Changing ship behavior

[shart1949]

I apologize upfront if this is NOT the correct forum for the following question:

If one wanted to change (modify) the behavior of any ship class (role), which file(s) would one need? I am interested in behaviors such as, under what conditions to seek out a refueling base, or when to press an attack versus retreating. That sort of thing.

I am assuming that "ship behavior" is, in fact, something that can be modified via a text file.

Thank you.

[RogerBacon]

ORIGINAL: shart1949


I am assuming that "ship behavior" is, in fact, something that can be modified via a text file.

Thank you.

That would be a pretty big assumption and a lot to as of a humble text file. AI scripting logic is complex and it is mostly set in the code and not in the text files. However, there is the overmatch setting you can set in game which determines how much firepower your ships will try to throw at an enemy. There are also stances such as what to do against weaker or stronger opponents. Those are not in text files though. They are on menues in the game. I hope that helps.

[shart1949]

Thank you, RogerBacon, for that fast response! I know I was stretching by assuming what I did; hence, the reason for my post. Would it be fair, then, to conclude that setting the threshold, for when a ship decides it is time to ignore direct orders and change course for the nearest refueling base, is not something that could be easily made a command, accessible via the UI?