with me taking the hit anyway. However, one I have never been able to dodge is the sneeze... as silly as it sounds, it's a frontal aoe however, even if I run through the monster and am behind him -- I still get hit.

[lady2beetle]

The ones that kill me (figuratively) are the cobyns and goblins in thanalan (the early levels). I swear those goblins cast faster than any mortal hero could move, and the cobyn aoe covers a bit too much area. But yeah. I'm noticing the exact same thing.

[KitKat]

The one that frustrated me to no end was Titan's straight-line aoe thing. I'd seriously be halfway across the platform and still wind up getting caught, and killed, by it.

[Crimmera Vahn]

I haven't had any issues, but I play non-casting characters so I move the second I see them.

 

I should probably also mention I live near Montreal.

[Tagyr]

As an Australian when I ever see a red marker I need to be out and halfway to Narnia to avoid whatever is associated with it. It isn't so bad, though I fear for when and if I ever start doing harder dungeons/raids. 

 

You really start noticing how bad it can get when you try to dodge the worst of it, like that cyclops in Coerthas with the 100 tonne insta-death swing.

[Colyer]

I have noticed depending on the ground angle, sometimes the red marker goes under the ground, mainly with the cone or straight line abilities.

[Random Encounter]

I have noticed depending on the ground angle, sometimes the red marker goes under the ground, mainly with the cone or straight line abilities.

Noticed that as well, elevations in the ground can hide portions if not all of the markings at times.

[Moondoggie]

The one that frustrated me to no end was Titan's straight-line aoe thing. I'd seriously be halfway across the platform and still wind up getting caught, and killed, by it.

 

Oh god yes. The AoE system in this game works different than any other game i have played. Normally with an AoE you can dodge out of it last minute and the only people who take damage are those still in the space. In this game it's not an AoE at all it's a timed casting. If the spell bar ends while you are still in the area even at the edge you get hit by the skill even though it casts after the area vanishes. You can be halfway across the room and the spell just zooms in on you.

 

It's a very cheap very Japanese way of doing things. JRPG's are always like this the Japanese players love cheap tactics in their games for some reason.

 

The only way i manage to avoid them is to strafe if i can do it quick enough if i am mid spell and need to cancel it to move forget it. A hit no matter what.

[Asyria]

There's nothing cheap about it, it's in fact a very straight and honest way to do it.

 

The AoE indicates where the attack will land (most MMO's don't show you so clearly).

 

The casting bar indicates when the attack will be done done (and by the way, it can be interrupted).

 

When the casting bar is full, the attack launches and if you are in the AoE (red) zone at this time, you're hit.

 

Animations are just for show, the above is the actual mechanic. It's simple and straightforward. Most games just show you emote or speech that hint at an incoming AoE and then you have to have studied the boss videos on YouTube and ideally, you have to get such or such 3rd party AddOn program to tell you about those attacks and you have to know ahead of time where you must go for each attack and bleeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaah it's a real PITA.

 

The only issue here is lag.

[Moondoggie]

I don't know how much of it is lag the mechanics are just a weird way to do things. Normally there will be a marker on the floor where the AoE will land and as long as you are out of it when the attack lands you will be fine. In this game you can be outside and i mean well outside the zone when the attack launches and it just does this zoom in animation and hits you anyway. It's either be outside the zone or manage to strafe outside really far in 1-2 seconds depending on what enemy you are facing.

 

It's even worse in a game that has no dodge ability it just decides if you dodge something on it's own and you'll never dodge on an AoE.

 

And yes it can be interrupted but on a boss fight? I don't think so. They just resist everything that could interrupt it.

 

I just don't see why it can't be like other games where if you are out of the marker when the attack happens you are safe. I don't like being a mile away and i still die.

[Jove]

I have to admit, the only time I'll get hit by an AOE is if I'm in or on the edge of the red marker and that's exactly how it's supposed to be. I've only got up to Ifrit, so I can't say for any higher level stuff, but I'm sure I read in the beta patch notes that the red marker is an exact area of where the damage will be, so if you're still being hit outside of the marker, I'm thinking either lag or a glitch.

[Briggs]

Currently, it better to rely on the mob's actual cast-bar than the marker itself.

 

On some fights, particularly those involving many players, you might not see the marker until it's too late. If you're familiar with the enemy's mechanics however, and remember to look out for their cast bar, it's typically pretty easy to get out of the way in time.

 

Of course, this is coming from a tank. It's my job to be on the lookout for casting.

[Ildur]

I have found that the most reliable way to avoid AoE's of any kind is to strafe to a side in a straight line as soon as the AoE shape appears.

 

Stunning is possible in most cases, but sometimes it is resisted (or the boss is plainly immune, like Titan), so I don't rely on stuns at all. Just strafing.