CC - no FOW for the AI or not?

[MarkShot]

The other day, I was discussing CC with a friend. In our discussion, he pointed out to me that regardless of any game options I chose the enemy AI always knows what units I have and where they are located on the map. This would explain a lot to me when I tried to play the game seriously a couple of years back CC3+RealRed, CC4+VetBoB, and CC5+Vet. It seemed that no matter whether I put units in the back of a building with ambush orders or thought I had put an ATG into a decently stealthy position that they would get wacked before they had done anything to give away their position.

So, my questions:

(1) Is this, in fact, true. Does FOW only apply to human players?

(2) Specifically, is this still the case for COI, an enhanced version of CC3?

(3) If the answer to the above or both yes, then how do you folks play against the computer? Do you bother to use the ambush command? Can things like ATG and zooks/schrecks get off a good shot due to a being placed in good cover, or is that a waste of time? Skip the CM tactics of keyhole LOS and instead place them with good FOV and hope that they get off a single good shot before their demise?

Thanks.

[Marc von Martial]

If this would be the case then I wonder why my ambushs work 80% of the time [;)]

[Andrew Williams]

In my experience , there is no way the AI knows where my teams are located!!!!!

I'd put it down to the Ai being a better player than you... and yes, that's a challenge!

[MarkShot]

Well, then maybe I will revisit CC3/4/5 when I get a chance to reload them.

Also, I will check with me friend to see if he has a reference for that assertion.

[z1812]

Hi All,

I also find that against the A.l. my ambushes seem to work reasonably well............so long as I have been crafty enough.

Regards John

[JamesLxx]

I've tried playing with no FOW for the AI and found that even when I was way out of line of sight I'd still get constant incoming mortor rounds. In the same position with FOW for the AI on I'd only get morterd if I showed myself.

So I recon FOW for the AI does work!

[Louis Jones]

I thought there was some hinting that fow was some how limited for the Ai to better its chances agaisnt a human player a few years back.
Prehaps Mad Bunny could shed some light?

[LitFuel]

Ambush/Hide works just fine for me in any of the CC games...I play against the AI more then online play and one of my great joys is sneaking a bazooka team up close in a building or just hiding until a tank comes by and letting them have it in the rear. Sometimes if your not patient and move around to much or don't wait for the right moment you can get blown out of there but that's the players fault for showing your hand to soon.

[vonB]

Much debated and rumoured over the years.  Does the AI have an 'unfair' advantage over the Human Player?  I suspect the answer is going to be yes, but not necessarily for obvious reasons.  The AI of course 'knows' everything, as it is the Code.  Hoever, it is not 'intelligent', or I might say 'clever'.  It follows proscriptive logic ruthlessly, but not intelligently.  This can manifest in patently bizarre behaviour, and sometimes apparantly astute behaviour.  They are both the product of the same system.  It doesn't 'know' that it is being 'clever' or 'stupid'.
 
However, I do think that it has certain 'advantages' over the Human Player, but not something I would call 'unfair'.  Indeed, you can turn some things to your advantage.  I am convinced that a Team on 'defend' will be perform better (more accurate) when firing on a target.  In particular Bazooka/Panzerscheck Teams.  It seems to me that if I manually command them to Fire on an enemy, the success rate is lower than if I get them close to the enemy and put them on defend.  If the target is close enough, it WILL open up on it.  The same goes for AT Guns, the problem being that you cannot decide which target they are going to choose (unless there are no other choices...), and you can't gurantee they will always open up.
 
I don't know if anyone has tried playing CC without EVER using the Fire Command?  It's an idea I first got from Mick (xe5).  Play a battle, but only use the manouvering Commands.  Let the AI do ALL the firing.  It makes for a very different game, though not everybody's cuppa tea...
 
 

[Harvester]

The never issue a fire command sounds like a great idea!

It's also why I've always liked POA2. In that game u make the battle plan, let 'em know about it and off they go never to be seen again. [:'(]

Most of the time you're not even sure where they're at, much less what they are firing at.

[Andrew Williams]

Mick also recommends using the default deployment.

The Ai has to make do with the default... so should the human player!