I don't think you got lost either. I think you're on track. I guess I'm asking why that's the intent - because only 1 ship can use the ARD, so if you have multiple eligible ships in the port then none of them will use the ARD unless you change priority settings. This creates problems in the following situation, which I'd like to imagine isn't uncommon for a major forward base:
Ship 1 - has 12 Sys, 5 (5) Floatation damage. At a level 7+, this will repair fully at pier side... however, it's a minor ship and you don't need it so you leave the priority at Normal or even set it to Low.
Ship 2 - has 25 Sys and maybe some other minor damage that can be fixed at the pier. This is a major ship and needs to be back in action ASAP, so you set it to High or Critical priority on Pier Side.
Ship 3 - similar to ship 2, maybe 10 System and also has 2 (2) Floatation damage. You need it back in action just as much as ship 2, within days if possible, so you set to Critical.
Ship 4 - has 0 Sys, 10 (10) Floatation damage. This will require the ARD to repair. Maybe it's a CL - something really useful, and you want it repaired, but you don't need it before ships 2 and 3. However, you have to set it at a higher repair priority in order for it to get to use the ARD in front of ships 2 and 3 (if they have floatation damage). Even if you have it set to Repair Ship.
Does that make sense to anyone else? I am admittedly loathe to use Critical priority except in special cases.
You are confusing the stuffing out of me. Why do you think "then none of them will use the ARD"? What gives you that idea?