Just how smart is my NPC copilot?

[Old Duck]

I have a ship that I like to use when I'm predominately flying the SLF and my NPC is flying the mothership. The following questions relate to this:

First, is my NPC smart enough to work with the strengths and weaknesses of engineered weapons? For example, if I have a gunboat with lots of "short range blasters", will my NPC close the gap? On the flip-side, if I have some long range weapons, is my NPC smart enough to actually fire them at their extended range?

Second, does my NPC have any use for something like emissive rounds? It seems when I'm on the receiving end of an NPC's attack, they can hit me regardless of heatsinks, silent running, and sometimes even chaff. I'd hate to waste a special effect on an NPC if they don't need it due to their "superhuman" abilities (like the ability to always hit a target with rail guns).

Prompt answers are appreciated - the forum is closing SOON!

 

[Captain Thea Kreutzer]

I have a ship that I like to use when I'm predominately flying the SLF and my NPC is flying the mothership. The following questions relate to this:

First, is my NPC smart enough to work with the strengths and weaknesses of engineered weapons? For example, if I have a gunboat with lots of "short range blasters", will my NPC close the gap? On the flip-side, if I have some long range weapons, is my NPC smart enough to actually fire them at their extended range?

Second, does my NPC have any use for something like emissive rounds? It seems when I'm on the receiving end of an NPC's attack, they can hit me regardless of heatsinks, silent running, and sometimes even chaff. I'd hate to waste a special effect on an NPC if they don't need it due to their "superhuman" abilities (like the ability to always hit a target with rail guns).

Prompt answers are appreciated - the forum is closing SOON!

It depends on what rank the pilot is. If its a elite pilot it will fly good. If its harmless not so much.

 

[Stealthie]

Not smart enough to find the cockpit door, apparently.

 

[Zieman]

derek

 

[Hooplah]

Come on Old Duck playing PS4. NPC fighter pilots at the higher levels never miss with fixed weapons. So if you have fixed weapons on your mother ship there is a good chance that they will do a lot better than you depending upon your skills. The question is do you want to trust them with you expensive engineered ship? Get a billion credits on a PS4 and test it. Then you can tell other PS4 players how it worked out. I also have a PS4 Pro account and know the answer. I'm waiting for you to figure it out. A clue it works pretty much the same on my two PC ED accounts.

Don't worry as this post will probably be removed on Monday with Frontier going to a new BBS system. I'll see you other other side.

 

[Old Duck]

Still waiting for an actual answer......

 

[Captain Thea Kreutzer]

It depends on what rank the pilot is. If its a elite pilot it will fly good. If its harmless not so much.

Still waiting for an actual answer......

*duck forgets how to read*

 

[Stealthie]

Still waiting for an actual answer......

I think it's probably best if you experiment for yourself. It's the only way you'll get an idea of whether they do what you want with the weapons you want them to use.

I'm probably missing a lot of the subtleties of their "thought process" but, to me, it seems like they just pick whichever weapon has the most DPS and then fly in a way that allows them to use that weapon.

If I have, say, C1 long-range rails, C2 frag's, a C3 long-range MC and C4 efficient beams on my corvette and I let my NPC fly it, she just spams the beams and maintains a range where they're optimally effective.
She won't, for example, use the rails at long distances, then use the beams, then use the MC when shields go down or fire the frag's when the target is in range of them.

I think it also depends on fire-groups too.
Honestly, I'm not even sure if they switch fire-groups - I think they just select a fire-group based on a favoured weapon and then stick with it.
That being the case, you have to put a bit of thought into what weapons you group together for your NPC to use.

On my Corvette, with the above loadout, my NPC just uses the lasers ALL the time and fires off the rails sporadically, while ignoring the frag's and the MC completely.
Presumably that's the result of logic which dictates she selects the weapon and/or FG with the highest DPS and then sticks with it.

 

[Trollymctrollerson]

Think of the NPC as a mindless aim bot. The higher the rank, the better the aim. Even elite ones are terrible pilots but have excellent aim. They generally just fly at the target guns blazing, or attempt to face the target. They are smart enough to use SCBs and heat sinks if you equip them but not smart enough to manage hot weapons. They love rail guns. If you equip rail guns in addition to other things, you will switch back after a time to see they burned through 40 rail gun shots but only 15 cannon shots. They will use all guns to their maximum range but dont modify they behavior to leverage their advantage or shortcomings. I do frequently let them fly the mothership and have pitted them against elite anacondas to see how they do 1v1 against a "peer" without my help. My observation is that my Engineering and load out choices allow my crew to easily eat other NPCs for breakfast so dont worry about losing the ship. Even my AI flown fed gunships blow elite and deadly NPC anacondas away.

 

[Old Duck]

I think it's probably best if you experiment for yourself. It's the only way you'll get an idea of whether they do what you want with the weapons you want them to use.

I'm probably missing a lot of the subtleties of their "thought process" but, to me, it seems like they just pick whichever weapon has the most DPS and then fly in a way that allows them to use that weapon.

If I have, say, C1 long-range rails, C2 frag's, a C3 long-range MC and C4 efficient beams on my corvette and I let my NPC fly it, she just spams the beams and maintains a range where they're optimally effective.
She won't, for example, use the rails at long distances, then use the beams, then use the MC when shields go down or fire the frag's when the target is in range of them.

I think it also depends on fire-groups too.
Honestly, I'm not even sure if they switch fire-groups - I think they just select a fire-group based on a favoured weapon and then stick with it.
That being the case, you have to put a bit of thought into what weapons you group together for your NPC to use.

On my Corvette, with the above loadout, my NPC just uses the lasers ALL the time and fires off the rails sporadically, while ignoring the frag's and the MC completely.
Presumably that's the result of logic which dictates she selects the weapon and/or FG with the highest DPS and then sticks with it.

Ahhh, interesting... I'm using my Keelback as my "disposable" mothership while I fly the fighter. It's got two rails and two turreted MCs. I figure the turrets will do their own thing (fire at will) and my copilot will focus on aiming the rails. My main worry was that he wouldn't close the distance to take advantage of short range blaster mod, but then I said to myself, "Who am I kidding? NPCs love getting into the faces of their enemies!" So I went ahead and tested it and it works great.

As for spamming the rails, that's what he does, but he hits every time, so I don't consider it a waste of ammo. One thing I did learn is that having him on the "Defend / Follow Me" default is way more trouble than it's worth, as he just flies in front of me or crashes into me at the worst times.... So I have him "stand down" (stay, boy, stay) immediately after I leave the ship and then direct him to attack specific targets once I lower their shields, or if I'm in trouble. Thankfully after the target is dispatched, he returns to "Stand Down" mode (I forget what the official name for that is) automatically and stays out of the way.

I didn't bother with emissive rounds or anything like that, since he seems to be able to hit the target no matter what. A Keelback with engineered rails and MCs (and a fighter with fixed beams) is a surprisingly powerful ship, especially in the hands of a trained NPC copilot. Someday I think it would be fun to build a rail gun boat out of a Gunship or perhaps that new Alliance ship and see just how much damage an NPC can do with that aim of theirs and say 4 medium rails. Add a fixed beam with thermal vent and he might even stay cool!

Hmmmm.......

ps - the one negative is when I lose the fighter and am tossed back in the pilot seat. Now I've got to land all those railgun shots using my little DS4 controller!

 

[Morbad]

They are dumb as bricks, but have the same capabilities as any other NPC pilot of equivalent rank. They know the limits of their weapons, will bank when shields get low, use heatsinks when they get too hot, etc. They get passably good at pip management around master/dangerous.

I think it also depends on fire-groups too.
Honestly, I'm not even sure if they switch fire-groups - I think they just select a fire-group based on a favoured weapon and then stick with it.
That being the case, you have to put a bit of thought into what weapons you group together for your NPC to use.

On my Corvette, with the above loadout, my NPC just uses the lasers ALL the time and fires off the rails sporadically, while ignoring the frag's and the MC completely.
Presumably that's the result of logic which dictates she selects the weapon and/or FG with the highest DPS and then sticks with it.

I'm still not sure whether they use or are limited by firegroups at all. I think they probably ignore any we've set, and only fire weapons based on weapon type. They'll fire weapons that obviously cannot converge on a target, but they also seem to have no limits on the weapons they can actuate independently. I suspect they have one group, with every weapon, but independent virtual triggers for each weapon type. If they aren't firing something it's likely because they have prioritized one weapon type and cannot get convergence with the others.

It's rarely an issue for me as essentially all of my ships are setup so all weapons can be used, and will converge, simultaneously.

As for spamming the rails, that's what he does, but he hits every time, so I don't consider it a waste of ammo.

The problem is that they'll do things like put half a dozen feedback cascade rail shots into a small ship that doesn't even have an SCB when they have other weapons that could put down the same opponent in the same amount of time.

At least they try to wait until enemy shields are low before firing ze missiles.

One thing I did learn is that having him on the "Defend / Follow Me" default is way more trouble than it's worth, as he just flies in front of me or crashes into me at the worst times.... So I have him "stand down" (stay, boy, stay) immediately after I leave the ship and then direct him to attack specific targets once I lower their shields, or if I'm in trouble. Thankfully after the target is dispatched, he returns to "Stand Down" mode (I forget what the official name for that is) automatically and stays out of the way.

They can be left to their own devices, but you get the most out of them with a fair degree of micromanagement.

[video=youtube;cIyxdgsJWSY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIyxdgsJWSY[/video]

 

[Cmdr. Numa]

They are dumb as bricks, but have the same capabilities as any other NPC pilot of equivalent rank. They know the limits of their weapons, will bank when shields get low, use heatsinks when they get too hot, etc. They get passably good at pip management around master/dangerous.

Do they really pull pip management off now ? I only let my Elite pilot fly my Corvette once. Cringed as the shields went way too fast, switched to mothership, half ring remaining and took over from there. *Zero* pips in systems set. For the rest of the (easy) fight I never even lost one ring again. Since then I haven't allowed the NPCs to fly any of my ships ever again.

 

[Morbad]

Do they really pull pip management off now ? I only let my Elite pilot fly my Corvette once. Cringed as the shields went way too fast, switched to mothership, half ring remaining and took over from there. *Zero* pips in systems set. For the rest of the (easy) fight I never even lost one ring again. Since then I haven't allowed the NPCs to fly any of my ships ever again.

The higher rank ones have always actively moved pips, but they do seem to prioritize offense over defense, even when the opposite approach would serve better.

 

[Stealthie]

The higher rank ones have always actively moved pips, but they do seem to prioritize offense over defense, even when the opposite approach would serve better.

Pretty much every time I jump back into my 'vette, the first thing I have to do is twiddle the pips because the NPC always seems to leave me with 4 pips to sys and then 1 each in engines and weapons... which I only notice when I try to intercept or shoot at a target.
I know she spends a lot of time firing the lasers, cos I see them firing, so I can only assume that she sets pips to weapons when she's firing and then immediately reverts them to sys afterwards.

I guess, perhaps, that how successfully they manage pips depends on how straightforward your build is.
I dunno if I'd trust them to recognise the difference between a hull-tank and a shield-tank and then set pips to suit, for example.

 

[Vingtetun]

Mine keeps saying 'I can't do that' after turning power off to the weapons....

I have tried throwing things at his inert body whilst he is in telepresence and swearing a lot, but still he persists.

 

[GeneralIdea1964]

I kinda half-wish that the NPCs were more photorealistic, because I feel silly picking copilots based on 'looks'.

I don't trust the npc with my ship, I let them fly the SLF. That being said, the better the rank of the npc, the more effective they seem to be.

I hire females, usually the ones with the biggest (*,**)

(* disclaimer, this is a game and in no way represents the real life opinion of the person behind the cmdr name.)

(** swear filter has dropped the word after 'biggest', but actually it reads better that way! )

 

[Old Duck]

I guess, perhaps, that how successfully they manage pips depends on how straightforward your build is..

My Keelback is a hull tank (though it does have shields) and operates happily with just one pip to weapons, so I'm not concerned about the pip management so much.

FWIW, I'm doing this for fun, so I can goof around in my SLF. I'm currently not trying to win a combat zone or assassinate elite pirates in my Keelback, LOL.

 

[Troz]

I just wish my co-pilot (almost at Elite) would learn that ramming elite anacondas in a GU-97 is not an effective tactic. It's a long time since I had one at this level but I'm sure they never used to do this.

edit: it's always a scary moment when I realise that I've accidentally launched myself in the fighter and left her in charge of the corvette!

 

[Old Duck]

I just wish my co-pilot (almost at Elite) would learn that ramming elite anacondas in a GU-97 is not an effective tactic. It's a long time since I had one at this level but I'm sure they never used to do this.

NPCs in general are broken since 3.3 launched. Sometimes I can't tell if I'm in a dogfight or the bumper car ride at the county fair.

 

[Stealthie]

FWIW, I'm doing this for fun, so I can goof around in my SLF. I'm currently not trying to win a combat zone or assassinate elite pirates in my Keelback, LOL.

Uhuh.

I bought an FGS specifically for my NPC to fly to celebrate her reaching elite.
When they all decided to start ramming each other to death, instead of using weapons, I decided I might as well just give her the keys to my 'vette instead.

I kind of wish the game had a specific "target mothership" button to make it easier to keep tabs on it when you're in a CZ or summat though.
It does have bright green lasers, so it's usually quite easy to find, but I start to worry when I can't see her shooting at stuff.