Seeking tips: Melee Range

[Feaniad]

(Orig. posted on LOTRO forums, but seems it'd get more views here)

I recently returned to LOTRO and I am leveling up the toons I abandoned, they're ALL under level 20.

I've been surprised and frustrated playing melee, and I'm hoping I'm just doing something wrong.

It seems that when I am fighting a mob and the mob decides that it wants to run (stumble, really) away that I can no longer hit it.

I have tried manually walking to keep up with it and staying in what appears to be melee range but my styles simply fail because I'm not in range.

I tried walking right on top of the mob, but that's not easy given that I move a bit faster (I haven't tried walking).

I also tried enabling the gameplay option of automatically staying with the target, but I get the same result.

Any suggestions on how melee can keep this from happening?

Specific classes I'm having the worst problem with are my Champion, Warden, Guardian and Captain (not too bad since I have a shout).

[Torinak]

I've not had any problems with this with any class at any level; running after a mob manually has always worked for me, or doing a quick /follow (bound to a key) handles it.  The only ones that have ever been problematic were goblin spear-throwers at very low levels, and even those were pretty easy to chase when they didn't use their nets.  Have you tried running so you're basically on top of the mob before you try to use a skill?

Do you have really high latency connecting to the servers?

Most classes should get a ranged attack by level 20, IIRC, if they don't start with one (like Wardens with their javelins), which is an even easier way of dealing with the rare mob that runs.

[acerogue26]

I get the same trouble Feaniad, and so far I haven't really found much of a solution beyond letting my herald chase it and unloading all my DOTs. It's gotten me more than a couple of unhappy adds, but it's never been game breaking for me.

Anyway, sorry for the unhelpful post, but I wanted to let you know you are not alone.

[Cheddar]

Champions eventually can use a bow.  Also you get a couple shouts (I use the rage one to bring them back to me, or fill them with arrows).

[Yegolev]

I sort of have this problem with my guardian.  I had to turn off the run-to-thing-when-attacking because I would always overshoot and have to manually adjust anyway.  When they run, I have a hell of a time getting a skill to fire as I chase them so I mainly rely on the autoattack while I try to keep in melee range.  Or I just wait for it to come back.  They always come back.  It's just one of those bothersome things about being melee-only, as far as I am concerned.

[Mrbloodworth]

You guys are ether describing the new AI, or latency. Thing is, my girl seems to have this issue on occasion too, but i look at her screen, and shes basically IN the mob (technically not facing it).

The run-to-option caused more  than good. Always funny to see her dashing off at some thing in the distance.....

[Yegolev]

I find the new AI to be somewhat more entertaining than the old one, if only because I have never seen a mob do such things in a game before now.  One time my hunter was helping my wife fight off some spiders and before I could back out of melee range, the damn spider turned from attacking my wife to root me in place, then turned back to her.  Does the spider know that I do twice the damage at range?  Maybe.  It is still interesting to see the flanking, assisting and whatnot.

[Mr_PeaCH]

I notice similar issues on my Guardian.  First of all I have no ranged attack for simply pulling mobs to me (I'm 22 and the original book said I'd get throwing knives by 15... has this been patched out?) but the real issue is that if I go running in to a mob and they come running in to me I have to stop my charge strategically or I end up with my back to them.

Going to try that with the binding a /follow command to a button but is there a simple /face command for turning toward your target w/o advancing?  (And is that how the command is done... slash 'follow' e.g. /follow ?)

Definately turn OFF the run-to-when-in-attack mode... played with that for a while but definitely a trouble-maker.

As far as when a humanoid gets low on health and limps away I haven't experimented with the /follow yet but I do tend to make a run at them, overshoot by just a bit, then fire off a skilled attack and it usually works but I do not get it off if I am still in motion so this can be trickier than it needs to be.  I put it down to a 'by design' decision; a little something to break up the typical button mashing melee class monotony.   

[Yegolev]

(And is that how the command is done... slash 'follow' e.g. /follow ?)

Yes.  There is probably a keybind but it is also probably something stupid like CTRL-F6.  If I was less lazy, I'd rig up my Nostromo to handle stupid keybinds.

[Feaniad]

Thanks for all the tips. 

I think I have the hang of it now, just running slightly ahead of the mob.  My Captain is 20 now, and I got some reduced cooldown on my shout so that helps with the range.  I might have to look into a bow though, just to be on the safe side.

I have run into situations where the mob runs back to a pack of 3-4 and then I have to run away.