Improving the AI (3.0)

[LuisGuzman]

As it looks like improving the AI is the most preferred line to go, I think we should collect the areas of improvement and the rules to teach ... a kind of "teaching" program.

Feel free to post your ideas, opinions, suggestions, and descriptions regarding the actions and the rules that AI should teach or improve.

I'll update in this first post, all the ideas and the work in progress, regardless we can discuss specific questions in specific threads.

Teaching program:

1. Naval warfare
2. Supply
3. Use combat support units more wisely
4. Buying new units.
5. Assigning objectives when not set from design or have been already released.
6. ...
   - More actions to discuss:
7. Moving while embarked in NTP. When disembark. When to embark ?
8. Moving while embarked in ATP. When disembark. When to embark ?
9. Moving while embarked in RTP. When disembark. When to embark ?
10. Using HTP ?

Work in progress:

• Naval warfare
• Supply
• Moving while embarked in RTP and where/when disembark.
• Buying new units.
• ...

[randowe]

The AI should use combat support units more wisely. It often happens that AI [C ] units arrive first in the battle because they often simulate commander and staff units with fast transports. Especially when the AI is aggressive.

When the AI should be defensive a designer can still deploy the AI [C] unit to protect a VH and it won't move out or the unit can be anchored but when the AI is aggressive this won't work.

So the aggressive AI [C] unit should move forward with the rest of the AI army but should avoid fighting and should stay behind own units and support them.

[REDrake]

What I would really want to see from AI is something that I wanted since I was playing PG2 SSI.

Better thinking in buying new units. AI always buys the cheapest unit in the block be it, flaks or garison troops and spawn as many as possible. 1.0 SSI PG2 was even worse as it had a T34/41 with 0 pp. For a long time I thought I as playing a cheap pirate copy made by russians, because of that bug. But the AI would constantly spawn them next to SHs.

I would like for the AI to buy planes or more expensive units if affordable.

Now, the second AI complain is something which I noticed while designing a scenario where the player must retreat on an exit VH several ships. The AI would constantly try to send all available ships and planes to that hex, attempting to capture it, even though that is impossible. Some players claimed that the AI acts thus because it prevents the player from exiting that hex. But unfortunately it is not true, as the AI would also send above the hex paratroopers embarked in planes. Those served no real purpose exccept in case the AI wants to capture the hex.

[randowe]

Now, the second AI complain is something which I noticed while designing a scenario where the player must retreat on an exit VH several ships. The AI would constantly try to send all available ships and planes to that hex, attempting to capture it, even though that is impossible. Some players claimed that the AI acts thus because it prevents the player from exiting that hex. But unfortunately it is not true, as the AI would also send above the hex paratroopers embarked in planes. Those served no real purpose exccept in case the AI wants to capture the hex.

Yes, that would be great if this could be solved. Remember my screenshot from my test run of your Helsingborg scenario from your DMK campaign when all enemy units were gathering at the escape hex.

It depends on the number of units, but a human player would block the escape hex with one unit and then build a destroyer outer perimeter. Kind of a WWII north atlantic convoy defence pattern against german submarines.) The destroyers would move back and for and left an right (but stay close to their place in the pattern) to detect any imcomming enemy ship as soon as possible and then call other units for help or call the capital ships. Or am i wrong about the tactics? But i have no idea how to teach the AI to execute such a pattern. Seems impossible

[Ale]

well i at least abolished SH hexes in my works, which will maybe never be published due to my dependance on efiles mostly dead and having one is almost must (unlikely must as i test newer games) because we never know who "goes off" next, hopefully nobody important for a time ; anyway, back to subject i did that for reasons you've mentioned and give some reinforcements if feel like needed, staying sure that (eventual) user will blame only me for enemy setups ) but we all have our ideas and needs, just an option to counter either lots of flaks, punishment battalions (as in cc1) or tank divisions jumping out of town under siege... also looking for various ways to control AI prestige and "cheating" which is tedious work sometimes in bigger campaigns. On AI buying habits, Luis and you probably remember old talks and ideas to decrease AI's tendency to buy stronger units which could unbalance later battle stages, then it was changed to cheap ones etc. I cut it and it buys nothing nothing to say to Luis now in that context, hope it grows for start...

[lvjtn]

I would like for the AI to buy planes or more expensive units if affordable.

it is possible now, though i never used the customized $vars in *.ai files (see the "custom ai" section of the readme on Luis' site)

+1 you can say whatever you want, but buying 10 pieces of 72pp cheap towed at is always a better choice than buying a 720pp medium tank when ai is defensive. we tested it a lot, and mean literally a lot, and the results of the tests were conclusive: ai has better chance to survive a bit longer with hordes of crappy units

the problem is that ai not so wise in buying when it's aggressive, but the existing $vars can be improved

(honestly i don't understand them too much, George aka MG34 asked them)

i also don't remember what $var and where can be used for affecting how much money ai should spend on buy and repair, maybe this $var was dropped sometimes i think ai should spend more money on refitting its experienced defending units than buying totally green craps. or i also don't know what happens when ai has no sh: does it save money for next scenario or spend on refit? but these things can be improved, indeed

[LuisGuzman]

I'll open a new topic to explain how current AI 2.0 manages prestige when purchasing/refitting units and the options to control its behavior.
I'll also summarize the changes already included in AI 3.0 to start discussing this area.

But It will be tomorrow, because I need to collect a few screenshots.

The AI would constantly try to send all available ships and planes to that hex, attempting to capture it, even though that is impossible

Enemy EHs are currently assigned by the AI 2.0 as objectives, so it moves units as if it were a VH.

Doubtless it is an area of improvement