More Suggestions -- new ships have attack range set to small range, turn off AI comments

from Sins Forums

 

Two more things that this game needs:

1. There needs to be a way to set frigate factories so that when new ships are produce, the attack range is set to small (micro) so that new ships that are born in gravity wells during a fight won't run off to face an enemy fleet on their own--running to their deaths and wasting a ship.  Oftentimes I'll have my frigate factories set to send new ships to a certain location in the gravity well (behind fortifications perhaps) and once they get there, they then go off to attack enemy fleets on their own.  It's very annoying having to set the attack range for every single ship that comes out.

2. We need an option to turn the annoying AI chat off.  Can't say I understand why it gives hints about what planets it's about to attack anyway.  So, I'd like the ability to turn off the annoying AI chat.  (In the online multiplayer game we generally regard AI as being almost completely worthless and we don't want to read the AI's screams about how its planets are being bombed or it's pathetic threats to bomb our planets.)

8,711 views 13 replies
Reply #1 from Stardock Forums Top

1. i agree, id also like the ability to turn off auto-fleet join. for instance, ill have two large fleets in one system composed of the same number of units (when at full strength) but if im re-inforcing one of the fleets, the replacecment ships end up going to the larger fleet that does not need re-inforing.

i know the devs were selling this as a unique feature, but they said it would join the most appropriate fleet... not the largest fleet

i reckon if frigate/capital factories, when selected, brought up the tactics management window and whatever else, so when you set the settings there (engagement range, auto-fleet join etc) it will apply to all ships being built at that factory.

on a seperate note, currently if you have more than 1 factory in a system, all the ships built will appear in the game as though they came out of the first factory built. its only a visual thing. but sometimes its advantageous for each ship to come out a little distance away from the others. or, alternatively, closer or further from the battle, as appropriate

2. also agree, though it doesnt annoy me as much. =P

again, on a seperate note, id also like the audio cues for notices on incoming enemy forces, when re-inforcements join a battle, etc etc, id like them to be more helpful. atm, it considers a trade ship as re-inforcement, but i have to go running around looking for which of my ships decided to get all altruistic on me. also, when it says there are inbound hostiles, and a scout ship or 2 LF or a few seige frigs rock up, and im all excited and RED ALERT and stuff, then i just get dissapointed. something more intuitive and informative would be awesome

Reply #2 from Sins Forums Top

. i agree, id also like the ability to turn off auto-fleet join.
End of quote

Totally in agreement; auto-join makes maintaining my fleets an absolute nightmare.

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Reply #3 from Stardock Forums Top

do you notice that when you select certain ships in a GW, but not others, and set the selected ships to form a fleet, the unselected ships somehow become a fleet themselves? as in they get the gold fleet icon and come up as a fleet in the empire window... that was always weird

Reply #4 from Sins Forums Top

You know when you hit alt or hover over units you can see the circles that represents their weapons range? Why not represent them as pie slices instead? I feel the circles can be improved in this way to encourage better micromanagement of fleets. You could represent their weapons damage statistics on the info card in colors and the represent those respective weapons around the ship as pie slices so players could see them and could manage how to use them better( because we all know that most ships cant fire in an area directly behind them.) Some of course would remain complete cricles (like starbases), but their repective weapons ranges could be visible (since they differ). Also, if it seems like a lot of additional calculations would have to be made, and thus slow down the game, you could make it so you only see that on your own ships.

Also to help utilize this you can make it so if you set your fleet on 'hold position' and tell them to move within their firing range they rotate to face that position rather than move towards it (as if you were attacking something).

I feel this could drastically improve the experience in battle and incourage more players to be more invloved with the battles and be rewarded for their focus.

 

Reply #5 from Sins Forums Top

 

I think I like the pie slices idea.

Reply #6 from Sins Forums Top

2. We need an option to turn the annoying AI chat off. Can't say I understand why it gives hints about what planets it's about to attack anyway. So, I'd like the ability to turn off the annoying AI chat. (In the online multiplayer game we generally regard AI as being almost completely worthless and we don't want to read the AI's screams about how its planets are being bombed or it's pathetic threats to bomb our planets.)
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Delete the strings.

Reply #7 from Stardock Forums Top

Quoting Mooster, reply 6

2. We need an option to turn the annoying AI chat off. Can't say I understand why it gives hints about what planets it's about to attack anyway. So, I'd like the ability to turn off the annoying AI chat. (In the online multiplayer game we generally regard AI as being almost completely worthless and we don't want to read the AI's screams about how its planets are being bombed or it's pathetic threats to bomb our planets.)


Delete the strings.
End of Mooster's quote

Luopica Colonists: *silence*

You: oh, hey God, i didnt see you there =P

Reply #8 from Sins Forums Top

The AI chat is easy to turn off. Just open up the audio options and turn the voice volume down to zero.
I do it all the time. The comments that the units make when clicked on every single time get a bit grating after five hours.

 

:cylon:

Reply #9 from Sins Forums Top


1. There needs to be a way to set frigate factories so that when new ships are produce, the attack range is set to small (micro) so that new ships that are born in gravity wells during a fight won't run off to face an enemy fleet on their own--running to their deaths and wasting a ship.  Oftentimes I'll have my frigate factories set to send new ships to a certain location in the gravity well (behind fortifications perhaps) and once they get there, they then go off to attack enemy fleets on their own.  It's very annoying having to set the attack range for every single ship that comes out.
End of quote

 

Agreed that this would be a very useful addition.

One particular solution to this issue springs to mind (from Star Trek: Armada 2). Give the shipyards access to the "tactics menu" or whatever it's called that allows us to set engagement ranges and fleet settings. Then, have any ships produced at a shipyard take the shipyard's settings as its own defaults.

This would allow people to customize their ships' default settings to the given situation. Maybe a few more commands could be added to the shipyards' tactics menu, such as allowing autoattack and autocast of ability1 through ability4. Maybe an option could even be added to provide a default ratio of fighters to bombers for ships that can carry them. That would remove quite a bit of unneeded micro, imo.

This would also let people customize their settings to suit their playstyle. I'd for sure turn off auto join fleets and autocast on all abilities. I'd probably fiddle with engagement ranges as well. 

Comments?

Reply #10 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting SSAF, reply 8
The AI chat is easy to turn off. Just open up the audio options and turn the voice volume down to zero.
I do it all the time. The comments that the units make when clicked on every single time get a bit grating after five hours.
End of SSAF's quote

I like to hear what my units have to say.  It's the text chat from my AI allies (after someone on my team has dropped) that annoys me.

Reply #11 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting milo896, reply 9

quoting post
1. There needs to be a way to set frigate factories so that when new ships are produce, the attack range is set to small (micro) so that new ships that are born in gravity wells during a fight won't run off to face an enemy fleet on their own--running to their deaths and wasting a ship.  Oftentimes I'll have my frigate factories set to send new ships to a certain location in the gravity well (behind fortifications perhaps) and once they get there, they then go off to attack enemy fleets on their own.  It's very annoying having to set the attack range for every single ship that comes out.

 

Agreed that this would be a very useful addition.

One particular solution to this issue springs to mind (from Star Trek: Armada 2). Give the shipyards access to the "tactics menu" or whatever it's called that allows us to set engagement ranges and fleet settings. Then, have any ships produced at a shipyard take the shipyard's settings as its own defaults.

This would allow people to customize their ships' default settings to the given situation. Maybe a few more commands could be added to the shipyards' tactics menu, such as allowing autoattack and autocast of ability1 through ability4. Maybe an option could even be added to provide a default ratio of fighters to bombers for ships that can carry them. That would remove quite a bit of unneeded micro, imo.
End of milo896's quote

I love the idea of being able to set options on the frigate factoires.  You make another good point--the default for a new capital ship ability should be set to off.  I hate it when a cap ship levels up in a battle and I want to pick a new ability for it but I know that it will auto-activate at a non-strategic time and consume the anti-matter i was going to use for another ability.

Reply #12 from Sins Forums Top

Quoting CenturionJixra, reply 10

I like to hear what my units have to say.  It's the text chat from my AI allies (after someone on my team has dropped) that annoys me.
End of CenturionJixra's quote

Ah, I see. I got nothing, then.
My solution only removes the ship voices and the "Allied PLanet under Siege" and stuff like that.

 

:cylon:

Reply #13 from Stardock Forums Top

Give the shipyards access to the "tactics menu" or whatever it's called that allows us to set engagement ranges and fleet settings. Then, have any ships produced at a shipyard take the shipyard's settings as its own defaults.
End of quote

yeah, i was saying this in my reply here, so its got my vote