Optional objective generation
Optional objectives are not drawn from one faction-wide list. The selected mission setup supplies the possible objectives, then difficulty, map conditions, and weighted selection determine what appears.
- Mapped mission setups
- 162
- LiDAR candidate pools
- 103
- Maximum optional draws
- 5
Mission setup
A mission name does not always identify one fixed side-objective pool.
The game can use more than one generation setup for the same displayed mission. Those setups can contain different tactical objectives, so knowing the main objective alone does not always determine whether LiDAR, SEAF Artillery, or another side objective can appear.
Mission generation first chooses a mission setup. That setup contains the objectives that may be used on the map, along with selection weights and repeat limits. Difficulty then determines how many optional objectives are requested. Map-generation conditions filter that list before the remaining objectives are selected.
This creates a direct relationship between the main mission and its optional objectives. It is stronger than a simple faction rule, but it is not a one-to-one relationship with the mission name because some displayed missions have multiple current generation setups.
Difficulty and draw count
The current selection schedule rises from no optional-objective draws at difficulty 1 to five at difficulty 8 and above. The total combines the separate optional-objective candidate groups used during mission generation.
| Difficulty | Optional-objective draws |
|---|---|
| 1 | 0 |
| 2 | 1 |
| 3 | 2 |
| 4 | 3 |
| 5 | 3 |
| 6 | 4 |
| 7 | 4 |
| 8 | 5 |
| 9 | 5 |
| 10 | 5 |
More slots do not guarantee a higher chance for one specific objective.
A higher difficulty can also unlock new competitors. For Automaton Launch ICBM, the mapped LiDAR range falls from 24.4–30.8% at D4 to 21.7–26.6% at D5, then rises to 31.3–37.7% at D6 when another draw is added.
Selection pipeline
| Stage | Effect |
|---|---|
| Mission setup | Provides the possible objectives, their relative weights, and how many times each may be selected. |
| Difficulty | Changes both objective eligibility and the number of optional objectives the mission attempts to select. |
| Map conditions | Removes objectives that are not valid for the generated battlefield before the weighted draw. |
| Weighted selection | Fills the available slots from the surviving candidates. Repeatable objectives can remain eligible until their limit is reached. |
| Mission context | A later exclusion check can remove additional objectives. Its full player-visible conditions are not yet mapped. |
Weighted selection is repeated until the requested slots are filled or no eligible candidates remain. Objectives with a repeat allowance can stay in the pool after being selected. Objectives capped at one are removed after their first selection.
Mission variants
Current mission data contains several cases where the same displayed mission has more than one generation setup and those setups disagree on LiDAR availability. Sixteen same-mission groups show this behavior in the current mapped set.
| Mission | Generation result | LiDAR |
|---|---|---|
| Launch ICBM · Illuminate | Two current mission setups use different tactical-objective pools. | One setup includes LiDAR. Another does not. |
| Blitz: Search and Destroy · Terminid | Multiple current mission setups use different tactical-objective pools. | Present in some setups and absent in another. |
| Destroy Command Bunkers · Automaton | The same displayed mission has more than one current generation setup. | Present in one mapped setup and absent in another. |
| Neutralize Ground-to-Orbit Defenses · Automaton | Current mission setups do not share one identical tactical-objective pool. | Present in one mapped setup and absent in another. |
| Spread Democracy | Current faction-specific mission setups can use different tactical-objective pools. | Availability depends on the mission setup. |
LiDAR selection
LiDAR Station appears in the tactical-objective candidate pool of 103 of the 162 mapped mission setups. That does not mean it has a fixed 63.6% spawn rate. The actual selection chance depends on which mission setup was chosen, the difficulty, which competing objectives are eligible, and the map-generation conditions.
| Rule | Effect on LiDAR |
|---|---|
| Candidate-pool membership | LiDAR can only be selected when the chosen mission setup includes it. |
| Difficulty | More tactical-objective draws generally improve its chance, but new competing objectives can unlock at the same time. |
| Map conditions | LiDAR has its own map-generation eligibility filter. It can be removed before the weighted draw. |
| Duplicate limit | LiDAR is selected at most once. |
| Other tactical objectives | No direct LiDAR-versus-SEAF Artillery exclusion was found in the mapped standard tactical-objective rules. They compete for limited slots. |
Launch ICBM LiDAR
This example uses the current Launch ICBM setups. Choose a faction and difficulty to see the number of optional-objective draws and the LiDAR selection range across the mapped conditions where LiDAR is eligible.
The result is conditional rather than a universal mission spawn rate. A separate map-generation filter can remove LiDAR before the weighted selection step, and Illuminate Launch ICBM gains an additional difficulty-10 setup that does not list LiDAR among its possible tactical objectives.
At this difficulty, another mapped Launch ICBM setup does not list LiDAR among its possible tactical objectives.
The percentage range is conditional on LiDAR passing the map-generation eligibility filter. A separate map-generation condition can remove LiDAR before the weighted selection step. The range shown here covers the mapped LiDAR-eligible conditions for Launch ICBM.
Remaining exclusion
After the ordinary mission, difficulty, and map-condition checks, mission generation can apply another exclusion list before an objective is accepted. The existence of that check is confirmed, but the full set of player-visible conditions that feed it is not yet resolved.
The probability examples on this page therefore describe the confirmed weighted selection after mission, difficulty, and map-condition eligibility, before any additional context-specific exclusion that may apply to a particular generated mission.
Evidence standard
How the OTL separates code confirmation, controlled live testing, and behavior that remains unresolved.
How the OTL rates evidence
The OTL rates code evidence and live-game evidence separately. A mechanic can be clear in code but still need a controlled gameplay check for hidden state, ordering, or another runtime factor.
Live confirmation means controlled gameplay or instrumented runtime observation, not player impression alone.