Did 1.84 screw over support craft in fleets?

Shoujo · #1 January 31st, 2003, 11:47 PM

Hello, I noticed that the most recent patch mentioned how ships in a fleet would not follow their individual orders. What I'm imagining will happen is that if I say pick wall formation, and send a fleet out, the unarmed and unarmored support craft (repair, construction, supply) would basically become cannon fodder because they'd be forced to stay in formation. If I put weapons on my support craft, then that means the AI will target them. If I don't put weapons on them, then that means that an opponent with half a brain would switch their targeting priorities to best target my support craft, and slow down my fleet.

Leaving them behind with minimal defense means again they'd be a sitting duck. Leaving a significant defense force would mean the main fleet may suffer. Taking them along doesn't seem like much of an option either.

*sigh* I wish the double wall formations could be configured so that support craft would at least stay behind the armed ships.

Am I being worried over nothing, or is this a valid concern?

couslee · #2 January 31st, 2003, 11:59 PM

I have a fleet with both armed ships and PDC only transports. the fleet order does not include "don't get hurt, but the transpots have capture planet as primary, and don't get hurt as secondary. Right off the git, the transports make a corner run. so a fodder idea still won't work. I feel it is either NOT fixed, or I have some setting wrong. I am trying to find what that setting may be, but with each different test battle, the the always break formation. so I am beginging to thing the previous is more correct than the latter. (read, it's not fixed).

Ragnarok · #3 February 1st, 2003, 12:19 AM

couslee, I replied in another thread this problem. But put a single weapon on your PDC ships. Until you do they will run for the corner. If you have a weapon on the ship it will stay and defend your fleet.

couslee · #4 February 1st, 2003, 12:24 AM

lol. Ragnarok, we are cross posting all over the place

Ragnarok · #5 February 1st, 2003, 12:44 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by couslee:
lol. Ragnarok, we are cross posting all over the place

Indeed we are. lol

Now if we start posting answers before the question is asked then I will be worried.

[ January 31, 2003, 22:44: Message edited by: Ragnarok ]

Phoenix-D · #6 February 1st, 2003, 01:07 AM

The ships aren't supposed to run to the corner anymore UNLESS you tell them to break formation. Personally, I always tell them to do that.

Re: PDC ships: the problem here is a ship will run away unless it has something to do. If you are fighting only fighters, your main ships should run and the PDC ships attack (assuming you main ships can't hit fighters and have no PDC)

If you're fighting ships, the PDC only-ships run because they can't hurt them. Then they run toward the missiles when they are fired, only to run away again when the missiles hit or are destroyed.

Phoenix-D

Shoujo · #7 February 1st, 2003, 02:16 AM

Phew. Thank goodness ships can still break formation. That's all I wanted to hear. Thanks for the replies

geoschmo · #8 February 1st, 2003, 02:22 AM

Troop transports are handeled differently. They will run for the corner until the weapons platforms are gone, period. It doesn't matter if you put PDC on them or any other weapons. They don't approach even to shoot at missles. They run for the corner until the WPlats are gone. Also doesn't matter what the secondary strategy is becasue this is part of the insturctions built into the primary strategy of "capture planet".

You could get them to stay with the fleet by changing their primary strategy to optimal, or max range or something. But if you do this they will not drop their troops under any circumstances.

This behavior is hard coded and cannot be changed by any combination of weapons or strategies.

Edit: And this is how it was before and with 1.84. It was not affected by the patch.

Geoschmo

[ February 01, 2003, 00:22: Message edited by: geoschmo ]

Puke · #9 February 1st, 2003, 02:29 AM

I think that if they are ALONE, then they will attempt to rush the weapon platforms and drop their troops. I really wish this was configurable, sometimes you really dont want to shoot at the planet. or in an early game of porportions, sometimes you CANT damage the planet, but you have enough troops or infantry to take it.

capnq · #10 February 1st, 2003, 03:22 AM

This is at least the third time this has come up.

As Mephisto said in early November:

'People, keep cool. The fix doesn't change anything except fixing the bug that ships in a fleet with "Don't get hurt" orders and "Don't break formation=true" were not retreating but instead fall back to their ship strategy (i.e. in most cases they did attack).'