Cheating AI Aggravates This Player

[Six Thousand Year Old Man]

Originally posted by Gatekeeper
OK, OK, so I feel sorry for the AI, except when it begins to insta-build wonders.

That's annoying... except, that the game allows the human player to cheat and finish wonders first, too

For example - you get a message that the Romans are almost finished building Lighthouse. If you do nothing, they build it next turn.

However, if you immediately rush Lighthouse on seeing that message, the Romans do not build LH next turn. It's delayed. Obviously you need 2 turns to finish - 1 turn to fill the shield box by rushing/disbanding, and the next turn the wonder is complete.

I can't see why the computer takes an extra turn to build a wonder if a human decides to rushbuild it - except as a way to make it easier for the human player to get the wonders they want.

[TimTheEnchanter]

Store up a few camels and you can use your production from multiple cities to rush build wonders as soon as you get the techs as well.

[Gatekeeper]

STYOM:

There are times the AI gives you no warning when it's undertaken or is about to complete a wonder project. I don't know if it's a Mac-specifc thing or if it also occurs on the PC versions as well. There seems to be no pattern to when you're informed about the undertaking or completion of AI wonder efforts. Most of the time, yes, but not all the time.

Strange, isn't it?

Gatekeeper

[Gatekeeper]

Originally posted by TimTheEnchanter
Store up a few camels and you can use your production from multiple cities to rush build wonders as soon as you get the techs as well.

Been there, done that. Just not in this particular game, because the English AI was getting knowledge left and right. Fortunately, things evened out towards the end of the game, when I was able to nab the really important stuff — United Nations, Hoover Dam, SETI Program and the Apollo Program. But I did miss Magellan's Voyage and Copernicus' Observatory, two nice wonders to have early to mid-game, IMHO.

Gatekeeper

[Six Thousand Year Old Man]

Originally posted by Gatekeeper
STYOM:

There are times the AI gives you no warning when it's undertaken or is about to complete a wonder project. I don't know if it's a Mac-specifc thing or if it also occurs on the PC versions as well. There seems to be no pattern to when you're informed about the undertaking or completion of AI wonder efforts. Most of the time, yes, but not all the time.

Strange, isn't it?

Gatekeeper

That sounds Mac specific. In all the versions of Civ I've played (MGE, ToT, 2.42) on the PC, I always get a wonder warning from the AI. And if I rush the wonder, I can finish ahead of them, as I described above.

[CivPatriot]

I think it may be, i recently acqured a copy of civ2 mge for mac, after playing civ2 on the pc for years, and i think its a mac specific thing(seems like the pathfinding is off as well, but that's another gripe).

[Bloody Monk]

AI builds WOW w/o warning

There is a way this can happen, though it is a technicality.

If the AI warned about a WOW that you then rush out from under it, the AI will announce it is switching to another WOW. It can then build it next turn without an intervening warning.

That has happened many times. On a PC....

Monk

[rjmatsleepers]

Re: AI builds WOW w/o warning

Originally posted by Bloody Monk
There is a way this can happen, though it is a technicality.

If the AI warned about a WOW that you then rush out from under it, the AI will announce it is switching to another WOW. It can then build it next turn without an intervening warning.

That has happened many times. On a PC....

Monk

There is a similar case when one AI civ completes a wonder and as a result another civ switches to a wonder that needs less shields and completes straight away. I've only seen it happen once.

RJM at Sleepers

[Gatekeeper]

It's true in regards to the AI switching Wonder projects after you've rush built them out from under the computer. Even then, though, it announces when it nears completion (unless, as mentioned above, it's a Wonder that's less expensive than the lost one).

[Carolus Rex]

Surely the announcement is made two turns in advance to warn the human player? I see no other reason.

As for the AI cheating. Anything that makes the game more challening is fine with me. But I agree with you Gatekeeper, that when the human player exploits the loopholes it is less exciting... For example, I hate incremental buying; it's repetitive, mechanic and kills the fun of the game. But if I don't do it I can't go for early landings etc. It's a must in order to have a fair (?) chance on records or against other humans...

It's with great nostalgia that I dream about the times when the game was almost terra incognita and every game was completely absorbing... Winning the space race with a single size 1 city was completely unimaginable...

Carolus

[finbar]

Originally posted by Six Thousand Year Old Man


That sounds Mac specific. In all the versions of Civ I've played (MGE, ToT, 2.42) on the PC, I always get a wonder warning from the AI. And if I rush the wonder, I can finish ahead of them, as I described above.

It must be Mac-specific. I've often had the AI build Wonders unannounced in the Mac version. But then, only in the Mac version will barbs destroy your capital city if it's your only city. In the PC version, I'm told, a single warrior can defend your capital against a zillion barbs if your capital is your only city.

[TimTheEnchanter]

Originally posted by finbar In the PC version, I'm told, a single warrior can defend your capital against a zillion barbs if your capital is your only city.

Not just warriors...even zero-defense Diplomats will be too much for Barb artillery if they are in your only city.

[rah]

After this became common knowledge, (the cap defend trick) One person, who shall remain nameless, missunderstood and assumed it worked against AI's too. He was shocked in a OCC game when his solo warrior lost and his capital was taken by a simple AI archer in the mid 20th century.

[Six Thousand Year Old Man]

Originally posted by rah
After this became common knowledge, (the cap defend trick) One person, who shall remain nameless, missunderstood and assumed it worked against AI's too. He was shocked in a OCC game when his solo warrior lost and his capital was taken by a simple AI archer in the mid 20th century.

That was one of Ming's?

[ColdWizard]

I'd guess rah . if it was Ming, rah's post would've had some 's and a bunch of 's in it