I GMd tracking today. It was very depressing. What was the original design?

[Cear Dallben Dragon]

I'm glad this thing has a use with ninjutsu but damn.
I had a char I was working on the side with a few old useless skills. Tracking, forensics, ect. I noticed he was at 73 tracking and I got my bud to log on so i could see how effective my tracking was at certain distances. The results were pretty much 0. I couldn't track him at any distance that was off screen.

So I GMd it.
At 100 tracking you have a 0% Chance to track anything off screen.
This skill needs work. I feel that at 100 tracking I should be able to track people down the halls and rooms of dungeons screens away.

This makes me wonder what the original design of this skill was.
I would love the designer who was originally behind tracking to tell me what the point of having an arrow above a sheep thats on screen was.
Can any of you think of one?
In this end this is another petition to re-vamp skills that seem to have lost purpose. I think the game needs this more than topiaries.

 

[Lorddog]

is your test subject in your guild or alliance?

 

[lankdogg03]

If you track them while they are on screen you can continue to track them even when they go off screen. Im not sure of the exact distance. Yes, tracking a sheep right there on your screen isnt very helpful but using tracking to discover a stealther and then chasing them down can be quite helpful.

 

[Viper09]

Yeah. I think I remember the tracking working on players/creatures off screen to a certain degree (by which I mean selecting your tracking target). Maybe the distance of picking up on your target changed when they changed the area of effect for detect hidden?

 

[Raptor85]

I'd gather 75-80% of my kills and thefts happen thanks to tracking, It's especially great against stealthers (particularly of the tamer variety)

Not sure of the range but I use JOAT tracking and 80 detect hidden (detect hidden boosts tracking skill also) and I'm able to track people just off my screen, and follow them even if they're a sizable distance from me, I've tracked people from town all the way to the spot where they're digging for a chest, and kept people tracked while running them down through britain. I honestly couldn't imagine not having it.

 

[Cear Dallben Dragon]

Not sure of the range but I use JOAT tracking and 80 detect hidden (detect hidden boosts tracking skill also) and I'm able to track people just off my screen, and follow them even if they're a sizable distance from me, I've tracked people from town all the way to the spot where they're digging for a chest, and kept people tracked while running them down through britain. I honestly couldn't imagine not having it.

Yeah, not sure what thats about either. Ive noticed on my other char people with JOAT tracking have no problem picking up my GM Stealther. He does however only have 80 hiding.

Dunno, Ive got no problem with the distance you can remain tracking someone. I just feel the overall idea behind tracking is to find someone that was there and find out where they are now. Not to find someone thats still there. I really just think you should be able to find things off screen. Right now the only use for tracking is stealthers. The animal and monster and npc selections are worthless, as you can already see them on screen.