How to make a Better AI

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Eric Larsen
Colonel
Posts: 350
Joined: Oct 25 2005
Location: Salinas, CA

How to make a Better AI

Post by Eric Larsen »

Now that I've gotten my feet wet fighting the AI I can see several ways to improve the AI's.

First is to have the AI's stop researching and making carriers. The AI's just have no clue about putting planes on carriers so all AI carriers become are ultraexpensive cannon fodder. I try not to destroy them so I can scrap those crappy converted carriers for cash and military goods. More cruisers, destroyers and frigates with lots of missiles would prove more valuable if the AI has to fight over the open seas. Otherwise more air and ground units would make the AI's better.

Second is to make the AI's research something smart, like economic improvements and efficiency boosters. I see a long litany of unit designs or tech to make better unit designs but I've never seen the AI's in the world scenario research things to make their economies better. More balance in their research so that they improve their economic situation. Really lame that regions short on water never research water conservation.

Third is to stop having the AI's build everything they can to fill every build slot to start a scenario, especially if the victory conditions are political rather than complete conquest. The AI's are always behind the eightball on money and that overbuilding of military units is the biggest culprit. Even in the world scenario there's plenty of time to build up military units and it's better to give the AI's some patience to research some better unit designs before building new units.

Fourth is to have the AI's defend their capitals better. With nearly 100% satellite coverage I can clearly see how poorly they defend their capitals. I took South America's capital without hardly a fight, only one unit was defending the capital when I took it. They seem to bunch up nice around military bases but that's a waste when those bases are way behind the lines and the capital is under threat of capture.

Fifth is to get the AI's to stop overproducing products that just don't sell. Really silly to see some AI regions with like a year's worth of overproduction just keep piling up because the AI doesn't know when to lower production to use up reserve stocks. AI's with say 5 days of overproduction sitting to be sold should then start underproducing that product to burn off the overstock until their overproduction gets under 3 days worth of reserves.

Sixth is to stop having the AI's sell off all their military goods, especially when they're at war. It's really easy to just buy up all the military goods from a region you're about to go to war with and that's basically war over for the AI. The AI's should keep larger stocks of military goods on hand to ensure they'll have enough to keep their units supplied during a war, especially if some human player decides to cruise missile attack the military goods factories. In the world scenario I've managed to keep the whole world low on military goods while I produce none. I've got 4 million tons of war toys while the AI's can barely scratch up 4,000!
Thanks,

Eric Larsen
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