Why AI is so stupid?

[Canabrava]

Sometimes i'm losing the war and they give me cities and a lot of cash.

Now i'm trying Me + AI x 2 AI and my friend always give a city and this would be necessary.

Firaxis did something to team AI games?

 

[joncnunn]

No; but what AI cares about is your total military strength vs their total military strength. But on the map and based on what the Military advisor & Demographic screen tell you.

Its calculation has little to do with who is losing units or cities. (Other than the direct effect that losing units has in total military strength and also Walls and other defensive structures count in the calculation)

 

[Avatan]

I do agree that ciV AI game seems quite off for some reason.

Immortal usually gives me a decent challenge in Single Play but in multi I have to make sure my friends and I are completely outnumbered by immortal AIs to make it barley interesting. Sometimes they just build one city and stick to lame surprise attack that do nothing.

Do anyone notice this difference in the AI too?

 

[volisas]

Yeah the AI is amazingly stupid at times. (Sometimes it impresses me though. But rarely)

To joncnunn: The AI makes stupid calculations even based on nominal military strength. That's what I have noticed. In my latest game, I was Babylon, massively out-teched everyone but Rome was the second best in tech and the largest military bully around. In between the two of us was China. So Rome DoW on China, and because I didn't want to have Rome at my footstep, I signed an Open Border agreement with China, entered 5-6 ultra modern units in China's territory and gifted them to China. And then I sat back and watched for 10-15 turns, gifting a couple more units on the way. China did some stupid attacks with my gifted units, but overall it was OK and managed to repel the Romans. After the Romans retreated to their territory, I bribed the Romans to make peace with China.

Now, here's the catch. As soon as the peace agreement expired, it's not Rome, but China (?!) that DoW on Rome!! Either the AI is *so* intelligent that it could understand that China could rely on a steady supply of edge-tech units (which I doubt), or the AI is sometimes just so stupid in its calculations. According to InfoAddict, China's nominal (total) military strength was half of Rome's, even after my gifted units. And they had Frigates vs. Roman Battleships and Cho-konus vs. Roman Infantry and SAM batteries. The decision to DoW Rome didn't make sense neither statistically nor strategically.........

 

[elijahfire]

Yeah the AI is amazingly stupid at times. (Sometimes it impresses me though. But rarely)

To joncnunn: The AI makes stupid calculations even based on nominal military strength. That's what I have noticed. In my latest game, I was Babylon, massively out-teched everyone but Rome was the second best in tech and the largest military bully around. In between the two of us was China. So Rome DoW on China, and because I didn't want to have Rome at my footstep, I signed an Open Border agreement with China, entered 5-6 ultra modern units in China's territory and gifted them to China. And then I sat back and watched for 10-15 turns, gifting a couple more units on the way. China did some stupid attacks with my gifted units, but overall it was OK and managed to repel the Romans. After the Romans retreated to their territory, I bribed the Romans to make peace with China.

Now, here's the catch. As soon as the peace agreement expired, it's not Rome, but China (?!) that DoW on Rome!! Either the AI is *so* intelligent that it could understand that China could rely on a steady supply of edge-tech units (which I doubt), or the AI is sometimes just so stupid in its calculations. According to InfoAddict, China's nominal (total) military strength was half of Rome's, even after my gifted units. And they had Frigates vs. Roman Battleships and Cho-konus vs. Roman Infantry and SAM batteries. The decision to DoW Rome didn't make sense neither statistically nor strategically.........

I prefer unpredictable AI.

That said this IS a game not a government funded military AI

 

[volisas]

I prefer unpredictable AI.

That said this IS a game not a government funded military AI

Well, it is a game, but it is a strategy game. I've been playing civ since civ I, and what fascinates me about this game is the depth and sophistication of it. So it is disappointing to see blatantly stupid moves. Or, for example, to see that there is no diplomatic gain for me when I gifted units to China. Normally that should be a bold-face green line on their attitude about me...

 

[Novalia]

How about the AI that gives you all their gold for a luxury it's going to lose on the next turn when they DOW. Stupid... Yes.

 

[joncnunn]

I prefer unpredictable AI.

It's not unpredictable to humans after a few games; the reason for the AI DOWing you is always clear. (land envy as compounded by AI thinking it has a stronger army is the most common reason.)

 

[Securion]

Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri had much better AI (try it yourself, just play the game!), and that with a much more advanced combat system and units that each Civ could design for themselfs. You could even set your own units to AI control. All this in 1996.

I have no clue why Firaxis are making so bad AI these days.

 

[pthieu1986]

I think AIs would be smarter if the game doesn't include defensive constructions like walls, castles, military bases, etc into the total military strength as these things just help defend not to attack in deep.

 

[joncnunn]

I think AIs would be smarter if the game doesn't include defensive constructions like walls, castles, military bases, etc into the total military strength as these things just help defend not to attack in deep.

In isolation all that would do is make the problems whose root cause is AI undervaluing ranged combat units worse. Standard procedure for dealing with an AIs DOW is to set up a kill zone within 2 hexes of your cities; once that AI force is eliminated then decide weather or not to take the offensive.

First, it needs to give better weight to ranged units.