Boost-Crazy AI

Lightspeed

Lightspeed
Old Duck said:
My RP ethos is also to play a law-abiding citizen, the law of physics, and that means purposefully flying passenger ships in a way that is comfortable for the passengers and crew. At the very least the acceleration of passenger and cargo ships should be reasonable for the protection of what they carry. I sometimes even wonder why these ships have the equivalent to afterburners - I get it on an F-18, not so much on a 767.
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I once had the pleasure of being among the first regular passengers flown in one of BA's 757s. The pilot climbed with it like a fighter jet :D

Only ever experienced that again with take-off and landing in an Aeroflot between Manchester and Moscow !
 

Old Duck

Old Duck
Lightspeed said:
I once had the pleasure of being among the first regular passengers flown in one of BA's 757s. The pilot climbed with it like a fighter jet :D

Only ever experienced that again with take-off and landing in an Aeroflot between Manchester and Moscow !
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I too have had someone who apparently was ex-military behind the stick of a smaller passenger jet, and I found it unnerving. I've had other pilots who were so smooth that I could barely tell when we were banking or changing altitude, and IMO that displays more skill and experience.

Now if a Dolphin does boost out of a station, it should be because he's got a mob boss or contraband on board. I personally fly like a "graceful pilot" when doing regular passenger missions, but if my guy is wanted, well then he will want me to fly like the hardened combat pilot I am.
 

Lightspeed

Lightspeed
Old Duck said:
I too have had someone who apparently was ex-military behind the stick of a smaller passenger jet, and I found it unnerving. I've had other pilots who were so smooth that I could barely tell when we were banking or changing altitude, and IMO that displays more skill and experience.

Now if a Dolphin does boost out of a station, it should be because he's got a mob boss or contraband on board. I personally fly like a "graceful pilot" when doing regular passenger missions, but if my guy is wanted, well then he will want me to fly like the hardened combat pilot I am.
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That's why the passenger ships are equipped with elephant butt comfortable leather seats !
 

Kzak

Kzak
You might also have noticed that when the docking computer is active, the 'SPEEDING' indicator is not lit up when the docking computer takes your ship past 100 m/s speeds.
 

Old Duck

Old Duck
Kzak said:
You might also have noticed that when the docking computer is active, the 'SPEEDING' indicator is not lit up when the docking computer takes your ship past 100 m/s speeds.
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It's the boosting that bothers me more than the speed. It damages my calm and my immersion.
 

Faded Glory

Faded Glory
I'm actually quite happy that they boost away from the slot and get out of my way.

I'd be constantly slamming on the brakes (reverse thrusters) otherwise!
 

Old Duck

Old Duck
Faded Glory said:
I'm actually quite happy that they boost away from the slot and get out of my way.

I'd be constantly slamming on the brakes (reverse thrusters) otherwise!
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What, you can't go around them? You being a bad pilot shouldn't ruin the game for the rest of us :p

(I'm teasing in case the emoji didn't come through)
 

Crank Larson

Crank Larson
Old Duck said:
From my observations, NPCs just chain-boosts in a straight line until they clear a certain distance, then they hard bank towards the star they are jumping at.
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But this is exactly what human players do. Why is it wrong for AI to do the same?

As for DC, it just feels screwed up to me. I never feel the need to boost in any of my ships for "extra maneuverability" when docking, if anything you sacrifice maneuverability on the deceleration curve of a boost on larger ships. At the very least give me a switch to turn off boosting, similar to the new switch that turns off Supercruise Braking. Boosting while docking is like flipping on the turbocharger to park at Walmart. Sure, the Tom Cruises of the world might do this, but not your average driver. Save the Top Gun maneuvers for CMDRs and Wanted NPCs.
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I'd hope the docking computer is able to calculate exactly what boost(s) it needs to get into the station. Speed limits needn't apply as the ship is predictable and piloting a calculated route.
 

Hanerib

Hanerib
Passengers love it when you crash into the traffic, means you are taking their business seriously, or yours. Most are just a bit ashamed to admit it. Just don't scratch your paintjob, rich tourists have their friends to take pictures of the spaceship to post on spacebook. Nobody really cares if some rusty Type-6 explodes in the mailslot. Alternatively, you could use manifest scanner to clear the path. Works like a dream, everytime.
 

Ralph Vargr

Ralph Vargr
Old Duck said:
I just watched Frontier's livestream video about the next update, and I see we still have a boost-crazy AI (crazy AIvan, LOL). Am I the only one bothered by this? I'm specifically talking about AI behavior around stations. Supposedly there is a speed limit, but every AI, be it a Wanted Viper or a Beluga full of passengers, consta-boosts as soon as they clear the mailslot, only to pull incredible G's once they reach the point to engage FSD.

This also makes a docking computer useless to me, as the docking computer constantly boosts TOWARDS the station until it lines up with the mail slot, and then it slams on the brakes. How is it legal to own a docking computer that ignores the speed limit? I first noticed this when I equipped my T9 with a docking computer, and it wrecked my immersion, my fragile cargo, and my neck. I'm tempted to put a DC on my enhanced Sidewinder just to see if it kills me...

So Frontier, please chill out with the boosting! If you are going to have an AI boost around the station, make it logical - for example, that Wanted Viper I mentioned, or a Cobra smuggling illicit cargo. It'll add "life" and meaning to NPCs if we can predict something about them based on behavior. Taxi Haulers and Belugas, on the other hand, should be slowly and carefully accelerating and turning for the sake of their passengers, and all legal ships should follow the speed limit. Let the CMDRs be Tom Cruise buzzing the tower, not the NPCs.

Oh, and if you're going to make the docking computer boost toward the station to shave off a few seconds (better yet, don't), then why is SC Assist stuck in the blue zone instead of being allowed to run at 100% throttle?
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There is no gravity compensation in this game. This is a grave thing... :)
 

D3rv1sh

D
They haven't even changed the AI of NPC's getting pirated. Yet another botched AI example. The current state of NPC pirating is disable most weapons, go sit like a duck and shield tank. While your limpets drain the NPC of his cargo. The AI of NPC's near station and being pirated clearly shows that Frontier puts little effort in somewhat realistic AI behavior. Don't get your hopes up of them improving it.
 

Old Duck

Old Duck
H0BBS said:
Yes.
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LOL, I appreciate your honesty. That said, if NPCs were made more realistic as I suggest in my posts, the same people who don't care now won't likely care then, either. And I bet MoM agrees with my logic and would love the challenge! After all, she's the only one who matters in the "Do you care?" list.

I love you MoM!!!!! 😍
 

777Driver

777Driver
Old Duck said:
This also makes a docking computer useless to me, as the docking computer constantly boosts TOWARDS the station until it lines up with the mail slot, and then it slams on the brakes. How is it legal to own a docking computer that ignores the speed limit? I first noticed this when I equipped my T9 with a docking computer, and it wrecked my immersion, my fragile cargo, and my neck. I'm tempted to put a DC on my enhanced Sidewinder just to see if it kills me...

So Frontier, please chill out with the boosting! If you are going to have an AI boost around the station, make it logical - for example, that Wanted Viper I mentioned, or a Cobra smuggling illicit cargo. It'll add "life" and meaning to NPCs if we can predict something about them based on behavior. Taxi Haulers and Belugas, on the other hand, should be slowly and carefully accelerating and turning for the sake of their passengers, and all legal ships should follow the speed limit. Let the CMDRs be Tom Cruise buzzing the tower, not the NPCs.

Oh, and if you're going to make the docking computer boost toward the station to shave off a few seconds (better yet, don't), then why is SC Assist stuck in the blue zone instead of being allowed to run at 100% throttle?
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Old duck. The boost was requested and added to the docking computer by SJA, a lot of cmdrs requested this function.

@Lightspeed - The thrust to weight ratio on those 757's is ridiculously high, a lot of fun :) Same deal with the A319/A320, so much so that special training needs to be done for performing go-arounds at light weights in low visibility. Have a read up on 'somtographic illusion' Basically the acceleration is so rapid it tricks your mind into thinking the aircraft is pitching up rapidly (incredibly dangerous in low visibility or at night) You have to train yourself to not push forward on the yoke/stick.

Fighter pilots are very familiar with this illusion.
 
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