Planned Various Fleet Command Ideas

[StormWing0]

Just a long ever growing list of fleet ideas I'm sure most of which are already planned but this could also be a brainstorming topic for things that might not be as well.


Attack/Guard Patrol Paths: This is an additional mode to the existing Attack and Guard Sector command, instead of just inputting only one sector you input a list of sectors. When the fleet reaches the last sector on the list it will go back to the starting sector or follow the path in reverse depending on what of those options you tell it to. Other than this minor change everything else about the attack and guard command remains the same, if the enemies go out of a 2 sector radius of where they were run into at the fleet will return to the path and continue on it.


Mining Commands: This has 3 modes: Search, Named Sector, Patrol Path. In search mode the fleet will fly as a group until it runs into a asteroid flied, planet, overheating station, ship, something it can mine before mining it as fast as it can, in this mode the fleet can scatter to mine the general area as well. Named Sector and Patrol Path Modes will mine anything in the sectors and a 2 sector radius of the sector or path.

Now in this case there are also a number of "return to dock" conditions to make sure the miners come back to drop off their load after a while. Before they can return to the docking area you need to either dock them with the station or ship you want them to return to of name the station or ship in the settings. Now the first one it will check is are the named storages full? The storage don't have to have names though they just need to be selected and if you are using many copies of the same ship or there is a specific storage the salvager arrays are linked to it goes even faster since you can set them faster.

In the case of several copies of the same ship it is the same storage on each of them so you set it for one it is set for all copies of the same ship. By default though the game will check the storage that is directly linked to the salvager computers to see if it is full. If full and it is being pulled from it will wait until the pull from the other storages happens to check if it is still full or not. If still full the ship will head to its docking point.

The next could be a timer to where if it is full or not the fleet will return to dock. Just select the timer setting and set the time. Be sure to account for travel time in this calculation so they don't return before they find something unless you want them too.

Being under attack could also be a condition. If the mining ships are under attack they'll retreat to dock as fast as they can using their jump drives or fastest thrust settings to get back in as few pieces as possible.


Fleet Formations: Just something that'd be nice is to be able to pick from a list of formations to fly in or even be able to make our own fleet formations as well.



Anyone have some of their own fleet command ideas? :P

 

[Kilim]

1. Attack a certain entity or player (not like select fire, because i want to be able to select things and just tell them to keep shooting this guy until he's dead or drones are killed)
2. Engage at x km, I don't want my ships to be orbiting the enemy at 10km away, I prefer close up, maybe 1-2 km, so i think it would be nice for them to do that. There has to be a function of the ai that doens't make them collide though, if you insert e.g 0km.


Other suggestion: that a ship you are in a fleet should not be automagically ai controlled

 

[MacThule]

If they're going to do multiple formations, I think the best option from the start would be to allow players to SET FORMATION by manually putting ships in the formation they want in game, then saving the formation. After that give the option to RESUME FORMATION to have the ships return to the formation you set for them.

+1 patrol paths. Rather than be forced to station fleets all throughout a set of asteroid belts, it'd be sensible and convenient to set one fleet to patrol points around that belt constantly.

• We need a fleet behavior to retreat to base upon X level of damage (this can be broken down any number of ways).

• Instead of defend having a 2 sector radius, please allow the radius to be set.

• We need to be able to assign fleet members engagement ranges and behaviors such as STAND-OFF/SKIRMISH, CLOSE, INTERDICT/TANK, FLANK, etc.
  • Stand-off means engage at longest weapon range, fall back (move away from enemies) when own shields drop below 50%, then re-engage when shields hit 90%.
  • Close means close to point blank and engage with all weapon systems regardless of damage taken.
  • Interdict would give a ship or fleet the behavior to tank for other friendly entities in range; moving itself between friendlies and any hostiles attacking them. Could even allow setting of priorities within a fleet so that tanks prioritize defense of say, DPS ships or a carrier or particular industrial ship or station over any other friendlies in the area.
    
  • Flank would give ships or fleets the behavior of trying to achieve & maintain perpendicular lines of fire with other non-flanking friendly units.

Basically a fleet admiral needs to be able to interface pretty deeply with his fleet's AI, if you eventually want to see fleets become an extension of the player.

While fleet formation and organization is perfect in the "K" window, it may be sensible in the long run to move fleet orders to a command list + hotbar setup the way a ship's weapons & abilities operate. In fact, since this is suggestion is not a command itself, I'm going to spin off a separate suggestion thread for this because I believe that admirals are going to want the same level of command and control over their fleets that captains have over their ships, not just a canned, static menu.

 

[wanzer]

I like the mining commands but I also see a danger in that.
Imagine if you made endless drone fleets that all mined.. you get fibs growth.

next to dock a launch drones command and a block that holds a drone until it notices the launch command

I noticed ships that got a command are blind and sometimes fly and get trapped on a stationary object
so that needs a bit of polishing.

it be nice to set patrol nodes

 

[color98dove]

As far as fleet command ideas go, i have an idea

Fleet Ship Controls
* What the fleet overall speed limit should be (ex. Set the Fleet Max Speed to 100ms)
* What if any Special Abilities the ship has (ex. Push, Pull, Stop, Overdrive, Ion, defensively and offensively. Can bypass the "FMS"
* If they are set to mine, how long should that take (ex. add a timer to fleet window for mining) and a cool down
like if you mine for an hour, you must rest for 15 mins after, then you can go mining again with the fleet

This is the one that's going to get me yelled at...
Fleets Consume Fuel, for each ship the station base, must have x fuel so the ship may go mining, or what have you, now this is NOT a requirement for people players, but for fleet AI only, and its a standard mech recipe, whatever you need it to be, each ship for each function that is request consumes 1000 of this fuel, and this dont seem like much until you weigh the costs of the fleet vs the fuel for it to function.

Well hope i don't get screamed at...thx

 

[MacThule]

BLOCKADE

Prevent any ships (enemy or neutral) from reaching or leaving a target station or planet. Should include a warning broadcast (similar to the pirate station broadcasts) to any ships that enter the proximity of the blockaded entity to give them an opportunity to turn back.

 

[Lukwan]

Most of the 'Orders' that are used in Gratuitous Space Battles would be useful for fleet SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) & commands.

-Escort-target (mobile)
-Guard stationary target (pursuing enemy is a selectable option)
-Attack at a specific range from enemy.
-Retreat when X% damaged.
-Vulture (target most damaged enemy)
-Concentrate fleet fire on single target.
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This is the one that's going to get me yelled at...
Fleets Consume Fuel, for each ship the station base, must have x fuel so the ship may go mining, or what have you, now this is NOT a requirement for people players, but for fleet AI only, and its a standard mech recipe, whatever you need it to be, each ship for each function that is request consumes 1000 of this fuel, and this dont seem like much until you weigh the costs of the fleet vs the fuel for it to function.

Well hope i don't get screamed at...thx

Aaaaaaaaaaarrghhhhhhhhhhh! (There...happy? :p Well actually the subject of fuel has come up before and is worth talking about.)

 

[ToasterBorst]

BLOCKADE

Prevent any ships (enemy or neutral) from reaching or leaving a target station or planet. Should include a warning broadcast (similar to the pirate station broadcasts) to any ships that enter the proximity of the blockaded entity to give them an opportunity to turn back.

<3 Blockade!

Good thread, keep up the suggestions and brainstorming! Bumped to Council!

 

[StormWing0]

 

[Master_Artificer]

hey guys, I saw this thread after I posted Recognized by Council - Fleet Command Hotbar <that, and saw a lot of similar things being suggested here that I thought would make good AI toggles.
Check it out! :D

 

[Lone_Puppy]

If there are any military personal playing this game, they would be a great source of knowledge in this area.

I would also approach the Navy, since their mode of operations are most like what we are wanting to achieve.
Perhaps members of the Starmade community have family or friends in the military who could offer advice from a real world perspective.

 

[Criss]

I can tell you now that Schema has already shown us fleets mining for resources and looks to be coming within a release or two. Not sure what else is on the table so soon.

Pretty much all of this is planned. In order to keep things simple, I think as far as unloaded ships go we will be reducing the entire process to more non-literal actions. Does a ship have cargo and a salvager? Then it can mine. Does it have a place to drop off the mined materials? Yes? Fly there and dump the materials.

It might break immersion, but I am not even sure it is possible to create a system where ships are auto docking and transferring stuff and managing themselves without us telling them how to do it and defining every aspect of their capabilities. Expect this all to happen, just not so perfectly and realistically.

 

[alterintel]

Hey Criss, I'm going to chime in here to say all very good ideas, but the problem is making a good GUI for players to program various activities for their fleets or individual ships to do.

If we could implement something like this into fleet or AI programming. Though tile based programming seems a bit complicated at first, I think it's allot easier than a page or two of check boxes and sliders, and it allows for allot of customization. Just a thought

 

[Master_Artificer]

I can tell you now that Schema has already shown us fleets mining for resources and looks to be coming within a release or two. Not sure what else is on the table so soon.

Pretty much all of this is planned. In order to keep things simple, I think as far as unloaded ships go we will be reducing the entire process to more non-literal actions. Does a ship have cargo and a salvager? Then it can mine. Does it have a place to drop off the mined materials? Yes? Fly there and dump the materials.

It might break immersion, but I am not even sure it is possible to create a system where ships are auto docking and transferring stuff and managing themselves without us telling them how to do it and defining every aspect of their capabilities. Expect this all to happen, just not so perfectly and realistically.

This is what I expected actually. If in sector where it is told to drop stuff off, it is offloaded. If in a sector that is an asteroid belt, it gathers cargo over time. Why would it need to simulated docking and undocking when the sector is unloaded?

 

[XeonNull]

Request some kind of Fleet comand block.
Top down vision of sector with strategy game style command

Next thing is hierarchy in fleet manager, split carriers and fleet(we can have multiple ships attached to carriers)
Also with hierarchy we can attach miners to cargo and just afk on it while miners eat planets.

sorry for bad english

 

[Lone_Puppy]

It might break immersion, but I am not even sure it is possible to create a system where ships are auto docking and transferring stuff and managing themselves without us telling them how to do it and defining every aspect of their capabilities.

SkyLord managed the auto unloading/loading using logic, rails & timing.

I think the new rails and the rail pickup block would work if you could use it like the area activation+modules. We already have a system that works. Why not use it.

As for the interface, why not just use the existing chat/messaging system that already has a built in command interface.
The only thing that I could see complimenting this, would be macros in the form of hotbar blocks. So you can have the best of both worlds. You can be pretty sure the extra hotbars will be fully utilised.

 

[Goblin]

I missed one Option: Build a trade path: Dock there, fly here, dock on some other. It it currently possible to dock and it is possible to send them somewhere but only once. What i would need is a possibility to send a ship to a station and dock there, returning after undocking. Like a patrolpath but for trading routes. Maybe even with the ability to tell the fleet to buy or sell stuff

 

[Criss]

SkyLord managed the auto unloading/loading using logic, rails & timing.

Yes and as skylord stated it was an absolute nightmare to figure out the logic required to pull that off. At least for him. The system has to work for the average player, which means if we have to simplify it we will. Fleets come particularly useful for single players, and so they might not have the logic skills or design skills another player might have that would allow them to create a neat sorting and docking system.

 

[Nickizzy]

I like the mining commands but I also see a danger in that.
Imagine if you made endless drone fleets...

Whats wrong with the borg faction?

 

[Master_Artificer]

Whats wrong with the borg faction?

I think that is a self explanatory statement.