Community help needed with AI and Radio Comms

[planespotter]

Originally Posted by salmo

Thanks for hijacking the thread everyone BlackSix asked for SPECIFIC information about Ai behaviour. Can we stick to the format below & not wander off into discussions which have been canvased many times in other threads ...

“when plane X is in situation Y, instead of Z it should do ABC”

Error description:
Details:
Can it be consistently reproduced?:
Screenshot or video:
OS, system specs:
:

Yes, fair

Error: aircraft do not engage in 1 vs 1
Details: if only one aircraft is in a flight, it is 'invisible' to other ai
Reproducable: yes, set up 1 vs 1 in qmb or fmb, or even 2 vs 1. Set aircraft for head on merge at same altitude. Set to autopilot to eliminate player actions.
Observation: setting enemy as 'target' in fmb does not help either.

Error: aircraft do not engage enemy aircraft in clear view
Details: despite good visibility and proximity ai does not engage
Reproducable. Yes, in fmb set one flight blenheim to bomb target. Set 3 flight 109s to patrol target. Set 109s to free hunt, veteran, full fuel and ammo. Blenheims will attack target and exit without being attacked despite proximity to 109s.
Observation: this seems to have something to do with ai ability to 'see'. I have made mission where ai will not engage, then I move waypoint a little, laterally not higher or lower, not closer or further away and start again and ai engage. Is not a 'proximity bubble' problem either as ai formations can sail through each other eithin metres without engaging.
Suggestion: ai in free hunt should always target nearest visible enemy. Implement option for ai to 'always see ' enemy. Need code preventing more than eg 2 ai attacking same enemy.

Error: bombers not releasing full bomb load on default setting shallow dive
Details: bombers sometimes release only one bomb at target, going home withmore in bomb bay. This is without any player adjustment to bomb load, timing, fuses etc.
Reproducable: set a Blenheim to bomb a target with shallow dive.
Suggestion: default ai should always release full bomb load

Error: ai does not evade when attacked
Details: when ai is in 'go home' state...eg landing, low fuel, no ammo, it does not evade when attacked but stays as sitting duck. Or, maked only one evadive manoeuvre and then returns to level flight even though still under attack
Reproducable: easily
Suggestion: ai should stay active and execute defensive moves as long as enemy is within eg 500 metres.

Error: ai does not attack player
Details: player can participate in large furballs where ai never attacks player despite player shooting at multiple ai.
Details: this is a gameplay design quedtion/issue. One or more ai should always be 'assigned' to attack the player. Maybe customisable by player. Or, an ai which is shot or near missed by player, should try to attack the player in return.
Reproducable: choose large quick mission and observe multiple times how many times player is actually attacked by ai. Is few.
Suggestion: implement code like in BoB2 which has line in config: 'max ai attacking player=X'