Guild Wars 2

The #1 skill on staff for Mesmers (Winds of Chaos) will target and damage yellow neutral creatures within its range on bounce. This is causing additional aggro during PvE matches. Please adjust bounce logic to not include neutrals on bounce.

This is not a bug. All a yellow name means is that “it will not attack you unless you hit it first.”

Every AoE, multi-target skill can and will aggro neutrals that are in its range. That’s the nature of the skill. Part of what you have to choose when using a skill like Ele Staff #1 (fire or lightning), Mesmer GS #2, Mes staff #1, Ranger LB #5 or SB #2 etc. Does it matter more that you knock the snot out of that one target, or is it more important to tag multiples? The choice is yours. I can and have used LB #5 Barrage on a single target, but I’m also not shocked if a few moas walk through the arrow storm and then look at me with a gleam of kitten ed-off in their eyes. :-D

Of course….some skills also hit anything in the straight-line space between your weapon and your target (piercing skills, scepter skills, most beam/light/fire skills), which can cause unintended aggro too…

Playing video games is so tricky! /tongueincheek

Bounce logic did not originally target white or yellow targets on bounce for staff #1. This was a bug introduced several patches ago, and while bugged it used to target white neutrals (poor bunnies) as well. Winds of Chaos is not an AoE ability. It is a single target ability that will bounce from the target to another viable target or an ally. Viable bounce targets did not include neutral targets until a few patches ago. Lately I’ve been feeling a bit bad about the random wildlife I’ve been killing off when struggling against the forces of darkness (once had to fight three mountain goats in a row from bounce aggro when my initial target was a spider).