The mobile immobile? (Anther's Call) 06/17/2015 09:45 PM CDT
How does an immobile thing move [sidestep]?

R>maneuver cleave
Taking a full step back, you plant your feet and ready a mighty attack.
>cast
You gesture at a granite gargoyle.
A low, pure note chimes from the ground below.
The ground around a granite gargoyle begins to churn violently as dozens of large hands fashioned from living earth surge into view! The hands swarm over a granite gargoyle's body, gripping its extremities and rendering it completely immobile!
The complementary nature of the spell empowers you.
Roundtime: 2 sec.
R>
A granite gargoyle blinks rapidly, otherwise motionless.
R>
Swiftly, you attempt to cleave through a granite gargoyle with your blade!

A granite gargoyle deftly sidesteps your marauder blade.
[You're bruised, adeptly balanced and in dominating position.]
Roundtime: 9 sec.
R>
The hands release their grip on a granite gargoyle and fall to the ground, reverting to piles of earth that slowly crumble away.
Reply
Re: The mobile immobile? (Anther's Call) 06/17/2015 09:57 PM CDT
That's just a product of normal combat messaging. Immobilization is a debuff to defenses effectively, it doesn't ensure you'll hit the mob in question. Sometimes the messages don't quite mesh.



Thayet
Follow @thayelf on Twitter for absolutely nothing of any value whatsoever!
Reply
Re: The mobile immobile? (Anther's Call) 06/17/2015 11:07 PM CDT
The same mystic power that allows things to stand without legs!

That said, a world where immobilization, unconsciousness, and various other states made it impossible for you to dodge would not be a world you necessarily wanted to live in. Eventually, some critter is going to inflict one of those states on you...



>Forgive my snark, but welcome to the life of a warrior mage.
Reply
Re: The mobile immobile? (Anther's Call) 06/18/2015 06:26 AM CDT
Thank you for the responses. I figured that was the case. Still, the spell messaging combined with the combat messaging creates an unrealistic reality that is unnerving to observe. I make a thing completely immobile. It is confirmed motionless. Then it moves (side steps) vice I miss (fail to hit/strike). Other messaging, involving less motion (primarily of the still rooted in place sort) is comprehendible; parries, blocks, evasive maneuvers that do not involve entire bodily movements like turns, leans, ducks, etc. I can accept failing to hit a stationary thing. Frustrating as it may be it is believable. Watching a completely immobile and motionless thing move; however, is not.

Obviously the mechanics are working as intended. Unfortunately, the directly conflicting messaging remains disturbing. On a positive note, I tend to enjoy watching my bipedal enemies struggle and fail to stand after severing one of their legs.
Reply
Re: The mobile immobile? (Anther's Call) 06/18/2015 06:45 AM CDT
Although this combat messaging bugs me, I do have some kudos for the spell. I appreciate that it effectively immobilizes things in other instances:
(1) It forces a prone thing to remain prone for its duration.
(2) It prevents engagement range changes by the target (advance/retreat).
Reply
Re: The mobile immobile? (Anther's Call) 06/18/2015 07:08 AM CDT
Just to add to this. The defensive messaging in combat for critters (dodging/blocking/parrying) are fairly random in how they are used. The numbers behind the scenes are all combined into one Defensive Factor (DF) score that is compared to your Offensive Factor score (OF). Because of this there is no way to decide how they defended if they win, so a random message is picked.

In this situation it looks like you had a critical failure, and the game picked the evading message to show it.
Reply