Minou
King
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2013
- Messages
- 845
I was going to call this post “What is God’s name does the AI actually do?” because it seems that in many games they don’t seem to be doing anything at all by the end of the game. Anyway, I was curious so I started a game and used the Reveal Map cheat to spy on their first 50 turns. To avoid influencing them as much as possible I just settler in place and only build Warriors which I did not move other than to fortify in an open tile. Game settings are Deity Standard. Here's what I learned.
SETTLING
* All AIs settled on the first turn.
*I always assumed Deity AIs started with 3 Settlers, but the way it works is actually that they get one Settler and when they found their second city they get a free Settler+Builder. The third city likewise gives a free Settler and Builder as well
*There was a lot of variation in how long it took AIs to settler their next cities. England founded their second city on T5, Babylon on T6, and everyone else on T7 except India who walked all around and finally settled on T9.
*All AIs made sure their first 3 cities had fresh water or salt water. A big improvement over the old days of head-scratcher cities one tile from a river.
*There was alot of variation in whether AIs bothered to escort their fourth Settlers. Canada used an escort, Indonesia and Macedonia had units one tile away but did not directly cover the Settler with them, and England walked the Settler out completely in the open with no escort in sight.
*Indonesia had their 4th city up on T18 thanks to Religious Settlements. The next AI to a fourth city was Babylon at T29. Japan was last to a fourth city at T46. Macedonia was first to five cities at T46.
BUILD ORDERS
These are the first 8 builds in each capital:
Japan: Monument, Slinger, Granary, Builder, Settler, Walls, Holy Site, Settler
England: Scout, Monument, Settler, Builder, Pyramids, Walls, Chariot, Chariot
Canada: Scout, Monument, Builder, Trader, Walls (missed whatever the next were)
Babylon: Monument, Slinger, Palgum, Settler, Builder, Chariot, Chariot, Campus
Indonesia: Slinger, Monument, Granary, Builder, Settler, Trader, Holy Site
India: Slinger, Monument, Warrior, Warrior, Warrior, Settler, Granary, Varu
Macedonia: Monument, Slinger, Granary, Warrior, Warrior, Settler, Campus, Temple of Artemis
*It seems the AI chooses between a Scout, Slinger, or Monument as its first build. They often build something else from this menu and then a Granary next. I am not 100% sure one of those Scouts could have been from a hut but the timing seemed right for them to be built.
*Both England and Babylon trained a Settler in their captial on T24 and popped a Builder on T25. Their gold did not change, so they did not buy them. I don’t think I could have possible missed seeing two Tribal Villages, so I am wodnering if they queue-swapped? It seems unlikely to me that the Ai would be programmed to queu swap given its limited intelligence, so I wonder if there were some type of free AI bonus builders - however, the other AIs did not seem to get them the same turn or upon completing their first trained Settler.
*The second and third cities almost always built a Monument first (11 of 14 cases). The only exceptions were a Campus in the second Babylon city, a Granary in the second Macedonian city, and an Archer in the third Indian city. After that, there was alot of variation. I did not record every build but they included military units, districts, and even one Wonder.
*Ancient Wonders were popular, and in many cases multiple AIs started the same one. Canada and England started building Pyramids very early, and it was the first Wonder completed (England on T33). Great Bath was next on T37, followed by Temple of Artemis (T46) and Etemanaki (T50).
IMPROVEMENTS
*The AIs love those useless farms! I jotted down the improvements that the AIs made with their free builders and they made 24 farms, 5 mines, 1 quarry, 3 camps, and 2 pastures. I seem to have missed a few, which where probably even more farms…..
*Since the first mines/pastures appeared after T15, I suspect the AI builds farms with their first Builder in part because they are the only available improvement. I kind of though they started with Mining, but if so it is odd they waited so long to place any mines.
*As far as I can tell, the AI never chopped or harvested a single tile. This is probably a huge reason why they suck more and more as the game goes on, since chopping get more and more powerful over time.
DISTRICTS
*The AI does not seem to pre-place districts. That is, they wait until a Campus is their next desired build and then place and finish it instead of placing the district as soon as it unlocks to lock in the lower cost.
*Babylon was the first to start a district, a Campus on T12. They started a second on T23 and eventually built 4. India started the first Holy Site on T26 and Macedonia started a Campus on T26 as well. England and Indonesia both finished Holy Sites on T33.
*The AI quite often places tiles on Forests, which doesn’t really “waste” the chop since they never chop to begin with.
MILITARY
*The first and only war of the 50 turn window was England declaring on Babylon T24. They did a terrible job, decalring before all units were in place and getting their army destroyed. They also started building Chariots AFTER decalring, which did not help at all because they were being made 10+ tiles from the front.
*Babylon purcased a Chariot three turns after war was declared. I believe this was the first gold purchase of the game.
*England totally left the back door open when they invaded India, leaving not a single unit withint 7 tiles of their three cities, which also had a Settler and Builder i their borders.
*India went hog wild with military units but never used them. They marched four Warriors up to a city state but just sat them there without ever attacking. Eventually they had a massive army of 14 units including 3 Varus but never used them.
*Japan walked four of their starting Warriors far south to a city state as well, and never attacked. This would have left them ripe for an invasion.
*Some AIs got walls up fast, but often only in some of their cities: England (T28, T33, T39), Canada (T36, T37), Japan (T39). Babylon, Indonesia, India, and Macedonia did not build walls in the first 50 turns.
RELIGION
*The first Pantheon was Religious Settlements on T9. I recorded God of the Forge on T37 but I suspect I missed notification for others in between
*The first Religion (Feed the World, Wat) was taken on T48. No other AI had a religion at this stage. Unusually, no one had even started Stonehenge.
IMPLICATIONS
Your best neighbor may just be a warmongering AI if they leave their own land undefended. It would have been a treat to roll over England with a city state levy this game when they had zero units on defense. Having Scouting units out there watching for the opportunity can pay off.
Whether Ancient Walls wreck an early invasion is a bit of a crap shoot.
Around T25-35 a lot of Settlers will be roaming and possibly unguarded. If you have a Scout near an AI, this is a good interval to pay attention for steal opportunities.
The Ancient Era wonders all seem to go super fast and I don’t think it is ever worth trying to build them, just capture them later.
ENDOTE
Here is what each AI had on the table after 50 turns.
Japan:
Cities: 5 Cities (2 Monuments, 1 Granary, 1 Walls)
Units: 5 Warriors + 1 Slinger +1 Chariot + 1Trader + 1Builder
Infrastructure: 3 Holy Sites (+1 in progress) +1 Shrine, Great Bath
England:
Cities: 4 Cities (3 Monuments, 3 Walls) + 1 Settler
Units: 5 Chariots + 1 Slinger + 1Builder,
Infrastructure: 2 Holy Sites +1 Shrine, Government Plaza, Pyramids
Babylon:
Cities: 5 Cities (2 Monuments, 1 Palgum),
Units: 5 Warriors + 3Chariots + 1 Chariot + 2 Builder
Infrastructure: 4 Campus + 4 Libary, Oacle and Machu Pichu (both in progress)
Canada:
Cities: 4 Cities (3 Monuments, 2 Granaries, 1Water Wheel, 3 Walls) + 1 Settler
Units: 5 Warriors + 1Slinger + 1 Galley + 3Builder + 1 Trader
Infrastructure: 1 Holy Site, 2 Campus (both in progress, 1 Theater Square (in progress), Apandana (in progress)
Macedonia
Cities: 5 Cities (3 Monuments, 2 Granaries)
Units: 7 Warriors + 2 Archers + 1 Spear + 1 Heteroi + 2Builders + Trader
Infrastructure: 2 Campus + 1 Library (1 Campus, 1HS in progress), Etemanaki, Temple of Artemis
India:
Cities: 5 Cities (3 Monuments, 1 Granary, 1 Water Mill)
Units: 9Warriors+2Archers+3Varus+3Builders+1Trader
Infrastructure: No Districts!
Indonesia:
Cities: 5 Cities (4 Monuments, 4 Granaries) + 1 Settler
Units: 7 Warriors + 1Slinger + 1Scout + 1Trader + 2 Builder
Infrastructure: 3 Holy Sites + 2Shrine
SETTLING
* All AIs settled on the first turn.
*I always assumed Deity AIs started with 3 Settlers, but the way it works is actually that they get one Settler and when they found their second city they get a free Settler+Builder. The third city likewise gives a free Settler and Builder as well
*There was a lot of variation in how long it took AIs to settler their next cities. England founded their second city on T5, Babylon on T6, and everyone else on T7 except India who walked all around and finally settled on T9.
*All AIs made sure their first 3 cities had fresh water or salt water. A big improvement over the old days of head-scratcher cities one tile from a river.
*There was alot of variation in whether AIs bothered to escort their fourth Settlers. Canada used an escort, Indonesia and Macedonia had units one tile away but did not directly cover the Settler with them, and England walked the Settler out completely in the open with no escort in sight.
*Indonesia had their 4th city up on T18 thanks to Religious Settlements. The next AI to a fourth city was Babylon at T29. Japan was last to a fourth city at T46. Macedonia was first to five cities at T46.
Spoiler :
BUILD ORDERS
These are the first 8 builds in each capital:
Japan: Monument, Slinger, Granary, Builder, Settler, Walls, Holy Site, Settler
England: Scout, Monument, Settler, Builder, Pyramids, Walls, Chariot, Chariot
Canada: Scout, Monument, Builder, Trader, Walls (missed whatever the next were)
Babylon: Monument, Slinger, Palgum, Settler, Builder, Chariot, Chariot, Campus
Indonesia: Slinger, Monument, Granary, Builder, Settler, Trader, Holy Site
India: Slinger, Monument, Warrior, Warrior, Warrior, Settler, Granary, Varu
Macedonia: Monument, Slinger, Granary, Warrior, Warrior, Settler, Campus, Temple of Artemis
*It seems the AI chooses between a Scout, Slinger, or Monument as its first build. They often build something else from this menu and then a Granary next. I am not 100% sure one of those Scouts could have been from a hut but the timing seemed right for them to be built.
*Both England and Babylon trained a Settler in their captial on T24 and popped a Builder on T25. Their gold did not change, so they did not buy them. I don’t think I could have possible missed seeing two Tribal Villages, so I am wodnering if they queue-swapped? It seems unlikely to me that the Ai would be programmed to queu swap given its limited intelligence, so I wonder if there were some type of free AI bonus builders - however, the other AIs did not seem to get them the same turn or upon completing their first trained Settler.
*The second and third cities almost always built a Monument first (11 of 14 cases). The only exceptions were a Campus in the second Babylon city, a Granary in the second Macedonian city, and an Archer in the third Indian city. After that, there was alot of variation. I did not record every build but they included military units, districts, and even one Wonder.
*Ancient Wonders were popular, and in many cases multiple AIs started the same one. Canada and England started building Pyramids very early, and it was the first Wonder completed (England on T33). Great Bath was next on T37, followed by Temple of Artemis (T46) and Etemanaki (T50).
IMPROVEMENTS
*The AIs love those useless farms! I jotted down the improvements that the AIs made with their free builders and they made 24 farms, 5 mines, 1 quarry, 3 camps, and 2 pastures. I seem to have missed a few, which where probably even more farms…..
*Since the first mines/pastures appeared after T15, I suspect the AI builds farms with their first Builder in part because they are the only available improvement. I kind of though they started with Mining, but if so it is odd they waited so long to place any mines.
*As far as I can tell, the AI never chopped or harvested a single tile. This is probably a huge reason why they suck more and more as the game goes on, since chopping get more and more powerful over time.
DISTRICTS
*The AI does not seem to pre-place districts. That is, they wait until a Campus is their next desired build and then place and finish it instead of placing the district as soon as it unlocks to lock in the lower cost.
*Babylon was the first to start a district, a Campus on T12. They started a second on T23 and eventually built 4. India started the first Holy Site on T26 and Macedonia started a Campus on T26 as well. England and Indonesia both finished Holy Sites on T33.
*The AI quite often places tiles on Forests, which doesn’t really “waste” the chop since they never chop to begin with.
MILITARY
Spoiler :
*The first and only war of the 50 turn window was England declaring on Babylon T24. They did a terrible job, decalring before all units were in place and getting their army destroyed. They also started building Chariots AFTER decalring, which did not help at all because they were being made 10+ tiles from the front.
*Babylon purcased a Chariot three turns after war was declared. I believe this was the first gold purchase of the game.
*England totally left the back door open when they invaded India, leaving not a single unit withint 7 tiles of their three cities, which also had a Settler and Builder i their borders.
*India went hog wild with military units but never used them. They marched four Warriors up to a city state but just sat them there without ever attacking. Eventually they had a massive army of 14 units including 3 Varus but never used them.
*Japan walked four of their starting Warriors far south to a city state as well, and never attacked. This would have left them ripe for an invasion.
*Some AIs got walls up fast, but often only in some of their cities: England (T28, T33, T39), Canada (T36, T37), Japan (T39). Babylon, Indonesia, India, and Macedonia did not build walls in the first 50 turns.
Spoiler :
RELIGION
*The first Pantheon was Religious Settlements on T9. I recorded God of the Forge on T37 but I suspect I missed notification for others in between
*The first Religion (Feed the World, Wat) was taken on T48. No other AI had a religion at this stage. Unusually, no one had even started Stonehenge.
IMPLICATIONS
Your best neighbor may just be a warmongering AI if they leave their own land undefended. It would have been a treat to roll over England with a city state levy this game when they had zero units on defense. Having Scouting units out there watching for the opportunity can pay off.
Whether Ancient Walls wreck an early invasion is a bit of a crap shoot.
Around T25-35 a lot of Settlers will be roaming and possibly unguarded. If you have a Scout near an AI, this is a good interval to pay attention for steal opportunities.
The Ancient Era wonders all seem to go super fast and I don’t think it is ever worth trying to build them, just capture them later.
ENDOTE
Here is what each AI had on the table after 50 turns.
Japan:
Cities: 5 Cities (2 Monuments, 1 Granary, 1 Walls)
Units: 5 Warriors + 1 Slinger +1 Chariot + 1Trader + 1Builder
Infrastructure: 3 Holy Sites (+1 in progress) +1 Shrine, Great Bath
England:
Cities: 4 Cities (3 Monuments, 3 Walls) + 1 Settler
Units: 5 Chariots + 1 Slinger + 1Builder,
Infrastructure: 2 Holy Sites +1 Shrine, Government Plaza, Pyramids
Babylon:
Cities: 5 Cities (2 Monuments, 1 Palgum),
Units: 5 Warriors + 3Chariots + 1 Chariot + 2 Builder
Infrastructure: 4 Campus + 4 Libary, Oacle and Machu Pichu (both in progress)
Canada:
Cities: 4 Cities (3 Monuments, 2 Granaries, 1Water Wheel, 3 Walls) + 1 Settler
Units: 5 Warriors + 1Slinger + 1 Galley + 3Builder + 1 Trader
Infrastructure: 1 Holy Site, 2 Campus (both in progress, 1 Theater Square (in progress), Apandana (in progress)
Macedonia
Cities: 5 Cities (3 Monuments, 2 Granaries)
Units: 7 Warriors + 2 Archers + 1 Spear + 1 Heteroi + 2Builders + Trader
Infrastructure: 2 Campus + 1 Library (1 Campus, 1HS in progress), Etemanaki, Temple of Artemis
India:
Cities: 5 Cities (3 Monuments, 1 Granary, 1 Water Mill)
Units: 9Warriors+2Archers+3Varus+3Builders+1Trader
Infrastructure: No Districts!
Indonesia:
Cities: 5 Cities (4 Monuments, 4 Granaries) + 1 Settler
Units: 7 Warriors + 1Slinger + 1Scout + 1Trader + 2 Builder
Infrastructure: 3 Holy Sites + 2Shrine
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