A new AI Minister?

[jimbob55]

From what I can see in the data files, the AI almost works like this. There are a few problems such as the resupply minister not taking any notice of the destination of a fleet or colonising minister picking the furthest colony ship from the destination.

The 'Overlord' seems to be the algorithm for choosing the AI state. The only memory it appears to have is the anger rating. This makes for a fairly predictable AI, as long as you're not MEE giving the AI lots of stuff will make it happy. Maybe an extra variable (Contrariness?) could be introduced to provide a more long term and unpredictable factor into AI relations.

The lower level ministers could do with some sort of pecking order based on state. A minister of war should outrank a minister of resupply when attacking.
Colonising minister should search for the nearest colony ship to the destination. If there is an idle shipyard that could produce the colony ship and send it faster, then use that instead.
Minister for population movement should distribute the population using some sort of rule (never reduce homeworld below 50% max pop. If homeworld pop above 50% then ship population to planet with largest space available)

I'm sure there are other rules that would help the AI, but a memory would be even better.....

[Lucanos]

Noble's Idea is great, and should ALSO be used when a human player is turning the ministers on.

When the resupply minister wants to refuel you Alpha Fleet that you are planning to use for an attack next turn he should ASK if you want the fleet to ressupply.

Or when the pop-minister is trying to suck you homeworld dry, or when the retrofit minister is trying to retrofit your entire defense fleet so that it's not retrofitting just as the enemy enters the system.

nuff said

[Suicide Junkie]

Just give the AIs a "rubber stamp" mode.

If its in "Rubber Stamp" it assumes it can do whatever it wants, otherwise you do the paperwork manually:
"Alpha Fleet Needs supplies! Should we:
a) Resupply now
b) Wait ___ Turns before asking me again."

in a series of message boxes at the beginning of turn.

You can either let the AI do what it wants, or decide whether each thing it wants is good, but still let it do the "dirty work" of checking supplies/finding/moving the ships. The third option is to turn off the AI and do it all yourself.

[Lucanos]

I assume you are brainstorming - or do you mean that there actually is a "rubber stamp" feature which I could turn on? Now? In the 1.30?