Slice - sharp weapons

[Mele]

I should have reported this a while ago, but it slipped my mind.

Using a double-edged blade and a short blade I used to be able to slice a corpse without having to change my weapons out, but about a monthish ago it suddenly changed to give this message:


You need to wield a sharp weapon.

[Nylo]

I just noticed this recently as well. Strangely, while I couldn't use my elkhorn skinning knife, knife in the short blades category, I could use my greatsword.

[Raona]

Yes - if memory serves, this changed when Mask learned that several in-game objects obviously meant for the purpose (skinning knives and the like) would NOT work with the SLICE skill, and modified it so that they would. In doing so he took the skill away from some other weapon type(s). I think it now DOES work with a weapon of type knife, but I'm not sure what else, if anything, will also suffice. Let me know if you would like that investigated (it would have to be done with trial-and-error, it's not visible in the code I can see). Moving this to suggestions, should other rangers be missing the ability to carve up some dinner with a dagger and longsword.

[Mele]

This isn't really a suggestion? They can't use skinning knives which are short blades. That would be a bug no? Or at the very least, a building 'bug' where Drew needs to find/change the item types. Isn't it better to keep it in bugs and have a tester check all skinning knives and all 'sharp' types for their ability? That's the point of bug reporting, no? :)

[Lirith]

Skinning knives work now, in my experience, so the one Nylo mentioned should be working since the change. So in his case, it depends how recently is recently, in his post.
I think it depends exactly what the short blade is that you're trying to use, Mele. If it's of a type that would be used for skinning then it's a bug, if it's something different, e.g. sickle, then that shouldn't work for skinning and it isn't a bug.

[Mele]

Right - like Nylo, my short blade skinning knife no longer works. The only one that has worked for me of late is my short blade leather making knife.

[Althasizor]

There -is- a bug here. I'm continuing tests on this, but:

Code: Select all

A bear is DEAD!
You wield a steel battle axe engraved with a three-headed dog in your right hand.
You don't even know which end of a steel battle axe engraved with a three-headed dog is up!
You need to wield a sharp weapon.
A male halfelf gives you a black halfspear engraved with a shield symbol.
You stop using a steel battle axe engraved with a three-headed dog.
You wield a black halfspear engraved with a shield symbol in your right hand.
You don't even know which end of a black halfspear engraved with a shield symbol is up!
You fail to butcher the corpse of a bear properly.
You cut a slice of meat from the corpse of a bear.
You cut the skin from the corpse of a bear..

How much sense does it make for slice to work with a halfspear?

[Enig]

Tested with spears, lances, foils, knives, picks, and crossbows, of all things: all of them were able to slice. Sickles, swords, hammers, naginata, and etc. failed.

Seems like every piercing weapon is able to slice at the moment.

[Althasizor]

Yes, that does seem to be the case.

Code: Select all

A bear is DEAD!
You wield a sapphire-encrusted titanium sickle in your right hand.
You don't even know which end of a sapphire-encrusted titanium sickle is up!
A sapphire-encrusted titanium sickle feels nice and light to you.
You need to wield a sharp weapon.
You stop using a sapphire-encrusted titanium sickle.
You give a sapphire-encrusted titanium sickle to A male halfelf.
A male halfelf gives you an ivory-hilted steel rapier.
You wield an ivory-hilted steel rapier in your right hand.
You don't even know which end of an ivory-hilted steel rapier is up!
You cut a slice of meat from the corpse of a bear.
You cut the skin from the corpse of a bear.

So while all skinning knives -do- seem to work for this, so do a whole slew of other awkward weapons! Before this is moved back from the suggestion forum, I'll throw one out and suggest that the message you receive, that 'You need to wield a sharp weapon.' be changed to something less vague; Perhaps 'You need to be holding a suitable tool.' or something to that effect? I'm guessing this is from a time when any sharp weapon could slice or the like, and it could be odd for some players to find out that their long sword isn't actually sharp!

[Harroghty]

Specifically, it seems sensible that only the following should work for this: DAGGER, DIRK, and KNIFE (all the short blades except SAI and SCYTHE). A dagger or dirk might even be kind of awkward, but in the effort to be more inclusive I feel that we should allow those.

[Raona]

This isn't really a suggestion? They can't use skinning knives which are short blades. That would be a bug no?

It would, but the skinning knives I checked did (and do) work. I understood you to be using a short blade not of type knife, which Mask may well have intentionally ruled out when he made the changes.

Please, both Mele and Nylo - give me the exact short and long description of the item you are attempting to use to SLICE that you think should work, but does not.

Althasizor - You've definitely found a bug in that all piercing weapons do work, causing, as you put it, a whole slew of other awkward weapons to function with SLICE. I think Harroghty's fix is a good one - check against weapon type, allowing dagger, knife, and dirk. (Possibly also a main gauche and kris?) If it's easier to do, I wouldn't have any objection against allowing all short blades to work. scythe and sai would be awkward...but not a big deal, in my eyes. Other thoughts on that?

Enig - Thanks for your help in pinning this down!

Should larger blades work with SLICE? I tend to think no, and I think Harroghty was arguing the same. Any differing opinions?

I second Althasizor's suggestion that the echo be changed to "You need to be holding a suitable tool." as long as we ask Mask to tinker with this.

[Nylo]

The blade I was using is a "elk horn knife".
The handle is made of the horn of an elk. The blade is over a
hand long.
It is a knife in the short blades category of weapons.
It can be picked up, held, held in both hands, worn on the belt.
It cannot be worn with any other armour.
It is medium in size and would fit any body type.

I just tested, and it does indeed work now.

[Raona]

It's possible Mask fixed this as we were working on/talking about it. Mele, are you still seeing anything not working as you think it should?