AI must be cheating

[Pengu]

The combat odds is not something I am against ion principle but sometimes I feel like the AI cheating and 50% isn't really 50%

In my last game I was already winning but Saladin was my last opponent. I had highly upgraded cavs and artillery vs his cavs. He took his stack and slammed into mine and in those fights the AI had odds between 3% and 28% odds. His 10 cavs attacked mine and at 24%-28.8% and won 7 of those, withdrew from battle in 1 fight and lost 2.I have no other words than cheating when you get that outcome. I don't care but that is BULLcrap!

 

[coanda]

The source code is out there, can be read, dissected, and edited by modders, and the AI does not get an advantage on combat rolls.

Although if I recall correctly, there are some occasions where the displayed combat odds do not accurately reflect the real odds of victory. Don't remember the exact details of when that applies. It's not the AI cheating in its favor or in the human's favor, but it is a situation where you might be misled by the UI due to an imperfectly-implemented function for converting multi-turn combat down to a single win/loss percent to display.

 

[BornInCantaloup]

Saladin cheats, Catherine and Roosevelt do, too (which is to be expected), but most other AIs play fair and square.

 

[AcaMetis]

The AI does not get outright bonuses to combat rolls. The problem is that the odds calculation is suspect at best, and the game's RNG is known to roll streaks of low/high numbers on occasion, leading to results like this. It is rare, especially on the player's side because you rarely attack with such low odds as the AI is willing to do, but I have seen someone capture a capital during a HA rush by outright winning three to five fights at like 4-20% odds or something.

 

[Kaiman]

the game's RNG is known to roll streaks of low/high numbers on occasion

As is any RNG if you get enough samples.

 

[Nick723]

I’d say the AI cheats less regularly than we do

I’ve yet to see an AI reload or go into worldbuilder, but I’m sure they all do at somepoint when they’re feeling it

 

[soundjata]

Blue Circle is a cheat-hack that only AIs know how to use properly.

 

[Gumbolt]

AI is limited by so many functions. Especially some not being able to declare war on you at please. They will not stop you strealing workers. They will attack cities till defences are reduced to 0% if they have units that can bombard.

To be fair the AI is pretty standard in it's play making it easy to abuse their every move. Their love of suiciding stacks also helps. Attack an Ai from 2 sides and it will struggle. Bribe AI in and they will struggle.

If you don't know the game, have poor micro and macro then it will feel like the AI is cheating. If you understand all the game mechanics you should be winning most games on immortal unless playing always war or some other odd setting. This is not a simple game and this is why some struggle.

 

[guermantes]

To be fair the AI is pretty standard in it's play making it easy to abuse their every move. Attack an Ai from 2 sides and it will struggle.

This! I was recently in the last moves of a game, just needing to vassal X before winning. I attacked on two fronts, moving my cannons and most cavs towards the big cities in the south while 10 cavs attacked a small border city up north. I did not have vision on any of the enemy cities but thought the small city up north would be undefended and could be taken on the first turn. Turns out he had his stack there. 7 rifles, cavs and grenadiers. Maybe 20 units altogether. So I retreated immediately with my second move. Two turns later, while having advanced in the south, I came back and low and behold, the entire stack was moved out even though he would have seen my units on the border all the time. I took the city easily He had moved eastward to reinforce his capital, leaving both cites in the north and south with relatively little defenses.