Orders (Advanced)
Target option: Link targets
Enabling this option makes all crafts of the FG consider as targets only the objects belonging to the intersection of the objects described in the 2 lines (A, B) instead of the union.
Custom Throttle or Speed
It is possible to set the throttle percentage used for each order, but speed is still calculated taking into account both the throttle percentage and how the craft manages power to systems. Crafts performing a bombing run with warheads always travel with throttle at 75% regardless of the percentage set in the Orders tab, unless they break formation and perform evasive manoeuvres. Throttle adjustments while performing evasive manoeuvres or attacking a target situated at the rear of the craft are all regulated by the AI and take priority over the custom throttle set in AlliED.
If the throttle percentage is set to 100% for a given order, then it is possible to set a custom speed which applies to all AI controlled crafts of the FG (player’s craft is not affected), regardless of how they manage power to systems. Custom speed only applies to AI crafts travelling at 100% throttle. It is recommended to set a custom speed only for orders not allowing evasive manoeuvres.
Order priority and target priority
Crafts of the FG always perform the order with the lowest priority number (highest priority), usually 1, in a given Region unless it was already completed or it is not possible to perform that order. The only orders that might not be possible to perform are those requiring targets if such targets are not available. In such cases the FG performs the order with the 2nd lowest priority number. If the order with the 2nd lowest priority number cannot be performed, then the FG performs the order with the 3rd lowest priority number and so on (the 4th order is the last).
If none of the assigned orders can be performed, then the Departure event for all crafts of that FG is immediately triggered. This rule does not apply to those crafts performing an order given by the player as long as it can still be performed in case the FG belongs to player’s Global Unit. Once triggered, the Departure event is irrevocable, regardless of the fact that a target for any of the assigned orders becomes available or not.
Each craft keeps refreshing the selection of the order to perform, but target selection within an order is not refreshed. Target selection is reiterated only if current target is no longer available. This means if the FG is performing the order with the 2nd lowest priority number because none of the targets required to perform the order with the lowest priority number are available, then all crafts of the FG will start performing the order with the lowest priority number as soon as at least one of such targets becomes available, whereas a craft attacking a secondary target because there were no primary targets available when target selection was made will not switch to attack a primary target set for the same order if it gets available.
Exception to target not-refresh rule: whenever a craft attacking a target is attacked, after breaking formation that craft may attack her attacker or not, depending on the parameters evaluated by the AI. Unfortunately those parameters cannot be edited with a mission editor.
“Jump to order” conditions and how they dynamically affect order priority
“Jump to order” conditions serve to make the FG perform event-triggered orders. If a “Jump to order” condition different from “Always true” is set in the Jump tab relative to a given order, then the FG cannot perform that order unless such condition becomes true. The previous section (“Order priority and target priority”) assumes all jump conditions are set to “Always true”.
If the FG has only 1 order with jump condition different from “Always true” in a given Region, then all crafts of the FG will start performing that order as soon as such condition becomes true. If the FG has 2 or more orders with jump condition different from “Always true” in a given Region, then whenever one of such conditions becomes true, all the related orders take priority over all the orders with jump condition set to “Always true”, but the priority scale of the orders with the same jump condition is always kept following the original priority number (lower priority number means higher priority) set in AlliED. The priority scale given by the original priority number is also kept for all the orders with any jump condition true and different from “Always true” in general.
If the FG has the same condition set both as Departure condition and as “Jump to order” for any of the orders, then the Departure event is immediately triggered when such condition becomes true. The Departure event is also triggered when the currently performed order is accomplished and all of the remaining yet to be performed orders have their jump condition false as those orders cannot be performed. Once triggered, the Departure event is irrevocable, regardless of the fact that any of those jump conditions becomes true or not.
Mission editing: Order sequence with Jump conditions
Taking into account how jump conditions dynamically affect order priority, here is the sure way to set the orders of a Flight Group having 2 event-triggered orders in the same Region:
Order 1: The default order Jump to order 1 condition: Always true
Order 2: The 2nd event-triggered order Jump to order 2 condition: The 2nd event occurring
Order 3: The 1st event-triggered order Jump to order 3 condition: The 1st event occurring
If the Flight Group has 3 event-triggered orders in the same Region:
Order 1: The default order Jump to order 1 condition: Always true
Order 2: The 3rd event-triggered order Jump to order 2 condition: The 3rd event occurring
Order 3: The 2nd event-triggered order Jump to order 3 condition: The 2nd event occurring
Order 4: The 1st event-triggered order Jump to order 4 condition: The 1st event occurring
In both cases it is recommended to set an order requiring an (almost) unlimited amount of time to be completed as Order 1 to avoid a premature Departure event.
