Why are mob corpses targettable?

Valymer · November 2014

It doesn't seem like it was always like this, but maybe it was and I just didn't fully realize what was happening.

As a ranged character, I have noticed lately that if there is a mob corpse between me and my target, often my character will uselessly attempt to cast on the corpse instead of the target, which wastes a huge amount of time and is obviously undesirable.

For purposes of the combat system, I don't think corpses should be targettable. I don't know how that would work with things like werewolf Devour but the current system isn't working well at all. I understand that the combat system requires skill in maneuvering to acquire targets, and I don't have any problem with this if the targets are alive and standing upright, but is there really justification for having corpses targettable when attacking?

Is this a bug, or an intended "feature"?

KenjiJU · November 2014

I've noticed this after one of the later updates as well. I'd gather a clump of spiders and not be able to attack the one that's alive without tab targeting. (This is part of the reason I'd much prefer melee attacks to be small aoe instead of requiring targets.)

Devour doesn't require you to target a corpse, just be within proximity.

Valymer · November 2014

So it is a somewhat recent change then. I guess I should bug it? Hard to believe that it is intended.

Gilvoth · November 2014

i remember when we used to get the message
"you cannot do that while in warewolf form"
while we were trying to fish and go fishing.

im only mentioning this in hopes that it is realized that we have had bugs previously that are now gone. i know this is not much help but i do have to admit eso is much better today then it was 6 months ago.

the bug you mention i am also having and is undesirable as you mentioned.
also, i would like to point out that After i kill something or someone in iether pvp or pve i cannot target it when i want to lol.
i can only seem to target dead creatures and people when i do Not want to target them. but when i do want to target the dead person or npc it's untargetable lol.

Fruitmass · November 2014

Meh, it's not really a new issue, it's been driving me nuts since pretty close to launch. And yeah spiders are the absolute pits for it.

It has to do with the really funky hitboxes around targets. Basically the still living spider is standing in the hitbox of the already dead spider and as a result the living spider is blocked from your line of sight.

Valymer · November 2014

Fruitmass wrote: »

Meh, it's not really a new issue, it's been driving me nuts since pretty close to launch. And yeah spiders are the absolute pits for it.

It has to do with the really funky hitboxes around targets. Basically the still living spider is standing in the hitbox of the already dead spider and as a result the living spider is blocked from your line of sight.

The problem is that dead mobs should not have hitboxes at all. I don't need to hit dead mobs

Fruitmass · November 2014

Valymer wrote: »

Fruitmass wrote: »

Meh, it's not really a new issue, it's been driving me nuts since pretty close to launch. And yeah spiders are the absolute pits for it.

It has to do with the really funky hitboxes around targets. Basically the still living spider is standing in the hitbox of the already dead spider and as a result the living spider is blocked from your line of sight.

The problem is that dead mobs should not have hitboxes at all. I don't need to hit dead mobs

Not arguing that, I quite agree with you. Just wanted to explain the issue in case you weren't aware of what was causing it.

Valymer · November 2014

Fruitmass wrote: »

Valymer wrote: »

Fruitmass wrote: »

Meh, it's not really a new issue, it's been driving me nuts since pretty close to launch. And yeah spiders are the absolute pits for it.

It has to do with the really funky hitboxes around targets. Basically the still living spider is standing in the hitbox of the already dead spider and as a result the living spider is blocked from your line of sight.

The problem is that dead mobs should not have hitboxes at all. I don't need to hit dead mobs

Not arguing that, I quite agree with you. Just wanted to explain the issue in case you weren't aware of what was causing it.

I know, that was directed at the Internet void, not at you. From any perspective, it seems to be a bug and I can only hope that Zenimax is aware of it and manages to fix it soon. By my best estimates, it lowers my DPS by at least 200 when there are multiple mobs on the screen (i.e. most of the time), so it isn't an insignificant bug.

phatbandit · November 2014

no kidding, i made a thread about this a little while back

just last night i was in a delve with a free crystal shards ready to go, had 2 targets and fired on them while still on the move myself. didn't hit either of them, but did hit the harmless bug on the table between them...

game should prioritise hostile targets, then neutral targets, then corpses as lowest priority. instead it seems to be the reverse.

but then again, everybody knows that bodies on the ground and bugs are waaaaay more dangerous than the assassin next to them with the unsheathed twin daggers...

Coatmagic · November 2014

Since patch before last, all of my characters are having this problem, in every zone, with every type of mob. I do not know what they did, but it certainly needs to be fixed. Have died due to being oom or oos because of not noticing soon enough that all of my attacks were landing on corpses instead of the living.

elowan · November 2014

Just to add my two cents here:

I'd echo the thought that there's really no good reason (at least, at the moment) to be able to target corpses at all.

This has always been an issue in the game, since beta, and spiders have traditionally been some of the worst offenders.

That said, I would agree that at least anecdotally, I feel like the problem has gotten worse recently. In the past few weeks, I feel like I've had several instances where I literally spend 10 seconds mid-battle, scrambling around, trying to target spider(s) who were standing in piles of their friends' corpses. Feels worse than before, but that might just be random chance.

Either way, you'd think it would be a simple problem to suppress corpse hit boxes...

Circuitous · November 2014

Targeting corpses is dumb.

nine9six · November 2014

Please make it to where you cannot target a corpse.

Thank you!

xaraan · December 2014

I haven't noticed this issue, if so, it should definitely not be the case. It already drives me crazy having my target highlighted, shooting something at it, and then having the rat or spider insect beside it get hit, even though it wasn't selected. It would be even worse having that happen with something that's already dead.

whsprwind · December 2014

The corpses need to remain targettable so we can be stuck in combat forever.

Magdalina · December 2014

Yup, still there. Nothing like trying to interrupt a spider feeding on a corpse and targetting the corpse until spider fully heals.

phatbandit · December 2014

hope dev's have read this, are u there dev's???

Lynnessa · December 2014

I think they're 'targetable' because they're lootable.

Are you sure that you aren't aiming at the corpse/creature? Even if I have a mob hard-targetted (you know, with the little box on it) I can still hit other things if I aim at them.

Elf_Boy · December 2014

Except on my WW. And no longer, I have never been able to target a corpse.

I am curious what circumstances would casue a need for a corpse to be targetable?

I saw another player doing some sorft of spell effect on corses last night. So he/she definetaly needed to target the dead.

A set bonus/class ability I have not used yet?