1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (Full Version)

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zenmaster -> 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/27/2008 2:34:10 AM)

I would like to express my feeling sthat 1.01b apperas to work much better than the first 1.01beta.

Things are looking up.



pzgndr -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/27/2008 3:33:03 AM)

Yes, things are working well.  I was playing solo as Turkey yesterday and Spain DOWd me.  I pretty much ignored Spain until they landed in Greece and surprised me.  I've seen the Spanish AI make landing in North Africa too.  The AI has its weaknesses, but seeing these naval and amphibious landing operations is pretty impressive.  This is usually the bane of WWII strategic games, yet EiA seems to be handling them.

I played as Prussia today.  1805 was a quiet build-up year.  1806 got dicey when Austria DOWd me and we went back and forth most of the year.  I was about to deliver the hammer blow on Vienna when France DOWd me and I needed to shift forces.  I settled for an informal peace with Austria so I could focus on the French.  1807 was another dicey year as Prussia and France went at it.  Berlin fell at one point and I took it back.  There's just something about being in 'panic mode' that makes playing a game like this so enjoyable. [8D]

For 1.02, if the generic AI could be enhanced just enough to provide some more emphasis on stacked attacks and restrict suicidal behavior of lone corps and leaders exposed to capture, then that would be a significant and noticeable improvement.  It's obviously trying to do the right things, it just needs some tweaking.  More complicated stuff will have to wait until later, I understand that, but any enhancements would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks.



delatbabel -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/27/2008 3:44:51 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: pzgndr
For 1.02, if the generic AI could be enhanced just enough to provide some more emphasis on stacked attacks and restrict suicidal behavior of lone corps and leaders exposed to capture, then that would be a significant and noticeable improvement. It's obviously trying to do the right things, it just needs some tweaking. More complicated stuff will have to wait until later, I understand that, but any enhancements would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.


I agree entirely. This single change would make the AI much more potent.



ndrose -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/27/2008 4:22:20 AM)

That would make a big difference. So would less reliance on foraging. I've seen AI France lose much of its army foraging within France. For instance, French army is in Spain, when Paris is threatened. AI calls everybody back (sometimes more than is necessary, for a single corps at the gates of Paris). I'm not sure whether they're force marching, so they can't use supply, or whether the AI hasn't figured out that it can place a depot at its destination if it owns the territory. A depot will appear there the next month, but meanwhile, it's incurred horrific losses. And maybe next month it sends everybody running back to Spain. A couple months of that, and the army is gone....

And every once in a while AI Russia decides to intervene in Western Europe and sends all its cavalry suicide-foraging from St Petersburg to Berlin....

I also think the AI builds way too much militia in non-emergency situations.

Nathan Rose



zaquex -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/27/2008 5:55:38 AM)

One of the biggest weaknesses with the AI is how it prioritise commanders. To have Nappy running around with a halfstrenght militia corp and at the same time have a stack with 5-6 corps under the command of Bernadotte makes no sense at all. Austria also seem to have a tendency to meet Nappy head on with a overstacked Mack while Charles is either 2IC or screening with single corp. Also Prussia tends to stack up its whole army in Berlin in peace time and forage its army away.

So yes a few changes could make a huge difference for how competent the AI would be. It would not be enough to make it perfect but at least you might need to defeat the opponents, currently you can almost rely on the AI to kill itself. 



iamspamus -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/29/2008 4:52:20 PM)

You haven't seen my Russia. I prioritize on GD/ART then Cav. Build the odd inf now and then and hordes of militia. I also beef up my good minors such as Sweden and/or Denmark. So, I have an all mil force to wear down the opponent, thus all losses are mil, even over 2.0 morale, cause that's all I have. In the other stacks with just enough mil to cover forage (if needed) or initial losses, with this system I can take losses from other inf if the morale hits over 2.0. It's ugly.

In the current game, I just build 30 mil...in one round. Three new (ru [:(] ) corps in a turn are scary.

BTW: I did this the same in the board game, but had to take more ru inf losses due to playing with proportional losses.

Jason

quote:

ORIGINAL: ndrose
I also think the AI builds way too much militia in non-emergency situations.
Nathan Rose




Grimrod42 -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/29/2008 5:08:25 PM)

miltia is nice and all if winnign the game was not based on Political Points,
even if you wear down your enemy if your in the fiasco zone because of it it doesn't help you much
[;)]



iamspamus -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/29/2008 8:33:56 PM)

Well, I've played 6 or 7 times and never (?) ended up in the Fiasco Zone (if I remember correctly). That includes a dominant Russia twice, and even playing Spain. So, my philosophy of militia and high morale other troops has borne itself out. When I've bought all the expensive stuff, I switch back to infantry.

To each there own.
Jason


quote:

ORIGINAL: Grimrod42

miltia is nice and all if winnign the game was not based on Political Points,
even if you wear down your enemy if your in the fiasco zone because of it it doesn't help you much
[;)]





delatbabel -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/29/2008 11:58:33 PM)

I have played with a Spanish player that builds all militia, and just uses it to stock city garrisons. No corps at all. Eventually France will come knocking, and they have to start facing all of these 5-1/5-2 battles against cities full of militia. The attrition is wearing, and there are no PPs to be gained. It's an effective strategy -- it won't win you a war but might prevent you losing one.



fvianello -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/30/2008 1:40:48 AM)

That's interesting....I wonder how it would work in Russia against a french invasion.
I'll have to try it.



DCWhitworth -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/30/2008 1:53:45 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: iamspamus
So, I have an all mil force to wear down the opponent, thus all losses are mil, even over 2.0 morale, cause that's all I have.


Just a point but if you have a 100% militia force your morale will be 2.0 so you'll be broken at 2.0 morale loss so the benefit of being able to take militia as losses beyond that should be minor.



gazfun -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/30/2008 3:55:40 AM)

I cant find a link to where the 1.01b patch is, anyone?



zaquex -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/30/2008 4:02:43 AM)

Member area, there is a link in the matrix menu at the top of this page called "MEMBERS", think it requires you to register.



Cossaky -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/30/2008 8:36:11 AM)

Hey folks.  Here's a dumb question, but where do we download the 1.01B beta patch? 



fvianello -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (1/30/2008 10:59:46 AM)

Go to Members area - My games - empire in arms - private downloads



delatbabel -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (2/29/2008 9:06:19 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: DCWhitworth
Just a point but if you have a 100% militia force your morale will be 2.0 so you'll be broken at 2.0 morale loss so the benefit of being able to take militia as losses beyond that should be minor.


You build enough inf to give your stacks a morale above 2.2.

At morale 2.3 (2.21 will do in fact as it all rounds up) you can't possibly break on the first round in a 5-1 siege die roll. So you must inflict two lots of casualties on the 5-2 table in each siege combat, and even a French stack will break with rolls of 4,5 or better. Plus they are taking minimum 10% losses on each die roll, possibly 20%, and that makes for slow progress because they have to keep bringing in reinforcements.



iamspamus -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (2/29/2008 12:17:14 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: pzgndr

Yes, things are working well.  I was playing solo as Turkey yesterday and Spain DOWd me.  I pretty much ignored Spain until they landed in Greece and surprised me.  I've seen the Spanish AI make landing in North Africa too.  The AI has its weaknesses, but seeing these naval and amphibious landing operations is pretty impressive.  This is usually the bane of WWII strategic games, yet EiA seems to be handling them.

[snip]


Well, I don't find that to be remarkable. In many of my games in that region (either as Turkey or Russia), Spain dows Turkey (and often Russia?). I think that almost every game (and I've restarted a bit as I learned it), the Spanish take their whole fleet over and besiege Contantinople and land one corps and leader in Greece. They just sit there until peace. So, not really that spectacular.

Jason





pzgndr -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (2/29/2008 3:26:05 PM)

Oh it wasn't the Spanish strategy itself that was remarkable, just the fact that the AI performed a few amphibious landings.  Like I said, this has usually been a big problem for AIs to handle transport and amphibious operations in WWII strategy games, particularly for major allied redeployments from England to the Med.

For EiA, while I've seen a few British and French cross-channel operations and a few Spanish operations in the Med, I have not seen any British activity in the Med or any Turkish or Russian operations.  But it is noteworthy that the initial AI has been able to do something.  A lot of work remains for naval operations in this game. 



Mardonius -> RE: 1.01B Beta -> Much Improved! (2/29/2008 3:48:14 PM)

I always thought that EiA (bookcase version) was weak in the naval operations realm. Perhaps one of the patches down the road might include new naval options for fleets and chit choosing.



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