[3.02] Stormcaller's Returning Storm bug

[Ronin@]

As far as I know Returning Storm hits a single enemy at a time. My ranger's Stormcaller procs like crazy (I highly doubt it's actually 10% chance) and its Returning Storm hits 4 times per proc. Here's an example:

 

[Kaylon]

With twinned arrows and driving flight you can hit 4 times per attack and each hit has 10% chance to proc returning storm which is an AoE spell.

[Ronin@]

I deliberately turned Twinned Arrows off for this test (you can see the icon isn't there). It's worth noting that the range is ridiculous too. Returning storm doesn't have that much range.

And by the way Returning storm is not an AoE spell per se. You're confusing it with Relentless storm.

Edited April 27, 2016 by Ronin@

[Sking]

Hey Ronin@,

 

Currently SpellChance items are procing twice instead of once across the board. We are hoping to get a fix in a future patch.

 

I got your back

-Sking

[Ronin@]

Hey Sking, 

 

Yeah, I figured as much. Still, there are other problems here. Isn't Returning Storm supposed to hit only the targets hit by the main attack and the Driving Flight ability? Why does it hit random units? Furthermore, what's with the range? If Druid's Returning Storm is anything to go by my Ranger shouldn't be able to affect anyone farther than 7-8 meters away.

[Suen]

Returning Storm randomly strikes enemies inside his radius (5m default). 1 enemy per second, until the end of the spell, more or less.

The druid spell is centered on the caster. With Stormcaller being a bow maybe the center of the spell is your target.

If that is not the case Stormcaller's Returning Storm range must be incredibly large.

[Ronin@]

You're right. I just remembered that when I had my cipher use the Stormcaller Soul Shock was centered on the target so that's probably the case with Returning Storm too. There's still something that bothers me though. I didn't have Twin Arrows here but I was still hitting 4 targets per Returning Storm proc . Why is it that I don't hit more than that with Twinned Arrows on? I've never seen more than 4 simultaneous hits and I've been using this bow for quite a while.

Edited April 28, 2016 by Ronin@

[Ronin@]

I'm back with an interesting screenshot   :

 

 

 

 

 1 hit = 4 Returning Storm procs. This confirms my theory that the stated 10% have nothing to do with the actual proc rate.

Edited April 28, 2016 by Ronin@

[MaxQuest]

 1 hit = 4 Returning Storm procs. This confirms my theory that the stated 10% have nothing to do with the actual proc rate.

I don't follow. How did you arrive to that conclusion?

 

You made a hit, and so it happened that Stormcaller effect has proc'ed. It's effect is an AoE spell. Kaylon has mentioned that above.

Returning Storm hits the main target (in your case it's Roedwith), and the enemies which are in 5 AoE around your character. So it also hit that soldier.

 

Because of x2 effect on proc bug,  it hit both Roedwith and the soldier twice.

 

The main unclear thing is: if that AoE is centered around you (as in druid's spell) or it was modified to use the area around your target.

[Ronin@]

I'm not sure why so many people tend to confuse Returning Storm with Relentless storm but let me quote Suen on the matter:

 

 

Returning Storm randomly strikes enemies inside his radius (5m default). 1 enemy per second, until the end of the spell, more or less.

 

 

It's not supposed to hit more than 1 enemy per proc as it's not an AoE spell. It has an AoE but the actual effect hits a single target in that AoE. The screenshot above shows that 1 hit can make Returning Storm proc 4 times which is totally out of spec and the x2 effect on proc bug doesn't account for it.

 

As to your question - the AoE is centered around the target. It becomes clear when a cipher equips the Stormcaller. In his hands the Stormcaller casts Soul Shock on 10% of the hits+crits and you can clearly see how the spell propagates radially outward from the target of the attack which is usually not possible with a normal Soul Shock spell, therefore it's modified.

Edited April 29, 2016 by Ronin@

[Suen]

Your guess is as good as mine.

Could the bug affects both the activation of the spell and the spell? Stormcaller casting 2 Returning Storm, each of them hitting twice?

[Ronin@]

Don't think so. I've seen odd numbers of Returning Storm procs. It's not always 2 or 4. Guess there's only so much we can find out about the problem. The rest is up to the devs.

[MaxQuest]

I'm not sure why so many people tend to confuse Returning Storm with Relentless storm but let me quote Suen on the matter. 

 

It's not supposed to hit more than 1 enemy per proc as it's not an AoE spell.

Na, I didn't confuse it. I've checked both spell tooltip and Suen's explanation before posting ^^

The original spell has an AoE radius, and is capable of hitting multiple targets (even through not simultaneously). That's why I do refer to it as AoE spell.

 

I do totally understand that it should not hit 4 targets in the same instance of time. And indeed that x2 effect does not account for it.

But to check a wild guess: did you see in slow-mo, all 4 being hit right at the same moment, or first two targets are hit and 1s later the other two? If so, it could be related to intellect. And it would be interesting to test this at 9, 11, 21 and 31 INT.

 

As to your question - the AoE is centered around the target. It becomes clear when a cipher equips the Stormcaller. In his hands the Stormcaller casts Soul Shock on 10% of the hits+crits and you can clearly see how the spell propagates radially outward from the target of the attack which is usually not possible with a normal Soul Shock spell, therefore it's modified.

I understand your argument. But, uhm, don't find it completely fire-proof. Because original Soul Shock spell damages those around the target. While original Returning Storm damages those around the caster. So RS proc may or may not be centered around the target. Edited April 29, 2016 by MaxQuest

[Ronin@]

The tooltips are kind of confusing. You wouldn't guess spells work as they do just by reading the descriptions. We shouldn't think of Returning Storm like a an AoE spell, it's more like an aura that hits 1 enemy per tick. After all the AoE moves with the caster, just like auras.

 

Your wild guess is interesting but I believe the first screenshot in this thread is as slow-mo as it gets. I don't think I can catch a better moment. Notice how the Dargul gets hit last according to the combat log and that means the lightning animation over him should be the brightest one if your theory was correct. Instead the one over the Fampyr is the most prominent one. You can also compare the damage numbers. They're all pretty much equally bright. 

 

I've swapped my points around and I didn't notice a difference. I had 3 int and now I have 17. Well, there is one difference. Returning Storm started hitting units farther away from the target. (and the stun is longer obviously)

 

 

 

 

I understand your argument. But, uhm, don't find it completely fire-proof. Because original Soul Shock spell damages those around the target. While original Returning Storm damages those around the caster. So RS proc may or may not be centered around the target. 

 

Well, that's the only possible explanation for the humongous range. Otherwise it would be a bug. My argument is that if they modified one of the spells the Stormcaller can cast, chances are they modified the rest too. If you think about it, it doesn't make much sense to not modify it. A bow that has 12m range would be pointless if it's most important feature doesn't hit anyone when fired from that range.

Edited April 29, 2016 by Ronin@