Per the devstream, I got the impression that the follower AI was a rather low priority, so I wondered what do you folks think?
0 voters
Followers, as defined by Funcom, include thralls, pets and mounts.
The results should be interesting 
Regards
jim
Better AI overall would be great for this game, both enemies and followers.
This is my BIGGEST CONCERN with this game and by far.
Making it a low priority is silly. The option âI donât use thrallsâ is becoming more of a reality for me, simply because their AI is pretty bad. Always getting in my way as an archer is beyond annoying. When I encounter a big creature, I am always so relieved, as I can shoot over their head.
If thralls lose their value, I simply will readjust difficulty levels for soloing all bosses with no thralls. However, I really like having them along. I like this idea of leveling them up (if they can make the perks RNG a little less R).
I voted for putting more effort into thralls.
I have to admit, I wasnât really sure where to weigh in with this as Thralls are important to me, they should be a priority as the AI is clearly poor, however, I wouldnât immediately list anything as a #1 type of priority save for things that prevented people from playing the game.
However, watching the Dev stream, I think you misinterpreted their current stance on AI.
I may be wrong (you right, just giving my impression), but I think Thrall AI is probably one of their main priorities.
However, it is probably a massive task and a subject so big and ambiguous at this point, they canât really provide commitments to the community (specially one that takes every single word, in or out of context so much to heart).
I agree with you that Thralls should be a priority and I am very interested in them being better followers and also smarter enemies to fight for a more challenging game.
However, stating that this is the next thing they are pushing out could be a loaded gun pointed at Funcom if complications arise. I mean, much like momentum/movement, a Thrall AI overhaul is a gigantic amount of work and one they probably canât give us a ton of information on until its in a better situation and closer to a clearer end goal.
However, that may just be my over-analyzing.
That said, unlike the movement change, I think a overhaul on Thrall Ai and making it better across the board, no one would argue with or there be any contention on.
I agree with everything you said, Frog. Well written and to the point.
One thing to point out, priority lists depend on many factors and it is up to the Team to work through those based on customer input and management decisions. I was not asking about the reason for the current prioritization, and would not presume to know why this issue is where it is on that list, just that it does not seem to be in development.
I know how I would vote, but as the creator, donât get one. Nor do I want to influence anyone else on the matter.
The folks who come to the boards represent a lot of people and there is a simple reason why we are here. We are passionate about the game (one way or another 
).
Voice your own opinion. Funcom listens.
Regards
jim
understand completely, and I was waffling somewhere between âFollowers make my game, work on it!â and âThey are important to me, but other things prevail.â
I hope adjustments or fixes to the AI come sooner rather then later as I believe its a huge element of this game and while they are minimally functional now, I am excited to think of how they could be, both in defending with me, or attacking me.
My impression from the dev stream was the exact opposite.
Follower ai is such a huge impact. Iâd be very happy to see some performance
I didnât care much of followers since this patch.
Yes: collecting hundreds of âuniqueâ thralls all equal to others thralls except for the name, was quite boring to me. Now a thrall can really be different from another one, different âtalentsâ and different perks that makes them a lilâ more âaliveâ, with their own skills.
Yes, the entire A.I. of the game should be revamped, skills or not skills the combat system still is stuck in idiotic enemies even when they are not bugged, simply the fact that you climb a rock (not a cliff, a rock!) and they lose sight of you is a totally immersion break.
So yes, improving differences between thralls is a very very good idea (and re-ignited the fire in me, for a while at least) and I would insert more perks and way they can improve ⊠but still the real problem is the foundation of their âintelligenceâ, you can mix whatever perk you want, but if they keep walking aimlessly with no clue of what is happening is all pointless.
The road seems still long to me but the direction, I think, itâs the right one!
Agreed, I didnât get the impression it was a low priority at all either. It seemed to be something they really want to do - but also wonât promise (and certainly not put a timetable on) because itâs very difficult indeed. Which makes sense.
I actually got the impression they were working on it, but didnât want to promise anything because Alex didnât know when it would be complete.
It is definitely on our list already (and with âourâ I mean the team as a whole).
I do have weekly meetings with the rest of the team and it is one of the items that we will discuss as high priority
Good discussion, and thank all of you for voting your wants.
While I may have taken my impression of the prioritization properly or not, itâs still my impression and would not want to derail the intent of the poll.
What we are after in this poll is a representative sample of the importance of the follower AI to you.
The points made above are all valid, at least because you are important to Funcom and they want what their customers want. In the best spirit of the game, your comments will inspire thought and discussion, always good.
Repeated from above,
Voice your own opinion. Funcom listens.
Regards
jim
FWIW, I voted for âimportant, but other things prevailâ.
Yes, the AI really needs lots of improvement. But the thing is, there is an AI and it works, although the way it works needs to be improved.
On the other hand, there are no decorative thralls. With the follower cap, the over-promised, under-delivered and much coveted City Life has been dealt a crippling blow. To balance that, we need decorative thralls.
I can always design my combat strategy to compensate for the AI problems. There is almost nothing I can do to work around the follower cap to make my builds look alive.
Yes improve the AI. Most of the time the thralls will not attack till i take damage. I would like them to engage when i hit a enemy, or when the enemy agros on me and runs at me. and have them fight more efficiently using the full combo not stop in the middle. maybe have them read what you are doing, say if you want to knock out a thrall and they have the truncheon, let them see you pulled yours out and they can switch to it. That would be a huge improvement on not having to change their items to have them in knock out ready setup.
The thing CE hungers the most to a bigger step in success, A.I.
Tharlls should be nerfed and players buffed in my opinion i dont like to feel like a follower to my pet and maybe with improving AI the overpwered thralls can be toned down? So yeah AI is important to me.
There is another element to polls that few ever talk about, but as far as raw numbers go, this is interesting to me:
As of this morning ('murican time) the thread had been visited by 260 individuals, 80% of whom decided not to click a button.
I donât know what the poll indicates, but this speaks volumes, if only I could hear it 
I wonder what this means?
Please, indicate your preferences !
Regards
jim
The game needs a claim system overhaul before the AI. Said multiple times, to stop foundation spamming we need a system like Rust.