Noticing some AI changes...

[smallfish]

1) They tend to be less aggressive at the start - I haven't had a DOW from neighboring Japan despite him possessing a stronger military and denouncing/renouncing our friendship once I became his neighbor (before that it was Isabella).

Instead, I DOWed him and ate his empire.

2) Gandhi realized that I was close to "winning" (ie. happy Domination happily), and went for a Coalition of the Willing against his ex-friend: me.

3) The AI ACTUALLY makes use of Scouts.

Spoiler :

4) Samurais are seriously tough. Like even just one or two can kill your Riflemen dead even if they are wounded.

And the AI, SHOCKINGLY, isn't afraid to employ them even when they are wounded. Normally, they would retreat wounded units... but here, Oda just went up against my riflemen and cannons aggressively with his samurais and Pikemen even when they were wounded and I lost five riflemen that way.

5) Most of my neighbors make DoF with me even though they "covet" my lands.

Or in the case of Darius:

Spoiler :

on the flipside, they still do this a lot too.

Spoiler :

 

[noncognosco]

Quick question: what map were you using in that last screenshot?

The gameplay changes with G&K (giving all units defensive embark) will take away a lot of the problem with that last one.

 

[krc]

Quick question: what map were you using in that last screenshot?

The gameplay changes with G&K (giving all units defensive embark) will take away a lot of the problem with that last one.

If I had to guess, I'd say the map is probably the modified ring map with city-states that I put together....

 

[smallfish]

If I had to guess, I'd say the map is probably the modified ring map with city-states that I put together....

Yep, ya'll should try out krc's Ring2 if you haven't. Its been some really great fun with that many CSes on an otherwise normal Ring map.

The gameplay changes with G&K (giving all units defensive embark) will take away a lot of the problem with that last one.

Well, if the Mongol AI still doesn't know how to utilize Keshiks (and against their historical foe the Chinese), I don't think defensive embark will help much at all.

 

[noncognosco]

Well, if the Mongol AI still doesn't know how to utilize Keshiks (and against their historical foe the Chinese), I don't think defensive embark will help much at all.

It won't make the AI into a tactical genius but at least you won't be able to instant-kill all of their units in the water anymore.

 

[smallfish]

Ok, I think the myth that AI doesn't know how to use nuclear missiles needs to be debunked immediately.

Because they do, and boy you better watch out when they can spam them out by the dozens per turn like in Deity.


To start off, was messing about a later era start on said difficulty level.

I got thrown out of my home continent before the 3rd Millennium. Starting next to Autocracy Askia and Monty was pretty bad even though I had nukes. Then Darius, who was friendly when we first met, surprised DOWed me too, and 2 ICBMs weren't enough to stem the zombie hordes.

Spoiler :

Good thing I had the foresight to settle here tho.

Spoiler :

It gave me the refuge I needed to survive, and those city-states weren't independent once I got me that aluminum tile working.

Long story short, even though I was at war with Songhai and Aztecs, I had a new subcontinent to play with, and I decided it was high time to start liberating the other one populated by Chairman Hiawatha and Lord Ramesses.

Spoiler :

It went well. Don't let that GDR fool you - once I snatched that uranium from the communists, it suffered the 50% resource shortage penalty and was quickly dealt with my... special units.

But then they did the unthinkable.

Spoiler :

Nope, he didn't have enough ground forces to push through me special units and the Egyptians at the same time.

Yep, he used a couple nuclear missiles to wipe off his own city.

I didn't take screens for that moment, but one of his first atomic strikes on newly-taken Grand River was done WITH his own friendly units within the two tiles. Me thinks he was trying to employ Pentomic tactics, and it worked.

Sorta.


Also I'm not sure what they are trying to here...

Spoiler :

But it was annoying.

Spoiler :

 

[Halcyan2]

3) The AI ACTUALLY makes use of Scouts.

Fortunately for us humans (and unfortunately for the AI), it doesn't really understand how to use Scouts aggressively. There have been many a time when an enemy Scout could have been devastating by killing/capturing a civilian unit (especially Great People). Similarly, Scouts have a reasonable chance of killing Archers or wounded units, yet I have *never* seen the AI attack with a scout.

4) Samurais are seriously tough. Like even just one or two can kill your Riflemen dead even if they are wounded.

And the AI, SHOCKINGLY, isn't afraid to employ them even when they are wounded. Normally, they would retreat wounded units... but here, Oda just went up against my riflemen and cannons aggressively with his samurais and Pikemen even when they were wounded and I lost five riflemen that way.

Well, generally Samurai are controlled by the Japanese (exception for the occasional random militaristic tribute) so even if wounded, they fight like they aren't due to Japan's unique ability.

 

[smallfish]

Fortunately for us humans (and unfortunately for the AI), it doesn't really understand how to use Scouts aggressively. There have been many a time when an enemy Scout could have been devastating by killing/capturing a civilian unit (especially Great People). Similarly, Scouts have a reasonable chance of killing Archers or wounded units, yet I have *never* seen the AI attack with a scout.

There was a post here that showed an AI scout capturing a worker.

I think its safe to assume this is one of those rare brilliant moves that the AI can pull off, like that shtick with the nuclear missiles above.

Well, generally Samurai are controlled by the Japanese (exception for the occasional random militaristic tribute) so even if wounded, they fight like they aren't due to Japan's unique ability.

Nah, past games I've always watched the Japanese backing away from me whenever I come near them with superior forces. Especially when they are wounded.

Until this recent game, I always figured they would only act aggressively on Immortal or above.

Apparently not.

 

[gozpel]

2 Wu Zetians in the same game?

If they both hate you, you're doomed!

 

[animalguy]

1) They tend to be less aggressive at the start - I haven't had a DOW from neighboring Japan despite him possessing a stronger military and denouncing/renouncing our friendship once I became his neighbor (before that it was Isabella).

I too have noticed this. In a reccent game as Russia I went for a huge ICS across the continent. Even after my borders started to approach everyone else's they just spat the dummy and denounced me, but never actually decided to DOW me, maybey the AI in CiV can actually be civil!

 

[gozpel]

I too have noticed this. In a reccent game as Russia I went for a huge ICS across the continent. Even after my borders started to approach everyone else's they just spat the dummy and denounced me, but never actually decided to DOW me, maybey the AI in CiV can actually be civil!

You were either lucky or rather skillful by having a large army.