How to reduce micro-managing with Grav surveys?

[vorpal+5 (OP)]

I'm using a laborious process to grav survey a system consisting of a shuttle tender with 8x 500-ton shuttles, each with a grav survey component.

My very much click-intensive, and probably un-optimized way of doing the exploration is to detach, one by one each shuttle, then give each of them the standing order to survey the nearest location, with the primary condition that at 50% fuel to get back to the assigned mother ship.

So we are looking at 50+ clicks to set up this. And then "bis repetita", each time one lands and needs to be dispatched again.

So I'm a taker of advice here!

[AlStar]

If you're determined to use shuttles/fighters for surveying, I think you're pretty much SoL as far as reducing clicks, unfortunately.

The most hands-off survey ships are full-out exploration ships - massive fuel tanks and maintenance supplies with both sets of sensors. You give them a standing order to explore the next 3 points of interest, give secondary orders to make sure they return to base when low on fuel or over their deployment counter, then all you need to do is move them around whenever they run out of things to scan and you pop them through the next unexplored JP and let them do it all again.

[skoormit]

Enter system.
With the fleet selected on the Naval Window, click the Launch All button.
Select the new "Strikegroup" fleet.
Configure the standing orders for this fleet that you want to apply to your survey ships.
Give an order to "Divide Fleet into Single Ships", targeting the JP that the fleet is sitting on.
Advance time 5 seconds. The fleet divides into single ships, each with a copy of the standing orders you configured.
Advance time as normal with an increment of at least 1 hour (I think? Maybe has to be 3 hours) for the ships to apply their standing orders.

[brondi00]

Skoormits method is the best one.  The reality though is, fighters/parasites of all kinds, are so micro intensive I've just stopped using them.  As AIStar said, its way easier to just use a larger ship with both types of sensors.  You only need to deal with them when they've finished exploring the system or some interrupt happens.  And all you need to do is tell them to transit the jump point to the next system you want explored. 

Same with offensive parasites, micro for all the target selection is already a chore when you have 5 ships, its down right annoying if you have, say 6 squadrons of 4 fighters.  Or even more!  This has gotten better as the game has undergone development.  So its more tolerable now than its ever been.  And it is fun to roleplay so i still do it sometimes.

But if you're looking to minimize micro/clicking fighters are not the way.

[Steve Walmsley]

Same with offensive parasites, micro for all the target selection is already a chore when you have 5 ships, its down right annoying if you have, say 6 squadrons of 4 fighters.  Or even more!  This has gotten better as the game has undergone development.  So its more tolerable now than its ever been.  And it is fun to roleplay so i still do it sometimes.

But if you're looking to minimize micro/clicking fighters are not the way.

Do you know you can just copy targeting to all fighters in the same fleet or system? Or use Fleet Fire At Will to randomly assign targets to every ship in a fleet.

[brondi00]

I've never had much luck with fire at will.  I shall have to try it again.  I just started a nation with a carrier focused doctrine.

As for copy to all, I do know about this, but I prefer my fighters to be more deconflicted so i'd rather spread the targetting out.  Which fire at will might offer, as you said.  So I will def try it.

[Rince Wind]

You could also make strike groups consisting of however many fighters you want to attack the same target and then copy target to fleet, it would at least reduce the clicking somewhat.