Which AI's generally perform well in Alpha Centauri and Alien Crossfire?

[Mckertis]

Now being protected from Probe teams they start pumping out probe teams very chance they get and start getting all your research, assassinating your researchers and stealing your energy.

This tactic doesnt have anything to do with Hunter-Seeker. Even if you DID get it first - the other party would still, very likely, make a ton of probes just as if you didnt, its a general algorithm, AI doesnt care that his probes brainfry from touching you, he'll still try, in vain, till the bitter end.

When SMAC first came out everyone were buzzing about how smart the AI is, and the new diplomacy system, and when i played it back then - i kinda saw the same thing everyone talked about. Started to play again recently, and...the whole AI thing is a bit ridiculous, really. All the factions are so agressive its not even funny, situations where you have wars with the whole world arise quite frequently, after you whip AI's butt he begs you for Truce and showers you with gifts...only to stab you in the back 10 turns later...with a single puny rover suicide attack. And if you want for anyone to even talk with you at all, you have to keep from destroying their bases, which quickly becomes a logistical nightmare, since on a standard-sized planet the number of possible bases is incredibly high.

The most unbalanced faction is the Spartan Federation - seriously, -1 INDUSTRY in exchange for +2 MORALE and +1 POLICE? Are you kidding me?

No i'm not, if you have equal tech levels and you sit near Spartans for a little time - they own your ass.

The problem with SMAC/SMAX is that most games are decided in the early phases of the game

Yeah, unless some jackass crank up the eco damage, and then its decided by who has the most trance base defenders.
Planet Busters are also quite flow changing...

 

[UK_John]

This tactic doesnt have anything to do with Hunter-Seeker. Even if you DID get it first - the other party would still, very likely, make a ton of probes just as if you didnt, its a general algorithm, AI doesnt care that his probes brainfry from touching you, he'll still try, in vain, till the bitter end.

So what allows you defend against probe teams? Nothing? Or just having probe teams being held in your cities?

 

[Petek]

So what allows you defend against probe teams? Nothing? Or just having probe teams being held in your cities?

Yes, if you don't have the HSA you need to station at least one probe team in bases on your perimeter to defend against enemy probes. (Some players design probe teams with an infantry chassis for this purpose. They're cheaper to build.) If you're near the Angels, you need more than one probe in a base. I've seen the Angels send multiple probes against a base in a single turn. However, one thing that helps you is that the AI is clueless about probe tactics. It will always use up a probe's movement points, even if the probe ends up directly adjacent to a base. That makes them easy to pick off.

Getting back to the original topic, I agree with those who say the Hive is the best of the AIs. See the attached zip file of a save (SMAX, not SMAC). It's from a game I set up in which no human player was involved -- just AIs. It's MY 2691. The Hive has around 200 bases and has eliminated all other factions except the Usurpers. Yang is currently researching Transcendent Thought 58 and is discovering 2-3 techs per turn. That's a real powerhouse!

Petek

 

[UK_John]

Thanks Petek, that'll help me. I played one game two levels above the lowest level, set the rules to make the AI more aggressive and lost my initial and second base within about 12 turns! The game spirited me to another part of the map of Planet and gave me a couple colonizers to make a quick start, I made them both coastal cities and got to the point where I could build cities in the water, but between the worms and the AI's, I still only lasted about 50 turns! I may be crap, or the AI may be brilliant! And the Hive are the toughest and best, I agree!

 

[Petek]

UK_John,

If you like, post a couple of saves from your games. The more experienced players would be glad to take a look and make suggestions. If you do so, please consider starting a new thread on the subject, just to make it easier to keep things straight.

Petek

 

[Mckertis]

So what allows you defend against probe teams? Nothing? Or just having probe teams being held in your cities?

That wasnt my point. This thread is about AI, and i pointed out that whoever has Hunter-Seeker wonder doesnt affect AI decisions in any observable way. It will defend you, but AI doesnt care, it will still send dozens of probes your way.

the Hive is the best of the AIs.

What if, for experiment's sake, one would remove secret inefficiency immunity from Yang ? Would he be all that ? With Yang its hard enough to have any money at all, and if he didnt have that secret...

 

[Petek]

(snipped)

What if, for experiment's sake, one would remove secret inefficiency immunity from Yang ? Would he be all that ? With Yang its hard enough to have any money at all, and if he didnt have that secret...

In the original release of the game, Yang was not immune to inefficiency penalties. That ability was added in a patch. One can speculate that the developers decided that Yang was too weak, and decided to beef him up. However, they may very well have overcompensated. So you're right that without the ability to run both Police State and Planned without penalty the Hive would be weaker.

Petek

 

[Lefty Scaevola]

However, one thing that helps you is that the AI is clueless about probe tactics. It will always use up a probe's movement points, even if the probe ends up directly adjacent to a base. That makes them easy to pick off.

Not always clueless. If the AI has artillery as well as probes, it will bombard the to be probed base first. If the defending teams are unarmored, they will be reduced to 10% before the probe attacks.

 

[GooglyBoogly]

however, the attack will likely use up all of its movement, so even if you lose you just end up trading a probe team for a probe team. Which isn't a very good strategy.