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jabberwockysr
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Flint, Unfortunately
Aug 2002
time: 00:22
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Someone else posted this on the "Americans" thread:
Build warriors to artificially increase your military strength to intimidate the AI
This is only a dirty trick after espionage, as before espionage the only way to compare strength is through the mil advisor, but once you have spies, no human would fear your 50 warriors when they have cavalry.
Of course this is an expensive trick to pull in republic or democracy without the free unit support.
Won't be using it myself, as I go straight to republic. It's irritating though to see that our military is "equal" when I have tanks and mech inf to their infantry and cavalry just because they have more units.
Edit: This used to (pre 1.29) look like it worked.
My gripe is that the AI overemphasizes number of units vs. strength. With 2-3 rifle/infantry per city it views it's army as stronger than the 10-15 tanks that I use to roll over them about a city a turn. Sure, with that number of defenders I lose some tanks, but I'm replacing my losses while they're not replacing lost cities. It just seems to me that defensive units are overvalued.
Last edited by jabberwockysr on 06-10-2002 at 01:27
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Dominae
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Konquest02, I agree with you completely; I originally said "ideally of roughly equal strength", but I think this is actually a requirement for the dirty trick to really work. Like you said, creating a monster civ can be a nightmare.
However, I still think there is merit in the original idea that civs are too willing to go to war (or sign MPPs, same thing, really) when it won't benefit them in the long run.
Dominae
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Sir Ralph
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Long live teh Schwampel!
Dec 2001
time: 06:22
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I often see AI capitals, while I found embassies after Writing, with settlers complete shield-wise but not food-wise. This doesn't depend on GA or not. In some cases, like cities in plains without irrigation, or forest cities this difference can get pretty big. A GA makes things even worse.
Let a size 1 city have 2 shielded grassland tiles. It has to produce the Spearman and the Settler. Let's assume no corruption. The Spearman is ready in 10 turns. In the same time the city grows to size 2 and makes now 3 shields. In another 10 turns the settler is ready, both shield and foodwise. So far so good. But with a GA the city has the Spearman ready after 7 turns. 3 turns later it grows to size 2 and has already produced 9 shields of the settler. It needs another 5 turns, which is already a waste, because it produces now 5 shields, and 9+5x5=34. But the settler is ready only 5 turns later, after effectively 20 turns, just like without GA. Mining makes things worse, and irrigation doesn't work well under Despotism.
I have never noticed the AIs to change build queues in order to max out production during the GA. On its place, I would stop to REX entirely and use the GA to arm a big force and counterattack the human player. But in it's current state, the AI eagerly agrees to peace 6-8 turns later and often gives even a tech and gold for it. It will continue 12-14 turns wasting it's GA for nothing.
I once fought a war with Knights with the Romans against the Greeks. That was in the CFC tourney game, IIRC 1-2, you should remember this, alexman. I faced their GA in many, good developed cities, a part of them on hills. My Knights died like flies, while the Hoplite machine made one of them every 2 turns. In each city! It was a big pain in the butt. I managed to advance tho, because the whole conquered Egypt produced Knights for me in addition to my own empire. Without their GA my chances would have been significantly better and my losses less.
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Dominae
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Sir Ralph, nice addition to the list; forcing the AI to waste their GA by exploiting their agressive tendencies is certainly a dirty trick in my book.
quote:
Originally posted by Sir Ralph
Let a size 1 city have 2 shielded grassland tiles. It has to produce the Spearman and the Settler. Let's assume no corruption. The Spearman is ready in 10 turns. In the same time the city grows to size 2 and makes now 3 shields. In another 10 turns the settler is ready, both shield and foodwise. So far so good. But with a GA the city has the Spearman ready after 7 turns. 3 turns later it grows to size 2 and has already produced 9 shields of the settler. It needs another 5 turns, which is already a waste, because it produces now 5 shields, and 9+5x5=34. But the settler is ready only 5 turns later, after effectively 20 turns, just like without GA. Mining makes things worse, and irrigation doesn't work well under Despotism.
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Hm, and people originally said the AI was "cheating" by getting extra units at the beginning of the game. Seeing how inefficient the AI can kind of puts things into perspective...
Dominae
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vulture
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Leeds, UK
Jun 2001
time: 05:22
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quote:
Originally posted by Sir Ralph
I often see AI capitals, while I found embassies after Writing, with settlers complete shield-wise but not food-wise. This doesn't depend on GA or not. In some cases, like cities in plains without irrigation, or forest cities this difference can get pretty big. A GA makes things even worse.
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The worst case I've seen was when Russia had built Moscow in the middle of a load of tundra, and it was stuck at size two with no excess food, plus a fully 'built' settler (in terms of shields). It had other cities, since this was on emperor, where the AI gets another free settler (or perhaps a nearby city had taken the only available food source that Moscow had previously been using). AFAICS it was stuck like this until we got into a war, and the production was changed to a military unit instead.
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Arrian
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Kneel before Grog!
Jul 2001
time: 00:22
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Heh, I do the same thing Sir Ralph - if I see AI roads outside of their territory, I cut 'em. Absolutely. Anything to hinder them.
The GA thing is devilish... but dangerous. You run the risk of creating a monster.
I too have noticed via establishing embassies that the AI will often have the production of a settler done, but sit there waiting for the city to grow. I've seen size 1 capitols with fully built settlers.
By the way, the more the AI gets improved, the more I favor tweaking the basic advantages it gets. If Soren fixes various AI weaknesses, the game essentially gets harder. If the AI was beefed up using the suggestions that many of us here at 'poly have posted, then I'd like to see some new intermediary difficulty levels.
For instance, the jump from Monarch to Emperor includes an extra AI production bonus, AND a change in citizen happiness. If the AI really gets better, a level with the bonus but with Monarch happiness... or vice versa... would be nice. It would be nice to be able to customize difficulty, actually. You choose the AI production bonus. You choose the AI science bonus. You choose the AI to AI trade factor (I know you can adjust this in the editor now, but I'm talking about the setup screen), you choose the happiness factor for you and for the AI, you choose the AI's bonus units, etc.
Somebody smack me, 'cause I'm dreaming.
-Arrian
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04-10-2002 23:20
). I did not feel like fighting a civ on another continent so I called Shaka (who shared the Persian continent). I signed an alliance with him. 
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