Anthropoid
Posts: 3107
Joined: 2/22/2005
From: Secret Underground Lair
Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: sw30
Even if they don't attempt to capture, they should still fire their guns. The current optimal strategy is to close, grapple, and just hit the repair key while you wait for the other ships to grapple. Then, start taking over the ships one by one until the opponent runs, but they can't cuz they're all grappled, so they all surrender. You can win massive battles without firing a shot.
Have not tried that myself, and you got to admit it is gamey. But if it really does work >50% of the time then it is an exploit that should be addressed. Again though, difficulty level might be figuring in somehow?
My main observation on the AI's ability to wage detailed naval battles:
a) cannot approach a humans ability to coordinate all ships to maximize concentratioin of firepower at critical points in the enemy formation.
b) does not concentrate firepower on single enemy ships
c) suffers quite a bit of fouling from bumbling into itself
d) whereas I start firing almost immediately even if I do miss 80% of the time at ranges in the 8 to 10 hex ballpark, I nonetheless do get a _few_ hits, and by firing almost every time that I possibly can, and concentrating my fire on their lead ships/ships that will blockup their formations, I generally have knocked down their WTF by one or two points within two or three rounds of combat opening. Unless they have sizeable lead in ship numbers/firepower, it is generally all over with from there.
e) AI seems to think that its 1st Rate ships are the best thing to attack with but cumulatively in my experience, even a stout 1st rater cannot standup to a withering two or three rounds of concentrated fire at ranges from 8 down to 3 from 8 or 10 3rd raters.
f) Whereas I immediately try to divide my force in half with a lead line moving forward then turning properly relative to the wind to broadside the enemy, going to full speed and full sails to zip past them while a second line often will either push arond the top or bottom of my first and create a corner force that will again cross-the-T of the enemy at the perpendicular plane . . . the AI just moves his ships toward me, with sails cut down to half of fight configuration and speed at medium, and the 25 to 40% of his ships which do bother to fire during the first 3 or 4 rounds of combat just fire at whatever is directly across from them instead of concentrating their fire on a limited number of targets. This means that, I get 3 or 4 rounds of solid pounding against two to four of his lead ships, by the time our main masses are within 3 or 4 hexes, and/or stragglers are starting to pass through enemy guantlets, I have by concentrating my fire dropped his WTF by 1 to 3 points, and meanwhile I have suffered 8 or 10 ships that have suffered light damage and casualties. Another 3 to 7 rounds of this and the enemy is shattered.
Now admittedly, this is a brilliant tactic on my part  so the AI should not be _too_ chastised if it cannot cope. Cannot imagine what it is like to program that baby . . .
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AI and Grappling - 
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