formations

we asked for this in the previous forum (go figure), but at best it seems that prearranged formations will be the norm

although there were some interesting mechanical views of what could be put into the game under customizable formations. (like an associative AI that moves according to motion of nearby ships)

I think if we leave the AI to its orders it should be able to figure out the best formations and if not a little micro never hurt anyone.

I just got beta 4. My first impression. Think Homeworld, 3d space around planets and formations. Wall, Sphear, Claw etc..

I have a feeling when i play that it dosent matter what I do in battle the ships just fly where ever they want and attack.

In homeworld tatics mattered a group of fighters in claw formation then a switch to sphear would chew up other players. Ion-frigs in wall foramtion and all guns came to bear on a single target. Anyways I think the addition of formations is a good idea.

Actually Schod, a dev mentioned a while back that we're getting some kind of formations control.

Set your ships to hold position, and micro like hell if you want to keep some kind of coherent formation. Which resembles HW's wall formation. Otherwise the ship AI will just scatter your fleet all over the gravity well.

Hopefully these "formations" the dev's mentioned will keep your ships together while moving. Nothing is more frustraiting than a colbalt going after a trader through a wall of gauss guns. Ship ai is saying "im gonna get you little trader hehehehe"....BOOM!

I think we will get a basic formation move that will keep ships together, but that formation will be locked in as they see fit.

I doubt we will get the level of tactical formations that Homeworld had, which while fantastic, was a tactical game, this is a bit more of a strategy game, and well, something has to give, Its a shame but I think for now we will have to live without formations.

I wouldn't mind 'Local Area' actually being made useful either lol.

Oh, it is... it is!

Most time the default group formation 'wall' works well enough. Still, once splash damage starts becoming an issue, I would like to have a formation that spreads my guys out a bit more.

Local Area seems to just make my fleets float forward as they engage a enemy and then slowly be brought where I didn't want them to go... using Hold Position and micro-ing seems much more effective, or at least safer.

Local area will only alow them to auto-follow for 1/4 of the grav well from their "default" location -- manual move / attack orders do change the default location, however. I frequently use it to "control" the half of a grav well away from enemy defenses, while bombing enemy planet to dust.

hmmm it would be helpful if a green marker was placed where this 'default location' was. With a diameter circle marking from there.

It'd get rather ugly with all the units -- each with their own independent center -- that you'd have to display simultaneously.