Warzone 2100 Forums

This is an idea that's aimed at the scripting of a commander turret. What if the Commander units were scripted in such a way that the units assigned to it would change their combat behavior based on their most effective use. Let me elaborate on this:

Commander: This is the unit that acts as a sort of pseudo AI which designates specific targets for each unit that is linked to the commander. The player has full control over the Commander's movement, but it picks and chooses its own targets and directs the units that are attached to it. For example:

AT Tank ---- Commander ---- AP Tank --- AA Tank

---------------------------------------------------------

Tank ---- Cyborg ------ Hover ---- VTOL

The commander would take in all the information from the area in which it can see, unless a sensor tank has been linked to it, in which case it also sees what the sensor tank sees.

The commander itself will focus on the targets that are weakest against the weapons on the units that are assigned to it, based on a system of priorities. For example:

The AT Tank will fire at the target that is weakest against AT weapons, such as tanks, but more importantly, it will focus on the tanks with the propulsion that is weakest against AT weapons, for example Wheeled tanks and Hovers.

So the AT Tank, based on the diagram above will target the group of enemies in this order:

1: Hover
2: Tank
3: Cyborg

First, it will focus on what propulsion the enemy uses, then it will hone in on the units that pose the greatest threat to the tank itself. For example, a Hover with a Tank Killer will first target other Hovers that use tank killers and then proceed to the other tanks that use Tank Killers, targeting the propulsion of least protection first and working its way to the strongest tanks which use Tank Killers. After all the TK Tanks are gone, it will proceed to attack other tanks which pose the next greatest threat to it according to the area in which it sees. The information gathered from the targets is determined by the radius in which the *tank* can see, not what the *player* can see.

This concept is meant to provide players with a highly efficient means of making effective use of commanders by letting them pick and choose the best targets to aim at. In the case of artillery units that are assigned to a sensor tank which is then assigned to a commander, the artillery units are under the command of the Sensor tank, not the commander, but the sensor tank will pick the targets it can wipe out first that pose the greatest threat to the Sensor tank itself (for example, Lancer Cyborgs), when assigned to the Commander.

I think a lot of WZ players would greatly enjoy having something like this implemented, even if it was just a mod.

If there's any room for improvement, which I'm certain there is, you're more than welcome to share it.

I sort of agree with you as it would allow for the easier management of combined armies - especially in regards to formations. I would like to see something that would keep each unit at clost to it's max range so then you could have like lines of formation ie say if you had like mortor, lancer, cannon, mg, flamer units each would keep their distance and be defended by those in front - the flammer would be like a skirmish up close and personal with the enemy army with the others back and protected a bit.

At this time, even if you are using groups the armies get bunched up and are extremely vulnerable to inferno attacks - having like these formations could make armies a little more resistent to the OP (IMHO) flamer / inferno / hover unit.

Even a simple a way to make formations that would hold would be cool with some presets like in Mediaval Total war where you can organise into column or lines, etc - I would like to see a lines by range formation that would be cool, or the ability to create your own presets so that you could quickly change formation depending on the situation.

Anyways getting a bit away from commanders here... but in someways I think the commander will never work because it is a cannon magnet, but maybe if you gave it a heep more range and used formations so it would sit furtherest back and be well defended it could come into play...

For an idea for a spiritual successor to Warzone 2100 that I have, I had an idea for a group AI that works similarly to what you're suggesting for Commanders, only that the game wouldn't use commander units to accomplish this task.

By the way, perhaps we could, in some point in the future, be able to program commander AIs through JavaScript?

Shadow Wolf TJC wrote:For an idea for a spiritual successor to Warzone 2100 that I have, I had an idea for a group AI that works similarly to what you're suggesting for Commanders, only that the game wouldn't use commander units to accomplish this task.

Yeah I agree with getting rid of the commander as a single unit - it is too much of a target. In regards to the group AI, this could be like a collective hive mind thing, say like the neural synapse research brain where it is present in all group members as opposed to a single commander unit.

Groups could have their own menu like the commander so you could assign factories and various other things to them - like formations! I would really love to see formations introduced

Bear in mind that this is simply an idea that I had for a spiritual successor to Warzone 2100, which would also borrow elements from Supreme Commander. It may be impossible to actually implement said idea for Warzone 2100 itself.

Arreon, every units already have an inboard pretty decent AI.