CP Athena (in West)

[Bismarck1940]

The CP AI seems terrible, at least with respect to marching on Paris. In several plays, it doesn't get beyond central Belgium. It is ok counter-attacking the French 1st and 2d, if they advance on Mulhause and Lorraine. Anyone else feel similarly? I would have hoped the opening moves would at least have been programmed to be aggressive and historical for GE1-3.

[DrPostman]

You could try playing at a higher level and increase AI aggressiveness. I can
tell you that there was a LOT of playtesting over that.

[James D Burns]

Were all the Belgian forts taken down? If not supply has a really hard time flowing through Belgium and into France, I suspect the AI is pulling back because it isn't good at taking down the forts before it advances forward and its supplies are drying up. The two times I've started as the West at least one fort remained past the opening 2 or 3 turns and it just kills the Germans advance. The AI should have a large stack with decent artillery fixed for a turn or two at Liege and another stack with artillery plotted to advance on Namur on turn 1. Surrounding Namur on turn 1 to try and trap the small Belgian army and leaving the future reduction of that fort up to the AI isn't working too well as the AI wants to hit Lille and pushes on from Brussels before the Liege and Namur forts are reduced.

As a semi-test, in my first playing as the CP I used the two large armies with heavy artillery to reduce those two forts immediately starting on turn 1 and blitzed the rest of Belgium with independent Corps. It was pretty easy and I trapped/destroyed a lot of the Belgian army, so the AI should see similar success if the two forts get the main focus of the two big army stacks on turn 1.

Jim

[caranorn]

Yep, the CP ai has to learn to take those forts. So far I only played one game as WE wher the CP's also got stuck in Belgium. My current game as CP I took Liège on the first turn (only reason I didn't get to Namur was that despite plotting a move outside zones of control my Liège assaulting army didn't move to Namur as planned. In the meantime the Guards Reserve corps reinforced with siege artillery marched to Antwerp and the rest of my forces raced towards the french border (Lille came under siege at the end of the turn).

In short the ai needs to learn how to handle the starting situation...

Note, EE and WE ai also need some improvements. The EE seems to try deep penetrations without adequate reconnaissance (what I estimate as a 600 power stack moved through Silesia and well into the mountains against me only to be cut off (it was mutual, forcing me to pull back my line in Silesia) and destroyed (still exists on paper in December 1914, but will not live to see 1915). Apparently another player had a similar move from Poland that was easily cut off.

The WE on the other hand has attacked Metz every turn except one with at first separate stacks which were then after a retreat consolidated into a massve stack of doom. After four turns of mutual attrition the power ratio each turn is now about 1/2 in my advantage. All those attacks while my right flank has been at Amiens since turn 3, you'd think the French would start shifting forces once Paris was treathened (they got saved by the British)...

[Bodhis]

Note, EE and WE ai also need some improvements. The EE seems to try deep penetrations without adequate reconnaissance (what I estimate as a 600 power stack moved through Silesia and well into the mountains against me only to be cut off (it was mutual, forcing me to pull back my line in Silesia) and destroyed (still exists on paper in December 1914, but will not live to see 1915). Apparently another player had a similar move from Poland that was easily cut off.

I also noted these raids playing both CP and EE. Playing EE, the CP did a surprise attack on Riga in the first turns while I was marching on Königsberg. That was a rather strange move as I could easily cut this corps from supplies.

[Florent]

Playing the EE, when i looked at the Western front, Belgium flags were everywhere thus the IA didn't do a historical Schlieffen Plan. Historical scenario.

[Bismarck1940]

Playing the EE, when i looked at the Western front, Belgium flags were everywhere thus the IA didn't do a historical Schlieffen Plan. Historical scenario.

Thanks all. I didn't mean to be harsh, but this should be a fairly easy fix for ageod, given the above feedback.

[vaalen]

Thanks all. I didn't mean to be harsh, but this should be a fairly easy fix for ageod, given the above feedback.

I think you have been factual and helpful, not harsh. This is a serious flaw that breaks the game, and it must be fixed.

[fred zeppelin]

I think you have been factual and helpful, not harsh. This is a serious flaw that breaks the game, and it must be fixed.

Agreed. Let's see, though, how the AI fares as folks turn up the difficulty. Plus, AGEOD generally does a good job of addressing problems like this.

[igor7111]

Playing WE on Lt. difficulty, the CP doesn't press the attack.....they dilly dally through Belgium and reach the French border, generally, as the weather worsens. Not even close to a "Schlieffen Plan".

[ohms_law]

Yup. But, then, playing against the AI as the Central Powers, it's apparently relatively easy to go and capture Paris in less than a year, ending the war. :/

[Bismarck1940]

I cranked up every setting to max (to favor AI) and ran two turns as the West Entente without doing anything. Plainly, there is a problem. The Germans do not try to take the forts and do not go far. It should be straightforward for AGEOD to script optimal opening moves (and playing against the AI clearly is broken until they do, I fear). See below.
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