Moments of AI brilliance

[Heinage]

...OK maybe more like 'moments where the AI has done something kinda smart'.

Have you had any cases where the AI has done something that makes you think: "wow, that's not half bad actually, good job! "

I can think of 2 recent cases (on Emperor difficulty):
1. In my current game, I repelled an invading force of Hiawatha during a defensive war (playing cultural/religiously as Pachacuti), which was decent but not good enough to get through 8 comp. bows (upgraded from slingers) in the hills and mountains. I then started launching a counter-attack on one of his newest cities closest to my capital. The moment I entered his lands with an invasion force, he rush-bought Walls, a Trebuchet, and brought 3 Mohawk Warriors to that city. Seeing that there was not a snowball's chance in hell of getting that city, I actually ended up retreating. Awesome.
2. In an older game as Carthage, I started very close to a cornered Napoleon on a peninsula. Great. Knowing that hostilities would be inevitable, I decided I may as well antagonise him and build cities in a pristine location in the one spot he had left, but on the other side of him. Now, for reasons that I, to this day, cannot fully explain without assuming that the AI must be brilliant, Napoleon decided to buy a useless desert tile, 3 tiles out from Orleans, stopping me from sending a settler to that much-coveted spot! (at least until I got Optics). It seriously looked like something a human would do faced with the exact same circumstances. The only other reason I can think of, for the AI to want that desert tile so much it purchases it, is if it knows that there is oil there later on (I didn't continue long enough with that game to find out).

Anyway, glad I could share these moments and hope that there are many more to come

 

[Mesix]

I recently saw the AI placing two citadels offensively near another AI capital to culture bomb the area and build a road for his units to attack. It was nice to see the AI make a strategic move like that.

Whenever the AI does something remotely smart, it kind of gives me the same feeling as seeing a two year old tie his shoes for the first time.

 

[Pook]

When I saw the topic, I thought this would be a humor thread, akin to the "World's shortest books" jokes.

I have seen the AI, on about the same tech level, launch a highly competent counterattack using ranged and melee units. I have also seen the AI place citadels in front of one of their own cities in such a way that it was almost impossible to take.

 

[AbbieRevo]

I feel like the AI performs a lot better in G&K than it did in CiVanilla. I never got eliminated by an enemy Civ until G&K. Now it happens enough that I've been changing strategies, and have stopped moving up difficulty levels.

 

[OmniPotent42]

I have seen the AI do exceptionally well in open terrain. Monty and Alex are really hard to deal with in those situations, especially if they are both in your game.

 

[NukeAJS]

I got feigned attacked by the AI once. It attacked with a token force via land initially and then brought in a much bigger force supported by a decent navy via sea. I lost two coastal cities, but eventually took them back via attrition.

Still, I was impressed. I don't think I could have done better than it did (although I wouldn't have attacked knowing I'd probably lose in the first place).

The AI is also much more likely to throw everything its got when you're close to winning -- as it should.

 

[PhilBowles]

I have seen the AI do exceptionally well in open terrain. Monty and Alex are really hard to deal with in those situations, especially if they are both in your game.

I've faced some good combat moves - including Suleiman besieging my city and bringing trebuchets (in the water, out of sight/range of my city) up to replace each that was destroyed, landing them two at a time in the best positions so that I couldn't take out both. But probably the best has to be one vanilla game where Alex's Companion Cavalry were just lethal - he'd bring them out of fog of war, flank my unit while he attacked with something else, then move them straight back into the fog, where I couldn't pursue past Hoplites. He lurked one or two others out of sight elsewhere as well, so that when I tried to move my worker out into a safe area to start working, the CC just grabbed it straight away and fled back out of city range.

 

[clif9710]

I had a situation where the AI was doing very well as Egypt, precisely placing units to hold off my siege of Heliopolis and making every unit count. I was able to grab the city but Ram Man took it right back.

...while at the same time the AI was doing nothing as Montezuma, who DOW'd me and had a clear field to go after my capital city (far away from the Egyptian conflict) with plenty of good units against nothing but a xbowman defending, yet Monty's units just milled around on my border, never even got close enough for me to get in one shot at them and then after many turns of this - left.

 

[Cicero63]

To my surprise I found that the AI united to great strategic advantage against me. First, my greatest competitor (I was Carthage) Korea invited what was formally English Lands with a massive invasion force. I defeated him and moved my army across the border to take his undefended border towns. While I was doing that Sejong allied with Kamehameha and Elizabeth at last minute. Suddenly sweeping in from my flank came a great Polynesian and English army. At first I was so impressed but as soon as they crossed the border they were indecisive and easily defeated

 

[Ozzy88]

In a recent game I had Greece declare war on me just before throwing all of his money at my 2 closest City State allies that were both militaristic. With his troops and the now advancing city state troops he had essentially set in motion a large pincer movement.

It really took my by surprise because I had never seen anything like this in Vanilla.

 

[PhilBowles]

In a recent game I had Greece declare war on me just before throwing all of his money at my 2 closest City State allies that were both militaristic. With his troops and the now advancing city state troops he had essentially set in motion a large pincer movement.

It really took my by surprise because I had never seen anything like this in Vanilla.

I've had those tactical alliances several times now. In one game my enemy (I think it was Monty, but don't remember) allied three CSes in order to ambush my units (two of them were on an island where I was gathering my invasion force). He allied the third - on an island guarding my units' retreat path - just long enough for its forces to wipe out my retreating units, then let the alliance lapse.

 

[Aaron90495]

A few games ago, I saw the AI found a "war city" right next to me a few turns before they DoW'd me, then purchased a walls and castle and two or three units in the next few turns. It seemed too well-thought-out to just be a coincidence, so consider me impressed.

 

[smallfish]

A few games ago, I saw the AI found a "war city" right next to me a few turns before they DoW'd me, then purchased a walls and castle and two or three units in the next few turns. It seemed too well-thought-out to just be a coincidence, so consider me impressed.

Austria loves doing that with city-states

 

[adsin15]

The only other reason I can think of, for the AI to want that desert tile so much it purchases it, is if it knows that there is oil there later on (I didn't continue long enough with that game to find out).

I've noticed this happens a lot. The AI will know in advance where to place cities and buy tiles to take advantage of resources that it cannot possibly know exist yet. Was this intentional or is it a bug?

 

[clif9710]

The AI will know in advance where to place cities and buy tiles to take advantage of resources that it cannot possibly know exist yet. Was this intentional or is it a bug?

I had a worker that, when I put it on auto, would go to a tile and sit there doing nothing. There wasn't anything there to develop. Then, when I reached the discovery of oil - guess what was on that tile.

 

[OmniPotent42]

I've noticed this happens a lot. The AI will know in advance where to place cities and buy tiles to take advantage of resources that it cannot possibly know exist yet. Was this intentional or is it a bug?

I highly doubt it's resource cheating. I think that's just genuine AI stupidity. Maybe the city is on production focus? If there weren't any other resources, it's probably just a random decision to burn money.

 

[smallfish]

Gandhi. He started off circled by me, Austria and Montezuma

Naturally everyone but me declares war on him.

Then...

Spoiler :

The poor Austrians and Aztecs never knew what hit them.

 

[Jatta Pake]

Just think, in the future we will be playing AIs that can "think" like a human. It will be a whole new level of gaming as you will be able to buy DLC AI opponents. Truelly ingenious ones will get fan followings and discussion threads will consist of "OMG can't believe REX tricked me with a move that cut off all my iron" and "dude, how do you stop ALVIN rush?"

 

[Socratatus]

Sometimes it`s hard to tell if the AI had a moment of smartness or was just a lucky coincidence, but...
1. Washington approached one of my cities by sea, so I responded with my ready huge army of experienced troops and artillery ready to rebuff his silly attack. I had completely neglected to build any aircraft or AA as I`d been winning battles against several other Civs without them. But America had bought two Carrier Air Forces (loaded with bombers and protected by battleships) with it. He then proceeded to bomb and strafe all my army to dust without even one of his men getting his finger dirty and walked in to take my city . Not one of his men engaged in an actual land battle which was what i was expecting.

2. I was attacking an AI city and noticed some of his forces jumped out of it and bypassed my attackers. I ignored them and focused on taking the city. I took the city, but then he took a city I`d left thinly defended behind me instead. He basically gave up one city to capture the other!

3. Sometimes I wonder if he pulls me into a trap. He`ll attack, then pull back, i`ll follow and suddenly find my troops surrounded by a massive attacking force of enemey and get wiped out.

4. I like the way the AI will try to get other AI`s to gang up on me. So often when a weak country declares war he`s soon followed up by 1 or 2 others that can really add on the pressure.

5. I also like how they actually decide they`re going to war with you about 10 turns before, then spend time building a war force to attack before declaring war.

6. They also seem to have a strategy. for instance, I noticed America focused on one of my cities by sea and then was methodically taking cities one by one. When I finally figured his route and lay submarines across his path he changed targets.

 

[smallfish]

I was attacking an AI city and noticed some of his forces jumped out of it and bypassed my attackers. I ignored them and focused on taking the city. I took the city, but then he took a city I`d left thinly defended behind me instead. He basically gave up one city to capture the other!

I've seen that happen before, except it was between Washington and Attila AIs. Washington sent his massive force of trebs, Longswords and comp bow/crossbows to Honolulu (with GW). Attila DOWs and takes DC, but Washington continues pummeling the Polynesians and then finally takes the GW city. Then he turns back and smash the Huns out of his capital, and engage in a massive counterattack that really screws the Huns badly.