Combat Units Ignore Nearby Threats

Summary: Since the last unstable update, I’ve noticed that I have to micromanage my combat units to make sure they do things that they used to do automatically in previous builds.

Steps to reproduce:

  1. Select a combat party.
  2. Tell them to go attack a location where enemies are or a specific enemy or structure.
  3. Watch as they fight one enemy or destroy one structure and then start to gather resources in the area or just go back to camp.

Expected Results: Combat units used to stick around an enemy camp until all the bad guys were dead or the enemy structures were destroyed. That should still be happening. Archers used to try to attack structures, even if they’d get stuck trying to destroy them.

Actual Results: Combat units will only follow direct orders to attack one target and then retreat back to camp or gather resources in the area while there are still active enemies or structures that need to be destroyed. Also, archers ignore group commands to destroy structures so they won’t even head in the direction that other combat units are going if a structure is selected as their target.

Notes: This doesn’t seem to occur every time there is a combat situation, but often enough that it’s frustrating.

Version Number and Mods in use: 2951

1 Like

Was just coming to post the same issue.
Additional Details:
If you put on the AI pathing line, you will see it constantly flickering between the enemy you want them to attack and some resource that needs collecting during the fight.

For me it was fine at the start and has gotten progressively worse as my game went on.

1 Like

Aye, same thing here.

Didnt play for a few days - and after the last unstable update in 16 the combat AI seems to be totally broken. The only way to get an combat unit to do what you want it to do, is telling them exactly what to do.

Giving a group of units the attack command on a location let them run towards it, ignoring any threats. Once they reached the location they try to return to town - ignoring arrows, orks, well, quite everything.

Giving every single guy explicit orders still works, but… i dont think thats what this game aims for.

That is great insight. I will check to see if disabling the haul option will have an affect on this behavior. It may be that as the devs continue to refine the combat system they will address the priority needs.

i experienced similiar behavior, especially from archers, they didnt care about defend or attack orders, move orders did work

i disabled haul, which they never did, and job, which disabled patroling around stockpiles

this fixed it for archers and footman, but now knights behave strange sometimes, but only occasionally… and they need a speed buff pls… or formations

It seems that at least some of these issues have been addressed in the 2955 release, though my archer still doesn’t stick around for an entire battle. He shoots a few arrows and then walks away even when issued a group command to attack an enemy.

Got the same issue after the patch today.

Same here, it was most noticeable with the archer and the cleric.

To me it seems that the units i have longer are more likely to ignore enemies than the newer ones

I agree, I start seeing it once I get up to around 5 and the archer is usually the oldest unit due to previously being a lv3 footman

I can’t say that I’ve encountered these issues in 2960. 2969 also seems promising.

I order my units to attack an area, the arrive, and even if an enemy is their, they will just start walking back to camp. Very frustrating. It’s still occurring in latest build released on 20160511