Why, oh why does the poor AI...

[alexman]

This happens most often in higher difficulty levels where the AI gets free units and doesn't need to build more.

But this tendency of the AI is exploitable even on lower difficulty levels. You attack a ancient UU civ during their expansion phase, making sure you trigger their Golden Age, prompty sue for peace, and you waste their Golden Age because they try to build settlers, not realizing that their boosted production completes them before their cities are large enough. (a.k.a. Sir Ralph's dirty trick)

[alexman]

…irrigate grassland tiles in Despotism?

Or for that matter, why even bother to improve all those tiles when they are not going to be worked for centuries?

[alexman]

…refrain from building harbors unless it needs the extra food?

Building a harbor here instead of a temple would give the city two happy faces instead of one, and each city in the rest of the empire one extra happy face.

[alexman]

…continue to aim for growth when it has happiness problems?

This city has an entertainer and will have to assign another one as soon as it grows. Yet it is building a Granary and using floodplains instead of bonus grassland. Note that there are more cities in this position, so we could ask another question that Soren has already answered: Why, oh why doesn’t the poor AI use the luxury slider?

[alexman]

All screenshots above were taken from a normal tiny-map game in debug mode, with Rome having no build-often preferences and no traits.

Here are some more things I have observed in PtW, but for which I don't have screenshots right now:

• Why does the AI build a Coal Plant when a Hydro Plant can be built instead? And then why does it build a Hydro Plant as soon as it’s done with the Coal Plant?!
• Why does the AI build regular units in newly founded cities of a large empire when veteran defenders can easily be brought from elsewhere? The new city needs to start building city improvements, which cannot be brought from elsewhere.
• Why doesn't the AI switch production in its cities unless it's for a Wonder that has already been built? It should check and possibly reassign production when it learns a new technology, if not every turn. Extra bonus: could the AI be made to use pre-builds like us humans?

[DaveMcW]

The luxury slider is simple: buying luxury resources is more cost-effective than using the slider. Of course your harbor example shows the difficulties in acquiring luxury resources sometimes...

[nbarclay]

Originally posted by alexman
Extra bonus: could the AI be made to use pre-builds like us humans?

The catch with prebuilds, especially for wonders, is that if the AI does it, humans HAVE to do it to be competitive. That would make the game a whole lot less fun for players who aren't as dedicated to learning all the tricks as those of us at Apolyton are, or who don't like using prebuild trickery too much just as a matter of principle. Plus, I'd hate to even try to compete with a properly programmed AI in calculating perfect timing for a prebuild; the AI has the mathematical capabilities of a computer built in.

Edit: On further thought, that type of calculation is feasible only for the player that's driving the prerequisite research for a wonder without expecting to acquire some of it from someone else, and even then, there are some variables involved. So there are some aspects humans might have a significant advantage on too.

"Allow AI prebuilds" might make a worthwhile option for people to turn on if they want it, but at least for wonders, I don't think it would make good default behavior.

Nathan

[nbarclay]

Originally posted by DaveMcW
The luxury slider is simple: buying luxury resources is more cost-effective than using the slider. Of course your harbor example shows the difficulties in acquiring luxury resources sometimes...

If you can't get enough luxuries, though, the luxury slider can be a very powerful tool. The fact that the AI is missing that tool places it at a disadvantage.

Nathan

[Theseus]

I have a proposal:

First off, Soren, you need a vacation. Unbelievably great job on further AI tweaks (you guys are hilarious, btw: "Aw, we didn;t really touch hardly nothin' at all..." Yeah, sure.), but I'm willing to bet the Infogreed / Firaxis battles were a major pain.

Second, alexman has 1) as good an understanding of a multitude of game mechanics as anyone around here, 2) as much of a focus on AI performance and what actually going on as any fan I've seen, and 3) concrete ideas / observations / testing on remaining flaws.

Friggin' hire the guy as a consultant!! Hell, give him a per diem, sit him in front of a computer in lovely Maryland for 4-5 days, Mike B. buys the beer, Dan throws in a sombrero, and it's a done deal!

The marketing potential is HUGE...

(Of course, he already told you in this thread much of what needs to be worked on, but I'm sure there's more where that came from!)

In the alternative, a second proposal, especially 'cause I KNOW you tweaked stuff that you not telling us about...

Give us "Soren's Killer AI Civ PTW Mod" and we'll kiss the ground you walk on!

[THE CROWD GOES WILD!!!]

[Minmaster]

lol theseus

great observation alexman

[Harovan]

Originally posted by nbarclay
The catch with prebuilds, especially for wonders, is that if the AI does it, humans HAVE to do it to be competitive. That would make the game a whole lot less fun for players who aren't as dedicated to learning all the tricks as those of us at Apolyton are, or who don't like using prebuild trickery too much just as a matter of principle. Plus, I'd hate to even try to compete with a properly programmed AI in calculating perfect timing for a prebuild; the AI has the mathematical capabilities of a computer built in.

So what about adding such improved abilities one by one in higher difficulty levels, and dropping them in lower ones, instead of making solely bonuses all the difference between the levels?

Great observations as always, btw, alexman .

[DaveMcW]

By far the most powerful ability would be correct placement of the FP. If it was possible to code this it would result in +50% production or more for the AI.

They could even use a leader to rush it.

[alexman]

Originally posted by DaveMcW
By far the most powerful ability would be correct placement of the FP.

Yes, you are absolutely right. I forgot that one. If I could pick one improvement to the AI, it would be that one. Better FP placement would help the AI in the late game where it usually struggles.

Extra bonus: teach the AI to use a leader to relocate the Palace after the FP has been built, if the empire still has high corruption. This is arguably the most important function of leaders for the human player, and the AI is currently missing out.

PS. Theseus, thanks for the promo! Actually, I would give anything to be able to help improve Civ3 (especially if it involved coding).

[alexman]

For anyone interested, here is the build queue for the map I was using above, if you give the AI all techs up to the modern age:

Library
University
Colosseum
Temple
Cathedral
Marketplace
Bank
Stock Exchange
Factory
Coal Plant
Hydro Plant

Aqueduct built as needed when city reaches size 6
Harbor built as needed for extra food.
Hospital built as needed when city reaches size 12
Granary built when city has less than 2 food surplus.
Courthouses' position in the list depends on corruption.

The above list is for no half-price buildings and no build-often preferences. If you check production as build-often, you get this list:

Library
University
Colosseum
Temple
Cathedral
Factory
Coal Plant
Hydro Plant
Marketplace
Bank
Stock Exchange

Which is very encouraging, but still I think factories are higher on the list for most good human players.

If you mark trade as build-often you get something else which is encouraging in the screenshot below (because it connects the extra luxury), but it might not be optimal in some cases:

[badman]

Why is the colosseum so important?
It's usually one of my last buildings.