Best mod for play vs. the AI

[Droop21]

My hectic worklife does not enable me to play in a PBEM [:(]. What is the best suited mod for play vs. AI [:)]

[el cid again]

First - a disclaimer. WITP is not really suited for AI play.

Problem 1: AI simply can never play the Allies (according to Joe Wilkerson after 12,000 turns of play experience).

Problem 2: Long term games show that late in 1944 AI will become unplayable as Japan. Starting in August ALL air units convert to kamakaze - and by November 100 per cent are so converted. This means Japan may NEVER fly naval search, naval recon, ASW patrol, transport, fighter, bomber, CAP, name it air operations. The ONLY workaround for this is to lie to the game - claim it is head to head - and then do something (or even nothing) with Japanese air units.

Problem 3: Short term testing indicates AI as Japan wastes at least 5/6 of the potential of shipping and vast amounts of other potential.

[el cid again]

In order to facilitate AI play, in part, RHS devised a special mod called AIO. It was found that certain features of RHS were not compatable with AI play - for example active Russians and interior river systems. So these were removed - along with other changes related for techincal reasons (Soviet subs only appear in June 1945 for example - so even if Russia is activated - they won't be in play - this had to be done but is one of many unfortunate compromises). This scenario was based on EOS - a Japan enhansed scenario - so Japan had "more to lose" as it were - helping make up for its stupidity.

This did not work out well - because EOS features a central Pacific campaign AI is not able to cope with. So while AIO remains - it is for players to PRACTICE EOS before they get embarassed with real players. Another mod of a mod was made - MAIO (Modified AIO) - to help AI by NOT doing the central Pacific campaign. That is now shifted toward New Caledonia and Fiji - and it works - if AI can ever be said to work. This mod only exists in RHS Level 7. Buck - who apparently does AI games - thinks it is the strongest WITP AI mod available. It is an interesting variant - and actually a better human game than an AI one - since it is different - and no scenario works well for AI. But it does not have features AI cannot handle, it does have a strong Japan, and it even has a little bit of "programming" in the set up files. Much of that does not work - but some of it does - and some of it may work better if certain 'features' of code are fixed (so units more consistently obey their orders - instead of disregarding them - which AI tends to do).

It is likely that a mini game mod could be made using the additional program features NOT available for campaign games that would do more justice to AI. As far as I know - this has not been done - but this is a big community - and it may have.

There is an option for opposed AI play! I have a programmer who wants to make a better AI in the form of an Excel "washing" of each turn - we can change some data to help AI - and we need data - so - if you do any RHS mod - at any pace - I will sent a reply - and "capture" the data for the excel routines. These will only be done for AE (probably) - but the lessons learned will help do it right. What we do is look at the situation - record what AI should have done - and then reduce that to a form that can be handled by macros.