Matrix Games Forums

Hm. Another question.

A couple of leaders have dates on them instead of strat/tact values -- are these the dates these leaders become available? And if so, do you have to wait until then to find out their stats?

ORIGINAL: Wandering Eye
A couple of leaders have dates on them instead of strat/tact values -- are these the dates these leaders become available?

Yes. The arrival dates are static.

ORIGINAL: Wandering Eye
And if so, do you have to wait until then to find out their stats?

No. The stats will be freely available in the EIA documentation... once we finish writing it. In the meantime just pull out your cardboard EiA counters and look it up.

What? You don't have cardboard EiA? Shame on you

ORIGINAL: Wandering Eye

Hm. Another question.

A couple of leaders have dates on them instead of strat/tact values -- are these the dates these leaders become available? And if so, do you have to wait until then to find out their stats?

Yes, they are leaders that will be available later in the game.
If you click on the leader, its ratings will be showed in the Selected Unit Info at the bottom of the screen.

Martin Paradis

No. The stats will be freely available in the EIA documentation... once we finish writing it. In the meantime just pull out your cardboard EiA counters and look it up.

hmm... how moddable are those stats? are leaderdatabases etc. easily accesible?

My question is similar to max_h, are leader stats changeable based on their victories or losses? In other words, commander A becomes more experienced by winning several battles and can now command more troops or his tactical rating increases.

It wasn't like that in the original EIA. Unless you count that Nappy's stats went down as time progressed in an optional rule.

Leader's stats stay the same all along the game.

Martin Paradis

Hey guys:

Just a slight summary and a little help to Greyshaft who is doing a WONDERFUL service by doing these AARs! Let's all remember him and put him on our Christmas card list for next year!

The AI is still rather simple today. The difficulty setting does a couple of things. It allows the AI to be a little more smart about battles and movement i.e. it is less likely to attack a stack of 10 with a stack of 5 BUT the higher settings also allow the AI to collect VPs on a slightly faster pace than the rest. We do have scripting in place but not a lot of scripts AND each game will have a random script selected for each nation. These scripts give the AI suggested nations to take, spending policies and the leader's attributes such as loyalty and sanity. Theoretically, you could get an insane leader from Russia that is hell-bent on conquering the world BUT this is unlikely! The odds are that Alexander will be the tentative switch-hitter that he really was, until he was left no choice, of course but I digress. Suffice to say that the AI will NEVER be finished and scripts can be added and modified through out the versions of he game to add to the unique qualities of the game!

One note, The AI does not cheat in its moves or its strategies! It knows what a human knows and NO MORE and it fights itself (AI vs AI) in full combat and not simple die rolls. We made certain of this to make sure that the AI was TRUELY AI. At the same token, I don't think the AI will EVER be able to take place of a human. Please understand this!

The images above on the leaders with the dates listed? Those are the leader's arrival dates in the game BUT you should still notice that the leader's attributes are still listed!

Leader stats stay constant in the game!

Hope this helps a bit...

Thank you

ORIGINAL: Marshall Ellis

BUT the higher settings also allow the AI to collect VPs on a slightly faster pace than the rest.
[...]
One note, The AI does not cheat in its moves or its strategies!

I'm happy with the fact that AI will never be able to replace human players. That is fine with me, but extra VPs sounds like cheating to me... [;)]

Greyshaft:

Not necessarily cheating but forcing you to play differently due to VP "acceleration"

Thank you

I have always thought that EiA is a game in that the diplomacy has a fundamental role. You can find games with an excellent AI, but there are not games that makes the role of Metternich or Talleyrand well, and it´s basic for EiA. Are you developing Diplomatic AI?

ORIGINAL: Camile Desmoulins

I have always thought that EiA is a game in that the diplomacy has a fundamental role. You can find games with an excellent AI, but there are not games that makes the role of Metternich or Talleyrand well, and it´s basic for EiA. Are you developing Diplomatic AI?

Don't expect the AI to even be close to the same as a human opponent. I'm sure if you want a really good game you will have to play-by-email. However the AI will be good for trying out that plan you always wanted to try but were too affraid to try.[;)]

Don't expect the AI to even be close to the same as a human opponent. I'm sure if you want a really good game you will have to play-by-email. However the AI will be good for trying out that plan you always wanted to try but were too affraid to try.[;)]

I am sure of it. However I think that it would be essential to get a good game a good diplomatic AI in the small countries (Bavaria, Bade, Wurtemberg, etc). It's easy to find players for the Great Powers that will be who develop their own diplomacy, but the diplomacy you the minor ones will always be in hands of the AI game.

Minor countries in EiA boardgame don't get independant diplomacy. They are neutral until DoW-ed by a Major power. Then the controling Major power for the durration of the war is determined by rolling the dice among the interested and applying the national modifiers.

In EiH Diplomacy on minors was introduced to allow Major powers to invest money and roll the dice with the national modifiers applied while the minors are still neutral. If that diplomacy roll was succesfull a Minor would become your Influenced country, and you would automatically get the defense once they were attacked by another Major power. You could also upgrade them into your Minor Ally by further money investment and another succesfull die roll. Once they were your allies you could call them to your defense once you were attacked by another Major power and then they would automatically become your Free state.

EiH diplomacy on minors is included in MG EiA.

Well, if you can just throw money at it, I wonder if it would work that England could just buy Sweden instead of fighting Russia for it?

Well, rolling the dice allways has a risk involved (unless you really throw large sums of money) so you could be better off just invading as fast as you can to get all the manpower that GB is lacking to build the best infantry in the world.

Major part off EiA is Diplomacy you conduct with other Major powers, and you can allways persuade the guy playing Russia to invade Sweden and then buy it off from him later on, if that was what you suggested. You are only limited by your imagination in all kinds off deals you can do with other players. But, beware, if you buy Sweden from Russia for big money, that big money can be converted into Ships-of-the-Line that will sail under the Russian flag and help France invade London [:D]

ORIGINAL: pfnognoff
In EiH Diplomacy on minors was introduced to allow Major powers to invest money and roll the dice with the national modifiers applied while the minors are still neutral. If that diplomacy roll was succesfull a Minor would become your Influenced country, and you would automatically get the defense once they were attacked by another Major power. You could also upgrade them into your Minor Ally by further money investment and another succesfull die roll. Once they were your allies you could call them to your defense once you were attacked by another Major power and then they would automatically become your Free state.

It can be dangerous this kind of diplomatic influence. I think that Great Powers can intervene in the diplomacy of the minors, it is more, they should intervene, it happened this way in really, and the charts of the game reflect it. But the AI can improve one of the aspects with more possibilities of improvement: that the minor will always fight for their independence. This doesn't mean that they will commit suicide systematically (that is not to fight, it is a stupidity) [:-], but rather they will develop the diplomacy that allows them to maintain their independence, not the one that allows them to get rich without obtaining anything to change (an abstract idea like freedom?) [&:]

By the way how are the counters of the Minor Powers? [:)]

EiH had the rules for Minor countries revolt. I only played with that rule one time with my friends, and we decided that it isn't worth the effort. Major powers in EiH are too powerfull to be revolted against. Minors are just there to provide reason for war and compensation when the war ends [:'(]

Here is a screenshot from one of my games against the AI. You will see Hesse and Wurtenburg Corps counters. I hope this was what you asked about.

ORIGINAL: pfnognoff

Here is a screenshot from one of my games against the AI. You will see Hesse and Wurtenburg Corps counters. I hope this was what you asked about.

Good look, ma foi!

Thanks, Pfnognoff [:D]

Seeking clarification on the counters.

- Do the counters that look like towers (first inclination was to say 'rooks', heh) designate something like militia garrisons?

- Do the little red-outline boxes in the upper-left corner of certain counters mean that they're in the city, or is this something else?

- Were any of the towns in this area of the map fortified cities (can't remember off-hand)? If so, I'd be curious to know whether there's a way to check how many troops (measured in army factors? can't recall, it's been a long time) that you need to properly garrison it. IIRC the original board had dark triangular notches set in the wall of the town icon.