PROJECT: AI Coding group

[Solver]

Yeah, absolutely go for it. This entire project is a continuous one, and while it might go faster or slower at some times because of the schedules of people involved, the more people we can get working on it, the better the game will become.

So, if you can contribute something to coding/changing the AI, it will be VERY appreciated.

[UGHQ_Tempus]

Sounds good.

Thanks for the link E. I'll start digesting and see where I can help.

[Ekmek]

bump for sekel, and you may want to contact some guys too...

Protra3211
UGHQ_Tempus
etc

[sekel]

I´ll add them to my messenger and restart my ICQ, for many people don´t use messenger.

thanks for the tip

[sekel]

A problem I noticed is that the AI city placement is too bad. They leave huge areas unpopulated and aren´t agressive enought in putting cities near the human player. I´d like to see something like Civ3, where the AI will agressively populate every space near your borders that you don´t colonize.

I´m not sure yet witch files I should be looking at, but I´ll seek for them.

[Martin Gühmann]

Originally posted by sekel
A problem I noticed is that the AI city placement is too bad. They leave huge areas unpopulated and aren´t agressive enought in putting cities near the human player. I´d like to see something like Civ3, where the AI will agressively populate every space near your borders that you don´t colonize.

In which version of the game did you observe this? I fixed this problem in GoodMod for instance, and it should now be fixed in the source code edition as well.

The other question is whether the locations chosen for cities are the best locations in comparision to other locations. Maybe there are some factors missing, but if it is just filling the available space then strategies.txt and terrain.txt are enough.

-Martin

[Maquiladora]

Martin, is it possible to tell the AI to respect a certain radius around each city depending on map size?

Example for gigantic maps, tell it to respect that each city gets 2 rings around each city before it starts overlapping? Or if its a small map tell it only 1 ring?

Of course there should be exceptions too if its stuck on a small island on any size map to tell it to settle for only 1 ring.

[Martin Gühmann]

Originally posted by Maquiladora
Martin, is it possible to tell the AI to respect a certain radius around each city depending on map size?

Example for gigantic maps, tell it to respect that each city gets 2 rings around each city before it starts overlapping? Or if its a small map tell it only 1 ring?

Of course there should be exceptions too if its stuck on a small island on any size map to tell it to settle for only 1 ring.

The current system is like this in startegies.txt we have a flag called MinSettleDistance, according to the discription, it determines how many squares a city must be away from another city. If you use a value of 4 that means that the new city must be founded at least 4 tiles away from the nearest city influence border. If all your cities are small then the spacing is tighter than it would be if your cities are big. This means in the early game this number should be bigger then in the late game. Unfortunatly this holds only for land cities.

Obviously we have to consider this influence thing a little bit. Maybe another value that is the minimum distance between two cities. And then these two values are compared and then one of them is taken.

-Martin

[sekel]

Originally posted by Martin Gühmann


In which version of the game did you observe this? I fixed this problem in GoodMod for instance, and it should now be fixed in the source code edition as well.

The other question is whether the locations chosen for cities are the best locations in comparision to other locations. Maybe there are some factors missing, but if it is just filling the available space then strategies.txt and terrain.txt are enough.

-Martin

I´m more interested in filling the spaces first now .... then I´ll think about best locations.

I noticed this problem in a game started in an unmooded Playtest from september, but now I can compile the game, so I will start new games in the new version and see if I have the same impression.

[Ekmek]

nice sekel. glad you are showing an interest in this.

[Maquiladora]

Originally posted by Martin Gühmann


The current system is like this in startegies.txt we have a flag called MinSettleDistance, according to the discription, it determines how many squares a city must be away from another city. If you use a value of 4 that means that the new city must be founded at least 4 tiles away from the nearest city influence border. If all your cities are small then the spacing is tighter than it would be if your cities are big. This means in the early game this number should be bigger then in the late game. Unfortunatly this holds only for land cities.

Obviously we have to consider this influence thing a little bit. Maybe another value that is the minimum distance between two cities. And then these two values are compared and then one of them is taken.

-Martin

Im well aware of the current system Martin

And I agree, as we chatted very briefly about before in a PM, there definitely needs to be more or at least another factor for placement taking into account the radius of a city.

Im thinking it might take a long time for the AI to consider the radius of a future city though?

[Martin Gühmann]

Originally posted by sekel
I´m more interested in filling the spaces first now .... then I´ll think about best locations.

That is one and the same problem. Of course a good locations is one that connects your empire and not one that leaves gap of one tile even it isn't necessary.

Originally posted by Maquiladora
Im well aware of the current system Martin

I know, but you aren't the only addressor of the reply.

Originally posted by Maquiladora
Im thinking it might take a long time for the AI to consider the radius of a future city though?

I don't think so. The spacing is one thing. And the other thing is that the location's value is already precomputed. There is something like a settle map in the game. So all it would need would be a better computation method and more factors.

-Martin

[Protra3211]

The first playtest that came out I found that the AI did a better job of settleing than the 1.11 version. Seems that the AI builds more cities on hightest level - expands so fast that if you are too slow the AI hems you in till your unable to find land to build new cities.

[Protra3211]

Just one more point. The first playtest used the same numbers for settlenig in Strategies text file as in the 1.11 patched version. But seems to settle more.Must be change in code. I feel that if the AI settles cites to close together this will allow more room for the human player to expand his empire . Best plan for AI is to take as much ground as it can.

[Maquiladora]

But not so much that it settles too far apart, then it becomes harder for the AI to form stacks quickly for defence.

As i said before i think map size and starting island/continent size is important for choosing what minimum radius to allow. Of course the AI cant know this until it explores its coast, so thats important to do as soon as possible, but thats important anyway for its own immediate security.

I don't think so. The spacing is one thing. And the other thing is that the location's value is already precomputed. There is something like a settle map in the game. So all it would need would be a better computation method and more factors.

Will the terrain score really ever be good enough though? I dont think so, but unfortunately it means more work to make a new system, is that what you mean by more factors? Or adding to the terrain scores idea? For example counting the total of each 3 resources on immediate ring, food, production and commerce and have a minimum score total for each resource for settling a new city in certain game situations.