Stop fleet engaging random crap targets!!!

[Asuzu]

The added weapons range has made the problem even worse.
So my fleet goes for the enemy capital + spaceport.
So they stop at EVERY mining and research station on the way now, spreading fire on EVERYTHING except the actual spaceport, which is shooting at them.
So I lose HALF my fleet to the spaceport while my ships happily shoot at random crap mining/research stations, research ships and construction ships.
Seems legit????

Give us a freakin' ability to limit engage targets to stuff that actually matters, instead of watching in disgust as our 100k fleets engage every observation outpost on the way.
This is just silly, illogical and basically ruining game experience.

 

[Lothmar]

Is it because you're set to 'aggressive' stance and thus they'll shoot anything hostile in range?

 

[Asuzu]

Is it because you're set to 'aggressive' stance and thus they'll shoot anything hostile in range?

No, my fleets are always on passive.
But with the weapon ranges AND engagement ranges increased now they engage everything half-system away from them, so for a system with several mining stations it is virtually impossible to approach a spaceport/enemy fleet without spending your salvo on some stupid mining station.
The only way to overcome this is to manually navigate your fleet around mining stations, which requires 20 clicks to set up 10-15 waypoints around them, and is as stupid and mind-numbing as it sounds.

Paradox, please once and for all - STOP giving warscore for civilian crap like mining/research/observation stations. Stop fleets from auto-engaging them on "passive" mode. We are not playing this game and declaring wars to grind mining stations. This is plain silly that a mining station with 1 watergun stops entire 100k fleet stack to eat a salvo.
At the very least give us an option for our fleets to IGNORE this crap and move our fleet where we need it to be.

 

[Lothmar]

Ouch, sorry to hear that. Was hoping it was a simple solution.

 

[Tiaexz]

Well, those stations are firing at you. Should you not shoot back?

 

[Navarre I]

When there's a station shooting at you on one side and a full-fledged fleet on the other side, you kinda want your fleet to ignore the fly and go for the real threat.

 

[Lothmar]

Oh yeah that's right, mining stations and stuff now have weapons and defenses but aren't available to customize in ships. OR did they always have weapons and I just never noticed it when they fought pirates etc?

 

[malkindav]

I instruct them go directly at target and haven't noticed them shooting at every asteroid on the way.
Another annoying thing is that you cannot disengage from attacking a mining station and stay in the same solar system. Or you need to retreat or you obliged to fight with every crappy target in the system.

Well, those stations are firing at you. Should you not shoot back?

In theory that should be a job for corvetes/ destroyers while your ship of the line engaging battle stations.

 

[jalapen0]

With the increased range, I bet we will have to fight through the system, until you can get to the main target.

 

[DennisRoos]

I'd like my fleets to only engage civilian stations in one of three situations:

1: I explicitly give them an order to do so.
2: They're on aggressive mode.
3: They're on passive mode, and they have NO OTHER ORDER. If I tell my ships to engage a spaceport or fleet, they should not stop to engage a mining station.

Also, if they are in combat, civilian stations/ships should always have the lowest priority to kill. My fleet should be shooting at enemy ships and spaceports before killing the civilian shooting at us across space with a pea shooter.

 

[Tim_Ward]

The problem is the mining stations are attacking you when you get 'near' them, so it doesn't matter how you tell your fleet to behave.

For some reason, they all have a single level 1 weapon. Since this can have no possible defensive utility against even the starting fleet of three corvettes. I can only include this behaviour is what was intended by designers.

 

[BrokenSky]

The problem is the mining stations are attacking you when you get 'near' them, so it doesn't matter how you tell your fleet to behave.

For some reason, they all have a single level 1 weapon. Since this can have no possible defensive utility against even the starting fleet of three corvettes. I can only include this behaviour is what was intended by designers.

I imagine it's basically 'attrition' so you can't just send one corvette off to kill all the enemy infrastructure while your real fleet fights the war. Instead you need to send 2 or 3 corvettes (!).

 

[Tatterhood]

Oh yeah that's right, mining stations and stuff now have weapons and defenses but aren't available to customize in ships. OR did they always have weapons and I just never noticed it when they fought pirates etc?

They did. At least once I had a mining station successfully finish off the pirates after I retreated my corvettes.

 

[Asuzu]

Well, those stations are firing at you. Should you not shoot back?

It's a mining station with a water pistol.
No, I don't even want to spend a second bothering with it.
And being frank - mining and research stations should not even have those water pistols. It's silly.

 

[ross-g]

It is pretty silly that your fleets can't ignore one combat in pursuit of another.

On the whole I'd say Stellaris needs more Grand Strategy elements to it... but combat is definitely one area where it needs to lean more in the 4X direction to feel satisfying. Flying past something that's shooting at you SHOULD be a valid maneuver. Likewise, disengaging from fighting a station to intercept an incoming fleet (and thus fight out of range of the station) should be possible.

 

[Asuzu]

I'd like my fleets to only engage civilian stations in one of three situations:

1: I explicitly give them an order to do so.
2: They're on aggressive mode.
3: They're on passive mode, and they have NO OTHER ORDER. If I tell my ships to engage a spaceport or fleet, they should not stop to engage a mining station.

Also, if they are in combat, civilian stations/ships should always have the lowest priority to kill. My fleet should be shooting at enemy ships and spaceports before killing the civilian shooting at us across space with a pea shooter.

That is exactly it man.
A fleet on "passive" with a combat order given should not stop to shoot every wooden toilethouse on the way.
And not switch targets to crap research ships while being shot at by spaceport and actual warships.

 

[Nurgle84]

I had the same, but I do not think of it as a problem. If its in Engagement range its in Firing range, at least I have the feeling. Maybe a "Hold Fire" stance could do the trick, were ships only attack when ordered to do so?

 

[Asuzu]

With the increased range, I bet we will have to fight through the system, until you can get to the main target.

No man, it does not feel at all like "fighting through the system to reach your goal".
It feels like I have to ming-numbingly grind every station with a peashooter until my ships can actually reach what I am here for.
It looks and feels silly.

 

[avante]

Yeah this is really stupid and annoying...especially if you plan to get to planet A quick, but you are moving through a starssytem wiht like 20 stations...

 

[Navarre I]

Or if you're going through a system you plan to liberate or conquer. I don't want to blow up these stations, they will be mine soon!