Countermanding Courier Orders

[Marching Thru Georgia]

A simpler courier improvement would be a 'countermand' order. Say I have a brigade marching to one end of the battlefield. Suddenly, I decide I need it somewhere else. I cannot issue another move order until the brigade commander reaches his first assigned spot. No courier is sent.

A countermand order would tell the game engine to send a courier regardless of where the brigade officer is, wipe out his current orders when the courier arrives and substitute the new orders.

[con20or]

A simpler courier improvement would be a 'countermand' order. Say I have a brigade marching to one end of the battlefield. Suddenly, I decide I need it somewhere else. I cannot issue another move order until the brigade commander reaches his first assigned spot. No courier is sent.

A countermand order would tell the game engine to send a courier regardless of where the brigade officer is, wipe out his current orders when the courier arrives and substitute the new orders.

This works for me...I just checked it there to be sure.

[con20or]

Not in historic or custom courier play. The commander must reach his ordered position before a new move order can be issued. This has been the case since version 1.00. But if you TC your troops, then events may be as you say.

MTG - This isn't the case, I checked it last night and confirmed. I was playing custom brigade level courier. See my earlier post. I can fire out as many orders countermanding orders as I like, couriers created as required.

I have noticed an issue where in certain cases you cant send a courier until the courier reaches the target, but once it starts moving I can countermand that order, although I havent tested it. Is this what you mean?

[Marching Thru Georgia]

MTG - This isn't the case, I checked it last night and confirmed. I was playing custom brigade level courier. See my earlier post. I can fire out as many orders countermanding orders as I like, couriers created as required.

Now that is strange, I never see new couriers being created. Do your couriers actually do anything? In other words, if you order a unit to advance 500yd and then while it is still marching, order it back to it's original location, does it stop and change direction? Or does it continue on to the 1st location? I recall a version of the game, 1.2x that did just that. Couriers would be created but didn't deliver any orders.

[con20or]

I'll check it again later when i get home - but the fact I've never noticed this before makes me think that they are carrying out the new orders..

I used a 'move to this location' order rather than 'move 500 yards', ill try both.

[con20or]

definitely countermanding orders no problem. they get the orders, start off, get the new ones, and visibly change direction, reverse course etc.

[Marching Thru Georgia]

Con20or wrote:

definitely countermanding orders no problem. they get the orders, start off, get the new ones, and visibly change direction, reverse course etc.

Version 1.4005. Historic mode. No Mods. I repeated this procedure 10 times. As corps commander, I ordered a brigade to:
1. Move to this map location
2. Face unit in a direction
3. Change to double line formation

Brigade marches off to location. Once it starts moving, I write the same order except I order it to move back to it's original starting point.

Nine out of ten times no courier is created. The one time, (I don't know what was different), a courier was created and delivered the order. The ground arrows changed to the new location. However, the brigade kept marching to the first destination. Once it arrived, it immediately turned around and marched to the second location.

I don't know why your results are opposite of mine or why I created a courier once. What custom settings are you using? I'll try those.

[Davinci]

I’m not sure what you mean by Historical Mode – but I have been countermanding courier orders for quite a long time now.

I have had quite a few games where multiple brigades never made it into battle due to me countermanding their marching orders multiple times.

Once the brigade commander received the new order, if the new location were behind them, they would immediately reverse course.

The only setting that I can see is the Couriers by \ Side that I have set.

davinci

[con20or]

Weird, I used 'custom' - 'brigade level' couriers. I didnt give the change facing order either. Try those.

Before 1.4, I used to play historic as well, and never noticed the problem then either.

Same as you, no MODS installed for these tests.

[Marching Thru Georgia]

Aha, you're using the toolbar to give orders. Yes, it works as you describe when doing point and click. But if you write out the courier orders, it doesn't work. By the way, with the latest patch, 1.042, more couriers are created when issuing the second order, but the units still do not respond to the new orders.