Top AI scores seen?
 

Just wondering because for the first time I am seeing an AI with a score over 1 million.

I only know this because I have a score of 1.5 million and am still only second place, while at war with the race I suspect of being number 1. A few ship insurrections that succeeded early on showed a few scary sights of one or two system with fleets of mixed ships with numbers in excess of 60 and several others in the range of 12-20.

I believe I have the setting Evenly Distribute thorught Galaxy to thank for this as apparantly they started in an area with no one else cept maybe one or two others while the rest of us were clustered in 3 main areas.

So this topic is to find the best AI runs. And perhaps discuss what leads to a successful AI. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif As successful as AI's get anyways.

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

I guess you are talking about a single planet start? I did see some Uber scores on a game I played Months ago - of course that game had a 10 planet start and a huge map of a couple of hundred systems. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/shock.gif
Come to think of it, I don't think I ever finished it...It was getting to be too much micromanagement! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/tongue.gif

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

AFAIK, there was only one person ever Banned in SE IV forum, the name shall not be mentioned. At first he was a marry chap and fun to read. But once he started "AI in Very Big Game" - single player game with dozen AI in 255 systems, every one with 10+ planets. He vowed to post the progress reports evry ten turns or so. After few days his posting detiorated to randon string of words spreading ro each and every thread. Few more days and we never heard of him again. Be afraid, be very afraid of what can come out of this thread...[sinister music]...

[ 25 April 2002: Message edited by: oleg ]</p>

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

A real post modern horror story!

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

Ahh, LCC. And to think he was on of our top posters and modders at one point http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon9.gif .

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

I remember him. No nothing like that. This is a medium sized galaxy with all default rules cept TDM modpack. Standard 1.49. About 50-60 systems in the game. Large number seem to be asteroid or gas. 3 Black Holes. Almost none of those damaging warp points. Default catastrophe rules etc. I have never seen an AI in any of my other games ever get close to passing 1M score... and yet here I am faced with an AI that has just about finished wiping out all the other AIs (the ones I didn't get) and now has fleets of 40-60 ships in systems bordering mine.

That is the whole purpose of this thread. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon12.gif Just to see if anyone else has ever had the mixed blessing of an AI that did exceptionally well.

Just for the record I know I am behind him in tech but catching up. I am pretty sure his resources are better than mine and he has about 2/3 of the galaxy with a little over half the rest under my control (Long live the Terran Confederation and its seven racial members). Good thing I have races to breathe every atmosphere cept none.

Normally this is about the stage of the game where I would get bored and stop playing because I would get MEE and no other empire could even touch me. Thus I am nicely and pleasantly surprised to find this game still a challenge at this point.

*smacks self* stop rambling.

[ 25 April 2002: Message edited by: Cyrien ]</p>

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

Oh great; A new Psychological Syndrome:

Playbyweb post-dysfuctionality syndrome.

Symptoms: Deep psychosis; inherent ramblings and uncontrollable spasms in the human hand. May be caused by the effect dark colours have on the human retina. May cause Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

Cure/Remedy: Take One pill of Prozac, Mix it up with Coffee and baseball bat to bash your computer with. Get Plenty of Rest. Repeat Computer bashing for few days to releave stress.

Also may be called PPDS. Not in affliation or caused by many uses of PDCs and/or PPBs.

[ 25 April 2002: Message edited by: TerranC ]</p>

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

I have seen Ais with over 2.5 million points but mostly in test games against other AIs. To get a challenge out of the AI you have to use the right setup IMHO. Many people try to increase the number of AIs and think they get more challenge that way. I think that is not the case. As we all know, the AI isn't that competent if focusing on one enemy is called for. By adding a greater number of AIs the AI will just fight more with itself but will not develop. Further, the AI is not very flexible at deciding what planet should be used for what. To cover all its needs the Ai need a greater number of planets to make sure every important aspect of the game is covered. In essence, you will get a much better game out of a huge galaxy with 6 chosen AI races without neutrals then out of a 20 races game.

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

Hmm. I just started a game with 16 AIs. (no neutrals) Set it to max number of systems though (255) so I thought that might just be big enough to accomodate them all. I also switched "evenly distributed" off. Hopefully some of them will start off with enough empty space around them to become really powerful.

I don't expect to Last long though - Rage, Pyrochette, vikings, aquilean, Vorlons, Shadows, Drakol, Orks and the rest chosen by the Computer. All on high difficulty / low bonus.

I started off with 2 warp points from my system: Both were asteroids. Beyond them an organic infestation in one direction and a Xi-Chung homeworld in the other. Haven't been able to explore beyond that yet.

I've had a few scuffles with the Xi-Chung (including a disastrous assault on their homeworld) and their tech levels scare me - they are so far ahead of me at this early stage it's ridiculous.

Anyway, do you think that playing a giant map like this is what flipped LCC? Do you think the same might happen to me? I hope not. I never wanted to play this map. I never wanted to play this game at all. I always wanted to be... A lumberjack! Leaping from tree to tree as they float down the rivers of British Colombia! Ohhhh... I'm a Lumberjack and I'm OK, I sleep all night and I works all day, I cut down trees, I eat my lunch, lunch, brunch, munch, crunch, much munchety crunchety swimmety swim, catchety fishy-O, because the fish are going to take over the world, they're melting the ice-caps and my face is getting wet, let, vet, met, mat, spat, prat, Richard Whitely, Carol Vorderman Vorlon? Nice encounter suit coz fruit is a moot hoot etc etc etc etc...

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

Ahem... thank you for that Dogscoff - I think the tippex fumes are getting to you..

at least you stopped "The Lumberjack Song" before the bit where you go on about wearing high heels, suspenders and a bra!!!

for the north americans and other aliens on this forum, may I just explain that Carol Vorderman and Richard Whiteley are the hosts of a popular daytime television show here in the UK. Richard Whiteley is famous for his poor taste in ties, Carol Vorderman is a classic case of a 40 something B list celebrity who thinks she is sexy as hell and at one stage was appearing all over over TV screens.

I personally think she looks more like a Narn than a Vorlon

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

'Tig - you weren't on this forum when LCC lost it. He was posting pages and pages of that kind of crap to every thread on the forum. (and several others besides)

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

Oh yeah, and the lumberjack tune (now remorselessly cycling round and round in my head) reminds me: I'm working on a Monty Python design name file. How would you like to design a Beautiful Plumage Class Cruiser? A squadron of "Philosophers Song" fighters? How about a Mr Gumby Class Space Yard Ship ("I AM NOW GOING TO FIT THE CONTRA TERRENE ENGINES" *Bang* *Smash* *Crunch* *Crunch* *Crunch*

59 names so far, suggestions welcome.

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

bugger, you have found out about my cunning plan to roleplay the Galactic Bar & Grill Bash a la Life of Brian

I was looking forward to responding to offers of trade alliances with '20 shekels you must be mad" and "alms for an ex-leper"

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by dogscoff:
'Tig - you weren't on this forum when LCC lost it. He was posting pages and pages of that kind of crap to every thread on the forum. (and several others besides)<hr></blockquote>

really, what was he doing exactly?

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

Try a forum search for "LCC", and pick up threds from around July / August Last year. You'll soon get the idea.

Anyway, getting way OT. Continue on PM if you want to talk about it further.

[ 25 April 2002: Message edited by: dogscoff ]</p>

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

So, does anybody know if he, like, got any professional help or something? Anything? Because he definately needed it.

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>How would you like to design a Beautiful Plumage Class Cruiser?<hr></blockquote>Hey, if I hadn't designed it without lifesupport, It'd have muscled out of that spacedock, and VOOM!

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

Getting back to the topic for a bit, I'm currently playing a TDM Gold game where I'm in 2nd place with a score of over 1 million. The Toron have a score of over 2.5 million and still growing. Their research, intelligence and resource numbers as well as the number of systems and planets (over 250) are staggering.

I've finally gotten the upper hand on the XiChung Hive (which plagued me from about the 15th turn on) and bumped them from second place. I'm playing nice with the Toron right now because I'm not ready for them yet. I'm sure I can out slime the AI eventually but with the numbers he has, I'm sure he'll give me a tussle. Looking forward to the challange.

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

I've mentioned this in the MEE AI thread. In one of my TDM Gold games, the Ukra-Tal were at 1.1M Last I looked. I know I'm in second, but I don't recall my current score.

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

I tried to post this Last night & got an error message...

Anyway, I've had a few games recently where the AI got scores well in excess of 1M (even 2M, eventually). My Last pre-Gold games had pretty high AI scores; my first Gold game had multiple AI's over 1M, with Terrans the highest; and my current Gold game (with patch) has Terrans in first with 1.4M score (at turn 91, even!) and the Amon'krie in second with 977k score. I'm way behind on points, mostly because I don't build a lot of ships. I've been at war with the Amon'krie for a long time, but they're 8 systems away, with the Toltayans controlling the intervening systems. I had a partnership with the Toltayans for a long time, and then suddenly they declared war on me. It could have been a Comms Mimic (the Amon'krie were hitting me with intel pretty continuously), but not necessarily. Anyway, I'm continuing to ignore the Amon'krie and decimating the Toltayans. I'm very glad I put minefields on warp points throughout their territory. I'm even happier that I built bases at strategic locations in their territory. A combination of 1 base space yard and 1 drone-launching base turns out to be a pretty good offense. It's perfect for destroying small colonies, at least. Especially since the Toltayans focus mostly on seeking weapons, which can't target drones (MWAHAHAHAHA!!!). I may want to add more base space yards so I can build drones faster, though...

Re: Top AI scores seen?
 

Had an interesting game before I bought Gold where (due to galactic geopgraphy) I was blocked by black holes, long planetless voids and the like from entering the NW quadrant of the galaxy. I started in the NE quadrant, had to fight tough battles against the Romulans (they eventually surrendered), and a couple of other races to get into the SE quadrant and move west from there. The Sergetti had a score of 3.1 million (with most of the systems in the NW corner, and 200+ ships) before I developed Stellar Manipulation and popped a couple of fleets into their home systems via new warp points. I bypassed several planets that had as many as 3 SB's on them to slag several colony worlds with my 30 DN fleet w/ QR's. The Aquilarioans were over 2.5 million as well with a group of systems in the far western edges of the galaxy, never did get around to face off with them. Could well be the longest game I have ever played.