Fix Sectors. Please

[Gen.sideshowbob]

I don't know why sectors took such a huge step back in the last update.

I'm fine with sectors auto-generating but the current model is broken and the mechanics are too simplistic for auto-generation. With a 2 jump maximum a huge galaxy ends up with a massive number of sectors and a whole host of orphaned star systems.

I'd improve the sector generation to look at habitable worlds within a certain range and galaxy terrain for the edges (i.e. choke points make for nice sector borders).

We also need some sort of editing capability to handle sector clean up post war/integration/revolt etc. I'd be fine with sector changes consuming influence or unity to make it a deliberate choice to reorganize instead of simply reallocating systems.

Lastly please add the options for managing robot building or colonization back into sector management.

 

[Robotkiller]

I'd like to add that if the devs are considering going back to user-defined sectors, but still want to limit to X number of jumps from the capital, then at least allow us to pick said capital.

 

[Tsudico]

I think they need to redefine how they size sectors. I think they should be based off number of districts that a sector should try to limit itself to. While this might create bigger sectors than a 2 jump maximum, I think it more realistically divides sections of space based on population centers.

Consider that they can determine empire coherency based on number of hyperlanes that are outside the empire they might be able to use a similar algorithm for sector coherency. I would imagine it working something like this:

If districts outside a sector > sector cap:

1. Select Empire capital, or if Empire capital already done highest admin score planet, as sector capital
2. Add districts(planets, habitats, etc) in the system to a sector district size variable
3. If sector district size < sector cap then continue, otherwise set system as a complete sector
4. For each hyperlane in system that connects to a system in the empire not in a sector create a connected system score with the following:
   1. Base score of hyper lane distance from sector capital
   2. If the system has hyperlanes, multiply the number of hyperlanes with the base score if they connect to a system that is not in a sector
   3. If the system has districts within it, subtract the number of districts from the base score
5. Add the best system based on lowest score to the sector and check if the sector is at max size. If not, do previous step again for each system in the sector and repeat as necessary to get up to the sector cap or until you run out of systems to add
   
6. Start again at step 1 with the new highest admin score planet not in a sector

If I am right, this algorithm will try to collect districts(planets, habs, etc) into sectors with minimum distances from sector capitals. Although sectors might end up being changed every time the number of districts external to a sector exceeds the sector cap.

 

[ambushbob]

i think they should have just left sectors alone and let us build them ourselves i really don't see any reason for the change it makes no sense.

 

[kane70]

The major topic is from my point of view that the intention (as I understood it) is not reached.
Sectors are there to reduce micromanagement. And I don't know how you guys feel about it, but I am still doing massive micromanagement with the planets - not because I like it, but because it is simply necessary. To me the sectors as they are now seem to result even in a lower level of automation than before. At least this is my impression.

 

[wickermoon]

I actually never knew that there's a sector ai up until now when I've checked whether sectors are actually good for anything. I manage all of my planets and honestly, I am one of those persons that likes doing that. I actually see no use in sector AI or sectors at all. Right now, sectors don't add anything to the game for me, other than visual clutter in the outliner. Even if the AI got better, I highly doubt that it would build planets the way I'd like them to be.

I would suggest, though, as a start to make sectors useful again, the following:

- Remove automated sector creation
- Enable players to create sectors again
- Each system given to a sector decreases the empire's sprawl by a certain amount
- Planets, bases, etc. inside a sector are still player managable, if so desired
- Sectors that are too big lose the benefit of reducing empire sprawl (this is to prevent empires with just one sector)
- Too big could mean more than X star systems, or more than Y planets, or more than Z pops
- I actually prefer a mix between the star systems and pops
- Too many star systems -> Empire Sprawl reduction is diminshed
- Also, if the sector has a resource production higher than, say 25% of the empire's GDP, the sector starts generating liberty desire
- Too many pops -> The sector gains unrest, resulting in diminished resource production, for example, and maybe liberty desire as well

Of course, this is just an off-the-head idea, not fleshed out or balanced. But it would make sectors so much more interesting and engaging (automatic sectors aren't).

 

[maxp779]

i think they should have just left sectors alone and let us build them ourselves i really don't see any reason for the change it makes no sense.

Yes!! If its not broken don't fix it. And sectors were not broken. They were one of the best features tbh.

 

[skydiver1]

Interesting fact - found sectors to be much less of an issue after I found I can easily remove them from the UI and replace them with the "Planets" view.
Sectors don't really serve any gameplay purpose right now except for occasionally checking governor assignments. So broken or not, the algorithm for generating them is only annoying due to the default UI setup.

 

[Onkel_Bums]

Yes!! If its not broken don't fix it. And sectors were not broken. They were one of the best features tbh.

Sectors were only in the game because there used to be a planet cap for "core planets" that are manageable by the players.

In general I like the "auto creation" of sectors. I would just wish I could edit sectors (add or remove single or multiple planets), merge adjacent sectors and split them.
Sector AI is another beast, as it is essentially the same AI that runs the opposing empires, which needs, as already mentioned multiple times, work.

 

[Sayakus]

I actually started to make vassals just to avoid micromanagement of 23 broken AI sectors

 

[Bearjuden]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, sectors shouldn't be as they are now and shouldn't be as they were before. Sectors should be treated like duchies in CK2, a defined and fixed feature of the galaxy rather than your empire. This would mean you'd be able to control part of a sector and share it with foreign empires. It'd be a bit of a change from what it is now, but we also have evidence that, unlike each other attempted model, it works, and makes more sense to boot.

 

[gareaap]

I tried it on the first patch launch to dump a ton of minerals in a sector to see if it did anything. It didn't after that i didnt try anything with them anymore .(sectors planets didnt have growth buildings yet and the ai didnt think i needed those with multiple empty building slots while having 10k+ minerals, also i dont see how it would upgrade things because you cant give special resources to a sector so how would it upgrade buildings?)

The biggest problem i have with the new system is that i seem to be doing more tedious micromanagment of planets then before.
Before i could just get a new planet build everything and forget about it and let the ai do the upgrades. Now im forced to keep coming back to keep building new buildings and keep housing,jobs and pops balanced. And when i finally have a full planet i have to keep coming back to fix unemployed pops that keep popping up on completely filled planets without expansion possibilities.

Aside from that you can "break" old already made sectors by losing a planet and then getting it back.
In one of my games i had a "core" sector of 4 planets/systems that where there for the complete game till i lost and and when i got it back it got placed in a single system sector in the middle of the other 3.