Rational Priority

Rational Priority: Smarter Duplicant Task Management

Tired of your Duplicants making baffling decisions about what tasks to tackle next? The default prioritization system in Oxygen Not Included can feel frustratingly rigid. Fortunately, the Rational Priority mod introduces a much-needed layer of intelligence to your Duplicants’ workflow, making their actions more logical and your colony management smoother.

Intelligent Task Selection

This mod fundamentally overhauls how Duplicants choose their next task. Instead of adhering to a fixed, often nonsensical, importance hierarchy, they now consider a combination of factors. This includes the inherent priority of the task itself, their individual preferences, and crucially, the travel distance required to reach it. The result is a more nuanced decision-making process where a nearby, lower-priority task might take precedence over a distant, high-priority one, or vice versa. Essentially, your Duplicants will simply make more sensible choices, reducing those head-scratching moments.

Key Features of Rational Priority

• Duplicants weigh task priority, personal preferences, and travel distance for informed decisions.
• Nearby tasks are more likely to be prioritized over distant ones, even if the distant task has a higher set priority.
• Personal preferences can be overridden by sufficiently high task priorities, allowing for flexibility.
• Significantly reduces instances of Duplicants traveling vast distances for trivial tasks.

A More Intuitive System

While the underlying mechanics are complex, using Rational Priority is designed to be intuitive. You can still guide your Duplicants by adjusting task priorities and their personal skill preferences in the priorities screen. If you want them to dig more, increase their digging preference. If a specific task needs immediate attention, assign it a higher priority. The mod aims to make these adjustments have a more predictable and sensible impact.

For example, previously, a Duplicant with a strong digging preference might ignore all other tasks if any digging was available. With Rational Priority, they might still choose to clean a toilet if it’s a high-priority task and they are close by. This intelligent proximity assessment drastically cuts down on Duplicants making unnecessary cross-colony treks.

Tips for Success

To get the most out of this mod, consider using the full range of priority numbers, not just the higher end. Specialize your Duplicants by setting their personal priorities, while using generalists to keep the colony running smoothly. Remember that the “!!” priority still represents the highest level of urgency and will override most other considerations.

If you find your Duplicants consistently neglecting distant but important tasks, it might be worth considering stationing specialized Duplicants closer to those areas. The mod’s logic is designed to be robust, but as with any modification, experimentation and observation are key to optimizing your colony’s efficiency.