The AI's Best Traits

[AnthonyBoscia]

What civilization traits do you think benefit the computer opponents the most? How do these traits compensate for the AI's weaknesses? Is the effectiveness of the AI traits dependent on factors like map type and size, or difficulty level? How do these compare to traits that are strong for the human player?

 

[Everkane]

I think the AI goes pretty good with the agri trait, probably due the grow explosion at the beginning, which is usually the point of the game they can be dangerous.

It's also a great trait for players.

I prefer commercial (good at the beginning with alphabet, awesome at the mid-game due less corruption) and industrial (it's almost like having 2 workers per each one), but agri and scientific are very powerful also.

I don't like religious (can't see the point), expansionist and seafaring, but of course this last one can be good at archipelago maps.

 

[invector]

AI uses Agricultural and Commercial best, imo. Completely wastes industrial because they don't really know how to use workers. Higher difficulties don't really have a lot of corruption, and with commercial, they become a powerhouse. Agricultural is best hands down though.

 

[Yoda Power]

As has been said. Agricultural is by far the best trait for the AI. Expansionist can be good for them in some games, because they can pop a lot of goody huts and get ahead in techs, although this of course wears off later in the game. They're also fairly good with Scientific I think, but I'm not sure that I agree with the above about the power of commercial.

 

[timerover51]

Why not simply delete the civilization special traits of the civilization that you are playing, if you want to improve the AI?

 

[Puppeteer]

Aggression isn't in the list of traits, but an aggressive AI is more likely to attack early--well, they're also more likely to attack at any given time--and on higher difficulties they started with more units than you and have production bonuses so are probably stronger than you. That makes them more formidable. Germany and Aztecs always seem to attack me early in games.

Seafaring can help an AI a lot, especially if a seafaring civ builds the lighthouse which they often do because they start with an expensive prerequisite tech. The AI can't use suicide galleys, but a seafaring AI with the GLH can often cross oceans earlier in the game than you would expect. An AI intercontinental tech broker? Ouch.

Religious helps the AI become culture monsters with their cheap temples which they love to build anyway. It makes conquering them a bit slower and more perilous.

 

[AnthonyBoscia]

Thanks, guys. My experience has been similar. Agricultural seems to help them a lot. Expansionist is pretty situationally dependent- it works when the map isn't too crowded and they have a chance to grab more stuff. Scientific civs always seem to lag behind in science, probably because their money is being drained elsewhere. Commercial seems pretty poor.

My goal isn't really to make the AI harder, but to understand the traits more so that if I mod them a little they would be more even in terms of advantages.

 

[Yoda Power]

Expansionist is pretty situationally dependent- it works when the map isn't too crowded and they have a chance to grab more stuff.

I think that's sort of a half-truth. If you play the MEM Europe maps (which are pretty crowded) you will often see that the expansionist civs (Germany, Tartars, Hungary and Bulgaria especially) get ahead in tech in the first era, not because they pop goody huts, but because their scouts allow them to establish contact and trade techs with everyone else. They become tech brookers in the first era because they have a contact advantedge.

My point: having a scout from the beginning can be quite the advantedge for the AI on crowded maps.

 

[AnthonyBoscia]

That makes sense. As long as it's not an island map, where they lose that early advantage. Then, like puppeteer said, that's where seafaring shines for them.

 

[lucky duck]

Here's how I rank the AI traits:

Agricultural - More population, more shields, more commerce, faster expansion, faster research, etc.

Commercial - The commerce bonuses and decreased corruption really help. A runaway commercial AI can out-research me at 50% when I am at 100%. They always have GPT lying around while they are out-researching me. (I try to keep all AI, especially commercial ones, from Sanitation)

Industrious - Industrious AI actually improve their land. They will have their whole territory railroaded while other AI are clearing jungles. The shield bonus gives them a few more units and buildings.

Scientific - It's hard to stay ahead of the AI when they are getting free techs. The cheap buildings make them tougher, sooner. They love using SGLs when I'm almost done with a wonder.

Seafaring - The biggest bonus seems to be the extra commerce which helps their research early in the game. They make contact with distant civs sooner. Also, they love colonizing islands that have a resource I need. The Dromon and SM are no fun to fight.

Religious - Their biggest advantage is culture. They will build temples early and often, and a religious civ on my borders during the MA is no fun when they start cranking out cathedrals. Beware the culture flips. The reduced anarchy doesn't matter much because on some difficulty levels the AI never spends much time in anarchy anyway.

Militaristic - The militaristic bonuses do not compensate for the AI's lack of war-making proficiency. You can't fix stupid.

Expansionist - The AI starts the game with knowledge of the map and resources. When the AI starts with a bunch of free units, they are essentially expansionist anyway. The goody huts help them for a while, I guess.

As far as map size goes, smaller maps encourage aggressive play, so beware a civ with an AA UU.

More water favors seafaring and hinders expansionist.

I think that these rankings are consistent between difficulty levels.

I would rank these traits a little differently for a human player. Seafaring is #1 on archipelago maps, and a human player can actually take advantage of the militaristic trait (see: armies). Also, scientific may be more valuable to a human than industrious because the human can build a ton of workers. Just a note about the AI's free units: They don't build currughs, but if they start on the coast with Alphabet, sometimes they will get currughs as free units. Try keeping up with that.

 

[Puppeteer]

I'm going to add a twist. You can take advantage of some AI traits. Which AI traits can a clever play not manipulate to his or her advantage?

Religious: I don't see how this can be used by the player. Religious civs are often culture monsters, but you can't really use AI culture to your own advantage.

Seafaring: I can't imagine a situation in which a seafaring AI can be manipulated to help the human. If they would send out early 3-move curraghs to meet you more quickly, that could help with tech cost and trading, but I haven't seen the AI send out curraghs at all.

Militaristic: This AI trait can't be used to the player advantage. Many of the militaristic AI have higher aggression which can be used to taunt them into a war that gives you war happiness, but that is really their aggression and not the "trait". On the other hand I suppose you could ally a militaristic civ against another foe assuming the militaristic civ will fare better in battle due to the cheap barracks.

Agricultural: Usually a big, fast-growing AI is a problem, but if you keep conquered cities I suppose it could be nice to gain big cities in war either for ready-made specialist farms or even productive fringe cities.

Industrious: The AI is irrigation-happy, but they still build some mines, lots of roads and clear jungle OK. I'll let an AI develop an area for me sometimes, especially specialist farm lands where their water addiction is an advantage.

Commercial: If you can trade-broker you can take away the AI's extra money.

Expansionist: Meet them early and be the trade broker to use this to the player advantage.

Scientific: Way easy to take advantage of if you can enter a new age before they get all their first-tier techs. I often get Republic before many of the AI and can trade it readily for first-tier MA techs.

 

[timerover51]

After working with the editor, it is possible to give a civilization more than 2 traits, and also change the traits if so desired.

 

[agonistes]

Yes and yes. I frequently give the AI more than two traits.

 

[CELTICEMPIRE]

I have a mod where I gave every Civ 3 traits, which really helps Portugal. Makes for interesting gameplay.