What I'd like see AI do in SP play - Page 2

Sombre · #11 February 13th, 2007, 02:19 PM

It pretty much happens no matter what I set the AI to.

Maybe it's because I play 3.00, but I don't recall any AI fixes in the updates, so yeah,.. lots of lemming action in every SP game I've played. I mean 40 guys of theirs per turn against a 40pd province - that's what my border wars usually look like, only over about 5 provinces.

merlinme · #12 February 13th, 2007, 03:04 PM

I agree with the lemming tendency. The AI really should be better at assessing odds. I assume there is some algorithm at the moment; I haven't looked into modding at all. Are there any AI options which you can mod?

mac5732 · #13 February 14th, 2007, 12:07 AM

I'd also like to see the Ai use better intrinsic defense again in better numbers. It seems that a lot of provinces I attack there is no intrinsic defense for the ai.. i like the idea of a library, maybe even an extra gold mine or two to increase in wealth as well.

NTJedi · #14 February 14th, 2007, 10:35 AM

The AI setting doesn't matter as the AI opponents will march armies until they die. I've seen very very small wounded armies attack very strong provinces. These traveling armies will pickup other units while traveling across an existing friendly province it owns... but march to death.

QXel · #15 February 19th, 2007, 09:08 AM

Lemmings action is common.

At this time, I'm playing a game, and the AIs (Difficult Ulm & Tien C'hi - random behaviour) have several medium sized armies around some provinces I own, with a strong PD and a big army inside. But they keep attack my one by one at a time ! They don't regroup the 2 or 3 (or 4) armies together for one really big deadly attack (even with a unfitted assortments of disparates troops) ! Something a human can do easily ...

I don't play MP games (no Internet) so sometimes it is very disapointing or frustrating ... But I know that programming AI isn't an easy thing, so, I don't blame anyone.

But I have to admit that AI in Dom3 isn't very efficient ... I remember the last patched AI at Stars! and they were really really tough !!! [mass driver bombing make me insane !!!]

Sombre · #16 February 19th, 2007, 12:19 PM

The more I play dom3 the more the lemming action bothers me. It seems like I can basically beat the AI in almost any case simply by expanding slowly and upping PD. They throw all their troops away every turn for no gain and thus even if they're much larger than me I

Now I know that there are always little exploits and things a player does that make him/her that much better than the AI, but this is just basic stuyff. I'm trying to play an entertaining game here, not steamroll the AI, but that's pretty damn hard when they just toss away everything they make on 100% hopeless battles.

I would LOVE to see the AI patched to wait and build up just a little more (one or two more turns) before rolling out. If they did that you'd have to have a PD of more than 30 or so and it would get so expensive that you wouldn't be racing ahead of the AI.

QXel · #17 February 19th, 2007, 12:41 PM

Yep. Coordonate attacks & a much better appreciation in gain/loose battle ratio will be a good improvement.

For the PD, the fact is that it is annoying because it is continuous. Remember : you don't have much informations if you don't scout/spy the provinces. So, a try or two is acceptable, as would do a human, just to test. But the fact that this particular province as a strong PD must definitively be considered by the AI afterward.

It's seem that the AI just don't remember anything of all the informations that it gains from its actions. That is much strange, because I often see it cast the global spell 'Eyes of the God' as soon as possible ... [and I blind it as soon as I can ;o)]

Gandalf Parker · #18 February 19th, 2007, 01:59 PM

No the game, and the AI, isnt good with "remembering" from one turn to the next. Its part drawback of the pbem (play by email) structure of it. Anything being remembered has to be written out and read back each turn. So the AIs actions are a straight run-thru script which it rethinks each turn. Also, its pretty much just one AI script being applied to all nations so not many of the individual abilities of nations gets used

QXel · #19 February 19th, 2007, 02:12 PM

Well, it explains a lots of AI behaviour ...

It is really dispointing, too, because not all people can afford playing MP games : time, money, schedule, technical limitations, ... Well ...

But it is not just about Dom3 : a LOT of game are very disapointing in AI actions, behaviours and so.
A little number of games can be just considered 'correct', and it is mainly gestion-like games (Stars!, as mentionned early, but also Civilization & Alpha Centaury, Master of orion, ...).
It is a wide subject : people love beautifull games where they win, not ugly ones which beat them everytime ;o)

But just some ameliorations could greatly improve solo enjoyement of Dom3, I really think.
Is this possible or wanted ? Well, in all cases, I'll be dealing with ;o)

Gandalf Parker · #20 February 19th, 2007, 07:06 PM

At the moment there are some MOD projects to create nations which are boosted and make good use of the AI thinking.

As far as the developers... Dom1 was almost entirely a play by email game. Dom2 provided better direct-link multiplayer play. Dom3 vastly improved solo play and the AI. We have seen great improvements within the structure that the game is built on. The devs have hinted that they might consider a "start over from scratch" game next but it might not be a Dominions game if they do that.