Dev Diary: Warplans, or Conducting War from 30 million kilometers
Hello everyone! Steve here with another exciting dev diary. This week, we’re going to talk about the military system’s macro level that you as the Emperor most interact with, called Warplans. Houses will also use them to prosecute Challenges, and they will be used in the Xyl end game.
Essentially, Players can create Warplans in order to execute war Actions such as conquer a planet, invade a system, destroy infrastructure, terrorize a system, etc. These Warplans are created with the help and advice of your War Prime on a special Warplan screen, accessed from the Military Tactical Mode.
Warplans can be as simple as sending a single Force to a planet to harass the planet/system defenses, or as complex as orchestrating the conquest of an entire Province. The beauty of the system is that it is all planned from a high level - remember, AotSS is not a war game, and as the emperor, you would not be responsible for calculating supply logistics or determining the best type of missile to use for a planetary conquest - that’s why you have Primes and Generals!
Warplans consist of 6 main elements: Scope, Stellar Target, Political Target, Lead Admiral, Priority, and Mission. You as the Emperor select these things, and based on your choices the War Prime will advise as to the best Force mix. Forces are grouped into a primary Task Force under the command of a senior Admiral, with smaller Forces that make up the mission requirements. Once you make your selections, the War Prime will let you know how well your current units and active Forces can implement this Warplan, and you will have a chance to modify the scale, target, etc. or simply cancel altogether.
The player can have as many active Warplans as the War Prime’s Administration Level - 1, with a minimum of 1 always.
There are 3 different proposed Scopes: Region, Planet, and System. The Scope determines the eligible Targets - Targets may only fit into the Scope of the Warplan or below if needed. For example, conquering a Planet may require that certain Regions are Targets if they contain sufficient Control Points to obtain military control of the Planet, but the System would not be targeted. Similarly, if a System is a Target, Planets of the House who is the Political Target would need to be sub targets to execute the Warplan properly. Note that a Region can not be directly targeted by a Warplan; it would only be a sub-target of a Planet Target.
Stellar Targets can be Regions, Planets (Outposts and Colonies), and Systems. The Scope determines what the eligible Stellar Targets can be in order to fulfill the Warplan Mission.
Political Targets can be Great Houses, Xyl holdings, or external Empires. Note that in most cases the player will need an active Challenge to set a House as a Political Target. Each Warplan can only have one Political Target - if the player wishes to target another House or Empire, they will need a separate Warplan for that.
The Lead Admiral is responsible for organizing the Task Force(s) that will be required to implement the Warplan. A Lead Admiral will be proposed by the War Prime once a Scope and Target are designated (higher-level Scopes will require Admirals with a higher ADM rating to effectively lead) but this can be overruled by the player at a 5-10% hit to the War Prime’s relationship score, as well as the passed-over Admiral)
Once a Warplan is started, Intel can be gathered on it by Inquisitors. You will be able to assign an Inquisitor to any known Warplan implement by another House or external Empires. This will allow you to know the Target, Sub-targets, which political entity is behind the Warplan (Houses or Empires), the state of readiness, and the expected Organization rating. This will allow you to send reinforcements to targeted Planets or Systems, or even make a preemptive strike on Shipyards or Planets during the Organization phase!
Missions can be the following:
*Conquer
This mission seeks to military occupy a Stellar Target with the goal of keeping it long-term.
Eligible Scopes: Planet, System
*Attrit Defenses
This mission seeks to reduce or destroy the defenses of the Stellar Target for possible future Missions.
Eligible Scopes: Planet, System (Provinces do not have defenses as such)
*Terror
This mission seeks to cause Devastation on a Planet that specifically targets Pops in order to reduce Happiness and cause Unrest on the Planet.
Eligible Scopes: Planet, System
*Scout
This mission seeks to increase the Intel Progress of the Stellar Target for either exploration or military intel purposes. Also used to allow Surface Expeditions of Planets.
Eligible Scopes: Planet, System
*Degrade Planetary Infrastructure
This mission seeks to reduce or destroy economic and industrial Sectors on a Planet in order to significantly degrade a Planet’s Economy and Industrial Output.
Eligible Scopes: Planet
*Degrade Orbital Infrastructure
This mission seeks to reduce or destroy orbital Shipyards, Starbases, and Trade Ports in order to significantly degrade a Planet’s military and trade capabilities.
Eligible Scopes: Planet
*Destroy
This is a special Mission that looks to destroy a specific Stellar Target.
Currently, the only eligible targets are a Region and the Xyl Recension Engine, but may be expanded to Planets if we decide a Planet busting weapon is necessary in the design
Warplans will be assigned a Operation Name that will be randomly generated, or the player can name it at no cost (this is just for immersion and serves no game play purpose other than to allow a reference to a specific Warplan) Warplans can be cancelled UNTIL the Task Force is set into motion (Execute Phase)
Warplans have 4 phases: Planning, Organization, Preparation, and Execution, and a special Status, Paused.
Planning Phase is used when the Warplan is first organized and Targets, Mission, and Scope are set. This Phase is completed when the Warplan is authorized and the AP cost is paid (1 AP for each Scope level of the Warplan)
Organization Phase is used to determine what Forces and what organization will be required, and to build/create these Forces as needed. For example, if the Warplan calls for a Heavy Space Combat Force, and none exists, the War Prime will attempt to create one with a minimum Effectiveness level of 50%. If the Combat Force cannot be created, the War Prime will attempt to substitute the next-smaller size template Combat Force until one can be created. If none can be created, the War Prime will inform the player in a Organization Report generated the following turn of what is missing/less than the optimal plan. At that point, the player can approve the modifications or put the Warplan on pause while they build the recommended elements (usually by re-configuring Shipyards to build the missing size ships). This can also be automated and left to the War Prime. Once the recommended Forces are raised, the War Prime will send a notification to the player that the Warplan may proceed and can be unpaused.
Once all Forces are ready, the Preparation Phase starts. This is where depending on the mission, 1-4 Turns are used to run war drills, practice the mission, gain experience for crews, etc. The number of turns is 0 + Scope (where Region is 1, Planet is 1, System is 2, and Province is 3) + Total Forces / 3, rounded down (so that less than 3 Forces don’t add a Turn) - Lead Admiral Administration Rating / 2. There is always a minimum of 1 turn required, and a maximum of 4 turns (1 year) At this point, an Organization modifier is attached to each Force depending on how well the Preparation Phase was executed. This is a random % from -25% to +25% which is determined by Lead Admiral’s Military Skill * Lead Admiral’s Administration Rating / 40 for the upper bound and 25% is subtracted from the upper bound for the lower bound. This can significantly affect the performance of each Force and may be a reason to cancel the Warplan after this Phase.
Finally, once Preparation ends, the Warplan is Executed. At this point, the Warplan cannot be cancelled, but the War Prime will request your confirmation once the Task Force makes contact with the Target (in case the defenses are too strong, an unexpected issue arises, etc). The Task Force will take damage from the System Defenses, but will proceed no further until your confirmation is given.
After the Warplan Execution Phase starts, your War Prime will send a Mission Report each turn to inform you of the status of the Warplan’s mission and how close the mission is to success or failure. The War Prime will also give their current percentage chance of ultimate success of the mission, along with an anticipated ETA. You can cancel the Warplan from the Mission Report if desired and have the remaining Forces stay in their mission area, return to New Terra (or the nearest system with a shipyard) for repairs, or disband. You may also have the option to allow reinforcements to be used to support the Warplan on advice of your War Prime.
Longer post today, but feel like there’s some good information about how high-level war will be conducted in Alliance of the Sacred Suns!
Steve
Essentially, Players can create Warplans in order to execute war Actions such as conquer a planet, invade a system, destroy infrastructure, terrorize a system, etc. These Warplans are created with the help and advice of your War Prime on a special Warplan screen, accessed from the Military Tactical Mode.
Warplans can be as simple as sending a single Force to a planet to harass the planet/system defenses, or as complex as orchestrating the conquest of an entire Province. The beauty of the system is that it is all planned from a high level - remember, AotSS is not a war game, and as the emperor, you would not be responsible for calculating supply logistics or determining the best type of missile to use for a planetary conquest - that’s why you have Primes and Generals!
Warplans consist of 6 main elements: Scope, Stellar Target, Political Target, Lead Admiral, Priority, and Mission. You as the Emperor select these things, and based on your choices the War Prime will advise as to the best Force mix. Forces are grouped into a primary Task Force under the command of a senior Admiral, with smaller Forces that make up the mission requirements. Once you make your selections, the War Prime will let you know how well your current units and active Forces can implement this Warplan, and you will have a chance to modify the scale, target, etc. or simply cancel altogether.
The player can have as many active Warplans as the War Prime’s Administration Level - 1, with a minimum of 1 always.
There are 3 different proposed Scopes: Region, Planet, and System. The Scope determines the eligible Targets - Targets may only fit into the Scope of the Warplan or below if needed. For example, conquering a Planet may require that certain Regions are Targets if they contain sufficient Control Points to obtain military control of the Planet, but the System would not be targeted. Similarly, if a System is a Target, Planets of the House who is the Political Target would need to be sub targets to execute the Warplan properly. Note that a Region can not be directly targeted by a Warplan; it would only be a sub-target of a Planet Target.
Stellar Targets can be Regions, Planets (Outposts and Colonies), and Systems. The Scope determines what the eligible Stellar Targets can be in order to fulfill the Warplan Mission.
Political Targets can be Great Houses, Xyl holdings, or external Empires. Note that in most cases the player will need an active Challenge to set a House as a Political Target. Each Warplan can only have one Political Target - if the player wishes to target another House or Empire, they will need a separate Warplan for that.
The Lead Admiral is responsible for organizing the Task Force(s) that will be required to implement the Warplan. A Lead Admiral will be proposed by the War Prime once a Scope and Target are designated (higher-level Scopes will require Admirals with a higher ADM rating to effectively lead) but this can be overruled by the player at a 5-10% hit to the War Prime’s relationship score, as well as the passed-over Admiral)
Once a Warplan is started, Intel can be gathered on it by Inquisitors. You will be able to assign an Inquisitor to any known Warplan implement by another House or external Empires. This will allow you to know the Target, Sub-targets, which political entity is behind the Warplan (Houses or Empires), the state of readiness, and the expected Organization rating. This will allow you to send reinforcements to targeted Planets or Systems, or even make a preemptive strike on Shipyards or Planets during the Organization phase!
Missions can be the following:
*Conquer
This mission seeks to military occupy a Stellar Target with the goal of keeping it long-term.
Eligible Scopes: Planet, System
*Attrit Defenses
This mission seeks to reduce or destroy the defenses of the Stellar Target for possible future Missions.
Eligible Scopes: Planet, System (Provinces do not have defenses as such)
*Terror
This mission seeks to cause Devastation on a Planet that specifically targets Pops in order to reduce Happiness and cause Unrest on the Planet.
Eligible Scopes: Planet, System
*Scout
This mission seeks to increase the Intel Progress of the Stellar Target for either exploration or military intel purposes. Also used to allow Surface Expeditions of Planets.
Eligible Scopes: Planet, System
*Degrade Planetary Infrastructure
This mission seeks to reduce or destroy economic and industrial Sectors on a Planet in order to significantly degrade a Planet’s Economy and Industrial Output.
Eligible Scopes: Planet
*Degrade Orbital Infrastructure
This mission seeks to reduce or destroy orbital Shipyards, Starbases, and Trade Ports in order to significantly degrade a Planet’s military and trade capabilities.
Eligible Scopes: Planet
*Destroy
This is a special Mission that looks to destroy a specific Stellar Target.
Currently, the only eligible targets are a Region and the Xyl Recension Engine, but may be expanded to Planets if we decide a Planet busting weapon is necessary in the design
Warplans will be assigned a Operation Name that will be randomly generated, or the player can name it at no cost (this is just for immersion and serves no game play purpose other than to allow a reference to a specific Warplan) Warplans can be cancelled UNTIL the Task Force is set into motion (Execute Phase)
Warplans have 4 phases: Planning, Organization, Preparation, and Execution, and a special Status, Paused.
Planning Phase is used when the Warplan is first organized and Targets, Mission, and Scope are set. This Phase is completed when the Warplan is authorized and the AP cost is paid (1 AP for each Scope level of the Warplan)
Organization Phase is used to determine what Forces and what organization will be required, and to build/create these Forces as needed. For example, if the Warplan calls for a Heavy Space Combat Force, and none exists, the War Prime will attempt to create one with a minimum Effectiveness level of 50%. If the Combat Force cannot be created, the War Prime will attempt to substitute the next-smaller size template Combat Force until one can be created. If none can be created, the War Prime will inform the player in a Organization Report generated the following turn of what is missing/less than the optimal plan. At that point, the player can approve the modifications or put the Warplan on pause while they build the recommended elements (usually by re-configuring Shipyards to build the missing size ships). This can also be automated and left to the War Prime. Once the recommended Forces are raised, the War Prime will send a notification to the player that the Warplan may proceed and can be unpaused.
Once all Forces are ready, the Preparation Phase starts. This is where depending on the mission, 1-4 Turns are used to run war drills, practice the mission, gain experience for crews, etc. The number of turns is 0 + Scope (where Region is 1, Planet is 1, System is 2, and Province is 3) + Total Forces / 3, rounded down (so that less than 3 Forces don’t add a Turn) - Lead Admiral Administration Rating / 2. There is always a minimum of 1 turn required, and a maximum of 4 turns (1 year) At this point, an Organization modifier is attached to each Force depending on how well the Preparation Phase was executed. This is a random % from -25% to +25% which is determined by Lead Admiral’s Military Skill * Lead Admiral’s Administration Rating / 40 for the upper bound and 25% is subtracted from the upper bound for the lower bound. This can significantly affect the performance of each Force and may be a reason to cancel the Warplan after this Phase.
Finally, once Preparation ends, the Warplan is Executed. At this point, the Warplan cannot be cancelled, but the War Prime will request your confirmation once the Task Force makes contact with the Target (in case the defenses are too strong, an unexpected issue arises, etc). The Task Force will take damage from the System Defenses, but will proceed no further until your confirmation is given.
After the Warplan Execution Phase starts, your War Prime will send a Mission Report each turn to inform you of the status of the Warplan’s mission and how close the mission is to success or failure. The War Prime will also give their current percentage chance of ultimate success of the mission, along with an anticipated ETA. You can cancel the Warplan from the Mission Report if desired and have the remaining Forces stay in their mission area, return to New Terra (or the nearest system with a shipyard) for repairs, or disband. You may also have the option to allow reinforcements to be used to support the Warplan on advice of your War Prime.
Longer post today, but feel like there’s some good information about how high-level war will be conducted in Alliance of the Sacred Suns!
Steve