Note from MM - AI MODDERS MUST READ THIS - Page 2

Emperor Zodd · #11 January 13th, 2001, 11:12 PM

Troops should be standard technology to all races,the only thing you should have to research is more advanced weapons for them and larger size troops. Then let some AI races use them.

Zarix · #12 January 13th, 2001, 11:14 PM

I've got few more things to add.

1. Default strategy in AI_DesignCreation doesn't allways work. I.e. cargo ships have Don't Get Hurt strategy in DesignCreation but AI uses Optimal Firing Range. Kamikaze ships should work with Ram strategy because it AI uses Defaut_AI_Stategies not Default_Strategies but there seems to be a problem on it too.

2. Another way to make unit building better is to make AI keep certain amount of units stored in planets. So if a mine layer picks up few of them AI would build more.

3. There should be an option to make AI build monolithic facilities instead of miners, farms and extraction facilities.

4. AI should use Planet Value Improvement Plants and scrap them when planet value is maxed out.

Emperor Zodd · #13 January 13th, 2001, 11:19 PM

If we can design ships and test them in the combat simulator,why can't the AI do the same?! They should go through different combinations of designs with available components and use the one that works best against their known enemy designs! This can be programmed and added to the code. The AI won't be stuck with the same designs,they would evolve to counter their evolving enemy designs! Wouldn't that be great!

ColdSteel · #14 January 13th, 2001, 11:40 PM

The AI routines dealing with black holes and warp points needs to be tweaked some. The AI keeps thowing away ships and fleets this way. I just watched about 20 ships go down the old toilet bowl in a black hole system. Maybe the AI can just mark or flag these as systems to avoid if it loses X number of ships in a system to non-hostile means?

Overall, this can have a big impact on the game because some races can never keep any of the ships they build. They seem to throw them away as fast as they can build them.

Emperor Zodd · #15 January 13th, 2001, 11:47 PM

I lowered the damage done by unstable warp points from 200 to 50. That helps the AI in the mean time.

[This message has been edited by Emperor Zodd (edited 13 January 2001).]

Courageous · #16 January 13th, 2001, 11:58 PM

The AI needs to concentrate forces more
strongly vice its intended targets.

C//

Emperor Zodd · #17 January 14th, 2001, 12:03 AM

In tactical combat I always get the first shot in. The AI needs to try and do this itself. It can be the deciding factor for who wins the battle.

[This message has been edited by Emperor Zodd (edited 13 January 2001).]

Tomgs · #18 January 14th, 2001, 01:44 AM

The racial traits, for example Physical Strength, in the general.txt files in the races folders does not seem to allow a value below 100. The player can do this for his race creation and an .emp file could be created using this method but the races cannot be modified to accept this in the general.txt files.

Emperor Zodd · #19 January 14th, 2001, 01:58 AM

Human players will often Minimize and maximize racial points to get an advantage. The AI races should do it also.

Atrocities · #20 January 14th, 2001, 02:32 AM

First and foremost, SE IV is a great game and I love playing it.

Now on to the business at hand, I have a few items regarding the AI, and if they have already been addressed, then please forgive me.

1. AI is self-defeating.
In that I mean the AI starts the game aggressively, but over the course of the game, the AI begins to get complacent, and stops growing. Eventually they become so complacent that it completely stops doing anything that would benefit its empire. This makes them easy pray for a human player who spends the game growing. (This is on normal difficulty)

2. AI does not utilize planets.
The AI has the technology to utilize a planet or Terraform it, but it does not do so. This greatly limits the AI's ability to grow when it has reached the expanses of its empire.

3. AI does not press the advantage.
The AI, after defeating an enemy's fleet, seldom if ever presses the advantage and attacks the enemy's planets. Time after Time, I have lost entire fleets to the AI, just to see it sit there and do nothing when it could easily take the system.

4. AI does odd things.
The AI will do some rather odd things, and those odd things often more than naught cause the game to freeze up. One is they will attempt to colonize a planet that is already colonized, or is the wrong type from the colonizer they send. The AI attempts to retrofit a smaller ship with the design of a larger ship. The AI loves to find a bad warp point, and move every ship it has through it repeatedly. The AI tries to upgrade a ship with the same components thus causing an error.

These were just things that I have noticed. Not necessarily important issues, however, ones that I feel need to be brought out for review. I hope they are helpful.