Teladi Terns bug

[quantum36]

In x3ap

I have been using Terns as my trading ship of choice for my stations to do there trading. It has been good but lately over the last week or so I have begun to notice a problem with these ships.

They are constantly being destroyed by either docking or undocking from the stations that they are homebased at.

This is really an annoying bug because I bought these ships because they are almost bullet proof but now they just get destroyed by the very stations they are assigned to trade for.

Is there a way to fix this

Terns fully equipped are not cheap

[Baratheon79]

Other than not being in the same sector while they're docking/undocking, not that I'm aware of in vanilla, though there are a couple of scripts that deal with the issue over in the S&M forum. I don't recall how large it is compared to other ships in its class (only used one briefly in my first playthrough of AP), but I have noticed that some of the new transports aren't much smaller than the Hyperion I'm usually flying. There's a well-known issue with larger ships and station docking facilities, where they may collide with the station (the Hyperion itself falls into this category, as does the Springblossom and a couple of other ships that I know of).

I'm actually using a script in my game that disables collisions until the ship is clear of the station, and that seems to alleviate the issue.

[windscar232]

Have you tried using the docking computer software in the game? Not really sure why this software is available in game though...

[quantum36]

I think I would like to get a hold of that script.

I have that issue with the hyperion as well but that usually happens because it tries to stuff it inside a fighter bay.

But these tern's are being destroyed while docking with a complex hub that the ship is actually homebased at. It only happens with hubs and where the ship is homebased at .

[windscar232]

It isn't a script, it is software available in vanilla. I have bought it but haven't noticed much of a difference in how my ship docks while flying it while using it. But I wonder if it would help ships that are automated, never heard of them being used but I don't think they would have useless software built in to the game IDK.

I mostly just run into this problem when flying a Albatross out of a equipment dock, it is too tall and it will hit the dock every time you fly out of it unless you hit your boosters down before moving forward.

I was thinking about using the Tern for the same reason you mentioned. You should let me know if buying the software works out for you, it would be the first thing I would try.

[windscar232]

Also thinking you could have tubing blocking the way in your complex that they run into or it is a busy station and they are running into other ships. Normally the smaller ship just dies when this happens but maybe they are trying to dodge the other ships and run into the station then.

[windscar232]

The ships could be just trying to dodge your complex tubing, complex tubing is something that can get really messy in game. If the ship is changing its course in order to dodge something then it will run into something if that change in course puts it directly into harms way. One thing you got to be care full of in using autopilot. You will crash in any ship doing this with SETA in close quarters from multiple directions.

<Please use the Edit button where yours is still the last post on the thread rather than keep reposting. Thanks. Alan Phipps>

[DrBullwinkle]

I think I would like to get a hold of that script.

Gazz's pair of scripts solves all docking and undocking issues:
Docking Lockup Fix and Safe Undocking / Jumping

To improve other problems due to AI's crashing into things, Bounce is very helpful:
Litcube's Bounce: Player Owned Autopilot Fix

[quantum36]

Thank you Dr. Bullwinkle!!!!


This is what I am looking for

[pjknibbs]

It isn't a script, it is software available in vanilla. I have bought it but haven't noticed much of a difference in how my ship docks while flying it while using it.

A docking computer does not affect the normal docking mechanics or AI controlled ships at all. What it does is to instantly "teleport" your ship into the docking clamps if you use it in the ship you're flying when inside a certain distance from the station (around 5km for most stations, usually more for Terran ones). You need to map a key to use it, though, there isn't one mapped in the default control configuration.

[windscar232]

A docking computer does not affect the normal docking mechanics or AI controlled ships at all. What it does is to instantly "teleport" your ship into the docking clamps if you use it in the ship you're flying when inside a certain distance from the station (around 5km for most stations, usually more for Terran ones). You need to map a key to use it, though, there isn't one mapped in the default control configuration.

Okay, I have had this happen when clicking the dock command after clicking the station, I thought it may do this automatically if you keep telling the autopilot to dock when close to the station.

I bought a Tern to check it out and I noticed that sometimes when your on autopilot the ship will go to the end of the runway and then decide that it doesn't like that approach and then check the end of the runway again even when there is nothing nearby blocking its way like a ship normally would when two ships approach a close runway at the same time.

One time I was flying to the shipyard in CEO's Sprite, I actually flew straight through a ship while going down the docking runway when I turned away from the screen for a second not paying attention to where I was going. It was a big ship I was flying through and looked strange from the inside at first i didn't know what was going on when I looked back at the screen. I thought maybe it was the docking software stopping collision, but I guess not.

[Mountain_Puncher]

It isn't a script, it is software available in vanilla. I have bought it but haven't noticed much of a difference in how my ship docks while flying it while using it.

A docking computer does not affect the normal docking mechanics or AI controlled ships at all. What it does is to instantly "teleport" your ship into the docking clamps if you use it in the ship you're flying when inside a certain distance from the station (around 5km for most stations, usually more for Terran ones). You need to map a key to use it, though, there isn't one mapped in the default control configuration.

Actually I think it is 3km or less and the default is shift+d.

[pjknibbs]

5km will usually work, but you might be right about the key--I know the docking computer didn't have a default key in X3R, but it's possible they added one in X3TC. (I always change it to be something different from the normal autodock command anyway, y'see, because I find it irritating when I press the button a microsecond too early and my ship then goes onto autopilot and starts the normal autodock sequence--I want to be able to just press the button again for the computer to do its job!).

[Alan Phipps]

@ pjknibbs: Even if you do go into AI docking by pressing a bit too early when using the same key for both docking modes, pressing it again when in range still works instantly. So you get the best of both worlds on one key regardless of range (as long as you are not too close in some cases, <~1 km and not by the docking arms, I think).

[pjknibbs]

That's assuming the ship doesn't decide it's too close to the station once autodock kicks in and turn 180 degrees to gain some distance, of course...

[Timsup2nothin]

FWIW, I find that the autodock frequently works out to about 7KM from large stations, like mines, shipyards, or Eq docks...or as previously noted, Terran stations.

[Nanook]

You can undock from a station and instantly redock without even moving by using the docking computer. It will not throw you suddenly into autopilot mode by being too close. I use this all the time when I want to drop into 'real space' for a quick peak at something and then instantly redock.

As for docking distance, there seems to be some confusion here. The important point is the distance from the actual docking port, not the center of the station. For instance, I've instantly docked from nearly 30km at some the biggest Terran stations, because I was actually a lot closer to the docking ports than the station center. So it really depends on your angle of approach to the docking area. In effect, there's no set, fixed position to instadock at any station.

[Alan Phipps]

There seems to be 3 sequential possible docking failure modes if you have AI docking and Docking Computer both on the same initial keypress.

1. Docking Computer fails because you are too far away from the designated station point, or you are denied docking at that time for any other reasons. Then you default to AI docking until you try the key again.

2. AI docking fails to commence because you are too close to the designated station point or are denied docking there.

3. AI docking commences but takes you into an awkward wide approach/evade loop because of any reason that deters you from the planned approach or later prevents you docking at that time.