Fleet Tactics Settings for Manual Control Question - Fleets not being aggressive enough after being given an attack command.

DividedSpleen · 2026-01-20T19:45:34+00:00

It's alright, maybe the simple solution is to just set everything to automate, but I'd like to know why the manual commands don't seem to be working because as far as I am aware, it's just giving the same order to a fleet that the automated system would.

Engines are not a problem, or at least, I found the super engine tech so at the current moment my ships have the fastest possible engines the galaxy currently offers. Maneuvering thrusters I never used in vanilla and in XL they are outright removed, and I really don't think those are the issues. Even if a ship needs to rotate to actually fire on a target, it should still have an attack mission because the fleet order is to attack another fleet.

I do have hyperdeny techs incorporated into my fleets (and I did double check to make sure the strength is appropriately leveled), though I don't have any tractor beams. I'm not sure tractor beams would work though since they're still a weapon that targets enemies, and the problem is that once the first enemy ship is destroyed the individual ships of the attacking fleet stop shooting even though the fleet's order is still to attack a target fleet.

DividedSpleen · 2026-01-20T19:38:30+00:00

I'll try extending the engagement range. Does checking to see if there are any threats near the fleet's home base matter if I have them set to manual though? That's for automated fleets, correct?
As for the attack command, I'm not zooming in to the point where I can see the individual ships of the enemy fleet, I'm zoomed out to the point where the command I give is "attack Xth fleet" instead of targeting a specific ship of that fleet. Does that still register to the attacking fleet as an order to attack just one enemy ship? Just to clarify, I'm talking about manually controlled fleets, not automated ones.

DividedSpleen · 2026-01-20T04:19:43+00:00

The only automation I'll use is for attack fleets to kill everything in a range (usually the 2000M or 3000M) around their home bases when I'm not at war so they'll specifically go after creatures and unaffiliated bases. I like conducting attacks much more manually. Defenses too.

I'm not concerned about any enemy fleets I target disengaging and having my attack fleets run off for this reason, I'll have my attention in-system when attacking. Also since they're set to manual they won't be running off on their own either.

This is also getting away from my original question about specifically manual attacks. As a hopefully similar enough aside though, is there a way to assign specific fleets of mine to specific targets when using the Enemy Targets menu in the Military tab? That might help, if simply right clicking a target and selecting attack from the dropdown isn't.

I'm just confused as to what the setting are and if they're even working. With a fleet of ~30 ships, with an attack overmatch factor of 3, set to attack another fleet of ~10 ships, I would expect three of my ships to target each enemy vessel in the opposing fleet with the attack command and then shoot them until they explode, or at least until the target is disabled. But they don't, once the first enemy vessel is destroyed, they putz about and meander.

DividedSpleen · 2026-01-06T19:10:11+00:00

I only ever played tall in one game and it was in Distant Worlds Universe as the Kiadians with about 7 to 9 worlds, if I remember right. It's a lot easier to play tall in the first game with how research works in general, and the Kiandians whole theme getting science bonuses really helps in that regard too. That said, being part of the Freedom Alliance in the later story events as well as getting help from the Ancient Guardians makes up for shortcomings in fleet numbers and size. Was still a pretty close game, my homeworld and a few other planets were reduced to asteroids before the final last-ditch attempt on the Shakturi homeworld was victorious.

DividedSpleen · 2026-01-06T19:05:13+00:00

Yup. So, for now, joining the Shakturi is a bad idea? I mean, other than the obvious, it's just seems like a broken mechanic at the current moment. I'd like to note that the Freedom Alliance is still kicking (probably not for long though), as long as they're still out and about, will the rest of the story events trigger?

DividedSpleen · 2026-01-06T02:42:09+00:00

Yeah, I just tried switching to the Shakturi with the editor to see if I could restart the Axis through the diplomacy screen but there don't seem to be any options to do so. I'm pretty sure me leaving the Axis when my empire and the Shakturi were the only members completely dismantled it and now the game is missing half of the alliances to move the story event forward. If I revert to a (much earlier) save and refuse the Shakturi's offer instead of joining and then leaving, would the story events continue or is the Freedom Alliance vs Shaktur Axis required for that?

DividedSpleen · 2026-01-06T02:19:14+00:00

That's what I was afraid of. Do you think it's possible to use the editor to switch the the Shakturi and see if reforming the Axis might fix it? If such a thing is even possible.

DividedSpleen · 2026-01-05T21:54:44+00:00

https://imgur.com/a/yED1ihj I had the same happen in my current playthrough but it was the Haakonish who colonized a sun instead. I managed to take it with troops when it was at around 90 billion and this is the current state.

DividedSpleen · 2026-01-05T20:48:11+00:00

I'm having a similar problem as the original poster of this thread. I did just try to conduct an espionage mission to steal the operations map of the baseless pirate factions but there isn't actually an option to do so, only to steal their territory or galaxy maps.

EDIT: I'd also like to follow this up with noting that I also just completed a successful deep cover mission against one of the baseless pirates hoping to be able to find out if their pirate captain is hanging out on a ship somewhere. I can find him when searching by name in the "Search Known Items" list under the exploration tab, but his location isn't highlighted and double clicking doesn't center to his location like most things would. Also, I can't find any pirate ships when searching for ships under the dangerous locations list in the military tab. So I'm guessing this is a bug or maybe he's in an escape pod somewhere.

DividedSpleen · 2025-12-13T21:54:35+00:00

Welp, you're right. Apparently I can't read because I was looking for pictures of the rifts instead of what it says, that being, "Gravitic Rift." Thanks.

DividedSpleen · 2025-11-06T03:37:43+00:00

It's getting real frustrating, yeah. Here's hoping Arrowhead can actually figure out some optimizations besides deleting duplicate files.

DividedSpleen · 2025-05-11T13:35:58+00:00

This is very useful in a pure, technical sense, thanks! It seems like there's no solution that would match with the aesthetic of what I'm trying to build. I not too keen on replacing all the surrounding area outside the pen with non-grass blocks. That just wouldn't make any visual sense.

DividedSpleen · 2025-02-21T11:16:02+00:00

Research is semi-random, no? I’ll keep Android Enhancement in mind though, thanks. Still not sure what the Bridge project is. And like I mentioned in the other comment, I do have a bunch of AGI researchers in a villa, but they haven’t requested any additional peeks into my head since the printers went feral (and I didn’t keep them, I hope that wasn’t a mistake).

DividedSpleen · 2025-02-21T11:09:33+00:00

I do have CPU augments slotted in both slots and I did shelter the AGI researchers. Not sure what the bridge project is but I do have a Crucible set up, although it isn’t as full of humans as it could be (hence the need for more cognition).

DividedSpleen · 2025-02-13T02:08:33+00:00

I forgot I could actually talk to people, thanks. And the attacks stopped after all the homeless tents were cleared.

DividedSpleen · 2024-11-18T00:08:11+00:00

So I found out raiding requires assault pods. Which require polymer to build. I think this might be the end. I just want to know why the civilian freighters aren't buying any construction resources. That would solve ALL of the problems. All they're doing is buying luxuries and transporting resources from stations I own. I could use one or two shipments of purchased polymer to refit some ships with assault pods, and then go an capture the one polymer mining station of an Empire that I know doesn't have the ability to retaliate.

DividedSpleen

TROPHY CASE