Sprint and drift - hard coding the only option?

[MarkShot]

I just played a scenario where my sub was to attack an enemy BG escorted by two Akulas. Now, it was probably one of the very first shared missions created for SC, since the two akulas are about 10nm leading the group on the points, but they are making 15kts doing a transit search. This probably effectively makes them blind (or more correctly deaf).

Of course, in this case the akulas should be doing a sprint and drift. Maybe 10 minutes at 20kts and 1 minute at 5kts; a little zig-zag would be a good idea too. The question is why wasn't sprint and drift built into the mission editor along with zig-zag?!?

Okay, so it is not. So, if you want sprint and drift does that mean you pretty much need to define 4-8 hours of waypoints (a few hundred in this case) via the Mission Editor? Does anyone have anything better?

Could dynamic groups that put screening escort subs 30-50nm in front of the BG be used such that destination goals (based on the PIM unit) created and destroyed these groups? (Although I personally hate things popping into the existence in the middle of mission ...)

If you do that, some questions:

(1) Is there a way to make sure that screening subs start beyond detection range for themselves and the player?

(2) Is there a way to make sure that if a screening sub is within detection range vis-a-vis the player that their group cannot be destroyed?

(3) If not #2, is there a way to make sure that if either the player or the screening sub holds detection on the other that the group cannot be destroyed?

Thanks.

[To be]

Ok, regarding how to make subs sprint and drift. I think this should work:

Set sub sprinting
Refireable Trigger, every x time: If sub exists, fire script
Script: Set sub speed to drift y time

Then you should get a sprinting sub that drifts every x seconds for y seconds. You could also do the same thing the have them clear baffles (assuming a semi-constant course), set heading to the inverse of whereever they are going.

[MarkShot]

And you could only do that in DW correct?

Thanks.

[To be]

Maybe? I don't know I have never had SC. It does work in DW though, I just tested it.

[MarkShot]

Well, thanks.

I suppose if I do any serious scenario development, I will do it for DW, since most of the community has moved on.

That certainly should make the escort problem much easier to manage and if I can do zig and a zag with every other drift to clear baffles that should work very well.

Now, since this is during a TRANSIT SEARCH, once the AI detects a contact will it forgo any further sprinting and prosecute the contact until it is confirmed safe?

[To be]

Well, thanks.

I suppose if I do any serious scenario development, I will do it for DW, since most of the community has moved on.

That certainly should make the escort problem much easier to manage and if I can do zig and a zag with every other drift to clear baffles that should work very well.

Now, since this is during a TRANSIT SEARCH, once the AI detects a contact will it forgo any further sprinting and prosecute the contact until it is confirmed safe?

Once the sub detects something, it takes over, and will ignore the speed settings until it loses the contact or kills it. (with LWAMI at least)

[MarkShot]

If I go with DW instead of SC so that I can write scripts. Then, can I use anything from doctrine language in those scripts?

So, could I also make my script to retrieve the base course for the PIM (current leg). And then say randomly between 8-15 minutes and randomly for 10-30 degrees zig-zag? (Since I see that there a lots of good doctrine coding examples which I can utlize in the doctrine directory for SC/SCX/DW/LWAMI.)

Thanks.