BodyGuard Help Please


Captin_Lemming

 

Posted

How do you do "Bodyguard" ?

I used to have a link to where someone explained it to me specifically >.>

But the link is dead now.

Is it a Macro? can I edit the pet aggressive thingy?


 

Posted

I usually make a macro:
/macro "BG" "petcom_all def follow"

You could just as easily bind it to a key:
/bind <key> /petcom_all def follow

I've never liked the default pet control icons that get put on the tray; I'd rather have at least an abbreviation ("BG", "Pass", etc.) so I'm not sure if you can edit them, but it just takes a right-click to find out.

There's also a whole series of binds that people seem to like to use, but they involve the number pad keys which I use for movement (and it wouldn't make sense to use those binds with other keys; the layout of the number pad is perfect for them). That may be helpful to you as well.


 

Posted

A pet is in bodyguard when it is in defensive/follow, defensive/goto, or defensive/stay and within Supremacy range. You can edit the pet aggressive thingy to make it enable bodyguard, yes.


 

Posted

i have only 3 binds to keep it simple

def goto
atk (if i used above their aggresive and staying put)
and def...i use the power try buttons for rest
i dont wana load it down with to many binds


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
I usually make a macro:
/macro "BG" "petcom_all def follow"

You could just as easily bind it to a key:
/bind <key> /petcom_all def follow

I've never liked the default pet control icons that get put on the tray; I'd rather have at least an abbreviation ("BG", "Pass", etc.) so I'm not sure if you can edit them, but it just takes a right-click to find out.

There's also a whole series of binds that people seem to like to use, but they involve the number pad keys which I use for movement (and it wouldn't make sense to use those binds with other keys; the layout of the number pad is perfect for them). That may be helpful to you as well.

[/ QUOTE ]

When using defensive follow (the first macro on the list) there is a delay of 8-10 seconds or so before pets will actually respond to fire. You do get shifted into BG mode immediately but if you are actively taking fire your pets won't respond for a while. This threw me off when I first began using bodyguard mode because it never seemed to work right.


Globals: @Midnight Mystique/@Magik13

 

Posted

yes thats y u just make a def bind so they go to BG mode but will still atk.

like fighting an AV i tell them to atk AV only.. then shift to def they still only atk AV but are in BG no pause in fire.


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
There's also a whole series of binds that people seem to like to use, but they involve the number pad keys which I use for movement (and it wouldn't make sense to use those binds with other keys; the layout of the number pad is perfect for them).

[/ QUOTE ]

Although the numpad is well-suited to the layout of the controls, the concept of the binds isn't limited to just using the numpad. This is a key point and is mentioned in the guide, together with alternate layout suggestions (ie the idea behind what the binds do came first, and the 'fit' with the numpad was just a bonus).

The idea of using the same three command and three stance setting keys, and rebinding them on the fly with four group selection keys, is the heart of the system. However, the 3-3-4 layout fitting the numpad extremely well should not limit one's use of the system. Alternate pre-existing use of the numpad or the hand-off-the-mouse problem (to give two examples), won't preclude someone from employing the binds effectively if they assign them to any other preferred layout of keys.


"When heroes fail, the Angels will save you."

MASTERMIND NUMERIC KEYPAD PET CONTROLS
HAMIDON NUKE RAID GUIDE

 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
yes thats y u just make a def bind so they go to BG mode but will still atk.

like fighting an AV i tell them to atk AV only.. then shift to def they still only atk AV but are in BG no pause in fire.

[/ QUOTE ]

Actually thats exactly what I was warning about- if I issue a petcom_all attack command, then issue a petcom_all follow defensive command they will stop attacking and not respond for 8-10 seconds, which can be ugly if you have incoming fire. If you are using anything other than follow, goto or stay in defensive mode you don't actually get BG mode benefits.

I used to think that you could use petcom_all attack defensive to put them in attack mode temporarily and then have them shift back to BG mode when the current target was finished but I found out recently that that only works if the target was the last one currently aggroed, until then you stay in attack mode rather than follow mode and you don't get BG until the pets shift back to follow mode. You can see this if you put the pet window into advanced mode, which shows pets current status for each command type (attack/follow/stay and offensive/defensive/passive). When you isue the follow defensive command the pet icons go to defensive and follow, when you issue the attack defensive command the the follow icon switches to attack mode which means you are NOT in BG mode and it only switches back when all targets you have currently aggroed are finished off.

FYI - to the OP, make sure you put your pet window into advanced mode - that way you will always know what mode your pets are in. Open the options menu in the pet window to do this, in this mode you get two icons to show the pet status:

Icon 1 indicates status: Passive, defensive aggresive
Icon 2 indicates current orders: attack my target, goto, follow and stay.

I know that you are in BG mode if the icons are in defensive, follow. I have had people say that defensive goto and defensive stay also works although I know you have to pay some attention to distance between you and your pets (BG mode only works on pets who aren't to far from you but I don't remember the range) but I have also had some posters claim only defensive follow puts you in BG mode. I haven't actually seen proof one way or the other about that (i.e in game numbers).

As for fighting in bg mode - generally the method i have found best is to put your pets into defensive follow, then attack/debuff the targets to draw fire to yourself. They will counter attack with the primary drawback being that you can't direct their fire. You can keep attacking/debuffing to draw aggro to yourself but eventually it shifts mostly to the pets at which point I start directing thier fire and abandon BG mode. For sets that don't have a lot of debuffs (pain dom/FF) taking provoke is a nice way to pull aggro but it isn't anough on its own to keep it.


Globals: @Midnight Mystique/@Magik13

 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
I know that you are in BG mode if the icons are in defensive, follow. I have had people say that defensive goto and defensive stay also works although I know you have to pay some attention to distance between you and your pets (BG mode only works on pets who aren't to far from you but I don't remember the range) but I have also had some posters claim only defensive follow puts you in BG mode. I haven't actually seen proof one way or the other about that (i.e in game numbers).

[/ QUOTE ]
The pets have to be in Supremacy range for BG mode to work. Supremacy's radius is 60 feet, the same as Leadership buffs. I show pet buffs using the triangle on the side of the pet window and then Hide Autopowers so the icons don't take up the whole screen. This hides the Supremacy icon, but since Assault/Tactics/Maneuvers cover the same area, they'll tell you when pets are in range just as well. For Thugs, the Enforcers' leadership buffs can confuse the issue, but I rarely have any Thugs but the Bruiser out of follow mode anyway.