Drones Are Useless

[Arkcon]

Originally posted by Nodachi:
Check the target types on the planetary warhead, it won't harm a ship. Just another case of stupid AI.

Try it. Works just fine, text not withstanding.

If I want to be a @$$#@!@, I use it myself. I get ticked off sometimes when something's "not fair to the AI" and do it anyway, you know training facilities, ship capture, tactical combat, and other cheats/exploits of this sort.

[capnq]

According to this old thread {link}, anti-planet drones only do ramming damage against ships.

[Baron Munchausen]

Originally posted by geoschmo:
What if from an AI design perspective you simply made them build drones with one of each type warhead? If I recall correctly there is room on a drone for two warheads and some engines right?

Geoschmo

Well, then, screw the special target types if the AI is too stupid to tell the diff, and just make a drone warhead that damages anything a drone can hit. (Let's see... Ships\Planets and Ships\Sat but no Ships\Planets\Sat targetting type. Hmm, go with 'All But Seekers' I guess and don't worry about fighters since drones can't target them anymore anyway...). Then have the AI build ONE type of drone and be done with it.

[ September 13, 2002, 21:15: Message edited by: Baron Munchausen ]

[Gozra]

Drones are useful. However if you approach the use of drones as a stragetic weapon it will let you down over and over. If you think of drones as advanced fleet missles then they will not disappoint you. They are expensive but when you are making a long term effort they are worth it. The combined arms aspect are very worthwhile. You can also make several types of drones for instance an anti fighter drone is good for cleaning out enemy held systems of satilltes and fighters.
I think the main factor that makes drones unpopular is that it take a great deal of foresight, and planning, and luck to have them in the right place at the right time. Every single weapons system represented in SEIV is useful in some way or another at any point in any game you play.

[Slick]

I did some testing. I built the following drones to test all the possible configurations in the simulator (tactical only):

A. large anti-planet drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, 1 Anti-planet warhead III
B. large anti-planet drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, 1 Anti-ship warhead III
C. large anti-ship drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, 1 Anti-planet warhead III
D. large anti-ship drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, 1 Anti-ship warhead III
E. large anti-planet drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, no warhead
F. large anti-ship drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, no warhead
G. small anti-planet drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, 1 Anti-planet warhead III
H. small anti-planet drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, 1 Anti-ship warhead III
I. small anti-ship drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, 1 Anti-planet warhead III
J. small anti-ship drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, 1 Anti-ship warhead III
K. small anti-planet drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, no warhead
L. small anti-ship drone: 6 QE-III engines, 1 Drone Computer, no warhead

Used them against a BC with all armor. Results:

1. all drones would seek and hit the target ship.
2. large & small drones with Anti-Planet warhead would do 108 damage.
3. large & small drones with no warhead would do 78 damage.
4. large & small drones with Anti-Ship warhead would do 708 damage.

Conclusions:
1. there are some bugs.
2. no matter what designation you give a drone, it will seek a ship.
3. impact damage is the sum of ramming damage plus warhead damage.
4. anti-planet warheads add 0 warhead damage, but since they have mass, they add to the ramming damage.

What I did not test:
1. if the drones launch automatically in strategic combat. I think this happens based on previous post somewhere.
2. testing of same against a planet
3. if PDC's attack drones correctly as stated in the latest patch.

Slick

[Arkcon]

Originally posted by capnq:
According to this old thread {link}, anti-planet drones only do ramming damage against ships.

Yeah, I just did a simpler test than Slick. A small drone; computer, 3 engines, supply, then either
Anti planet warhead + 1 armor 3
Anti ship warhead + 1 armor 3
All armor 3's

Target:
Light cruiser full of Armor 3

Armor 3 and anti planet took out 3 armors

Anti ship took out 16 armors.

Let me save everyone some time and call myself an idiot. If you've already called me an idiot, then the time consumed in the process is your own fault.

[Slick]

Not at all. I think most of us like learning the "nuances" *COUGHbugsCOUGH* in this game so that they can be reported and fixed. Since I never really use drones, I didn't know these issues until I read this thread and played around with them a little.

[Skulky]

Drones, i have found, work well as a kind of special mission force, unless found in large numbers. I REALLY WANT "MOVE TO" so i can get my SBM/RD2 fleets from starfire Online again . I love to keep playing my drone wars scenario. I wish they were cheaper/or had a special facility that could only construct units and was very good at it so you could get x2 or x3 instead of only building one per turn.

And finally i disagree with whoever said they were better than a destoyer or an LC. hell no, i can get one LC a turn with organics, unless im up against crystalline which would u rather fight, 50 LCs with 2-3 organic armor and 2-3 large mount organic weapons and the ability to repair and continue a long campaign? or 50 drones that will eventually die off.

Also, what happens when u put weapons on a drone? and what is a good design for "fighter killers" just wondering

---
i'm sitll a newbie, being as i can't use drones

[capnq]

what happens when u put weapons on a drone?

The drone will fire the weapons normally, until it gets close enough to its target to ram it.

[Puke]

cant you give a drone armed with weapons a strategy to shoot, and not to ram?