MIST hex aStar

mist.hex.aStar

Added with: Mist 4.6

Description

Uses the A* algorithm to calculate the shortest path between a start point hexA and the destination of hexB given anything blocking the route as defined by blockers. I would recommend running mist.lineSimplify() on the resulting path to smooth it out.

Syntax

table mist.hex.aStar(table hexA ,table hexB , table blockers )

Valid Input Values:

{q = 4, r = 2, s = -6} hash: "2 4 -6"

Return value:

table

Return example:

Usage Examples:

The following will draw on the map the path generated between the trigger zones "start" and "dest". Two group's routes are being used to define islands that must be routed around. local avoid = {mist.hex.getFromRoute(mist.getGroupPoints("island1")), mist.hex.getFromRoute(mist.getGroupPoints("island2"))} local mergedBlockers = {} for i = 1, #avoid do -- need to merge for hexName, hexVal in pairs(avoid[i]) do mergedBlockers[hexName] = hexVal end end local startHex = mist.hex.pointToHex(trigger.misc.getZone("start").point) local destHex = mist.hex.pointToHex(trigger.misc.getZone("dest").point) local path = mist.hex.aStar(startHex, destHex, mergedBlockers) if type(path) == "table" then for i = 1, #path-1 do mist.marker.add({mType = "arrow", color = {0, 0, 1, 0.5}, lineType = 1, points = {path[i+1], path[i]},}) end end

Notes:

As written this function is most optimized for finding a route for ship groups in DCS. Ship AI in DCS does not know how to route around islands and unless the game adds something cool like a destroyer that sprouts giant mech legs to walks on land we are forced to make the AI navigate around obstacles. It can be useful for aircraft, but that is only assuming you want to 100% block off a certain areas of the map to force the AI to fly around. To be honest it was easier to create this basic version and give explicit permission to copy and modify the function for your own uses. All one simply needs to do is to modify how "cost" is calculated. You could have a modifier for friendly vs enemy territory, or apply a threat score based on sams to route around danger. Your imagination is the limit.

Related Functions

to, getRadius, setRadius, add, subtract,scale, rotate_left, rotate_right, neighbor, getNeighborCount, diagonalNeighbor, length, distance, round, lerp, cubeScale, cubeRing, cubeSpiral, lineDraw, cubeToAxial, axialToCube, pointToHex, makeVek2, makeVec3, makeVec3GL, hash, hashToHex, draw, aStar, getFromRoute

Scripting Engine

MIST Root Page