What is the AI researching?

[Angmar]

I have seen people talking about what tech the AI is researching. In all my exploration of the game menues I have not seen anything that would tell me what the AI is researching.

Is this people assuming? Is this a best guess.. or is there something I have yet to notice in the massive collection of information screens

Cheers,

 

[kgkia33]

Sorry but they don't research. They just get whatever techs they want when they want 'em. And sometimes they steal yours away from you and you have to research it again. And sometimes they take files from your hard drive and download them to their own PC's. Other times they come to your house, knock you out, disband all of your units, and then go back to playing the game again. One time the AI uninstalled Civ3 from my PC and then changed my desktop background to say "You suck at Civ3."

Annnnd then they..OK forget this is a stupid-ass post.

 

[satchel]

Originally posted by kgkia33
One time the AI uninstalled Civ3 from my PC and then changed my desktop background to say "You suck at Civ3."

The AI must be a lot cleverer than most people here give it credit for!

As to the original question, as far as I know there is no way to tell precisely what the AI is researching at any time. (I might be wrong, but I don't think so. )

However, I do believe that there is a general trend that the AI will follow, as it generally seems to prefer to research certain branches of the tech tree first. Perhaps this is what you heard people talking about.

I'll leave it to others to list the AI's apparent research preferences, because if I try to do it off the top of my head I will screw up.

 

[Bamspeedy]

They do in fact research techs and get it after the appropriate amount of gold has been designated towards that tech. Of course how much gold they need will vary by what tech, difficulty level (on earlier patchs, in the latest patches it is the human's research that is affected by difficulty), what patch you are playing, and other factors.

One way to cheat and find out which tech they are researching is to use a saved game editor (C3MT-Civ3 Multi Tool). But there is a pattern that the AI researches 'most' of the time. It's not always a guarantee, because I think there is some randomness in it.

They usually go towards republic right away, so in some games you can try to beat them to polytheism, mathematics, literature, or currency. In the middle ages the AI tends to research the upper part of the tree going towards navigation and democracy, so taking the bottom route may be better, but in all my games, there seems to always be 1 or 2 civs that also take that route... I haven't played too much of the later ages, so can't really say anything positive about those ages.

 

[NetGear]

ALike Bamspeedy said, AI is predictable to a degree. If an AI just entered Industrial age, there's 99.9999999% chance its going for Nationalism. AI also trades ALOT with other AIs, so they seem to be researching real fast.

I think you can tell what AI is researching when you steal tech. Im guessing but the tech they are researching is probably colored differently on the tech tree.

 

[GerrardCapashen]

The AI's predicability is of great use on the harder difficulty levels. Deity players know which techs the computer avoids for a long time so they can research them with 0% science and a scientist and then trade the tech away for another one from each civilization. The fact that Nationalism is so valuable because it allows riflemen to defend against those cavalry is what allows those players playing scientific civs to exploit the 'Nationalism slingshot,' which involves getting Nationalism as your free tech at the start of the Industrial Ages and then immediately selling it to every other civilization for massive trading benefits.

 

[Yndy]

I also have to confirm that experience can give you a feeling of the things AI research sooner rather than later. There is definitely a randomness effect, which is high enough so that if you have 5 AI opponents they would usually research 2-3 different techs. I have noticed some patterns and I have read about other patterns and I will post in the following the most important and least important techs for the AI. I must warn you that I have seen quite opposite patterns for a couple of times.

Ancient age:
AI focuses on Writing, Republic
AI delays research of Polytheism, Mathematics and Literature.

Middle ages:
AI focuses on Education, Astronomy
AI delays research of Engineering, Chemistry, and Printing Press

Industrial ages:
AI focuses on: Nationalism, Communism, Replaceable Parts,
AI delays research of Atomic Theory, The Corporation

Modern Ages:
AI focuses on Space Flight, Satellites
AI delays research of Nuclear Power, The Laser, and Synthetic Fibers

 

[Shabbaman]

Originally posted by Yndy
I also have to confirm that experience can give you a feeling of the things AI research sooner rather than later. There is definitely a randomness effect, which is high enough so that if you have 5 AI opponents they would usually research 2-3 different techs. I have noticed some patterns and I have read about other patterns and I will post in the following the most important and least important techs for the AI. I must warn you that I have seen quite opposite patterns for a couple of times.

Ancient age:
AI focuses on Writing, Republic
AI delays research of Polytheism, Mathematics and Literature.

Middle ages:
AI focuses on Education, Astronomy
AI delays research of Engineering, Chemistry, and Printing Press

Industrial ages:
AI focuses on: Nationalism, Communism, Replaceable Parts,
AI delays research of Atomic Theory, The Corporation

Modern Ages:
AI focuses on Space Flight, Satellites
AI delays research of Nuclear Power, The Laser, and Synthetic Fibers

Yndy is correct. Roughly said, the AI researches from the top of the science advisor screen to the bottom. For example: first monotheism, then feudalism, then engineering. So if you could get chivalry before the AI, and then sell it for engineering.

For some reason the AI is very attached to nationalism (because of the rifles I think), even if you get all the way to replacable parts (infantry ), but they'll pay their ass of for atomic theory...

 

[Niz02]

Originally posted by Angmar
I have seen people talking about what tech the AI is researching ...

It is possible sometimes to predict if an AI civ is
reserching a tech you have. In two consecutive
turns offer the tech to that AI and if it gives the
same then it is not researching the tech. If on
the second turn it gives less then either it is
researching the tech or some other AI civ has
recently discovered it.

 

[Yndy]

Originally posted by Niz02



It is possible sometimes to predict if an AI civ is
reserching a tech you have. In two consecutive
turns offer the tech to that AI and if it gives the
same then it is not researching the tech. If on
the second turn it gives less then either it is
researching the tech or some other AI civ has
recently discovered it.

I was going to say that but forgot

 

[robboo]

So if the AI goes after certain techs andyou have the Great Library we should take the opposite branch. I do this and go after the lower tech branch to chemisty while gettign teh free techs from the AI. It works well except you have got to keep the gold rolling in, otherwise the next advances the AI will catch up.

 

[Scyphax]

I have a related question

What techs will AI Civs NOT buy?

I my current game I had the tech lead made a bee-line for Environmentalism but could not even give it away althought I could have sold 4 or so less advanced techs like nationalism.

Has any one managed to sell, buy or give away environmentalism?

 

[Darkness]

You can't sell a tech to the AI if it doesn't have the pre-requisite tech.
For example: You can't sell the AI monarchy if it does not have polytheism

 

[morkaphi]

Originally posted by Scyphax
I my current game I had the tech lead made a bee-line for Environmentalism but could not even give it away althought I could have sold 4 or so less advanced techs like nationalism.

Maybe you already emptied their vault by selling them other techs?

 

[cymru_man]

Do you mean Ecology?

If you can sell them Nationalism then they are not even in the same age as you so they can't buy the tech.

 

[Karl_t_great]

I added my observations after Yndy's list:

Originally posted by Yndy

Ancient age:
AI focuses on Writing, Republic
AI delays research of Polytheism, Mathematics and Literature.
AI leaves currency to last one.

Middle ages:
AI focuses on Education, Astronomy
AI delays research of Engineering, Chemistry, and Printing Press
AI is very keen on the single wonder tech's (music, econ,navigation)

Industrial ages:
AI focuses on: Nationalism, Communism, Replaceable Parts,
AI delays research of Atomic Theory, The Corporation
AI often goes after industrialization & Universal Sufferage, which gives
the human player better changes on Scientific & ToE.
In the end of the era AI does Amphious War.

Modern Ages:
AI focuses on Space Flight, Satellites
AI delays research of Nuclear Power, The Laser, and Synthetic Fibers
For me it seems that AI Prioritises SS and Nukes.

I still would like to bring up some issues (even though we migth not be able to figure these out entirely):
- has anyone noticed if there is a general logig behind AI's R&D, is it going after score, culture or power ?
- Do the priorities vary according to civ ?
- Does it adopt to different game situations, like doing a militaristic tech when it finds itself inferion in power ?

Maybe this is a chase for wild goose, but there is a lot to gain in the late game if You can predict AI tech decisions. Ideas how to test it are well accepted.

 

[DaveMcW]

This is from a post by alexman on the Apolyton forums.


The AI places a value on each technology it can research next. The values depend on the various things allowed by each technology, as well as on the turns needed to complete the research. Here are the values:

SS Component: 261/turns
Government: 259/turns
Conscription: 259/turns
Mobilization: 259/turns
Defender (no resource): 198
Attacker (no resource): 134
Defender (resource reqd): 70
Naval Transport: 34
Resource: 16
Double Worker Speed: 8
Allows Diplomats: 8
MPPs: 8
ROPs: 8
Alliances: 8
Embargoes: 8
Trade Over Ocean: 8
Wonder: 6
Attacker (resource reqd): 6
Irrigation: 4
No Disease: 4
Trade Over Sea: 4
Bridges: 2
Double Wealth: 2
Map Trades: 2
Communications Trade: 2
Small Wonder: 2
Specialist: 2
Unit (no A/D/NT): 2
Improvement: 2
Recycling: 1
Prec. Bombing: 1
Worker Job: 1
Empty Tech Cost: 256/turns
Optional: divide by 1.5

These values are cumulative. For example, Iron Working allows swordsmen and iron, so it has a value of 22 more than if it were just an empty tech. Furthermore, for the Romans who build Legionaries (attacker and defender), Iron Working is worth an additional 70 points!

I made a big assumption to get these results. I assumed that the Science advisor suggests that the human player researches the technology that the AI would research under the same circumstances. There was no random factor whatsoever involved in the advisor, but it's possible that the AI players have such a factor.

 

[Shabbaman]

Hey, that's good stuff! That should go into the faq! I'll point killer at it.

 

[Yndy]

I need some time to digest Dave's post which is so very relevant. To answer part of Karl's question I noticed that some AI have different aproaches relative to culture buildings. Namely Romans, English and Zulu seem to postpone cultural buildings a lot more than others. I have not noticed other constant behaviours.

 

[Xiasar]

AI always fallow the same research strategy, ALWAYS. In fact researching other branches is always useful if you don't mind trading tech's......ah and if you do so be quicker than he is and trade the same tech in the same turn you've discovered it to different civ's for new techs or resources or luxuries, if you don't the AI you've tradet it to will be very quick to trade to half world on his next useful turn!!

(for example in Industrial Age they research Medicine and Sanitation far after Nationalism, Steam Engine and Industrialisation!)