Talk:Beast Mastery skills quick reference

See also section?
This list should perhaps also include Never Rampage Alone as a see also/related skill. Its technically not a beast mastery skill as its a Sunspear skill but it is a key skill for beast masters.Thalestis 12:53, 21 March 2009 (UTC)


 * You're correct that NRA (... lol) matches up quite nicely with the Beast Mastery attribute. However, this is a quick reference, and quick references are designed to list only what they're advertised to contain. Similarly, for example, neither the Lead attack skills quick reference nor the Off-hand attack skills quick reference list Entangling Asp anywhere, even though the skill is directly related to lead attacks (it must follow one) and is used very similarly to off-hand attacks (it needs a lead to precede it). But since Entangling Asp is not, itself, a Lead or an Offhand Attack skill (it is a Spell), it does not belong on the quick references specifically related to skills of that type.


 * Thus, although NRA is related to BM skills, and enhances the use of them, it is not a Beast Mastery skill and so does not belong on the QR for them. This sort of policy keeps QRs from becoming cluttered with side information, which would gradually make them less focused and thus harder to use when quickly looking up skills for builds.


 * You may want to consider adding mention of it, however, to the general Beast Mastery article about the attribute and its usage, if you feel the information is important. :] -- AudreyChandler 22:44, 22 April 2009 (UTC)


 * "[NRA] is not a Beast Mastery skill and so does not belong on the QR for them." That does rather depend on the intended use of this quick reference. You go on to state "This sort of policy keeps QRs from becoming cluttered with side information, which would gradually make them less focused and thus harder to use when quickly looking up skills for builds" which rather implies that the intended purpose of the guide is to allow the quick and simple look-up of skills for builds. That is precisely the use for which this sort of related information is so useful! Yes, there is the issue of clutter, and of where the line is drawn, and its clear where some feel that line should be drawn, but I looked at this guide and used it to build my beastmaster builds and thus totally overlooked NRA. It was only a discussion on the general Beast Mastery article that drew my attention to the existence and usefulness of NRA. My Beastmaster now never leaves town without it.


 * My opinion is that yes, of course NRA is not technically related to the Beastmastery attribute, but that that is only a game development related oddity. Had NRA been included from the start of Nightfall, rather than being added later, then no doubt it would have been a true Beastmatery skill, and thus found its way on to this list no questions asked. The fact is that it was added as a Sunspear skill later. If this guide is intended to help people to create Beastmastery builds, i.e. is user focussed, rather than a reference of Beastmastery attribute related skills, i.e. is game mechanics focussed, then NRA should merit a place. Of course, that could open the floodgates to all sorts of other related skills, just as in the Entangling Asp example you give, but that is only a secondary issue. I suppose my question really is who is this guide written for? Aspiring beastmasters or game mechanicians? I vote for Beastmasters as I think this sort of guide should be more user focussed.


 * Anyway, I only asked. It was just a suggestion....:) Thalestis 23:48, 22 April 2009 (UTC)


 * This is not a guide to Beast Mastery. You can accomplish the same thing this QR does by choosing "Sort by attribute" on your in-game skills window (assuming that you have all skills unlocked, which of course most will not). If you're looking for what BM skills you're missing, you don't need non-BM skills cluttering things. If you're looking for a guide to BM (or anything else), you won't find it in a QR, which is a short and concise list of related skills.


 * Guides and specific QRs are the tool for sorting out "game-development-related oddities", which will usually be a matter of opinion and the current task you're trying to strategize about. There is a difference between skills in the Beast Mastery attribute (which includes several skills with no relation to pets whatsoever, such as Fertile Season and Tiger's Fury) and skills used in builds that invest heavily in said attribute. This QR is about the specific skills that are categorized by the game developers into Beast Mastery.


 * If you wish to create a "Animal companion skills quick reference" (and it doesn't exist yet), then by all means do so, and that is where NRA would belong. In fact, that would also be useful for helping people weed out the skills in BM that aren't pet-related. -- AudreyChandler 23:59, 22 April 2009 (UTC)