Matrix Games Forums

Hello,
I've been waiting for Command for some time but have been able to play only the tutorials and the first few scenarios.
While playing these, I have come up with a few [;)] things which would make things easier for me.
I hope this is the right place and this is not too redundant with what has been said elsewhere (did a quick scan only).
So :
01/ Winchester : F14As with only 2 sidewinders left should get home to fetch more phoenixes or sparrows
02/ I would like to be able to filter the possible contacts by country to check if it can be bad guys (sometimes there are scores of matches)
03/ I would like to be able which targets have been assigned to a unit/group
04/ when on patrol, units should not investigate contacts too far away (in Brother against Brother, the sub tries to investigate that (skunk) civilian 350 NM away ...), or too fuzzy (like an ESM track 100 miles wide)
05/ oh, by the way, couldn't we set an "ignore" flag on contacts we think are not worth caring for ?
06/ once, I wished I could set a patrol altitude (to hide my poor Kfirs from the nasty Su30s' radars behind a mountain range ...)
07/ you should be able to move a zone (with its RPs), rotate it, shrink it by dragging a side, and so on. If I have a nice rectangle, why can't I just slide one of its sides or move it ?
08/ I would like to be able to see on which patrol a unit is tasked when I select it (the unit).
09/ I would like to be able to have a quick access to the enemy unit types I might encounter on a scenario (filter by date of scenario). I'm not a South America expert and had a shock when the Venezuelan Su30s wiped the old Colombian Kfirs C-7 from the sky ... OK, the DB is not huge in this case, but it may be useful for other countries.
10/ when readying aircraft, it would be nice to see the range of the loadout
11/ what happens when part of a loadout is missing (i.e. no drop tanks available) What is the actual range in this case ?
OK, that's it for today !!

Edit :
08/ I would like to see the zone on the map, I know it's listed on the right panel.
Last one for fun :
12/ being able to set up some sort of "views" (centered somewhere with a given zoom factor) to jump from one place to another would be nice
Cheers.

I find this ammusing..."01/ Winchester : F14As with only 2 sidewinders left should get home to fetch more phoenixes or sparrows"

We had a thread a while back complaining that fighters were bugging out after all LR AAW were gone and they should hang around until all missiles are used up. Harpoon went through exactly these conflicting user requests for years.

ORIGINAL: YaSchi
12/ being able to set up some sort of "views" (centered somewhere with a given zoom factor) to jump from one place to another would be nice
Cheers.

Build 461 added just that, quick-jump slots. You'll like them.

Build 461 added just that, quick-jump slots. You'll like them.

And I am seriously excited about this [:D]

ORIGINAL: YaSchi

Hello,
I've been waiting for Command for some time but have been able to play only the tutorials and the first few scenarios.
While playing these, I have come up with a few [;)] things which would make things easier for me.
I hope this is the right place and this is not too redundant with what has been said elsewhere (did a quick scan only).
So :

Thanks. Will respond item by item.

01/ Winchester : F14As with only 2 sidewinders left should get home to fetch more phoenixes or sparrows

We already have this along with the ability to turn the Winchester setting on and off (Look in ROE's). These are set by role so if you have a specific issue let us know the aircraft and condition In this case the F-14 should be going winchester when 2 Sidewinders are left.

02/ I would like to be able to filter the possible contacts by country to check if it can be bad guys (sometimes there are scores of matches)

Game does this for you. If you see a contact select it and press the contact report button. If it has enough info it will begin trying to work out what it is and displaying a filtered list based on that. You can also view what the scenario builder included in the scenario by clicking Browse scenario platforms from the Game drop down menu (bit of a cheat but its there).

03/ I would like to be able which targets have been assigned to a unit/group

Updated an existing request for this.

04/ when on patrol, units should not investigate contacts too far away (in Brother against Brother, the sub tries to investigate that (skunk) civilian 350 NM away ...), or too fuzzy (like an ESM track 100 miles wide)

In the mission editor there is an "investigate contacts outside patrol area checkbox". If its unchecked your units won't units investigate contacts outside the area you specified when you created the mission.

05/ oh, by the way, couldn't we set an "ignore" flag on contacts we think are not worth caring for ?

Updated an existing request.

06/ once, I wished I could set a patrol altitude (to hide my poor Kfirs from the nasty Su30s' radars behind a mountain range ...)

In the middle of a waypoint update but you should be able to control this by selecting the group and pressing F2 and setting an altitude.

07/ you should be able to move a zone (with its RPs), rotate it, shrink it by dragging a side, and so on. If I have a nice rectangle, why can't I just slide one of its sides or move it ?

You can by grabbing reference points and dragging them. The only case you cannot is if the editor has locked them. To unlock go into the scenario editor and unlock.

08/ I would like to be able to see on which patrol a unit is tasked when I select it (the unit).

You can. It'll be listed after Mission in the unit status menu on the right.

09/ I would like to be able to have a quick access to the enemy unit types I might encounter on a scenario (filter by date of scenario). I'm not a South America expert and had a shock when the Venezuelan Su30s wiped the old Colombian Kfirs C-7 from the sky ... OK, the DB is not huge in this case, but it may be useful for other countries.

View what the scenario builder included in the scenario by clicking Browse scenario platforms from the Game drop down menu

10/ when readying aircraft, it would be nice to see the range of the loadout
11/ what happens when part of a loadout is missing (i.e. no drop tanks available) What is the actual range in this case ?
OK, that's it for today !!

Ranges don't change due to weight changes due missile firing or tanks dropping. You can find a lot of information in the database viewer.

(OOPS, that was in reply to thewood)
I understand, maybe there should be an option to RTB when only short range (to be defined ...) weapons remain (and long range ones WERE available), or something.
Of course, not all fighters have such worries. But F14 is decidedly a long-range fighter, I would not like to loose one in a dogfight when I can keep in a stand-off stance.

Hello, and thanks for answering and taking into account.
It seems everything was not clear, here are a few updates.

01/ Winchester

If I check "RTB when Winchester" in an AAW patrol the F-14A's do not RTB when only 2 sidewinders are left (build 460).
If I don't check the option, they won't either.
As said elsewhere, it's an option somewhere between which is needed.

02/ filter the possible contacts by country

I want to know if the possible types can be unfriendly without going through all of them. Just adding a country filter (like in DB browser)does the job. Actually, I must say I hadn't seen that the "scenario platforms" was NOT limited to the friendly side. But cross-referencing the contact list with it is not easily done.

04/should not investigate contacts too far away

Agreed, you can avoid investigating outside. But I want to keep my forces together inside a zone, and get outside within, say, 20 or 50 miles only when checking a contact. What I have to do now is set up a huge zone where the assigned units will scatter.

06/ patrol altitude

The patrol units are not in a group, so I have to use F2 on every one of them. Also, when they RTB, I must do it again for the new ones. Not convenient (but not highest priority).

07/ move, shrink, rotate a zone

Agreed, RP can be moved but you have to do it RP by RP. I would like to be able to move the zone "object" as a whole, like in Visio (TM ...) or any UML modeler or CAD software.

08/ see on which patrol a unit is tasked

As explained in the edit, it's the zone on the map I would like to see. Better yet, if I could edit the mission from there (map or unit status)

10/ range when readying aircraft

Independently from available stores, you don't see the loadout range when readying. It would be convenient.

11/ range when drop tanks missing

What if I ready an aircraft with a loadout for which the tanks (but not the other ordnance) are missing ?
I'm allowed to do it, but I would like to know the actual range (hope it's reduced). Or, it should be forbidden.

By the way, I should have started by saying the team has done a great job with Command.
I'm not complaining, just suggesting things which would make playing even more enjoyable.
Keep going !
[;)]