Desired Feature: Attack Area

[JCoyote]

I'm not sure if I should ask for a new feature before existing features are debugged, but I'll toss this out while I'm thinking about it.

This game REALLY needs an "Attack Area" feature. Most especially for the artillery, but for many or even all ranged units. It wouldn't be out of character at all to tell a team to create a beaten zone without having to designate any particular unit. This stands out most with mortars, then artillery, then archers. For example, when I'm defending a bridge, i shouldn't have to tell my artillery to fire on a particular unit. I shouldn't have them moving to pursue when it routes. And fire at will just isn't ideal for this, especially when there are units between. I should be able to tell my ranged units to just focus on hammering one part of the bridge... it's what most commanders would have done.

[sapi]

Good idea, but it belongs in the patch wishlist (https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?t=75475&page=3).

Even so, this seems to be a popular issue, so i'll leave the thread open for discussion :book:

[cegman]

The only reason against this I can think of is programming problems I can't think of any other reasons it shouldn't be in.

[TopHatJones]

I doubt this feature could be included in a patch. When the next TW comes out, hopefully it will have a new engine and they can put this in.

[JCoyote]

I'm pretty sure it could be worked in; obviously units other than the targeted unit are already being hit by ranged attacks. So, on some level, actual specific targeting is unnecessary to hit things. It seems like it could be worked on from there.

Even with the current system; if I absolutely had to have a target to be firing at all, then perhaps an unkillable "ghost" unit could be spawn in the targeting point to fire on. It could even be visible as some sort of targeting mark. The biggest problem I can think of is removing it before the end of battle.

[Skott]

I think its a great idea. Hopefully it can be worked in a patch but considering RTW didnt have it it'll probably take more than a patch to do it. Otherwise someone would have done it by now I'm guessing.

[Chosun]

A little OT. Does anybody remember what game(s) had this "attack area" option in the last couple of years? I remember playing it but I just can't remember the name. AOE maybe?

As an option for MTWII, it would be awesome to create a killzone, at least until you ran out of ammo.

[Zenicetus]

No... it's a bad idea (IMO). I know this is realistic in the real world, but games like this are supposed to be symmetrical; you're not supposed to have an advantage that the AI doesn't have.

I would love to have a "fire on area" command, but I don't think the AI could use this nearly as well as I can, in anticipating where enemy units will move. So it ends up being just a cheat for the player. And it's already easy enough to beat the AI on the battlefield.

[JCoyote]

I don't know if it would be that hard to teach the AI how to use it. The applications are pretty obvious; when a breech is made in a wall, use it there. When a bridge is being crossed by the enemy, use it on the bridge.

(On the other hand, the AI can't figure out how to cross a bridge half the time...)

BUT if you removed everything the AI can't use too full effectiveness from the game, there wouldn't be much of a game left. Giving the players historically accurate options should come first, whether or not the AI can use them to full effect should come second; it has with every TW game so far.

[Durallan]

Starcraft, Warcraft, Red Alert, Stronghold, Stronghold 2, Tiberian Sun just to name a few. While these are RTS series (probably excluding Stronghold there because its a medieval simulation moreso than RTS) I would have to say that all these games had fire on area commands. Whats so wrong with there being a fire on area command in TW? The AI can use it to great effect most likely, if given enough arguments, like if player is in minimum fire range and moving then fire in front of target ) or something similar, or if the human is standing still then fire on his general area. I don't really know because I'm not a programmer but in these games the AI was able to use area of effect fire, so why not TW?

Whoot, first edit!

Personally though I'd prefer they fix some of the other issues before I get a fire on area command button, no matter how cool it may be.

[rich19]

With the bridge situation described above, couldn't you just set them all to fire at will? That's what I do usually.

[JCoyote]

Rich, try placing mortars on fire at will behind a wall of your own spearmen, and then tell me where at least a third of their shots land...

Artillery on fire at will have a tendency to cause a lot of friendly fire casualties because of how they pick targets combined with their inherent inaccuracy. From a side angle, they'll have a tendency to fire on the closest enemy, the ones fighting my spearmen, when ideally I'd rather them be firing at the middle of the bridge at the guys moving up to reinforce. It's better to shoot them there, because if they route on your side they run towards you... (though that's a bug that's hopefully getting fixed).

[Zuraffo]

Even with the current system; if I absolutely had to have a target to be firing at all, then perhaps an unkillable "ghost" unit could be spawn in the targeting point to fire on. It could even be visible as some sort of targeting mark. The biggest problem I can think of is removing it before the end of battle.

This is the kind of hack job that I usually abhorrs. But nowadays what game doesn't have a few hack jobs with it? :laugh4:

[Zenicetus]

Starcraft, Warcraft, Red Alert, Stronghold, Stronghold 2, Tiberian Sun just to name a few. While these are RTS series (probably excluding Stronghold there because its a medieval simulation moreso than RTS) I would have to say that all these games had fire on area commands. Whats so wrong with there being a fire on area command in TW? The AI can use it to great effect most likely, if given enough arguments, like if player is in minimum fire range and moving then fire in front of target ) or something similar, or if the human is standing still then fire on his general area. I don't really know because I'm not a programmer but in these games the AI was able to use area of effect fire, so why not TW?

Okay, but was the AI in those games actually using fire-on-area intelligently? Or was it just directly targeting units, as a programming shortcut? It's been a long time since I played Starcraft and Warcraft, so I can't remember how well the AI used ranged units.


Personally though I'd prefer they fix some of the other issues before I get a fire on area command button, no matter how cool it may be.

Yeah, that's the other issue. The existing AI needs tweaking before anything new is added.