Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

1. 65 turns into the game AI has not built a single storage facility except for the default homeworld ones.

2. Uses way to many Military and Shipyard colonization designs for planets. Maybe incorporate both these designs together to make just one final design.

[This message has been edited by SunDevil (edited 10 January 2001).]

Re: Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

That is one of the many changes you will see if you compare the "stock" races against the new improved Sergetti, EA and Darlok.

Re: Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

Actually I see storage units all the time on AI planets. They are always mineral storage however except I believe some organic pick races also have organic storage. However they are always level 1 so I don't think the computer researches cargo very often. And there are far to few of them.

About shipyards I build far more of them than the computer does so I don't see that as a problem. Every planet I own except for a few tiny worlds includes a shipyard. Even while building level III facilities a shipyard can cut the time to build these facilities in half. And also after you build all the facilities a planet without a shipyard is doing nothing for you except a few units and even there you can build far more units a turn on a planet that has a shipyard.

Re: Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

Tomgs,

About the shipyard and military base issue, the reason this is stated is because with the ai planet design there is no real difference between the two formats. The ai shipyards and military bases look a lot alike and so that just takes up too many planets. I think that if you combine the two formats to make one format and maybe increase their ratio to be built then it much more efficient. Combined with this concept and some other design concepts I've been working on, the ai will pretty soon give much more of a challenge.

Re: Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

Another problem is that the AI builds research centers on a 120% minerals planet but mineral miner facilities on a planet that has almost no minerals.

Re: Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

I think the two biggest problems in the AI falling behind inresources is that is just awful in deciding how to use a planet, like Eisenhans said and has been wailed over in so many Posts you can't count them in a lifetime. http://www.shrapnelgames.com/ubb/images/icons/icon7.gif The second is that it lets alot resources go to waste as overhead which a human will (hopefully) not let happen if at all possible. Most players use resources they can't store to build units without upkeep on planets that already have their full complement of facilities. At least I do. But since the AI sometimes doesn't even build anything at all for several turns it's bound to lag behind.

Re: Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

Actually, I think that if AI would just choose his planets for mining better, he would improve his playing so much, that it would look like opening Pandora's box. Right now, if AI gets lucky enough, and he builds mining colony on some large or huge breathable planet with lots of minerals, he can give you lots of headache (talking from experience). But so far it is only based on luck. He just doesn't consider the amount of resourced present on the planet when he selects his colony type.

MM should focus on this primarily because it is the biggest AI handicap at the moment. He just doesn't produce enough resources.

Re: Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

I agree totally Daynarr. If the AI would exhibit even a modicum of sense in choosing how to use it's worlds that would improve it's playing by leaps and bounds.

Re: Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

This may sound a bit off, but I like to switch the AI to manual and check on there progress every 50 turns or so. I may spend hours fixing the AI's inept use of resources, and thus improving the game.

It takes a lot of time, but its well worth it. Believe me, when you finally get back to your player, you will be ready for a long deserved break, and come visit these forums. http://www.shrapnelgames.com/ubb/images/icons/icon7.gif Hey look, here I am. http://www.shrapnelgames.com/ubb/images/icons/icon7.gif



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"We've made too many compromises already, too many retreats! They invade our space and we fall back -- they assimilate entire worlds and we fall back! Not again! The line must be drawn here -- this far, no further! And I will make them pay for what they've done!" -- Patric Stewart as Captain Picard
UCP/TCO Ship Yards

Re: Reasons why the AI runs out of resources
 

There is a way to make a game really difficult with a minimal effort before this gets patched. All you need to do is to edit these lines in settings.txt:

Planet Value Low Percent := 0
Planet Value High Percent := 150

You can give the low percent a value of 80 or 100, and high percent (to give more variety) 200. That will make a high resource game and nullify AI stupidity at least for selecting mining colonies, simply because ALL the planets will give lots of resources.
I should also recommend playing this in 200+ system galaxy with preferably 20 Empires in it, but it will most likely cause RC errors since most of the empires will have huge fleets.

I think this is an easiest way to get a good fight from AI.