AI moving?

[Adagio]

How come the AI moves it's units that strange as it does?

To illustrate what I'm talking about:

The numbers is illustrating the different fields were the AI moves (field 5 is the AI city)

789
456
123

From my game now, I can see 7 8 9 6 3
The AI has one army, which keeps going around this place. Here's how it moves:

Starting on 6 it goes to 5 then to 9, to 8, 7, 5, 6

Really strange moving for one turn, as it gets nowhere anyway, and it knows the terrain anyway!?!

Does there exists any logic explanation for this behaviour?

[Purple]

I've also seen wacky movement, but I have always assumed it is done by several units. They move so fast that it's easy to think that it is one unit moving back and forth, in and out of your field of vision.

But there is a kind of "patrol" movement that seems to occur when the AI doesn't really have a clear objective. Naval units do this a lot.

[Flight]

they used to do this kind of thing outside your territory when preparing for war but not invading
they fixed that bug though, no idea why it's running around weirdly

[Arrian]

AI units "patrol" mindlessly when at peace (unless there is any part of the map they haven't seen but can get too, or there are barb encampments around to sack).

-Arrian

[Purple]

In my current unmodded game I found myself (Zulu) on a large snake-like landmass (archipelago map) next to the Babs, who were unlucky enough to be at the tail of the snake.

Despite the fact that they have had galleys for centuries, they have not made any attempt to explore the rest of our mutual landmass, so I have proceeded to merrily expand to fill 90% of it (slapping the Babs down the two times they attempted a war).

So evidently there is some condition that keeps them from going around me, but I can't imagine what it is.

[steven8r]

I think the AI sees that the units have movement points, so it just uses them. Or perhaps it's part of the AI's 'psych-out the human by random movement' technique.

Once multiplayer is available, I will have to try the 'random movement' strategy. (w/ my luck it will just get my opponents even more PO'ed and force 'em to attack that much sooner)

[HazieDaVampire]

They just cant resist moving them, they cant keep them still unless they are fortified in a city!

[JohnM2433]

Originally posted by Purple
So evidently there is some condition that keeps them from going around me, but I can't imagine what it is.

Maybe the Babylonians don't want to move their ships through your waters (water tiles within your borders)? The AI will complain if your ship ends its turn in their waters.

[Purple]

I don't really mind this AI behavior. In fact, it is helpful, since it directs my attention to an area of the map that I might overlook for several turns.

I always play with enemy movement turned on for that very reason (although it gets a bit tedious in the late game).

[Coracle]

Yea, it's "helpful". . . I once had to tell a stack of Indian elephants to get out of my territory twenty turns in a row. They don't always stay inside their own borders.