Getting and Losing Aggro - How?

[kamikazees]

I've just started switching weapons from staff to wand/bracer as needed in Balefort Sewer runs. I must say this is a skill not used often enough; it works great. Anyway, I have been noticing some things about aggro and thought I would ask if anyone knows a "definitive" answer about getting and losing it. First, my non-technical observations:

I am a pure int mage. When I use a wand/bracer, I tend not to get much aggro as when I use a staff. My staff set is enchanted MM, so it's extremely high damage output (and with a damage ring). I've noticed that I can actually take aggro from bears and birds, even in the middle of a boss fight, using my staff. I have not done so as often with my wand/bracer.

Aggro seems to me to be based on a few things: (1) who makes first contact; (2) whether someone is using aggro skills (ie taunt); and (3) who is doing the most damage.

Now, my questions.

Are those factors right? Can you think of others? It is very important to me as a mage to understand aggro. Although I have learned to (delicately) tank and kite all the BS bosses with my staff, I don't want aggro!. How do the factors affect each other? Why can I take aggro from a bear/bird? Surely I am not out-dpsing birds am I?

[thugimmortal]

Aggro usually goes to the player who

has made 1st contact
has made the most damage
Has taunted (bears)

[WhoIsThis]

Precisely how aggro appears to be a combination of the 3 factors. How heavily each is weighed is not entirely understood.

However, when playing as int mage, you can expect to gain aggro with any of the mega mage or enchanted staffs. I suspect that the damage output may rival birds - I find myself gaining aggro in enchanted as well despite not being the first person in with the presence of level 55-56 birds often wearing raid roach or better. This can sometimes happen with a bear taunting, suggesting that the burst dps exceeds birds and whatever effect taunt may have.

Taunt is also a cumulative effect. Taunt does not assure aggro. One way to test is to go to A03, fight the Keeper and allow his shields to go up. You'll find that if you go auto only with a high level bear, it may take the bear several times (do this with level 55-56 birds and bears) of taunting to gain aggro when the Keeper's shields go up (go auto only when the shields go up - Bear should spam skills). This suggests a cumulative effect.

From what I can see, pure int mages are going to have to live with aggro.

[drewcapu]

More recently, you can also lose aggro once you lose line of sight with said enemy.

[Moogerfooger]

Another factor that I am pretty sure factors into it, is that the bosses have some sort of time cycle for aggro....it is pretty short, like maybe 3-5 seconds, I don't know. What I think may happen, and this is just a guess, is that it figures from whom is it taking the most damage during that short time window, coupled with other factors mentioned above like taunt, etc. When I would roll in on my bird wth WhoIsThis, I would hold aggro at first, but if they pulled off some very high dmg combos like Nature Strike, aggro would switch to WhoIsThis....but then switch back to me a few seconds later....then switch back to WhoIsThis....which makes me thing there is some sort of 'damage-from-what-player-in-the-last-5-secs-aggro-goes-there' time cycle going on.

Just a hunch...

[azulflame]

in order:

first contact - first damage takes away
taunt - biggest damage beats
most damage. not dps, but damage. biggest damage per hit, not per second. this can switch around. this overrides all other types, but not in order. most important but last.

[Snakespeare]

I think that crit% may play a role. But I really don't know. All I know is I always get aggro, and I always have the highest DPS. Bears taunt, but they don't seem to pull aggro when I'm around. I have considered renaming my toon "Punchingbag", because there ain't a boss out there who can resist going full aggro on my pure dex bird. And I think they nerfed Taunt. I keep seeing Goblin King ignoring bears and they just taunt and taunt to no avail.

[KingFu]

Elly, Physio, and I did some testing and came up with a couple theories. Here's the thread:
http://www.spacetimestudios.com/showthread.php?19742-Aggro-Taunt-theories.

[giayuan]

Heres priority order from experience:

1. Bear Taunt
2. Most damage
3. First contact
4. First "sighting" by enemy

[davidis57]

I noticed my bird when doing good dmg and critical I Pull aggro.

Timbabird
lvl 55 bird

[adwin]

Aggro for birds has shifted since the GCD, since you can no longer spam skills.
Before that, regardless of the party, a well equipped bird would pull and hold aggro.

[Tamino]

From my observations, the aggro "factor" is reset by stunning enemy. If I loose the aggro at boss, I usually beckon/stomp it, then taunt while attacking with main weapon - this is enough for me to gain aggro again.