Shark7
Posts: 7937
Joined: 7/24/2007
From: The Big Nowhere
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: taltamir
quote:
ORIGINAL: Erik Rutins
I believe that at present if you have troop recruitment on auto and issue load troops everything will fill up eventually. Still this is better than ordering each individual ship. One step at a time, I'd also like to see them load from an entire system.
Regards,
- Erik
Well, its great that steps forward are made. But we still need a "load until full" command. I don't actually use the current load command.
The problem is that fleets take too long to organize. And if they do something like "load troops" then the whole fleet is now crippled while the transports load troops one by one. And if you send them to invade an undefended planet? well, now you gotta wait for the whole fleet to refuel and gather... even though there is no need for all of them...
You could use a small fleet of only transports, but the AI would automatically add combat ships to any fleet I make unless I disable AI fleet creation (which I don't want to, I want the AI to manage fleets in parallel from me).
Even if I do I have a fleet of only 3 transport ships they do not handle well, fleets spend TOO MUCH effort to "stay together" which is downright crippling. I just have troop transport 3, 4, 5 and 6 bound to the same numbered keyboard shortcuts (with capital ships bound to key 1 and 2, and targets of value bounds to 7 through 0). Then I manage my "fleet" by altering between those... press each number and click on a spot outside the system to have them "gather". Press each number and then give it a target in the system to attack... and watch a coordinated strike as two capital ships come out, distract the defenses, and allow 4 transports to pop in and unload their troops.
Fun, but then I have to spend a lot of time and effort loading the troop transports back up because of the lack of the "load until full" command.
Also, a huge improvement to the AI would be if transport ships who do not have a full complement of troops (say, because they just dropped them off on a planet) and are automated, then they should immediately leave whatever fleet they are in, go planet to planet collecting troops until they are full, then join a fleet.
Basically, fleets should not have transport ships which are not full of troops. otherwise they are just slowing the fleet down. They slow it down in 2 ways:
1. The entire fleet has to escort the transports as they go to your well defended inner planets to pick up troops.
2. The empty transports act as combat ships, joining into battles with only 1 laser, no targeting computer, and poor armor and shields... and when they get damaged or have to refuel or whatever? the entire fleet needs to wait on them.
It is downright crippling.
Also, the auto designed transport ship has only 1 laser beam? why bother? might as well make it unarmed and change its default behavior to NOT engage enemies...
Speaking of, might aswell make all freighters unarmed as well. Limiting them to 1 weapon means that they are useless in actually harming anything...
oh, and neither transport ships nor civilian ships have a targeting computer... so they can't hit anything with their 1 laser.
Also, we need the ability to tell the AI not to use specific components AND/OR not to use specific component types.
For example of types: "Pulse weapons", "Bombardment weapons", etc.
That way I could leave ship design on auto but just tell the AI to not use megatron Z4 shields, not use the novacore NX700, and not use any pulse (area blast) or bombardment weapons.
Also. Pulse weapons "stop" when they reach their target. They should continue until they reach their max range...
EX: if I fire a pulse with a range of 500 and the "target" of said pulse was actually 50 range from me (what unit is it?) then the pulse weapon will hit it and stop spreading, it will not hit any enemies or friends which are at range 51-500 from me.
I agree fully with the part in Italics. I personally never use area effect offense weapons since I use my ships as parts of fleets and the area weapons are friendly fire capable. As such I should be able to tell the AI never use those weapons in any design.
I have a very specific design philiosphy.
-Escorts: Light, very fast ships with moderate armament. Generally 2 shields, 2 armor, 4 laser, 1 torpedo, speed of 50-60 and turn of 20+
-Frigates: Slightly heavier armed adn slightly slower. Hyperdeny when available.
-Destroyers: Backbone of the fleet...12 laser, 2 torpedos, hyperdeny, troop carrier. I use these in all fleets.
-Cruiser: Heavy ship with bombardment capability.
-Captial Ship: Massive ship that is worth a fleet of destoyers by itself. Able to destroy or assault planets.
I don't deviate from this design philosophy. As such, the most numerous ships in my fleet at destroyers, frigates and escorts.
So I'd even go so far as to be able to specify, use X componant on DD or higher, but never on esocrt or frigate, etc.
_____________________________
Distant Worlds Fan
'When in doubt...attack!'
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