One thing I think might REALLY help the AI...

[Michou]

Well, it's seems to me that the AI has a decent number of ships (Hard, low bonue). Those ships are just not very good (not enough refit maybe...by I am heavy on research...)

The main point, I think, is that the AI does not used them properly. Precisely, it does not :

- Attack with massive fleet (Concept of Schwerpunkt for the wargamers among you)
- Follow on on attack (maybe it is just honorable and graciously wait for an opponent to recover before delivering another blow )
- Build enough fighters for its carriers
- Escape obvious attack by human player (Human player would withdraw to keep its force intact and wait for reinforcement)


Sorry if I seems like I am complaining, I am not ! I think it is still a very good game.

First time with Space Empire, hope Malfador will stand by its reputation.

[Talenn]

Michou:

Yes, many people are mistaking suggestions and observations for complaining and 'whining'. Its par for the course in many forums. Until recently, I hadnt seen it here though. I think MOST (not all) of the people posting here are trying to help the game be as good as it can be. And that means reporting it's shortcomings in hopes that they will be rectified.

More to your points:

1) Try using the adjustments to the AI_Fleet files that Tampa_Gamer suggested. It does cause the AI ships to stick together a bit more.

2) The AI can easily be encouraged to build more fighters through a tweak in the AI_Construction_Vehicles file. I havent gone in and done so yet, but I know its possible.

3) I concur 100% that it should follow-up and finish off areas. It does seem far too merciful when it has an advantage.

4) Corollary to '3' above...has anyone seen the AI attack the same location twice with the same force in the same turn? For example, a Fleet with 6 movement can attack a planet 6 times (!) in one turn. I do it often to finish off planets after the defenses are down. However the AI only seems to attack once a turn, even it has not moved at all. This could be another tweak to make it more challenging, IMO.

Talenn

[Psitticine]

There does seem to be a curious logic applied to scrapping ships by the AI. They seem to hold onto some early ships as if they were valued keepsakes and ditch others as soon as they glide out of space-dock for the first time. I don't know how many times I've faced a fleet made of a mix of escorts armed with those first level DU cannons and cruisers with fifth level energy beams.

Not complaining, mind, just saying I agree this bit needs tweaking.

[Mephisto]

Michou, try testing my MOD. I won't change any tech just the Designfiles for the AI so it will build some better ships. Actually the AI would build better ships of it's own but there is a small "bug" in MM files that prevents this. The AI is putting in so much weapons that there just no more room to anything else when the AI reaches this point in it's design. I have fixed this to first put in ECM, ECCM and so on and then put in all the weapons.
Fighters in large numbers are somewhat difficult to do: The AI first builds up a fleet and until this fleet is complete it will not build a fighter force. Sadly you can't turn this around because the AI would build hundreds of fighters but no ships in the meantime.

quote:

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Originally posted by Michou:
Well, it's seems to me that the AI has a decent number of ships (Hard, low bonue). Those ships are just not very good (not enough refit maybe...by I am heavy on research...)

The main point, I think, is that the AI does not used them properly. Precisely, it does not :

- Attack with massive fleet (Concept of Schwerpunkt for the wargamers among you)
- Follow on on attack (maybe it is just honorable and graciously wait for an opponent to recover before delivering another blow )
- Build enough fighters for its carriers
- Escape obvious attack by human player (Human player would withdraw to keep its force intact and wait for reinforcement)


Sorry if I seems like I am complaining, I am not ! I think it is still a very good game.

First time with Space Empire, hope Malfador will stand by its reputation.

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[Psitticine]

Before reading this thread and the one that spells out the AI construction control file so nicely, I had wondered why my comparitively "under-gunned" ships did so well against the enemy. I get it now! Support, support, support!

Does the AI acknowledge at all that units can be built without ship yards? A nice tweak, and one I'd assume would require coding changes by MM, would be if the AI would go ahead and build those units at colonies without yards (just as I myself do) while the ships and carriers are being constructed at the space yards. After adjusting the amount of units called for, this could make a *huge* difference in the military base constructed by the AI.

I wanted to say thanks to you, [K126]Mephisto, Tampa_Gamer, and the other modders and explainers. I'm dying for the soon-to-come time when I can finally explore all these mods in the detail they deserve! Thanks for the effort put in towards them! Maybe sometime soon, I can get in on the fun and put some of the ideas floating around in my head into testing. 8)

[Michou]

Thanks Mephisto, I'll make sure I do. I think if we could get 7-8 "optimized" races we would get more interesting games.

I sure look forward to meet your new fighter races. Maybe specialization is the way to go to get "killer" races.