Carriers...Any purpose?

[niteowl84]

Like most of of you guys, i have a big interest in carriers, they look cool and are bad ass... however i been wondering about the actual purpose of it. I tried building a small carrier for the hell of it and tested in in the field, turns out none of my fighters came back... so i would imagine it can get pretty costly to have a carrier if you have to replace every fighter every time you launch one... why hasn't there be been a recall feature implemented yet or is there some other way to recall those fighters that im unaware of?

 

[Trollerbobman]

There is no recall feature.
Some people use carriers to ferry small fleets of annoying drones to battle.
Others make the Carriers for RP, so other players can use the fighters.

But a recall feature would be very nice.

 

[WaffulMann]

I think the recall feature has already been suggested. Not sure though

 

[Criss]

The AI in the game would need a lot more work done to it if you wanted them to remember how to dock back to the ship. Everyone builds their ships differently. That means the AI would have to know exactly how to get back into a ship of any design for it to be useful. That takes quite a bit of work and we do not even have NPC's yet.

 

[WaffulMann]

The AI in the game would need a lot more work done to it if you wanted them to remember how to dock back to the ship. Everyone builds their ships differently. That means the AI would have to know exactly how to get back into a ship of any design for it to be useful. That takes quite a bit of work and we do not even have NPC's yet.

Didn't schema release a video of AI pathfinding something like a year ago? All they'd need to do is pop the system onto bobby AI modules and account for ship dimensions.

 

[Trollerbobman]

Didn't schema release a video of AI pathfinding something like a year ago? All they'd need to do is pop the system onto bobby AI modules and account for ship dimensions.

That video shows Schema using a command while pointing himself at a block so the entity could know where to go.
You can't really point yourself at a block whilst flying a giant carrier XD

 

[WaffulMann]

That video shows Schema using a command while pointing himself at a block so the entity could know where to go.
You can't really point yourself at a block whilst flying a giant carrier XD

The "return" button could force a crew member to point at the docking block.

 

[Byamarro]

You don't need to point at block to put it's value into function.

 

[Trollerbobman]

You don't need to point at block to put it's value into function.

I take it you didn't watch the video.

 

[WaffulMann]

I take it you didn't watch the video.

Still, they could just assign a ship a "last docked position"
Could also make for a good "home autopilot" system.

 

[der_scheme]

Carriers will get a more important role after the FTL update. With the capital ship hyperdrive rendering the ship permanently immobile, but the low range of jump drives, warring factions probably will rely on hyperdrive capable carriers which deploy the short-range ships into battle.

Arbitrary path finding is not that trivial as you guys may think. In fact, one of the more difficult issues with the FTL update is spawning a ship in a free space. Path finding in arbitrary structures is even more complex.

 

[NeonSturm]

Carriers will get a more important role after the FTL update. With the capital ship hyperdrive rendering the ship permanently immobile, but the low range of jump drives, warring factions probably will rely on hyperdrive capable carriers which deploy the short-range ships into battle.

Arbitrary path finding is not that trivial as you guys may think. In fact, one of the more difficult issues with the FTL update is spawning a ship in a free space. Path finding in arbitrary structures is even more complex.

AI will not take stairs. Maybe we can get it to use stairs if you put glass wedges there and discourage it from using jumping...


But players will always look for the path which looks good from their own perspective while AIs often cheat with global knowledge and never failing memory.
That will always be the difference.

@der_scheme Maybe we can use above 2 lines to improve Andromeda-style Slipstreams? Make the right path from your perspective be the right path, while global knowledge leads to a wrong or rough path?
But it would be a bit cheating since we know the way to do it. On the Flip-Side we can't pretend Andromeda's Slip-Stream being exclusive to humans as long as we can not proof a that AI is unable to gain that skill required.

 

[Reilly Reese]

AI could just cheat dock. Totally ignore blocks and just fly and dock to the dock block. Sure it wouldn't be pretty but it would work

 

[Krazykat]

AI could just cheat dock. Totally ignore blocks and just fly and dock to the dock block. Sure it wouldn't be pretty but it would work

this could be temporary until pathfinding was implemented

 

[NeonSturm]

There could be a path mid-air for the core.

It would be pre-calculated for similar-sized ships and can be ignoring hangar doors (would have to open/close with an area trigger in front, would be useful to see the path then)

 

[AtraUnam]

I think the FTL update is going to allow undeathinators on capital ships. This would let players use fighters from a carrier and once they die they can re-spawn back in the carrier and get another fighter from the hanger.

 

[FunnyBunny14]

I think the FTL update is going to allow undeathinators on capital ships. This would let players use fighters from a carrier and once they die they can re-spawn back in the carrier and get another fighter from the hanger.

That would indeed be amazing.