2 questions about the AI from a new player

[lenny]

I have recently acquired this great game and am enjoying it very much. After some scenarios and try-and-error approaches to campaigns I have finished my first Union campaign in summer 1863 by storming Richmond and now I am on my first real Confederate campaign. Playing the rebels I have noticed 2 things about the AI which puzzle me a bit.

1) Blockading. Playing as Union I managed to keep blockade efficiency at 25% with minimal effort. (Although I didn’t conduct any naval raids or invasions, so I could devote my entire navy to blockade duty.) The AI started out great with a blockade efficiency of 35% which really slowed down my initial build up in 1861, but suddenly they withdrew all their ships from the blockade boxes and my blockade runners are free to travel to and fro Europe for (at the start) much needed supplies. Now it is early 1863 and all the Union has is a small number of ships in the Atlantic box for a 5% blockade. Is this a general deficiency of the AI or did something just went wrong during this one game?

2) AI suicide runs. I noticed that the Union AI seems to have a tendency for suicidal invasions into southern territory which end in total annihilation of the invading force. It started with (what I thought at first was a good move) attack of McDowell with some 30 thousand men towards Richmond. I had massed my army at Manassas which was by-passed by the Union via a (relatively) undefended Fredericksburg. I simply cut their supply lines by taking Alexandria with Jackson’s corps and sent Johnston’s corps to push McDowell to the peninsula where apparently his force just withered away due to a lack of supply. (Since I haven’t seen him since, I presume he was not evacuated by sea.) Another example was a Union landing in North Carolina in ’62. Some 15 thousand men took a harbor, and while 3000 remained to defend the beach head the rest moved inland. I sent Lee to first take back the beach head, then chase the rest of the invaders which (probably due to an inactive leader) didn’t manage to take a single town or depot despite only militia garrisons. When Lee caught up with the survivors they where down to less than 2000 without any major engagements.
Is there a setting which allows the AI to execute such invasions with better logistics?

[mlp071]

1) They did same in my campaign during the winter of '61, but they moved back in spring.So i would assume thats because of higher attrition during those months.

If you are winning , they will pull them again , and cover some coastal areas trying to blockade your harbours.

2) I had same problem with Union suicide runs in Early December, which i posted in my thread right bellow yours.In patch 1.09 AI appeared to be obsessed with Harpers Ferry and Winchester, and now in 1.09e is more going blindly for Fredericksburg/Richmond.

Pocus mentioned that he will look into it.Maybe you should send him your save file as well.

I got suspicion , that AI likes to do that couple of turns after Call for Volunteers and Draft, considering that it has units to burn, and depending how many VP you have .

I am going to try low aggression for AI and see if that helps.

[W.Barksdale]

Despite what everyone wants to believe the AI in this game is just plain awful.

If your really looking for a challenge I would give the AI activation bonus and the option that makes them fight better and move faster etc. However, I find this gives the game a very unrealistic feel.

If you want a challenge without feeling like your fighting superhuman Americans I would suggest trying a pbem game.

[Coffee Sergeant]

Despite what everyone wants to believe the AI in this game is just plain awful.

If your really looking for a challenge I would give the AI activation bonus and the option that makes them fight better and move faster etc. However, I find this gives the game a very unrealistic feel.

If you want a challenge without feeling like your fighting superhuman Americans I would suggest trying a pbem game.

The Union AI is not that bad with an FOW advantage, although it does tend to suicide itself against naval bombardment.

The Confederate AI is terrible though. I have never seen them properly defend Richmond. They always seem to try offensives in the North, and leave a path open from Alexandria . Maybe I should try 'low' aggressiveness.

[soundoff]

Despite what everyone wants to believe the AI in this game is just plain awful.

If your really looking for a challenge I would give the AI activation bonus and the option that makes them fight better and move faster etc. However, I find this gives the game a very unrealistic feel.

If you want a challenge without feeling like your fighting superhuman Americans I would suggest trying a pbem game.

I'd agree entirely but then I would not be too harsh on AGEOD. Trouble is it will be long after I am dead and gone before a computer AI can put up a really decent resistance to a half decent human player without either severe penalties to the human player or prodigious benefits to the computer - and that applies to any companies strategy games. But against another human player...AACW sings......

I find it strange, given that AGEOD gives us a nice forum to find PBEM partners that anyone plays this game on a regular basis against the AI. I know they do but be blowed if I know why, unless there are language problems. Even significant time differences between players are not really a problem - particularly as moves need to be really thought out and pondered upon.

Just my tuppence worth

[Clovis]

You should try AI without any FOW advantage... reduces its agressiveness significantly.

[mlp071]

You should try AI without any FOW advantage... reduces its agressiveness significantly.

Err, i was playing with no FOW advantage to AI, normal lvl and normal aggression, more time for AI, etc... Union AI committed suicide in Dec '61.

AI's plan was good , but was used in middle of the winter, so wrong timing pretty much killed it.

On the other hand till that point i have to say that AI was not that bad.I like that it tried to flank me several times, unlike in most of the other strategic games.

[Rafiki]

I find it strange, given that AGEOD gives us a nice forum to find PBEM partners that anyone plays this game on a regular basis against the AI. I know they do but be blowed if I know why, unless there are language problems. Even significant time differences between players are not really a problem - particularly as moves need to be really thought out and pondered upon.

I recommend checking out http://www.ageod-forum.com/showthread.php?t=7453 which looks into why people don't PBEM. (Hint: IIRC language problems aren't it )

[soundoff]

Many thanks for the link Rafiki. Sure is interesting that for most of the respondents it seems to be a lifestyle/time issue.

[lenny]

Thanks for the replies! So suicide runs are a weakness of the AI. What about the blockade? Is it also common for the AI to not blockade at all?

P.S. I know that the real challenge is in multi player. But I bought AACW explicitly as a single player game.

[Banks6060]

not necessarily a discredit to any of the developers, but I have to agree that the AI in this game is just rediculously stupid. I ONLY play the game versus a human opponent via PBEM. It's a MUCH more fun, much more authentic experience and shows the real strength of the game engine.

I would think it hard to program for the AI with such a complex game engine. So I would strongly reccommend hitting the forums for a PBEM partner and try playing that way.

It's not hard to find someone willing to play. I posted a request for competition and received 3 responses within a day. I live in the US and am currently gaming with someone half a world away. So you could also say that it becomes an experience in learning other cultures as well.

PBEM is the way to go with AACW

[GlobalExplorer]

Despite what everyone wants to believe the AI in this game is just plain awful.

If your really looking for a challenge I would give the AI activation bonus and the option that makes them fight better and move faster etc. However, I find this gives the game a very unrealistic feel.

If you want a challenge without feeling like your fighting superhuman Americans I would suggest trying a pbem game.

This is a very misleading statement I must say. For a computer game, the AI is very competent. Give it some small advantage (by playing on hard), and you will have a lot on your plate to win. At least if you play against the Union (I agree the CSA AI was never a challenge for me).

Of course it can not compete against a human. There is to my knowledge, no such game, and I don't expect to see one very soon.

The only other game I know which has a really strong AI is GalCiv2. As with any other game you will also learn how to beat this one, but it is a real challenge none the less. And like ACW this is also a game where the developer is adapting the engine to well known exploits.