This might be a little complicated for the general suggestions thread (and possibly suggested before), but here goes with advanced Standing and Conditional Orders.
Instead of having a Primary and Secondary Standing/Conditional Order, let us add as many as we desire in a priority queue.
For example, my grav/geo survey ship could have the following orders configured
- Survey Next 3 System Locations
- Survey Next 5 System Bodies
- Move to System Requiring Geosurvey
- Move to System Requiring Gravsurvey
Theoretically, this would have the ship survey all systems until there were no more geosurveys to be done, then move to the next unexplored system and continue the process.
Likewise, the conditional orders could be set up like
- Fuel less than 40% -> Resupply at Colony
- Fuel less than 40% -> Overhaul at Colony
- Fuel less than 40% -> Refuel From Colony or Hub
- Supply Points less than 20% -> Overhaul at Colony
- Supply Points less than 20% -> Refuel at Colony
- Supply Points less than 20% -> Resupply at Colony
- Hostile Active Ship Contact In System -> Clear Order List
- Hostile Active Ship Contact In System -> Refuel at Colony
Again, in theory this should tell the ship to return to a colony when supplies or fuel are low, at which point it will refuel, resupply, and overhaul (in a particular order to account for Overhauling not refueling and resupplying). Likewise, if it encounters a hostile force, it retreats home.
Even better would be for the Fuel and Supply Point conditions to be consolidated into Fuel less than X% and Supply Points less than X% so I could say to return home when supply points are less than 35% to provide a bigger safety net.
Finally, a nice to have might be to have multiple orders per condition. So using the previous example, I could say
- Fuel less than 40% -> Resupply at Colony, then Overhaul at Colony, then Refuel from Colony
- Supply Points less than 30% -> Refuel from Colony, then Overhaul at Colony, then Resupply at Colony
- Hostile Active Ship Contact In System -> Activate Shields, then Active Sensors On, then Change Speed to Maximum, then Refuel at Colony