Swarm pets on raids

[Midgebil]

My raiding guild has been having problems with mez being broken during raids, fingers have been pointed to necro and conjuror swarm pets. Do any of you know if our swarm pets can  or do switch mobs? Is the blame being falsely laid? <div></div>

[Eesti]

They are just like normal dot's except for the fact that they are visible as creatures while active and just like normal dot's they don't switch target. /Atziamhe <div></div>

[Named]

<DIV>Actually, they can switch mobs. They will sometimes switch if you cast them on a mob and another mob starts beating on you. </DIV>

[Midgebil]

Yeah, I've seen them switch before (rarely) but I'm not sure they can break mez. If I remember correctly, don't swarm pets die as soon as a mob it's been sent on, is mezzed? <div></div>

[MaxLi]

Wow!  I have NEVER seen swarm pets change targets.  As was said above, they are simply DoTs with a different visual component.  <shrug>  I guess anything is possible, but my rats know better than to anywhere other than where I tell'em. <div></div>

[Thakar]

I'm pretty sure I've seen my rats change targets, although I'm not sure what caused it.  Another difference between rats and a DoT is that the rats have very low HP and tend to get killed very, very quickly, especially if something AEs or if you position them incorrectly and they get hit with a riposte. <div></div>

[Allowen]

<DIV>Swarn pets can switch targets when they are hit by some AE spell/skill by other mob .</DIV>

[Thuyk]

<DIV>They can definitely switch targets (although usually not by your choice, unfortunately :smileyhappy:  ).  I was watching my gf go through the old Bloodlines adventure pack, and with the large groups of vampires, they would switch VERY often, from the target she cast it on to one of the ones that was beating on her.  After killing the secondary target, it'd move to another doing the same, and so on.  The most I saw was four mobs (all in the same linked encounter) attacked by one casting.  Curiously, this didn't happen at all when she was soloing the Splitpaw teaser (which also has large groups of mobs).  So, as another posted above, maybe it's certain AoE attacks that cause them to switch?  </DIV>

[Urbanna]

<span><blockquote><hr>Thuyker wrote:<div>They can definitely switch targets (although usually not by your choice, unfortunately :smileyhappy:  ).  I was watching my gf go through the old Bloodlines adventure pack, and with the large groups of vampires, they would switch VERY often, from the target she cast it on to one of the ones that was beating on her.  After killing the secondary target, it'd move to another doing the same, and so on.  The most I saw was four mobs (all in the same linked encounter) attacked by one casting.  Curiously, this didn't happen at all when she was soloing the Splitpaw teaser (which also has large groups of mobs).  So, as another posted above, maybe it's certain AoE attacks that cause them to switch?  </div><hr></blockquote>It's happened to me 1-2 times each pass through splitpaw....I'm not sure if it's just a cooincidence or not, but at least a couple of the times they switched was just as the original target died.</span><div></div>

[Uanelven]

<div></div><span>mm..  They can and do switch targets.  I'm not sure as to the exact cause of it but I have seen it happen (all be it rarely).   Very surprising but there is a situation where this will happen.   They are not just DOT's with graphics.  I have seen MOBS targeting them before also. I was stunned when I first saw it.   Something had made them switch from the original target and then return to it.. I don't think, at this stage, they are mez breakers though as I'm regularly with a chanter.   </span><span></span><p>Message Edited by Uanelven on <span class=date_text>06-21-2005</span> <span class=time_text>06:52 AM</span>

[Midgebil]

I know alot of the necros who post on these boards said they were in raiding guilds. Do your guilds allow swarm pets on raids, where mezzing is important? If they allow them, have there been any problems with mezzing? <div></div>

[Necronstreks]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> Midgebil wrote:<BR>My raiding guild has been having problems with mez being broken during raids, fingers have been pointed to necro and conjuror swarm pets. Do any of you know if our swarm pets can  or do switch mobs? Is the blame being falsely laid? <BR> <BR> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE> <P><BR>I would make a strong arguement that it's an HO or the zerker/sk/warlocks not minding their AE's.</P> <DIV>That's just what I've seen.</DIV>

[Uanelven]

<span><blockquote><hr><p>I would make a strong arguement that it's an HO </p><hr></blockquote>This is likely.  Some spells which aren't even AE finish HO with an AE hit.   Our stun line does it, not sure about other classes.  </span><div></div>

[gr8scott]

<P>They can switch targets.</P> <P> </P> <P>If you would like to see it yourself, try to send them out in such a way that they have to run past a rooted mob.  They will generally switch when the rooted mob beats on them.</P> <P> </P> <P>Greatscott</P>

[Eirgo]

<P>I played around with them switching targets a bit in Feerrott at the Evol Ews near the ROI camp spot.  Alot of the time they would spawn with one mender, one warder, and one disciple (or something like that).  </P> <P>In these cases, I would send the pet after the warder, then switch him to the disciple after getting aggro from the warder first.  Then I could burn down the mender in about 15secs using clinging stench and master strike, but first I would cast the dogs on the warder, but as soon as the mender hit me the dogs would switch to it and help me kill it quick.  </P> <P>When the mender died, they would go back to the original target of the warder.  This was nice because those warders love to heal.</P> <P>Eirgorn</P> <p>Message Edited by Eirgorn on <span class=date_text>06-22-2005</span> <span class=time_text>09:39 AM</span>

[hossty]

I've (Rarely) seen them visually switch targets and then still de-pop when the original target dies.  I've never been witness to this causing mezz to break.  Is it possible that this is just visual, and they are not actually doing damage when switching targets?  In my exp.  The HO ending AE's are the most likely cause of broken Mezz.

[Hekt]

<DIV>The swarm pets do switch targets just the same as your pet does while in the defending attack modes.</DIV> <DIV>I havn't done extensive testing on this, but turning your pet's defensive behaviors off with /pet back off affects your swarm pets just the same.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>For example, during raids against mobs where my rats would get AE'd by mobs often, keeping them from switching targets was impossible - they even freely attack already mezzed mobs.  Ever since SoE implemented the option to turn off defensive behaviors for your pet, I simply turn defensive behaviors off (defend me, defend yourself) and the rats do not switch targets.</DIV>

[Eirgo]

<P>Hmm good point.  This would explain why my packhounds were ceasing to attack the mobs I was kiting everyonce and a while.  Must have been because my pet gained aggro and when I backed him off, the hounds took the same cue, and proceeded to wander off aimlessly and get lost in the snow.</P> <P>Eirgorn</P>

[wurtin]

<P>I started to notice this after I got Grasping Bones.  At 30 and 31 I was doing siren 2-mob enocounters in EL.</P> <P>I believe it all has to do with your own hate list.  My technique involed getting both sirens on my pet.  Then take the one the pet isn't attacking and cast Withering Affliction, then dogs, then start an HO chain.  before finishing the chain, cast petrify (mob may have had one swing at me by then).  Then finish HO chain and cast grasping bones.  At this point, my mob has been stunned for several seconds while the other siren is continuing to AoE me.  I can get to this point without being hit by the siren that is on me at all.  at this point, the dogs will go help the pet and stay on that mob until my mob starts hitting me or dies.</P> <P> Pets should have the same rule as pets from EQ1 where they can't break mez.</P> <DIV>I could see the raid situation though.  The main mob isn't damaging you, one of the mezzed mobs, breaks and casts AoE.  Since you aren't taking damage from the main mob, the dogs/rats veer of and try to eat the mob that has just been re-mezzed by the chanter.</DIV>

[Nainitsuj]

<P>I've watched the necro casters in RV (forgot the name) have their pets switch targets (from my pet to me) more than once.  As well I've watched my aoe dots hit the rats and a few seconds later, they die.</P> <P>They are more than a simple dot, they are dumb fire pets and appear to have their own hate list.  </P>