Mage usage class

[Chrysophylax]

In both 1.10.5 and 1.8.6 the Mage has usage= mixed fighter. Why not usage=archer? A Bowman is clearly a better mixed fighter than a Mage but is classed as an archer. Is this to prevent the AI using them in a certain way, or what? I don't see any strategic reason to consider a mage a mixed fighter: it's the archetypal glass cannon, being even more easily killed than DAs.

[alluton]

I believe the only usage for types like fighter or archer are purely for AI recruit patterns. ( Tough I'm not sure if this also applies to new, now official, AI developed by mattsc)

[Chrysophylax]

I also believe that they only affect recruitment patterns. What I'm asking is why the archer unit is classed as a mixed fighter and vice versa.

[Kymille]

In a 2013 thread someone says it is prevent them from being recruited too often relative to bowmen.

http://forum.wesnoth.org/viewtopic.php?t=38446&p=549077

[Eagle_11]

Should invent a new usage, specific for squishies: killstealer*

*keep near frontline but absolutely do not engage in combat unless the kill is guaranteed. (then wesnothian rng occurrs, still dies )

[Battlecruiser_Venca]

AFAIK the usage is only to thing how AI recruits units.

And the mixed fighter is to differentiate bowmen and mages, so this hack lets you control frequency of recruiting both units individually.

And I believe that was used in order to don't add any new type, so the devs picked a free one.

[Crow_T]

It's been said that the mixed fighter only controls recruiting, but when playing with an AI ally that has mages they throw them right out into the front line very recklessly/suicidally, as though mages have a decent melee and the HP of an actual mixed fighting unit.

[mattsc]

It's been said that the mixed fighter only controls recruiting, but when playing with an AI ally that has mages they throw them right out into the front line very recklessly/suicidally, as though mages have a decent melee and the HP of an actual mixed fighting unit.

The usage is used by the AI in exactly two places: recruiting (for all units) and path finding (for scouts only). It has no effect on combat analysis. If you don't believe me, create a unit that is identical to the Mage in all respect except usage and see what happens.

The reason why the AI likes to attack with mages (well, it depends somewhat on the settings of parameters like aggression) is that the main part of the attack rating is the difference between expected damage dealt and expected damage taken, with particular emphasis on chance-to-kill (with some modifiers). That rating is often quite high for mages, esp. against units without a ranged attack. The default AI does not take potential damage from counter attacks during the opponents turn into account.