design On the topic of UAD Task Forces

[Tycondero]

Now that the first beta version of 1.09 is out I decided to take a look at the game again after mostly ignoring it for a couple of months. Although the game becomes ever more feature rich I believe that some aspects of it are still very shallow and one of the most shallow features imo is task force creation, their purpose and management.

IMO the biggest question that would be great for the designers to answer: what is the objective/purpose of task forces in UAD? 

Currently, task forces are nothing more than a group/assembly of ships that have (in most cases) departed from a single naval base and sent to a sea region on the map. There, these "task forces" sit around and generate missions within that sea region. These auto-generated missions can be somewhat scewed by the way the task force is comprised and the abilities/features of the ships within the task force. For example, a task force with fast ships that support a long range have a benefit of triggering more favourable missions. Furthermore, with the introduction of the recon system, having high value recon ships (e.g. fast, small/stealthy ships) also impacts the ability of a task force to trigger more favourable engagements. Also, task forces can be given a mission, which is currently (1.09) limited to: sea control, protect and invade and according to the in-game help feature a control zone which prevents hostile ships from passing through unchallenged. The task forces will be supplied from your naval bases with ammo and fuel in an abstracted manner by the game so that it removes micromanagement. To me this approach that UAD feels very conflicted/confusing. I can fully understand their design choice from simplifying game design, but task forces are (as of now) a mix of the IRL patrol groups, fleets and task forces.

I feel that the current UAD task forces should allow for much more detail in its organisation and objective. To my knowledge the devs are moving towards a more point based system in which the number and type of ships comprising the task force, will be impacted by your techology/research. More advanced tech will give you more points, hence allow you to create more complex/larger task forces. I would not be suprised if admirals (as in game characters) were to lead these formations at some point when implemented. It would be helpful if we were able to also choose a formation for the task force (even a list of preset ones would already be great) so that this helps us and the AI in organising the ships during battle.

I hope that my rambling makes sense, please feel free to discuss.

 

Edited October 17, 2022 by Tycondero

[Lastreaumont]

On previous versions and at the beginning of my new campaign on v1.09, I used tasks forces to pack the ships I want together and use them to control a map region or hunt ennemy ships. 

But now, with the refuelling management we have to do, I chose to leave my ships in harbor most of the time, switching between "sea control" option if I allow them to go to missions and "defend" option if I want them to stay in harbor until full refuelling is complete. 
About this, I have a question: many months to fully refuel a ship, is it a simulation of famous french big strikes? :-) (Yes, I play France in this campaign)
 

[HistoricalAccuracyMan]

I personally think of task forces as large groups of ships that routinely operate together to complete various tasks (patrols, invasion fleets, escort, etc) as part of a larger battle fleet: like Enterprise, Hornet and their escorts were Task Force 16 at MIdway, and Yorktown with her escorts was Task Force 17...but the two task forces together formed the US battle fleet at MIdway. I tend to think of "groups" or "task groups" as smaller collections of mostly small/light ships that regularly perform patrols, ASW duties, screening and escort duties...only directly engaging in surface combat if absolutely necessary (think along the lines of Taffy 3 vs Yamato at Leyte Gulf) and operate as smaller detachments from a Task Force (which is why you would have designations like TF 58.4 in the USN).

I personally wish UAD operated like this when it came to task force creation: select a group of ships, give them a name, and then save them as their own individual task force, and set a home port for the task force...it's simple really. That way, when you go to deploy your ships, you aren't spending a month waiting for the ships you want to deploy to move ports...you can just select a port and go "Ok, looks like Task Force 3 is ready to go. Let's put you all to sea," and then just select Task Force 3 and select their destination. Then, if the task force returns to port for repairs or such, it goes back to that same port (unless it's like an emergency situation and they need critical repairs before continuing on which might mean the ships in need of the largest repairs might stop off at a different port for critical repairs before returning back to home port or something). I think this would be better, more realistic, and more intuitive than the current system of "Ok, let's send some ships to the Mediterranean. Who's in port? Alright...let's send you, you, you, you, you, not you, you're still repairing, you're refitting, you, you, you...wait, where's the Kaiser Friedrich? Scheisse...it's in Kiel...but was zur Hölle is it doing there, it was stationed in Wilhelmshaven!" And editing task forces can be simple as well: just select a task force, select an edit option, and then swap out the ships you want. Do you want to wait out the repair/refit of a certain ship in the task force...or does the situation demand that you get them back out there now, and the rest can catch up later? And maybe this would need to include new orders or "roles." Like maybe if you want the task force to counter a certain group...you could select a "hunt" option, which would then prompt you to select a certain enemy task force and your task force would prioritize hunting down that specific group of enemy ships. You took Gibraltar from the Brits and don't want anything entering/exiting the Med without your permission? Maybe have a task force set to a "patrol" or "guard" role, which would then prompt you to either select a port or specific point on the map, and then the operational range/fuel storage would determine how much area the ships can patrol and for how long (ships would patrol at cruising speed, thus maximizing fuel economy and time at sea).

Same thing could go for "groups" when it comes to port defense things like minelaying or ASW patrols. Just select a group of ships, give them a name, set home port, save the task force, and put them to sea. Or, maybe you send some of your "groups" along with your task forces for minesweeping and ASW escorts. Basically the same as my idea above when it comes to deploying and editing: "Looks like Task Groups 1 and 2 are prepped and ready...let's have Task Group 1 accompany Task Force 3, and Task Group 2 will go on a ASW patrol."

As for how I view task forces in relation to the voting options above...I largely see them as a way to select what ships you want to send where, and a way to very loosely organize your fleet. I don't really think many of the other options apply (in my opinion). You can certainly use them to create tension, but in reality there are multiple other ways to improve/degrade relations and tension (though if half the Royal Navy showed up off your coastline one morning for no reason...it probably wouldn't exactly help relations). Do they conduct patrols/generate missions within a sea zone? Maybe...but that is also dependent on your current game situation, your ship's capabilities, the AI ship's capabilities, what role you assign your ships (protect, invade, sea control) and RNG. If your enemy only has 8 ships and they're repairing 5 of them...you aren't going to be generating many missions--you'll likely be spending money you don't need to be just so your 12 ship task force can waste it's time trying to hunt down 1 or 2 ships at a time. Completing a single objective? This kinda ties into mission generation: sure you can send your task force to try and conduct a port strike...but what if the RNG says, "Nope! You're gonna try to chase down 4 DDs and 2 CLs instead...and you can't withdraw either, because the enemy is faster than you are!" I don't see how task forces can be used to restrict enemy movement either. By trying to restrict where the AI moves, you will only generate battles because their force met yours. Which, I guess kinda restricts their movement because their ships have to go back to port for repairs...but "restricting" movement in the sense most of us are thinking doesn't really work (blockades don't really restrict their movement either...just hurts their economy). And lastly, directly attacking an enemy force...sometimes it works, other times it don't...again tied to everything that influences mission generation. I can't begin to tell you how frustrating it is to see my 3 BBs, 2 BCs, 6 CAs, 4 CLs and 6 DDs go after a convoy or destroyer group while my 3 CL and 4 DD force goes up against the armada I sent my capital ships to engage.

TL;DR I still think Task Forces/Groups need reworked or improved when it comes to creating and deploying them. And when it comes to the role/purpose of task forces as they are right now...I feel as though it is tied to all the factors that generate missions.

[Spitfire_97]

Another purpose I can think of is clearing the path for a larger taskforce / battle group. Attempting a 1.09 campaign, I built an entire class of DDs as dedicated ASW minesweepers (cheap, long range, max ASW and minesweeping at the expense of ASuW capability and speed). Imagine my shock when I sent out a task force of DDs ahead of a battlegroup to, y'know, sweep for mines... only for every single ship in the task force to be hit by mines in a single turn... bruh.