Scenario Design and the AI

[osiris_slith]

Hi All

I think this issue has finally reached a boiling and breaking point for me. Unless the AI is significantly improved in the next patch than designing scenarios and LCGS is pointless! I dont understand why the AI in Steel panthers is so much better and in OAW than in CS but heres a few points that need to be fixed!

1: The AI is runnning the same units back and forth and back and forth..very irrititating. This was resloved in the original EF Gold 1.03..why has it returned?

2: AI Battalion and all HQS do not move! Unless they move the AI wont move unitd forward because they are out of supply! This needs to be fixed!

3: I have designed a meeting engagement (axis moves first) and the AI aggressiveness is set to 90..well nothing happens..it just sits around..this was not the case in version 1.03..if you took an objective the AI would be all over you..here in fact it in some cases it wont even move a unit for the whole turn. It seems if the AI is not set to move first it just sits and defends the first objective it runs into and reacts to nothing at all!

4. If the AI is set to move first than all is well..seems to work better but the battalion HQs still do not move

Thats my gripes about AI..would be nice if it can be tweaked or improved

Rene

[Warren]

Unless, I'm mistaken, there hasn't been any modifications to the AI from v1.03. It would be nice to see this portion of the program worked on like in TOAW. I remember leader units doing a shuffle back and forth. Was kind of wierd when it happen. I found by fixing the unit and then releasing on a turn when I felt the attacker would be near was the best I could do to alleviate the problem.
 
Cheers.

[1925frank]

I've put together a few scenarios for my own enjoyment.  I quickly gave up on having the AI move any units anywhere.  I assign the AI a defensive role.  Reinforcements come out on top of the spot I want them.  If it's in the middle of the map, I place them there and fix them with a release. 
 
Regarding my experience with AI movement, sometimes the AI will go for captured victory hexes and sometimes not.  I can't predict.  Sometimes AI units seem to find a spot out of the way and out of the action and then will just sit.  I suspect this is because those units came onto the map too far away from any particular victory hex and simply never linked up with one to pursue. 
 
Sometimes I think when two companies come onto the map from the same spot, the AI will assign one company a victory hex and that company will pursue it, but the AI won't assign the second company anything, so one company moves purposefully, while the second finds the quiet spot and sits.  I guess my limited advice is to make sure reinforcements come onto a map near a victory hex, and string the victory hexes like breadcrumbs, but I don't know if even that will work.  I guess too you may not want more than one company competing for the same victory hex as bait. 
 
The AI does seem to go after enemy exit hexes, but I haven't experimented enough to say it will do so every time.
 
Because I more-or-less gave up on AI movement early, I haven't experimented that much, but the above is basically some half-baked observations that might or might not have any validity.

[osiris_slith]

Hi

Thanks for your replies all really helpful. I reinstalled ver 1.03 yesterday and did some experimenting. [8D]

Im using the Red Steel and Tank graveyard at Minsk scenarios as my measuring tool for AI performance and they are set up in a very similar way and the AI works well in both.

I compared the victory conditions (major victory) to the number of VP in objectives Red Steel. In red steel its 550 VPs in objectives and a major victory is set at 475. I think in Tank Grave yard its 1200 VP for a major and 1400 pts in objectives or the other way around.[:)]

Following this logic I set the Major Victory condition to a 1000 for my own custom scenario (meeting engagement), the total number of VPs in objectives is a 1000 as well. I also set the AI to 90. [8D]

Well the AI performed really well, it pretty much went for an all out attack and tried some flanking moves as well. I got thrashed the first time since I did not expect it and decided to do a retest. This time I was ready for it but it was still a tough fight. The AI commited almost all the units except for a company or 2.

I think the Major victory level needs to be set as close as possible to the number of objective points on the board a little over or a little under, otherwise if you go to far either way the AI wont move in meeting engagements. Assaults and defensive engagements are easier to set up.

As for the units going back and forth thats a Matrix issue and that needs to be fixed by someone who knows a lot more [:'(][:'(]

So today I will reload Matrix CS and try the same thing and hopefully get the same results

Thanks guys

Rene