@Riot: Why Have Center-To-Center Targeting?

Teridax68··2 votes·932 views

Put another way: what features of center-to-center targeting make it better or more appropriate than edge-to-edge targeting?

For those who don't know, center-to-center targeting is what's used for most targeted abilities right now, where the range of the ability is calculated from the center of your champion's model to the center of your target's. Edge-to-edge targeting, on the other hand, means the range of the ability is calculated from the edge of your model to the edge of your target's model. If you're Chogath , for example, center-to-center targeted abilities will always have the same range regardless of how many Feast stacks you have, but with edge-to-edge abilities you'll become easier and easier to hit as your model gets bigger (on the flipside, getting item 2138 would make your edge-to-edge abilities travel a little farther).

The way I see it, edge-to-edge targeting is always going to have more visual fidelity and better interaction with size modifiers, so it looks like it should replace center-to-center targeting completely. I might be wrong, though, which is why I'd be interested in knowing more about how these targeting types are used and if there's a specific use for center-to-center targeting that makes it a better fit than edge-to-edge.

4 Comments

NorthernDruid1 votes

I'd think, at least, that for ranged autoattacks and a good number of projectile skillshots, center-to-center makes them less finicky to read and target. Stuff sliding around on a dial is harder to be precise with than something attached to a single point, just from the simple feel of it, and this extends to targetted lines as well.

Which is why Cone AoEs get away with being skillshots, because even if they're almost as guaranteed as a targetted ability, and don't get the usual ground target AoE excuse of long range making enemy movement unpredictable, they require a tiny bit more of your brain to process.

A lot of it has to do with display, and then I bet some parts of it is range balance as well, because you learn how far away you have to be to be that out of that lux's Light Binding's range, or being in that area where you can dodge Soraka's Starcalls most of the time.

If that Blitz could suddenly land a hook on you even if you kept out of his range, because he popped an elixir, or because Lulu ulted him or he came crashing in sith Storm Shield or what have you. Then a large part of learning to watch out for blitz hooks is to learn how far away you might have to be rather than how far the range of the ability is.

Some other abilities are fine with this, like Melee autoattacks, or cone based abilities, because of how they read to both the user and the target, and how it feels to use them.

(Writing at 2AM, I'm pretty certain my ideas are sound(ish) but the writing is probably not the best).

Teridax681 votes

All autoattacks use edge-to-edge targeting, though, and non-unit-targeted abilities use champion's hitboxes (which is dependent on their size) to determine hits. I'm mainly talking about unit-targeted abilities, like Ryze's Overload or Elise's Qs, and the upcoming change to summoner 11 (it's getting changed to edge-to-edge targeting) reminded me of this.

Sailor Mint1 votes

Consistency. Since it's not affected by hitbox size, a 625 center to center spell will always be the same range regardless of who the caster and the targets are. Unfortunately, that's only for single target spells, everything else is already fairly hard to compare.

i.e.: Annie's basic attack range(625) is barely longer than Ashe's (600) since her model is so small. All basic attacks are edge-to-edge. Ahri's Foxfire (550) and Spirit Rush (600) have a slightly shorter range than her basic attacks (550).

Teridax681 votes

Wouldn't that create consistency problems, though? Suppose you had a champion smaller than Teemo , who was, say, 50 units wide (so it would have a 25-unit radius hitbox), or who could reach that size somehow, and you were an Ahri casting Spirit Rush at 600 range from this champion. Usually, Spirit Rush has either less or equal range than her autoattacks, but here Spirit Rush would be able to hit this champion, since its targeting is center-to-center, but Ahri wouldn't be able to basic attack it, as it would be 25 units out of her reach. It would also mean that there would be no difference in targeting between that champion and a 6-stack, Lulu-ulted Cho'Gath with Elixir of Iron, despite the clear difference in size. Perhaps this would be consistent in terms of centers and estimate ranges, but it's not really consistent in terms of visual feedback and estimations.

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