disableAI

Description

Disables parts of the AI behaviour to get a better control over the actions of a unit. If the unit changes locality, this command might need to be executed again at the new locality to maintain effect.

Warning
This command might cause unexpected behaviour when used on a player-controlled unit.

Syntax

unit disableAI feature

Parameters:

unit: Object - AI unit

feature: String - possible values are:

Arma 3 v1.66 "ALL"
"AUTOTARGET"
"MOVE"
"TARGET"
"TEAMSWITCH"
"WEAPONAIM"
Operation Flashpoint v1.99 "ANIM"
Arma 2: Operation Arrowhead v1.60 "FSM"
Arma 3 v1.42 "AIMINGERROR"
Arma 3 v1.42 "SUPPRESSION"
Arma 3 v1.54 "CHECKVISIBLE"
Arma 3 v1.56 "AUTOCOMBAT"
Arma 3 v1.56 "COVER"
Arma 3 v1.62 "PATH"
Arma 3 v1.76 "MINEDETECTION"
Arma 3 v1.92 "LIGHTS"
Arma 3 v1.92 "NVG"
Arma 3 v1.96 "RADIOPROTOCOL"
Arma 3 v2.18 "FIREWEAPON"
Arma 3 v2.22 "COMMAND"
Arma 3 v2.22 "HEARING"

Feature	Description	Since
"ALL"	Disables all features.	Arma 3 v1.66
"AIMINGERROR"	Prevents AI's aiming from being distracted by its shooting, moving, turning, reloading, hit, injury, fatigue, suppression or concealed / lost target.	Arma 3 v1.42
"ANIM"	Disables all animations of the unit. Completely freezes the unit, including breathing and blinking. No move command works until the unit is unfrozen.	Operation Flashpoint v1.99
"AUTOCOMBAT"	Disables autonomous switching to "COMBAT" AI Behaviour when in danger.	Arma 3 v1.56
"AUTOTARGET"	Essentially makes single units without a group "deaf". The unit still goes prone and combat ready if it hears gunfire. It will not turn around when gunfire comes from behind, but if an enemy walks in front of it it will target the enemy and fire as normal. Does not work for grouped units as the leader will assign targets to the units, effectively reenabling this feature.	-
"CHECKVISIBLE"	Disables visibility raycasts. Useful in PvP missions where these raycasts are not needed.	Arma 3 v1.54
"COMMAND"	AI leaders will no longer issue commands.	Arma 3 v2.22
"FSM"	Disables the attached FSM scripts which are responsible for the AI behaviour. Enemies react slower to enemy fire and the enemy stops using hand signals. Disabling FSM can give the impression of untrained units as they react slower and are more disorganized compared to when FSM is enabled.	Arma 2: Operation Arrowhead v1.60
"LIGHTS"	Stops AI from operating vehicle headlights and collision lights.	Arma 3 v1.92
"MINEDETECTION"	Disable AI's mine detection.	Arma 3 v1.76
"MOVE"	This will stop units from turning and moving, including vehicles. Units will still change stance and fire at the enemy if the enemy happens to walk right in front of the barrel. Units will watch enemies that are in their line of sight, but will not turn their bodies to face the enemy, only their head. Works for grouped units as well. Good for staging units and holding them completely still. Movement can not be controlled via script either, this feature has to be reenabled for that. The unit will still be able to aim within its cone of fire.	-
"NVG"	Stops AI from putting on NVGs (but not from taking them off).	Arma 3 v1.92
"PATH"	Stops the AI's movement but not the target alignment.	Arma 3 v1.62
"RADIOPROTOCOL"	Stops AI from talking and texting while still being able to issue orders.	Arma 3 v1.96
"SUPPRESSION"	Prevents AI from being suppressed. See Arma 3: Suppression.	Arma 3 v1.42
"TARGET"	Prevents units from engaging targets. Units still move around for cover, but will not hunt down enemies. Works in groups as well. Excellent for keeping units inside bases or other areas without having them flank or engage anyone. They will still seek good cover if something is close by.	-
"TEAMSWITCH"	This will disable AI unit when teamswitching. When used on vehicles they might no longer follow waypoints and appear stuck.	-
"WEAPONAIM"	Disables weapon aiming.	-
"FIREWEAPON"	Disables weapon firing.	Arma 3 v2.18
"HEARING"	Disables AI's ability to hear.	Arma 3 v2.22

Returns: Nothing

Examples

Example 1

MyUnit disableAI "AUTOTARGET";

Multiplayer

Important
The locality of this command is peculiar: the disabling will be stored locally and will apply if the AI is local or becomes local (e.g taking the lead, driving, etc). If the AI changes locality again, that machine's AI setup will prevail.

Community notes

Hardrock2006-08-03

Notes from before the conversion:

The "TARGET" section of the AI is likely different than what you would think. Normally, when an AI group is standing still and sees an enemy, the group will break formation and start moving towards the enemy. If you disable the "TARGET" AI, then the AI units will stay where they are at. Even if you disable the "MOVE" AI, the units will still move out to attack the enemy, unless you disable the "TARGET" AI. Disabling both these AI sections is useful when placing units in defensive positions. This way, you can have them stay behind their cover, and not run out into the open.

This command has also a bug: after mission save or load the effect will be no longer active and you must set it again. It's also good way to detect number of saves and loads (loads can be recognized using time command).

GeneralCarver2009-02-07

Multiplayer Use as of ArmA v1.14: Contrary to the post above, using this command WILL disable A.I. movement ability if used with the "MOVE" parameter. Works even when the A.I. is grouped with other units. I use this command to set up stationary targets at objectives all the time. Works on a dedicated server.

Kenoxite2015-09-19

Beware that disabling "TARGET" AI to units in the player's group will disable the ability to execute engage orders issued by the player.

James2016-09-26

Command is buggy in version 1.64.138497 as it disables the ability to drive vehicles for players. Tested with player disableAI "move". Entering a vehicle is possible, but not starting the engine. player enableAI "move" enables the player to drive again. Feedback Tracker ticket: https://feedback.bistudio.com/T120346

zwobot2018-06-05

In Operation Flashpoint/Cold War Assault, the disabled units are reset after a saveGame is executed or the user manually saves the mission, i. e. the units will behave as if the disableAI command was never applied to them. Also in Operation Flashpoint there is no way to undo this command.

Sa-Matra2023-04-30

Disabled or enabled AI features have no synchronization over the network what so ever, you have to do everything yourself on each client, including JIP. This also applies to setAutonomous which is pretty much multi-call disableAI command for specific set of features.