I'm also practicing my strafe-turning: using "E" or "Q", while using my mouse to keep my avatar facing the hostile. Since I can cast (this includes guns and melee) while moving, all I need to do is keep my target within my range fan to do damage while avoiding incoming damage as best I can. It takes some doing, at least for me. But I am able to defeat mobs that were troublesome before (on alts the same "level").
[EDIT 2012-0718] Just so people know what I'm normally using to navigate in games, here is a picture of my mouse:
Fairly simple, only two extra buttons, and the forward of those two doesn't work because I dropped it one too many times. I've used this style mouse for almost seven years. The only time I've really used those extra buttons was for the Healbot interface while raiding in WoW.[/EDIT]
[EDIT 2012-07-19] And a pic of the built-in keyboard of my Asus G73 courtesy of Republic of Gaming:
[EDIT 2012-0718] Just so people know what I'm normally using to navigate in games, here is a picture of my mouse:
[EDIT 2012-07-19] And a pic of the built-in keyboard of my Asus G73 courtesy of Republic of Gaming:
PvPers are probably laughing at me right about now.
Heh heh, do you ever do much tanking? I have WoW to thank for my strafing skills, and to the years of doing raid bosses on my feral druid :P
ReplyDeleteThe only big tanking I've ever done was as a cleric in Rift, and even that not very much. It was fun though.
DeleteHeh, you must have watched FunCom's dev broadcast on Friday.It certainly made me look into circle strafing. I tried at first to use a mouse turn + strafe key combo on my G13 gamepad, but I am to clumsy for that. However, what works well for me is to assign strafe-left and - right to mouse buttons 4 and 5 of my $20 Microsoft mouse. Turning the mouse to the left, while pushing button 4 with my thumb is probably the best I can do. Right turn + strafe is way harder since mouse button 5 is not in a good location for my ring finger.
ReplyDeleteI actually didn't get a chance to watch, unfortunately. This has been an evolution of my "stay of the circles" mantra. I'm hoping to get a razer nostromo for my birthday. I don't think I could use the extra keys on my trackball mouse for effective strafing.
DeleteWhatever the original games where I learned to use WASD+mouselook were (...and I definitely don't remember), I think they must have had A and D bound to strafe rather than turn, because as soon as I step into a new game and discover that yet again they've bound those keys to turn instead, I start muttering darkly about screwed up defaults, and reach for the keybinding menu.
ReplyDeleteTurning with the keyboard? Wuh? *Madness* I tell you.
It's not of course, I'm just not sure how I ended up where the default control scheme in my head and my muscle memory is rather different from the actual default of the games I play. I swear I just don't remember turn being bound to those keys (or indeed any keys) like it always is now.
And now you tell me I might be doing something right, rather than just being cussed and awkward? Nah, c'mon, that's crazy talk! :)
I know more than a few people that use the keyboard—or gmaing pad—to move. I've use my trusty trackball since my first minutes in WoW. But then I've always preferred the stand-back-and-cast method of DPS/Healing which in most games, doesn't lend itself to moving. TSW's move while casting is encouraging me to be more adventurous with my keyboard. :P
DeleteYou should try a mouselook toggle, so much easier when you don't have to hold down the rmb. Takes a bit of getting used to flicking in and out but once you do I honestly couldn't live without
ReplyDeleteWha-huh? I use the rmb to keep my avatar facing the target. How does mouselook help that? (Keeping in mind that my standard navigation is track-ball based. Strafing is a departure.
DeleteHm I use right click for mouselook and then a/d for strafing - is this different than what you are describing, facing the mob with the mouse? I find that I only use q and e when I am moving with the keyboard, which is rarer and rarer every day.
ReplyDelete(I also always move q and e down to z and c from old Anarchy Online settings (I think?)and then q for autorun. How can using num lock possibly be convenient for autorun?)
And I didn't know Logitech had made a trackman with more than three buttons! I recently switched to a G500 after having used trackman for probably 15 years due to three (left/right/wheel) buttons being too few. Not that I use much of the extra buttons on the G500 mind you, but I'm sure that'll change as I get used to it.
Yes, that's the Logitech m570 with five buttons including the wheel. Wireless, too. :)
DeleteOn my keyboard (U.S. Qwerty) the a and d keys turn my character, the q and e keys strafe. Is this different than your keyboard? I throw a picture of the keyboard up in the post
You can rebind keys to your liking with the settings => controls options. If Q and E are too difficult to reach or get used to on a situational basis, it's worth replacing A and D with strafe left and right, instead of the default turn left and turn right.
DeleteThen as you travel, you essentially have to do a quarter circle strafe to move left or right and it becomes more natural to complete full turns when fighting mobs.
I blame FPSes for me getting used to this. I have to stop to rebind my keys in every new MMO too. I use Q (next target) and E (nearest target) for target selection, easier on my hand than stretching for the TAB key.
Thanks, I have already re-bound some other keys to fit my liking. I actually prefer strafing with q and e, and am actually thinking of eliminating the turning binds entirely.
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