Difficulty and AI Bonus Settings

[Emperor Zodd]

Medium bonus gives 3x production and research and low bonus 2x production and research.

[This message has been edited by Emperor Zodd (edited 26 January 2001).]

[lwmweb]

The bonus does make for a more interesting game. I think I turned the corner Last night when I forced number 5 to surrender after taking 17 systems and was in the process of taking two of his Last three systems. I was paying close attention and I only advanced one level in each of the techs I received from him. Of course I have his fleets to analyze.

Oh I was number 4 at the time. I am number 2 now but still a ways behind number one in points. The AI definitely uses mine sweepers. I have seen dreadnought equipped as mine sweeps. The mine sweeps do have problems with armed satellites though. They run in combat but don't leave the area for quite a while.

[raynor]

quote:

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Originally posted by Wisdom:
Well thanks for the feedback. I'll be curious to know how your game goes. I cant imagine you have a snowball's chance unless the AI is really REALLY bad at making tactical decisions. Because strategically, you are LONG dead but just dont know it yet.

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I'll let you know how it goes. I think I'll be okay so long as I can stay out of the way of the top five empires and/or manage to keep them happy.

So far, this has proved pretty easy. Once you find a star system with their colony in it, don't ever, ever visit it again.

[Jubala]

A neutral AI Empire never leaves it's starting system and always have only one starting planet. A regular AI Empire is the ones beating down your doors.

What he means with advanced empires is probably just the ones that are bigger then him in his current game.

[DirectorTsaarx]

Just wondering: any idea if the computer knows how to utilize some of the more advanced facilities? I recently destroyed a planet that had both a ship training facility and a fleet training facility.

I've also found a couple of the "bonus" facilities (computer complexes, robotoid factories); so the standard AI does build a few of those... although not as intelligently as they should (I found a system computer complex in a system that only had one research facility and lots of farming facilities; and a system robotoid factory in a system with a couple farming facilities and lots of research centers!!).

Of course, this is in a game with "Low" bonus turned on (I've fought my way to fifth place, with barely fewer points than number 4; numbers 1, 2 and 3 are almost 2x my score for now - somewhere between turn 120 & 175).

[raynor]

Just finished up my max bonus game and went back to some previous saved games.

Yep. The AI gets the same bonus for intel that he does for research: 5x whatever the colonies produce.

Towards the end of the game when Mega Evil Empire set them all against me, intel started to get a bit annoying. Every turn, I'd get a report about one or two planets being damaged, a couple of planets rioting because of AI Puppet Party attacks, food contamination killing population, etcetera.
Quite, quite annoying.

Most of it I ignored until I realized a couple of colonizes were blockaded by my own former ships!!

I'll take a look at some of the other systems and let you know what I find.

[raynor]

quote:

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Originally posted by Emperor Zodd:
Medium bonus gives 3x production and research and low bonus 2x production and research.

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Are you sure about the production bonus?

I've seen the intel/research bonus. But so far in looking at the computer players, I don't see that much of a production bonus (if any).

[Emperor Zodd]

Yes

[raynor]

quote:

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Originally posted by Emperor Zodd:
Yes

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Maybe you could please help me verify this myself. I looked but I just didn't see it.

I was able to verify the 5x research/int by comparing what it showed on the research/int screen to what the colony screen showed the empire was actually producing. For example, the EEE showed 200,000 research points and 50,000 intelligence points on the colony screen. But on the research screen, the EEE had 1,000,000 research points to allocate each turn. The intelligence screen showed 50,000 intelligence points available each turn for use on projects.

On the score display, it only showed the actual colony output for research/intelligence--not the 5x amounts.

So... other than the Empire screen, where would I go to verify the 5x production, do you think? I thought I looked at individual planets and didn't see anything.

Wouldn't 5x production mean that if the empire showed 200K production on the scores screen that it was actually producing 1000K resources each turn?

Thanks for your help. I *thought* there was some other bonus besides research/intel but I just haven't been able to verify it yet.

[This message has been edited by raynor (edited 29 January 2001).]