No AI retrofit?

Jubala · #1 November 26th, 2000, 12:58 AM

Has anyone seen anything to indicate that the AI retrofits it's ships? I have seen it scrap older/smaller ships, but no signs of retrofit. It's not uncommon for me to run into rather large AI fleets (20+ ships) with a few being top of the line badass bastards, a few slightly below that and the majority old to ancient clearly inferior ships.

To me that indicates the AI don't retrofit it's ships and that really puts it at a disatvantage. I routinely retrofit my ships, even older/smaller ships that can still be useful. I often have frigates and destroyers that have been around from early in the game that has gone through several retrofits. The frigates sooner or later go to the breakers since they are too small in the long run, but destroyers hang around for quite some time. The AI would be alot more competitive if it did this or something like it.

Tomgs · #2 November 26th, 2000, 11:11 AM

Another reason to refit the ships is that they seem to get bonuses if they are sucessful in enough battles. I have had ships with big bonuses because they became "legendary". These ships are great to refit and bring along on a long campaign.

Jubala · #3 November 26th, 2000, 06:46 PM

Yes, they get experience and with enough of it a small fleet of smaller ships can sweep the floor with a bigger more powerful fleet. You can also build Fleet and Ship training facilities to train your ships.

Another thing the AI don't do is repair damaged ships. I have never ever seen a repair bay mounted on an AI ship. On space stations around planets, but not on ships.

Taqwus · #4 November 26th, 2000, 06:58 PM

It does build ships with space yards, 'tho, so maybe it uses those for its repair jobs as well.

On experience -- I don't remember ever seeing an AI planet with training facilities, but maybe I've always just bombed 'em to bits before looking... The 'Psychic Training Facility' should give Psychics a nice boost in this area.

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-- The thing that goes bump in the night

Jubala · #5 November 26th, 2000, 09:57 PM

I've seen a crippled AI Cruiser (minefield in it's rear areas) sit unrepaired for 2 years before I came along and killed it. The same AI player lost at least 50 ships to my minefields in it's rear areas and it didn't even build a single minesweeper. It kept sweeping by sending colonyships into the fields. The seems uncapable of evaluating a situation and responding accordingly. Like building mine sweepers or not sending single colony ships into enemy lines.

Taqwus · #6 November 26th, 2000, 10:30 PM

Interesting. I have seen an AI build minesweepers repeatedly and try to clear a field, but that was mainly if I'd managed to find one in a 'dead end' system and bottled it up. Still, it wasn't sending *enough* (e.g. it'd sweep 12 mines or so at a time, out of a couple hundred, and those few mines swept or detonated would be more than replaced by the time the next sweeper(s) came along).

But I don't remember them trying to sweep minefields behind their lines. Maybe it's just a meaningless coincidence, but then we've no idea how it's coded... *shrug*

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-- The thing that goes bump in the night