Reloading PDCs?

[Beaker (OP)]

Is there an easy way to tell all my PDCs to reload their magazines? Since I can't give orders to the whole TF, the only way is through the individual ship menu?

[iceball3]

Should be right there, just load them directly from population.

[Vandermeer]

He knew the option in the ship menu, and I have to agree it would be a bit too much if you happen to have a whole lane of missile based PDC.

Technically you could use a collier and use a command to supply to all PDCs from outside, but of course that would require you to build one if you don't happen to sport such design in your fleet plan.

Potential alternative: I once built a PDC with only box launching torpedoes, betting on the fact that the PDC would then reload automatically from planet supplies, just like ships with box launchers do. I had no enemy to verify that this worked though, but I guess it should. ...And if that works, then I guess the planet is somehow flagged as collier to begin with perhaps, meaning your PDCs might draw from them even with regular launchers (basically meaning that magazines on them are a waste of space and resource).
Again, PDCs see use so rarely, that I have never been able to test this out, but maybe someone has specialized experience in this here? A longstanding question of mine too.

[iceball3]

He knew the option in the ship menu, and I have to agree it would be a bit too much if you happen to have a whole lane of missile based PDC.

Technically you could use a collier and use a command to supply to all PDCs from outside, but of course that would require you to build one if you don't happen to sport such design in your fleet plan.

Potential alternative: I once built a PDC with only box launching torpedoes, betting on the fact that the PDC would then reload automatically from planet supplies, just like ships with box launchers do. I had no enemy to verify that this worked though, but I guess it should. ...And if that works, then I guess the planet is somehow flagged as collier to begin with perhaps, meaning your PDCs might draw from them even with regular launchers (basically meaning that magazines on them are a waste of space and resource).
Again, PDCs see use so rarely, that I have never been able to test this out, but maybe someone has specialized experience in this here? A longstanding question of mine too.

Box launchers on a PDC? I am not completely sure, but I think that box launchers only reload via maintenance facilities or hangars, even if you transfer ammo to them, it may not cycle at all unless either of those conditions are met, meaning that you'd need some kinda fancy "PDC storing hangar" or maintenance capacity to reload them.

[Vandermeer]

Nope, I got that tactic from someone here who made probably the most effective anti-invader fleet that can be.(massive one shot box launcher barrage) Also one that kind of exploits a game weakness, which is why I personally refuse using this for ships, but it goes as such:
You can make all your ships box launching and still carry magazines (or simply have colliers with them). When you need to reload, just drop all ammunition on a body somewhere, and they will reload. Yepp, no facilities needed. Total hack, so don't use if you follow either a code of honour or a code of realism.(i do the last )
However, I could overlook this when there is an actual colony with millions of inhabitants etc., which makes it ok with PDC in my eyes.

...But I have not yet cared to set up a test situation to confirm.

[83athom]

I do remember box launchers being able to reload outside of hangars at hours long times (someone literally taking a missile out of a storage bay around the outside of a ship and down the launch tube) because the tech design has that stated as a possibility (but I haven't tested it). With PDCs, I find it is okay to do since that is basically what our irl 'PDCs' (missile launch facilities) did already, they had single launch silos that were externally reloaded (until we came up with a way to store fuel in the missiles long term letting them have a "magazine" for rapid fire).

[TheDeadlyShoe]

uh, how many PDCs do you have? Shouldn't take too long using Fast Reload - Population.

If you have some way too huge number of PDCs and no colliers, you can use the Class Design screen to set all ships of that type to full magazines of the specified ordnance using the "Load Ships" button. This generates 'free missiles' though.