All I want for the Holidays is...a "follow" command.

[Zenomorph]

I always feel like I have to start off every post with a "This is an utterly brilliant game...". I mean just the programming that goes into laying down smoke must be mind boggling. Buuuuut.....I so wish I could just issue a "follow" command for pathing purposes. It's a lot of tedious pointing and clicking getting one vehicle after another to travel down the same road.

Easy right? I mean if you can do the smoke thing... I'll expect this issue to be resolved in...let's see, what time is it? (ewww...my first emoticon! EVER!)

[warrenpeace]

I agree. This or some sort of follow the road toggle on movement commands would be number one on my list as well. (Followed by additional AI triggers in scenario editing).

[phil stanbridge]

You do realise there is already a type of follow command?

[warrenpeace]

No, please explain.

[phil stanbridge]

Well, you can group select to specify certain units. Then you can right click on the destination and choose your movement and all the units grouped will go towards that destination. It isn't perfect by any means, but importantly it saves time. At least you can make minor waypoint alterations afterwards.

[A Canadian Cat]

No way, that is zero help for driving on roads. Even if your vehicles start one behind the other on a straight stretch of road (which almost never actually happens) if you select four vehicles and start plotting way points with the first vehicle following the road the "following" vehicles will drive off road into the woods, river, building etc and never be on the road again for any subsequent road turns.

Fixing up those way points after the fact is harder than just doing the same over and over for each vehicle.

I too would like a follow command to make this easier but just having the vehicles stay on the road themselves would be a vast improvement. I find they sometimes drift off the road a bit and that usually causes havoc for any "following" vehicles.

---8<---

following is in quotes because they are not really following in a true sense of the word just in the sense that we want them to follow.

[phil stanbridge]

On a road, sure it is not ideal, but on ground other than road, it works quite well. Having said that, I have used this method on road frequently. With adjustments, it works and can be quicker than individual plotting but it does depend on the other factors of course.

[Vinnart]

This has been brought up many times before, and Steve said it is something he has on his personal wish list. That said I am sure it will be included eventually. FOLLOW is also high on my list of wanted features.

As far as how a FOLLOW command would be most useful for CM I would like it to work like this:

Truck alpha (the lead) would be plotted with the necessary waypoints to move along the desired path.

Truck bravo is given the FOLLOW command. Perhaps it would fall under movement, or special commands. Selecting the command will produce an icon change to the curser when over another unit like loading does. Truck bravo is 10m away from alpha when the command is given which sets the interval. When alpha moves out bravo will move to alphas starting position as its first waypoint, and follow along alphas path stopping 10m away. Basically the FOLLOW command copies the unit it is following movement orders, and keeps the interval the distance from the followed unit when the order was first given.

Truck Charlie is 20m away from alpha, and 5m away from bravo. The player can give Charlie a FOLLOW order to alpha, or bravo to follow the same path, but the interval would be different depending on which it was given to follow.

Imagine the amount of time plotting orders for each unit would be saved if many times all the player would have to do is plot moves for just the lead unit, and would only have to issue the FOLLOW command to other units to move along the same plotted path.

[owenjones]

This is really the only improvement I dream of. Especially playing Road to Nijmegen mission 3, follow command would be ideal for this scenario.

[McAuliffe]

Glad this was brought up again, just to remind the BFC crew again this is a critical feature for when CMXbulge comes out.

I stopped playing scenarios and buying any add ons just because of this.

Maybe I was feeling like Don Quichotte all the time fighting the windmills, but I am glad to see others see it as well like this.

[Michael Emrys]

I think it has been over a decade since I had a version of TacOps that would play on my computer, but it had a nice follow command that ISTR worked this way:

Vehicle 1 was given a path of waypoints the usual way.

Vehicle 2 was given such waypoints as would brain it to vehicle 1's present location and then given the follow command.

Vehicle 3 is given waypoints to reach Vehicle 2's present location and then given the Command to follow Vehicle 2. And so on for additional vehicles. It was reasonably fast to use and always worked perfectly as long as all the waypoints were properly placed.

Now obviously the code of the two games is not the same, in fact they are surely wildly at variance, and what was reasonably easy to code in one might be nearly impossible in the other for all I know. But I do earnestly hope that the programmers at BFC can find a way to implement something that at the user end works like this.

Michael

[McAuliffe]

Hi Michael,

Yes, I think this is what was proposed in earlier threads:

1. You designate a leader of selected group .

2. You plot way points of this leader.

3. All other elements of group will take shortest way to departure point of leader.

4. All other elements of group will follow then path of the leader either in convoy formation, in diamond formation or lined abreast.

The movement order to be completed by a deployment order; column, diamond or line.

I my opinion it should be almost similar programming as having troops embarking on a vehicle and dismount at destination.

[Michael Emrys]

3. All other elements of group will take shortest way to departure point of leader.

Shortest path might not be so good for a number of reasons. Better to use player defined path.

Michael

[poesel]

Something like an 'append path' command would be fine: you plot the path for the leading vehicle and any specific paths for the followers. Then you select a follower, choose append and click on the leader -> the leaders path will be appended to the followers path.

[Zenomorph]

I was thinking about the recent thread regarding reviews on metacritic. My guess is a casual player might get as far as all the pointing and clicking needed for "following" and give it up. A shame bc I'd think it'd keep some from getting far enuf into CMBN to really get a feel for it. I seem to recall reading a user review a long time ago to that affect.