Bug-like Battle AI behavior

[Kristoffer O]

PDF: perhaps the Jarl was protected from lightning. Killing fleing giants might be better than shooting at an immune target. If thats not it I'm at a loss.

[PDF]

Kristoffer O said:
PDF: perhaps the Jarl was protected from lightning. Killing fleing giants might be better than shooting at an immune target. If thats not it I'm at a loss.

IIRC he wasn't (I'll check though). But even if he was I don't understand why even the Wolves didn't go at him, or why the Seraphs didn't try False Fetters against him (they did against the other Niefels before).

Chazar,
Sure I don't have the algorithm, but sure also ANY fighting unit (and certainly an equipped berzerk Niefel !) at 5 squares is more threatening than routers 20 squares across ...

[Alneyan]

I believe he was Shock Resistant, from what I recall reading about this battle (it would make sense too).

Why they didn't try other spells is another matter, which does not seem to make much sense. Could it be because the AI treats the whole enemy army as "threatless" once they start routing, despite the presence of Berserkers, and hence start firing everyone since nobody should be a danger?

[Chazar]

PDF said:
Chazar,
Sure I don't have the algorithm, but sure also ANY fighting unit (and certainly an equipped berzerk Niefel !) at 5 squares is more threatening than routers 20 squares across ...

I disagree:
Consider a single militia man, gone berserk by spell, which was in his own squad, put on a rear flank with "hold and attack rearmost". Now the battle is almost over, the wounded enemy masses are fleeing into a friendly province just to heal, regroup and attack again, but your heavy infantry which has advanced to the other end of the battlefield (since it was ordered to attack archers) could easily dispatch those fleeing units. But instead, they let those fleeing units unharmed and chase after that single militia man, which they wont even reach in time!

I would rather have my infantry finish of those fleeing units, or at least I would want some of them to chase the militia man, but certainly not all of them! Different circumstances should really matter (including distance as you have already pointed out), hence my suggestion below!

[PDF]

Chazar said:

I disagree:
Consider a single militia man, gone berserk by spell, which was in his own squad, put on a rear flank with "hold and attack rearmost". Now the battle is almost over, the wounded enemy masses are fleeing into a friendly province just to heal, regroup and attack again, but your heavy infantry which has advanced to the other end of the battlefield (since it was ordered to attack archers) could easily dispatch those fleeing units. But instead, they let those fleeing units unharmed and chase after that single militia man, which they wont even reach in time!

I would rather have my infantry finish of those fleeing units, or at least I would want some of them to chase the militia man, but certainly not all of them! Different circumstances should really matter (including distance as you have already pointed out), hence my suggestion below!

Bah, you're taking an extreme example to show that dealing with a real threat, but a very feeble one, can be sub-optimal. Yes it is !
To be more precise I agree that the AI should only dispatch forces proportionate to a threat, not necessarily all the army vs "the" main threat. Else everyone would gang up against 1 unit/group..
But anyway I'd still prefer that to seeing a whole army destroyed by *not* dealing with a very potent threat !

[Chazar]

PDF: I am not disagreeing with you, all I say is that it might be pretty difficult to make the AI behave in the way you desire...

[Pocus]

a 'potency' (threat in this case) parameter have not to just take into account what is the current status of the unit (routing, or being a badass Niefel berseked), it can also use a memory of what the unit did, by counting the gold/gem value of units killed by this threat. For example, as soon as the Niefel start to kill Seraphs, his threat value would go through the roof, and he would be targetted again by the seraphs?
just my two eurocents.

[PDF]

I checked the battle - indeed the Niefel had a Ring of Tamed Lightning, that I didn't notice at first, so that he was not targetted by Bolts makes sense...
Apologies to have implied the AI was so stupid has to not cast Bolts at him out of sheer stupidity .
Well, it's not clear why the ghosts wolves/ph warriors didn't go at him - maybe even they did try to but he was flying, making it difficult to reach. Overall my army was mainly powerless against him, the only sensible action of the seraphs should have been to leave .
No real "bug" indeed...