changed sparky Guard scan radius from 26->8

[vjt4]

Description of the proposed changes

Gifs:

Default.26.GSR.mp4

changed.8.GSR.mp4

Notice how in the current game, Sparkies will stop reclaiming to chase a target when it reaches within 26 range (the red ring is 18 range and grey rings are 44 range).
With 8 GSR Sparkies will continue to reclaim even with an enemy in its attack range, and will fire to defend itself, while reclaiming.

video with commentary showing 8 GSR
video with commentary showing 26 GSR

Guard scan radius is the distance a unit will initiate pursuit of enemies/reclaim from their patrol or attack move route. Its the reason why when you give an attack move engys may run backwards to get the trees behind them or branch off to get reclaim adjacent to the route. Implications of reducing this in non-combat scenarios will be shown.

Testing done on the proposed changes

Checked if the feature works in a development enviromont following this guide.
Played some games with the a mod enabled that changed the value via blueprint hooking.
Tested Sparkies performance on reclaiming without enemies nearby and they will not voyage super far from the patrol or reclaim route like a regular engineer. Making them require more precision.
Tested Sparkies vs regular engineers in a reclaim field, Sparkies no longer, stop reclaiming to kill the opposing engineers, but once they get in range will shoot them while reclaiming.

Additional context

Forum post discussion:

https://forum.faforever.com/topic/9827/reduce-sparky-guardscanradius-from-26-8?_=1769034106081

Checklist

• Changes are annotated, including comments where useful
• Changes are documented in a changelog snippet according to the guidelines.
• Request 2-3 reviewers from the list of reviewers and their areas of knowledge.

Summary by CodeRabbit

• Bug Fixes
  • Adjusted Sparkie unit's guard detection and scanning radius to a smaller, more balanced range. This prevents the unit from reclaiming friendly units or pursuing enemies across unreasonably large distances, ensuring more focused local engagement and improved gameplay balance through more tactical, localized unit behavior.

_{✏️ Tip: You can customize this high-level summary in your review settings.}

[coderabbitai]

📝 Walkthrough

Walkthrough

A changelog entry and unit balance adjustment reducing the GuardScanRadius parameter of the Sparky unit (XEL0209) from 26 to 8, limiting its guard and sensing range for enemy unit engagement.

Changes

Cohort / File(s)	Summary
Balance Adjustment units/XEL0209/XEL0209_unit.bp	GuardScanRadius parameter reduced from 26 to 8, constraining the unit's AI sensing and guard engagement radius.
Documentation changelog/snippets/BalanceFix7000.md	Changelog entry documenting the GuardScanRadius reduction and its effect on Sparky unit behavior.

Possibly related issues

• [Balance Idea/Bugfix]: Reduce Sparky Guard Scan Radius from 26->8 #7000: Directly addresses the same balance adjustment, modifying GuardScanRadius for the Sparky unit from 26 to 8.

Poem

🐰 A Sparky's senses grow much tighter,
No longer scouts from heights so mighty,
Eight units close, no farther bound,
Less reclaim chasing all around! ✨

Estimated code review effort

🎯 1 (Trivial) | ⏱️ ~3 minutes

🚥 Pre-merge checks | ✅ 3

✅ Passed checks (3 passed)

Check name	Status	Explanation
Title check	✅ Passed	The title clearly and concisely summarizes the main change: reducing Sparky's GuardScanRadius from 26 to 8, which is the primary focus of the pull request.
Docstring Coverage	✅ Passed	No functions found in the changed files to evaluate docstring coverage. Skipping docstring coverage check.
Description check	✅ Passed	The PR description is comprehensive and well-structured. It includes visual demonstrations (GIFs and YouTube videos with commentary), clear testing methodology, and linked forum discussion for context.

_{✏️ Tip: You can configure your own custom pre-merge checks in the settings.}

✨ Finishing touches

• 📝 Generate docstrings

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[coderabbitai]

Actionable comments posted: 1

🤖 Fix all issues with AI agents

In `@changelog/snippets/BalanceFix7000.md`:
- Line 1: The changelog file BalanceFix7000.md contains a leading BOM/zero‑width
character and an incorrect PR reference; open the file and remove the invisible
character at the start of the file, then update the entry text (the line
containing "GuardScanRadius from 26->8. Sparkies will not stop reclaiming...")
to reference `#7001` instead of `#7000` so the changelog matches the current PR.

[coderabbitai]

⚠️ Potential issue | 🟡 Minor

Fix changelog reference and remove BOM.
The entry references #7000 but this PR is #7001, and the leading BOM/zero‑width character can cause formatting/tooling glitches.

📝 Proposed fix

-- (`#7000`) GuardScanRadius from 26->8. Sparkies will not stop reclaiming to pursue enemy units from such a large range anymore.
+- (`#7001`) GuardScanRadius from 26->8. Sparkies will not stop reclaiming to pursue enemy units from such a large range anymore.

📝 Committable suggestion

‼️ IMPORTANT
Carefully review the code before committing. Ensure that it accurately replaces the highlighted code, contains no missing lines, and has no issues with indentation. Thoroughly test & benchmark the code to ensure it meets the requirements.

Suggested change

	- (#7000) GuardScanRadius from 26->8. Sparkies will not stop reclaiming to pursue enemy units from such a large range anymore.
	- (`#7001`) GuardScanRadius from 26->8. Sparkies will not stop reclaiming to pursue enemy units from such a large range anymore.

🤖 Prompt for AI Agents

In `@changelog/snippets/BalanceFix7000.md` at line 1, The changelog file
BalanceFix7000.md contains a leading BOM/zero‑width character and an incorrect
PR reference; open the file and remove the invisible character at the start of
the file, then update the entry text (the line containing "GuardScanRadius from
26->8. Sparkies will not stop reclaiming...") to reference `#7001` instead of
`#7000` so the changelog matches the current PR.

[vjt4]

requesting reviews from:
@Garanas
@The-Balthazar