Hostile Mob Intelligence Overhaul: Vision Cones, Stealth Mechanics, and Smart Navigation

[Malerus]

About The Pull Request

This PR makes hostile mobs significantly smarter and more challenging through advanced AI systems.

Smart Mob Pursuit & Coordination

Multi-Level Combat:

• Hostile mobs now chase you up and down stairs, ladders, and through open spaces
• No more cheesing enemies by climbing a ladder - they'll follow you
• Mobs remember you for 15 seconds after losing sight and actively search the area for 30 seconds
• After climbing 3 times, mobs commit to their current floor for 10 seconds to prevent constant yo-yoing
• If a mob takes 5+ consecutive stair steps, it's forced to stay on that level

Pack Tactics:

• When a mob spots you or loses you, it calls for backup within 15 tiles (even across floors)
• Idle allies immediately respond and converge on the alert location
• Mobs can hear gunfire and combat sounds from 7 tiles away and investigate
• Sound alerts give approximate locations (not exact) so mobs patrol the area naturally

Smarter Navigation:

• Mobs can now open doors instead of always smashing them (configurable per mob type)
• Only destroy walls when you're within 5 tiles and no door exists
• Prioritize using hallways over breaking through walls

Environmental Detection Refinements

Line-of-Sight Filtering:

• Thrown items only alert mobs that can see the item land (no cross-room detection)
• Silenced light destruction requires line-of-sight to alert mobs
• Unsilenced gunfire carries through walls (sound is not blocked by LOS)

Stealth Boy Interaction:

• Mobs now physically turn around (visible setDir) when hearing cloaked players behind them
• After turning, they check vision with stealth boy 20% range penalty applied
• Turn-around behavior is visible to alert stealthed players they've been heard

Unsilenced Weapon Response:

• When unsilenced weapons fire, mobs investigate the shooter's location directly
• Creates natural "heard gunshot" behavior instead of investigating light destruction
• No LOS check needed - sound carries through walls realistically

Investigation Movement:

• Fixed mobs stopping 2-3 tiles away from investigation points
• Mobs now properly complete full movement to thrown items and broken lights
• Investigation state sets remembered_target to prevent premature LoseTarget() calls

Distraction Tools:

• Bottle cap throw range increased from 2 to 7 tiles
• Makes thrown distractions viable stealth tactic within detection range

Directional Vision & Stealth System

Field.Cones.Test.mp4

Cone-Based Vision:

• Can be seen by entering Sneak Mode by pressing K by default
• Mobs have a 90° vision cone in front - full detection range
• 45° peripheral vision on each side - reduced detection (60% range)
• Complete blind spot directly behind them - sneak up on enemies!
• Vision effectiveness affected by lighting - darker areas reduce detection range

Sound Detection:

• Mobs can hear your footsteps from behind even when they can't see you
• Running is 2x louder than walking
• Light armor makes you quieter (0.5x sound), heavy armor makes you louder (1.5x+)
• Sound detection uses rear cones - sides are easier to hear (2.5x) than directly behind (3x)

Low-Light Vision:

• Nocturnal and predator mobs see better in darkness
• Nightkin, deathclaws, geckos, nightstalkers, wolves, radscorpions, cazadores, and yao guai all have enhanced dark vision
• Get +2 to +4 bonus tiles of vision range in dark areas

Predictable Behavior:

• Idle mobs now face the same direction for at least 45 seconds
• No more rapid spinning - you can plan stealth approaches
• Learn patrol patterns and time your sneaking

Combat Mode Standardization

Clear Combat Behaviors:

• All 70+ f13 hostile mobs now have standardized combat modes
• Melee mobs (deathclaws, ghouls, molerats): Rush you down aggressively
• Ranged mobs (eyebots, gutsys, soldiers): Keep distance and shoot
• Mixed mobs (reavers, fire geckos, assaultrons): Prefer ranged but will brawl

Gunfire Alerts:

• Firing guns alerts hostile mobs within 7 tiles
• Enemies rush toward gunfire to investigate
• Suppressed combat is now tactically important

Bug Fixes

Ghost System:

• Fixed bug where ghosts couldn't re-enter their corpse during revival
• Better error messages when something goes wrong

Statpanel (Admin UI):

• Statpanel no longer flickers when switching bodies
• Admin tabs persist when using aghost or re-entering corpse
• Only refreshes when verb list actually changes

Why It's Good For The Game

Dynamic Combat:

• Vertical Threat: Players can no longer trivially escape combat by climbing stairs - multi-level facilities become genuinely dangerous
• Pack Coordination: Elite enemy types feel threatening and intelligent through coordinated responses
• Tactical Navigation: Enemies behave intelligently - searching for hidden players, responding to combat sounds, using doors

Stealth Gameplay:

• Directional Awareness: Creates actual stealth mechanics with blind spots and vision cones
• Sound Discipline: Armor choice and movement speed directly impact detection
• Predictable Patterns: 45-second direction stability allows players to plan tactical approaches
• Environmental Use: Darkness and lighting become meaningful tactical elements

Combat Depth:

• Gunfire Consequences: Shots bring reinforcements - suppressed combat matters
• Armor Tradeoffs: Light armor enables stealth, heavy armor increases detection
• Position Matters: Player awareness and positioning directly impact survival
• Emergent Gameplay: Smart mobs create dynamic, unpredictable combat moments

Quality of Life:

• Standardized Behavior: Combat modes make 70+ mob variants consistent and predictable
• Admin Reliability: Statpanel fixes prevent UI disruption during body switches
• Ghost System: Ensures players can reliably re-enter corpses during revival

Pre-Merge Checklist

• Tested on local server
• No runtimes during testing
• All changes documented

Changelog

🆑
add: Hostile mobs pursue players across Z-levels via stairs, ladders, and openspace
add: Mobs remember targets for 15 seconds and actively search for 30 seconds after losing sight
add: Pack coordination - mobs call for backup and respond to allies' alerts across Z-levels
add: Mobs hear combat sounds from 7 tiles away and investigate
add: Smart mobs open doors instead of destroying them when possible
add: Directional vision system - 90° front cone, 45° peripheral vision, rear blind spot
add: Rear sound detection - mobs hear footsteps behind them based on speed and armor weight
add: Low-light vision for nocturnal/predator mobs (nightkin, deathclaws, geckos, wolves, cazadores, etc.)
add: Idle mobs maintain facing direction for 45+ seconds for predictable stealth gameplay
add: Combat mode standardization across 70+ f13 hostile mobs (MELEE/RANGED/MIXED behaviors)
add: Gunfire alert system - shooting alerts hostile mobs within 7 tiles
add: Debug vision mode for testing stealth mechanics
add: Thrown items only alert mobs within line-of-sight (no cross-room alerts)
add: Silenced weapons require LOS for light destruction alerts
add: Mobs visibly turn around when hearing stealthed players behind them
add: Unsilenced weapons cause mobs to investigate shooter location (sound carries through walls)
add: Bottle cap throw range increased from 2 to 7 tiles for distraction tactics
fix: Mobs complete full movement to investigation points (no more stopping 2-3 tiles away)
fix: Investigation state properly sets remembered_target to prevent premature LoseTarget()
fix: Mobs no longer lose targets when players change Z-levels
fix: Multiple anti-loop systems prevent mobs getting stuck on stairs
fix: Mobs investigate sound areas naturally instead of X-raying to exact locations
fix: Ghosts can no longer be locked out of corpses during revival
fix: Statpanel no longer flickers when switching bodies
fix: Admin tabs persist through body switches
tweak: Z-level commitment system prevents yo-yo behavior
tweak: Light armor (0 slowdown) provides 0.5x sound multiplier for stealth
tweak: Heavy armor increases detection range from rear
balance: Sound detection baseline established - refinement per-mob-type needed
balance: Standardized retreat and engagement distances for all f13 hostile mobs
/:cl: