AI is useless with islands

Can't beat the AI? Is it too tame? Discuss the best strategies!
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Jacew
Posts: 23
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2015 8:45 am

AI is useless with islands

Post by Jacew »

I couldn't find anyone complaining about this, but why it is AI is so bad at expansion, when continents get crowded?

The game does get exciting when there's a wrestle over continent, but once there is whole island for player and/or AI, it seems AI just fells asleep?

AI never attempts to build a proper invasion against you, if you are on different continent, neither they ferry settlers around to expand. They just get stuck on small peninsula and you have all the time in the world to colonize the world and overtake everyone.

In my current game I was middling power against 20 or so AI players on huge map. My neighbour had 2 cities on small peninsula with unhabited islands a plenty around. I just focused on building empire, and all the AI's, divided into two different alliance blocks, both against me, didn't even try to do anything. Nothing.

It far too easy to beat the AI when they simply give up, when they would need t ferry their troops around.

PS I'm playing 3.6.5 version.

PPS "Found you, now make yourself worth... etc" message by AI players when you find them, is terribly cringey and breaks all the immersion of the game. Any chance of getting rid of it?
cazfi
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Posts: 3069
Joined: Tue Jan 29, 2013 6:54 pm

Re: AI is useless with islands

Post by cazfi »

Jacew wrote:PPS "Found you, now make yourself worth... etc" message by AI players when you find them, is terribly cringey and breaks all the immersion of the game. Any chance of getting rid of it?
What you suggest as a replacement to tell that the particular AI wants war, not cease-fire, with you? Especially players of the older versions where AI always went for cease-fire need to be told that it's not the case here.
Jacew
Posts: 23
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2015 8:45 am

Re: AI is useless with islands

Post by Jacew »

cazfi wrote:
Jacew wrote:PPS "Found you, now make yourself worth... etc" message by AI players when you find them, is terribly cringey and breaks all the immersion of the game. Any chance of getting rid of it?
What you suggest as a replacement to tell that the particular AI wants war, not cease-fire, with you? Especially players of the older versions where AI always went for cease-fire need to be told that it's not the case here.
That's what it means? It comes up every single time I meet new AI nation, so I thought it was just random line tagged on every first encounter.

They are really bloodthirsty... To the point of suicide, It's pretty ridiculous when AI nation with two cities just refuses to even cease fire when you are ten times their size and have massive army next to them.

Well, "found you!" could be switched to "Hello", or "Greetings" or etc...
Jacew
Posts: 23
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2015 8:45 am

Re: AI is useless with islands

Post by Jacew »

Could that aggressiviness be part of the same behavioural problem that makes them incapable of expansion, once continent they are on gets crowded?

It's kind of annoying as it makes late game far too easy.
Dino the Dinosore
Hardened
Posts: 171
Joined: Sun Dec 31, 2017 3:41 am

Re: AI is useless with islands

Post by Dino the Dinosore »

I think you mean 2.6.5 version.

The string "...Now make it worth my letting you live, or be crushed." is in the source file .../ai/default/daidiplomacy.c and you could in theory edit it to something you like better and rebuild the app. The code fragment looks like this

Code: Select all

  if (wants_ceasefire) {
    dai_diplo_notify(aplayer,
                     _("*%s (AI)* Greetings %s! May we suggest a ceasefire "
                       "while we get to know each other better?"),
                     player_name(pplayer),
                     player_name(aplayer));
    clear_old_treaty(pplayer, aplayer);
    dai_diplomacy_suggest(pplayer, aplayer, CLAUSE_CEASEFIRE, FALSE, 0);
  } else {
    dai_diplo_notify(aplayer,
                     _("*%s (AI)* I found you %s! Now make it worth my "
                       "letting you live, or be crushed."),
                     player_name(pplayer),
                     player_name(aplayer));
  }
So that string is shown when the AI doesn't want a ceasefire. I have found that, after seeing that message and immediately meeting with the AI, they always will accept a ceasefire. So maybe a bug?
cazfi
Elite
Posts: 3069
Joined: Tue Jan 29, 2013 6:54 pm

Re: AI is useless with islands

Post by cazfi »

Dino the Dinosore wrote:So that string is shown when the AI doesn't want a ceasefire. I have found that, after seeing that message and immediately meeting with the AI, they always will accept a ceasefire. So maybe a bug?
Misfeature at least. The thing is that when you have just met for the first time, the relations are close to zero (not much negative, not much positive) anyway. So the main difference here is whether AI proposes cease-fire itself or not, it probably always accepts it if you are friendly enough to suggest it.
Jacew
Posts: 23
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2015 8:45 am

Re: AI is useless with islands

Post by Jacew »

Yes 2.6.5...

It's not that big issue to me I would be compiling my own version for it...

But it doesn't make much sense AI refuses any kind of negotiation or peace, when they're in war with have absolutely no chance of survival.

Why do they do that? It seems in every game there's few AI players I can stay at peace, while most relationships pretty quickly slide in to genocidal, even if I've never even threatened them?
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