Problems with Intel Point Distribution

Mephisto · #1 January 15th, 2001, 10:41 AM

It's not a bug the way I understand it.
Daynarr, you are somewhat in an error IMHO. You don't need to finish a project to work. A project runs as long it is not finished and has a chance to stall enemy actions each turn.

You run a counter-project:
Turn 1: 300.000 points left to do
Turn 2: 250.000 points left to do
Enemy sabotage a success. Damn, they slipped by.
Turn 3: The counter-project stalls an enemy project, counter-project finished as it was a success
Turn 4: Repeat project is enabled, counter-project is begun. Luckily, we get another enemy action.
Turn 5: See turn 4. Wau, 3 enemy projects stalled in 5 turns.

Atrocities · #2 January 15th, 2001, 11:09 AM

Ditto on what Mephisto has stated. I could not have put it any simpler.

Intel is as important to your empires survival as being able to defend against enemy fleets.

All I run are counter intel projects when I more than one AI without a treaty. I figure CI is best served in peace time, and what better time for an AI to gather resources from you than during peace time.

I agree that this does not sound like a bug, but is working correctly.

Again, Mephisto's discription is right on the money. IMHO.

Daynarr · #3 January 15th, 2001, 12:26 PM

Well, this was the situation: About 200000 points, running 10 lvl 3 counter-intel projects, 2 offensive intel projects, divide points evenly, repeat projects turned on. There ware no 'slipping' enemy projects coming through while my counter-intel was in progress. When these projects finished, I was getting hit by about 7-8 enemy intel projects. Next turn, although all my counter-intel projects started from beginning Last turn, they would be finished again (2 times in a row). On the same turn I get hit by enemy intel again. After that, my counter projects would be running normally till they get finished again. NO 'slipping' enemy projects while my counter-intel was running because I was having much more intel points then enemy (the strongert one had about 37000 points, and I had contact with about 5 races that time starting from corner).

2 thing are wrong here:

1st- Finishing counter-intel opens a window for enemy intel on that turn. That means that if you have more intel points, you get them finished more often and get hit by enemy intel more often. That is not right IMO.
2nd- Finishing counter-intel projects again next turn is a bug. There were not nearly enough points to finish them all in 1 turn.

Also, this started to happen only after I got a large number of intel points. Before that, it was working like it was supposed or at least it seams so (still happening that 1 turn window).

All this was having no effect on my offensive projects, as they were running normally.

I must note that I haven't seen any points subtracted from my offensive intel projects by enemy counter-intel during their progress as I should have (I was MEE at the time).

Mephisto · #4 January 16th, 2001, 02:29 AM

Daynarr, this not a bug. CI is NOT!!!! a normal project. It is NOT finished when you get enough points, it is finished when
a) You got enough points to finish it

or!

b) you stall an enemy project NO MATTER HOW MUCH POINTS YOU HAVE INVESTED!

You can stall an enemy project with your CI3 in the first turn, in the middle, at the end or don't at all, anytime. It doesn't matter. All you have to do is to spend some points into a project to keep it going.

Taqwus · #5 January 15th, 2001, 05:47 PM

Daynarr --

If you're getting paranoid about intel -- perhaps a few AIs are pulling multiple projects on you simultaneously with Divide Points Evenly, try adding intelligence sabotage to the mix. It's quite cheap and effective.

In the current game, I often used 2x intel sabotage per major (non-neutral) AI -- and that was normally overkill -- 1x CI 3, and the rest offensive actions like bombing conditions or crew insurrection, with repeat on and divide off.

Scale up or down depending on intel point generation and your apparent defense needs; I was budgeting for four major AIs, each at the time most likely with at least 10-20 decently colonized systems if not twice that, given that I waited many, many turns before turning Really Evil, so they were expected to have decent intel capabilities worthy of 2x sabotage each per turn.

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-- The thing that goes bump in the night

General Hawkwing · #6 January 15th, 2001, 05:52 PM

It is possible for the AI to have intel work against you even if you have mega intel points and are running CI3 on all 12 slots, with divide evenly and repeat projects turned on. HOW? There are more than 12 AI intel projects finishing against you in that turn or more points spent by the AI against you than you have, I'm not sure which.

Don't forget the "other" CI. Find the AI colonies with intel facilities and clear/take them.