Strategy talk: How to use drones

[Baron Munchausen]

There is a setting for colony components to have a 'default' population like the SE III colony components did. It works, too. So you could get around the cargo problem. But even if you put a colony component on a drone, it cannot use the 'colonize' order so it will be useless.

[Phoenix-D]

"You could mod a small Colony Pod component that only carried 1M colonists and a drone-sized ship hull that it barely fits into"

You can do this. However Baron is right; the colony component will not function. (tested in Gold 1.67)

Phoenix-D

[Puke]

i dont know if this would work, but what if you made a drone with a colony component and put it into the colony ship (rock) class, and then launched it near an uncolonized planet, and turned on its minister?

or what if you used the colonize button for the planet, rather than for the drone? in the planets screen, you can order the nearest colony ship to try to colonize any uncolonized planet..

[geoschmo]

Originally posted by Puke:
or what if you used the colonize button for the planet, rather than for the drone? in the planets screen, you can order the nearest colony ship to try to colonize any uncolonized planet..

I tried that with fighters once before drones came out and it didn't work. Unless there is something different with drones...

[rextorres]

Besides being cheap minesweepers - until the next patch - with ecm III they are nearly unhitable by a normal weapon AND you need sensor III for PDCs to be effective. So early in the game they are great because you don't need a shipyard to build. I am playing a game against someone who uses them almost exclusively and it was a bit of a shock how effective they are.

[DirectorTsaarx]

Originally posted by Phoenix-D:
"You could mod a small Colony Pod component that only carried 1M colonists and a drone-sized ship hull that it barely fits into"

You can do this. However Baron is right; the colony component will not function. (tested in Gold 1.67)

Phoenix-D

Except that capnq suggested adding a SHIP hull that had the same SIZE as a drone; in which case the colony component should work.

[thorfrog]

how do you target ship's with drones? I tried simmulating tactical combat and found that once I launch drones they go on their own.

[Phoenix-D]

Well, yes; in that case though it ain't a drone any more, it's a SHIP!

As far as targetting drones in tactical: you don't. They pick a target for themselves based on whatever targeting strat you gave them.

Phoenix-D

This is an rather different issue but: Is it true that cloaked drones are invisible in combat? I have sent them against AI planets on several occasions and have not been fired upon...are the drones invisible...are the colonists "a lot of miserable, cowardly knaves"...or am I really so deadly that no one wants to put up a fight?

[geoschmo]

Well, cloaked ships will not enter combat unless ther is a ship or unit in that sector that can see them. Either one of your own that is not cloaked, or an enemy with sensors capable of beating the cloak. This is true as well with cloaked ships. You have to uncloak to attack. However, IIRC somone was saying that with drones you can't cloak/uncloak. That the cloak is always on. If this is the case, you aren't going to be able to have combat unless you have another drone/ship/fighter along for the ride that is visible to the enemy.

Geoschmo