Fixed the AI not avoiding boats when searching for viable paradrop targets

[Mailaender]

Tries to lessen #6636 with the adjusting screws we already got.

[pchote]

These will only tell the AI to avoid boats, so I don't think it will fix #6636 in general?

[Mailaender]

I saw a lot of boats (some are high value cruisers) at #6636 (comment) so I suggest this will let the AI avoid them.

[pchote]

I'm not convinced, so i'll need to see some evidence that this helps before giving a 👍.

[Mailaender]

I think it is useful to not have the AI fight boats with paratroopers...

[Mailaender]

Accidentally pushed to the wrong remote? (this is upstream).

This happens when you use the web interface.

[reaperrr]

Edit: Nevermind, misunderstood something.

[Mailaender]

No change has been suggested yet.

[pchote]

The changes requested tag was for

i'll need to see some evidence that this helps

We don't have a more appropriate PR tag to apply there.

[Mailaender]

Go test the pull request then.

[pchote]

Just a philosophical/procedural comment: our merge policy has never been "merge by default" (see first point of the old Playtest or Release Checklist). It is up to the PR author to justify why their patch should be included, and so comments like that ("no, you prove that it shouldn't be merged") just leads to stale PRs that nobody wants to review.

[penev92]

Even if this does not prevent the AI from ever sending paratroopers into water again, the discussion at #6636 and the YAML itself speak that this should prevent the AI from trying to use paratroopers to attack boats, which is a very good thing by itself.

[Mailaender]

That is exactly my point.

I have no idea why you are trying to make me proof complex AI behavior. Also not in the mood for philosophical discussion over such simple fixes. If you don't have time to test the pull request, then ignore it, but don't leave FUD comments to block it permanently, @pchote.

[pchote]

this should prevent the AI from trying to use paratroopers to attack boats, which is a very good thing by itself.

The AI already doesn't use paratroopers to attack boats, though. The change here just tells it to actively avoid boats, which is redundant once somebody fixes the real problem.

[Mailaender]

Boats are in the water. Avoid boats, avoid the water. I don't see the downside.

[pchote]

The downside is that this is a bandaid that doesn't address the real problem (avoiding boats doesn't mean avoiding water), and that the real fix (which would have taken significantly less time than has gone into this discussion) will make this proposed change redundant.

[Mailaender]

Believe me, I am sick of this discussion, too. Feels like leading nowhere. What is "the real fix"?

[pchote]

Adding a terrain type check, either to the AI (still a bandaid, but at least it fully solves the bug) or support powers in general (which also covers #6145).

[penev92]

While I do like the idea of having a proper solution through terrain type checks, which would help not only here, this would make things a little better, and terrain type checks are well out of scope here.
I'm going to 👍 this with the above arguments and for the sake of moving things along.

[pchote]

If this is going to be merged despite my objections, then please at least update the commit so that it doesn't claim to fix the paradrop into water problem.

[Mailaender]

It doesn't really claim that. What is your suggestion for the commit message then? sigh I can't edit it in the GitHub web interface.

[pchote]

The commit message is currently "Update ai.yaml <newlines> avoid paradropping into the Water".

I suggest changing this to the more accurate "Don't paradrop units near boats".

[Mailaender]

Filed #8222. Hope everyone is happy now.