NPCs do not consistently use their ranged weapons

[dissociativity]

Describe the bug

NPCs at least 8 months ago reliably used their crossbow or other ranged weapon they started equipped with, only beginning melee attacking where it was reasonably practical to do so.

Currently they don't seem to bother getting a shot off before in melee range, they sometimes do but I'm unable to replicate behavior similar to older behavior in this regard generally, I'm unsure what has actually changed.
Aim time doesn't seem to be the problem, as telling them to not spend time aiming does not fix this.

This makes any NPC that isn't melee based functionally useless in combat.

Steps To Reproduce

Recruit random NPC in shelter who has ranged weapon
Get into combat
Chances are they won't bother using it to their advantage even when shorter aim time is specified

Expected behavior

An NPC with a crossbow will get a shot off before engaging in melee combat with a zombie, significantly weakening their foe before risking melee damage.

Versions and configuration

OS: Windows
OS Version: 8.1
Game Version: 0.D-11962-ge228853 [64-bit]
Graphics Version: Tiles
Mods loaded: [
Dark Days Ahead [dda],
Disable NPC Needs [no_npc_food],
Magiclysm [magiclysm],
No Rail Stations [No_Rail_Stations],
sees-player icon, retrodays [sees_player_retro],
Bionic Slots [cbm_slots],
SpeedyDex [speedydex]
]

[jkraybill]

Have you seen this with ranged weapons generally, or specifically crossbow/archery weapons? There was a big rework of archery recently.

[dissociativity]

most definitely is not anything to do with the archery update, if anything they'd have more reason to use bows.

Happened in builds long before it, I just didn't tolerated it more and should've reported it sooner.

If someone wants to tackle this, look in npcmove.cpp method_of_attack()

be sure to take a few swigs of calming whisky beforehand, you'll need it.

[kevingranade]

This issue has been mentioned on Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead. There might be relevant details there:

https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/no-hope-mod-v2-6/24971/25

[actual-nh]

At what ranges are we talking, relative to how certain they're supposed to be before they fire?

[Leland]

There are recent reports that NPCs occasionally throw their ranged weapon entirely, rather than using it. That seems like a symptom of this issue, so I'm combining them here.

What makes this issue challenging is that this behavior appears sporadic/erratic.

[coyo7e]

this is an issue from 2020 and nobody has tried to fix it?

RIP

[LeahLuong]

Yeah, you shame those devs for not getting to every issue that pops up on these boards right when it pops up! That'll prompt them to respond more quickly!

It's like all the monetary rewards, notoriety, & endless thanks from grateful players mean nothing to them. Even when contributors comment on old threads, it's not like they're organizing in preparation for action; they're simply dredging up the past to rub it in our faces! It's great to see some1 like you, coyo7e, taking action where all the rest of us have faltered.

[Zireael07]

@coyo7e: AFAIR there were some attempts but they went nowhere - mostly because the issue is so inconsistent.

@LeahLuong: Please tone down the sarcasm?