Mechanics of AI difficulty

[LoBlo]

Anyone know what changes about the game with difficulty setting? Is it just Behavior or are their backdoor cheats that the NPCs acquire (sensor ranges, targeting bonuses, etc)?

LB

[fruitgnome]

Hover over the difficulty text (at galaxy generation screen) there is something written.

[OrnluWolfjarl]

Colony prevalence: Changes the range of quality that colonizable planets may have. Does not change the number of individual planet types generated. Hampers or benefits player and AI empires at the same time.

Difficulty: Changes player and AI empires bonuses and maluses. Generally, it affects income (corruption reduction, happiness, trade/tax/tourism income, maintenance savings), research bonuses and military capabilties (troop attack/defense, weapons damage). Hampers the player and benefits the AI, and vice versa.

Aggression: Changes how willing the AI is to attack or stay peaceful. At higher settings the AI is more willing to ignore relations with another empire and attack if it senses weakness. Also makes the AI more reckless and makes it willing to attack
even if it is not ready for war. Basically it changes the range of relations that the AI uses to consider you a friend or a foe. Different races already have an aggression setting and this ramps it up or tones it down accordingly. As far as I know it doesn't give any bonuses or penalties to anyone. It just changes how the AI takes the decision to go to war.

[LoBlo]

Difficulty: Changes player and AI empires bonuses and maluses. Generally, it affects income (corruption reduction, happiness, trade/tax/tourism income, maintenance savings), research bonuses and military capabilties (troop attack/defense, weapons damage). Hampers the player and benefits the AI, and vice versa.

Yes, that's what the game communicates. My question was one of specifics. For example, I've played a game in with changes the difficult scales the hit-points of the NPCs by 25% up with every difficulty.

It would be nice to know what *exactly* are the variables updated with each difficulty. For example, is income increased by a factor of 1.5 with each difficulty? Is targeting bonus increased by 10% or not changed at all.

It would probably take a dev or someone that's dug into the actual code to discern the details.

LB

[twent]

...
It would probably take a dev or someone that's dug into the actual code to discern the details.

I am also interested in this, I hope the devs share more details on the matter.