AI - ideas for jap escorts anyone?

[bstarr]

I'm thinking of making fictional 'heavy escorts' for the japanese. what class of ship would the AI recognize as needed for amphibious forces but would be more likely to fight rather than run if attacked by a surface force. I'm thinking APDs with stats like a AMC but with higher skill and moral and maybe some armor added for good measure.

How does the AI decide what fights and what runs anyway? Should I make the tonnage or damage points of these ships higher?

I'm trying to make a mod for allied vs AI. The problem is the AI seldom sends covering fleets and uses too few escort vessels, so what should be a standup fight at an early landing site becomes a one-sided massacre between a 3CL and 5DD Allied force and a Japanese landing force consisitng of about 10AKs escorted by a lonely minesweeper, if they're lucky. I'm thinking if one or two of the ships in the convoy were armed with 6 inch guns and weren't afraid to use them the fight might be alittle more interesting and I could go back to using my CAs and CLs for something other than carrier escorts.

(btw, I realize the difficulties of designing a functional AI. I'm not complaining; I'm just looking for a work-around idea)

[Shark7]

Well designed DE would work...or rather building the additional 80 Tachibana that were planned but cancelled might be a way to go.

[Andy Mac]

The no.1 best way to help the AI but will make the scenario unbalanced v a player so this is 100% AI only scneario is to add a few specific types of unit.
 
We didnt do this because the scenarios have to wrk for both PBEM and Ai but you can
 
1. Add c 30 extra DD's/DE's at start - DD's are the single best utility weapon the Japanese have you can never have enough of them
2. Add a selection of additional AMC's and CL's 5 or 6 of each would do.
3. Add a new improved PB class with 50 units in it make them small AMC's basically with a couple of decent guns.
 
Adding those ships to Scen 2 on day 1 will make the general level of protection around AI TF's for the first few months better but it makes the scen 100% AI only
 
To be honest that may be overkill because hopefully the tweaks I am makign will help anyway but if I had to do something thats what I would be doing.