Attempting to improve the AI for Proportions 3.05

dogscoff · #1 December 7th, 2006, 12:07 PM

Like the thread title says, I'm attempting to improve the AI for Proportions 3.05

Having played a big single player game recently that gave me plenty of opportunity to observe the AI in (in)action, I have a pretty good idea of what they are not doing. Sadly I have something very much like zero modding experience, so it's not so easy for me to see how to fix them. Still, I've started tinkering nonetheless.

As far as I can tell, the changes in the tech tree from Proportion 2.X to 3.X have cut many AIs off from their traditional research paths, so they are reaching a certain point in tech development and then making no further progress. Simply bridging the necessary gaps in the _AI_Research files ought to allow them to build all the ships they ordinarily would.

A more advanced project would be to introduce them to some of the mod's new technologies, but baby steps, baby steps.

Anyway, just to dip my toes into the water, I've decided to try to give the Terrans back their fighters: In my solo game I observed the Terrans, (who started in my home system) for many hundreds of turns before they declared me MEE and I took their homeworld. In all that time they never built a single fighter, which is the Terran trademark tech. I think this is probably down to them having no instructions to research the fighter powerplant or fighter propulsion areas.

With all this in mind I've made some changes to Terran_AI_Research, but haven't playtested them myself yet, and probably won't get an opportunity to do so for a while, so I've no idea if it works.

The 'improved' Terran_AI_Reasearch file is attached, I'd appreciate any and all feedback based on either looking at the file or trying it out in an actual game. Your comments would be more than welcome.

Note that my objective at this point is simply to get them to build fighters and carriers (although I couldn't help tweaking some other stuff as well). Getting them to do so in a particularly competitive manner is beyond my current remit.

Atrocities · #2 December 7th, 2006, 01:21 PM

I would change the Percentage to 34 on all tech.

Quote:

AI State := Exploration, Infrastructure, Prepare for Attack, Attack, Secure Holdings After Attack, Incursion, Prepare for Defense, Defend (Short Term), Defend (Long Term), Not Connected
Tech Area Name := Gas Giant Colonizers
Tech Area Level := 10
Tech Area Min Percent := 34

Also start with smaller needed tech and leave the larger stuff for later. I focused on weapons, basic technology, engines, and needed component tech first then moved onto larger less important technology. Also consider breaking it up a bit. Instead of having them research to level 10, have them research to level 2 then put other entries in for Level 4, 8, and then 10.

I went one step further and gave the AI its own AI research boost in the racial traits to help it "understand" research better. (Cheat).

dogscoff · #3 December 7th, 2006, 01:47 PM

Thanks AT, good advice, I will apply it to the later techs.

The colonizer techs are a special case, since you have to rush-research them for the first ten turns of a Proportions305 game - without them you can't colonise, and each level takes only a few hundred research points.

Nice idea with the research boost, but that would involve changing the data folder. I'm just working on the AI files for now. However with the massive tech tree and huge research costs in this mod any sort of research boost is good. Ideally I'd like to get the AIs building city facilities (which generate research in addition to other things) and dedicated research centres to help them along the research path.

Does the AI ever scrap facilities? That would be very helpful, if I could somehow convince it optimise it's homeworlds a little.

PvK · #4 December 8th, 2006, 07:09 PM

Yes, the Proportions 3.x AI needs to know about the new tech areas. I think it can do the new colonizers, but not many other of the new techs.

Fighters won't get built due to none of the AI's knowing about the new Fighter tech area(s). The AI would probably be best off researching far enough that fighters will be somewhat effective before researching those, to avoid producing a lot of fighters that are about as combat effective as 20th Century US Space Shuttles (i.e. hardly at all).

The fighter unit design would also want to be tweaked a little to get them to design the new fighters with the right components.

I think I'd look at getting the ship construction working right first, because it will be more rewarding and I mean to re-vamp fighters a bit for 3.0.7. Which reminds me I should post 3.0.6 some time...

PsychoTechFreak · #5 December 9th, 2006, 03:10 AM

I'm looking forward to "some time". [img]/threads/images/Graemlins/PointUp.gif[/img]

Ironmanbc · #6 December 9th, 2006, 09:42 AM

Quote:

PvK said:
Yes, the Proportions 3.x AI needs to know about the new tech areas. I think it can do the new colonizers, but not many other of the new techs.

Fighters won't get built due to none of the AI's knowing about the new Fighter tech area(s). The AI would probably be best off researching far enough that fighters will be somewhat effective before researching those, to avoid producing a lot of fighters that are about as combat effective as 20th Century US Space Shuttles (i.e. hardly at all).

The fighter unit design would also want to be tweaked a little to get them to design the new fighters with the right components.

I think I'd look at getting the ship construction working right first, because it will be more rewarding and I mean to re-vamp fighters a bit for 3.0.7. Which reminds me I should post 3.0.6 some time...

And the one's that play this mod (like me)
are looking forward to the update

oleg · #7 December 11th, 2006, 03:44 PM

If only I had some time to help...
But after birth of my second kid (girl this time)

I have none...

Atrocities · #8 December 11th, 2006, 07:50 PM

Congrats on the child. Go Pappa!

dogscoff · #9 December 12th, 2006, 07:04 AM

Congrats Oleg.

Pvk I'll do you a deal: You release Proportions 3.0.6, and I'll release version 1.30 of the Proportional Response Pack and 1.40 of the Neostandard expansion pack that I've been sitting on for almost a year. They include the Cue Cappan infantryman Sgt Squiddie (leaked to these forums some time ago), a pair of Terran starliners and more besides.

*dogscoff opens up PSP to try to quickly knock out a few more images.

PvK · #10 December 13th, 2006, 05:14 PM

Sounds good, Dogscoff! Do you want to keep the Proportional Response pack as a seperate pack, or shall we just (or also) include it in versions going forward?

I have 3.0.6 itself ready, I think, though I haven't really playtested the new Q-ships to make sure they work properly. It doesn't have a whole lot in it besides those and a few minor fixes, because I wanted to offer a version that wouldn't affect balance before making the next balance-tweak version. I just haven't posted it because of an avalanche of higher-priority things I've needed to do or respond to, and wanted to be sure it worked, and updating the web site is a chore. I think I'll just post 3.0.6 here first (tonight if I remember) as a preview and hope to get some free playtesting, and then if it passes, put it on the web site.

BTW, the next balance-tweak version should be 3.0.7, in which I plan to un-nerf fighters (especially at higher tech levels), semi-nerf weapon platforms so they aren't so ultra-accurate and cost-effective, and probably tweak the mount balance a bit too.

PvK