My AI Design Q&A

[cybersol]

Originally posted by JLS:
Your build queues will continue the construction process to complete, all Items, which are already under construction from your previous, Defend (Short Term). (IIRC) Any Items, other then top in processed Item, will be cleared from the queues.
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When the AI; picks a selection based on the AI State, the first item in the queue is selected, and evaluated , the AI will fill all available build queues.

When it switches back to "Prepare for Attack" after my hypothetical situation, it will indeed process the first entry. But it has already completed this entry since neither PPI nor MHAL has changed since it was Last in this queue (because no ships were made or destroyed and no planet were made). Thus the first "ship" it will add to a construction queue is exactly the one it would have added if it had never switched to the "Defend (Short Term)" state.

Originally posted by JLS:
And now, that you just invested, in actuality a Prepare for attack (when a Incursion was the call). Can you say that your AI can afford another tumble thru Prepare for Attack, again, and again? Please consider, will you have exotic ships like the Planet or System Destroyer, etc� In the Prepare for Attack.
If not, then were would you request them?

Given the example above about how the queues work, I don't really see why it would be expensive to make multiple passes through a "Prepare for Attack" like queue. Either you have a ship already and it can skip the entry or you still need it so you build it. If you call for one star destroyer (PPI=0,MHAL=1), then as long as it is either being built or already built and still surviving then you will never build another.

Originally posted by JLS:
This reminds me. Cybersol, about how many BSYs do you expect at about turn 55?

Being in the proportions type frame of mind, you are not going to like the answer. Right now, it would have zero. I may eventually add one or two to better handle single planet starts. By turn 55, it would have a large number of planetary yards though.

Originally posted by JLS:
It is recommended, that units be placed at the top of this Defend Short Term, because the AI Switches in an out of this State frequently. This way, thru out the game your Home World will be assured of a fresh supply.
Any available BSYs or Yard Facilities will continue on with the Defend (Short Term) list, of course the BSY will only receive, Ship or Base requests.

I disagree slightly here. In the unmodded game there is very little cargo room on planets. The small cargo room makes it more important to plan which units are built on each planet type. The construction_units file allow this type of specific assignment. Using the construction_units file also free's up planetary space yards to work on ships instead of units. With a few exceptions based on needed cargo for carriers or layers, I think most units should be built through the construction_units file in the unmodded game.