AI Magnet - Works Every Time

I've been playing SoaSE since beta and I normally don't post or complain...mostly

BUT, the I have found an AI magnet in every game I play (usually on hard, but I find the magnet works in every game no matter what the level). By magnet I mean that I know how to get the AI to focus on one system to the exclusion of all other systems.

Step one: Take over (via colonizers) the free crystal and/or ore asteroids at gas planets, unihabitale systems, etc.

Step two: Build a starbase or maintain a fleet there

Step three: Sit and wait; the AI nearest the system will continually send fleet after fleet to the same spot in an attempt to dislodge you from the free crystal/ore nodes.

Step four: Hold what you got and send a second fleet to pillage the AI systems. The AI will be so busy trying to take the system from you that it will ignore most everything else and will not even bother to attack you where it would hurt the most.

This to me is the sign of a flawed AI. Why are the free systems of so much value that the AI fixates on them to the exclusion of all else?

Yes, I use Entrenchment and yes it's fully up to date. I have not tested this without running Entrenchment, but I presume I would experience the same effect.

Perhaps Ironclad could look into this?

Thanks, and despite this AI flaw, I still love the game

Cheers!

Arras

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The Vanilla AI could also get "fixated" on specific planets and continually attack them, exposing its flanks to counter-attack. However, this is the first time I've heard of a foolproof step-by-step that actually allows you to provoke the AI into fixating on the system of your choice.

I think one of the underlying issues is that the AI doesn't know when to fold; it often enters into battles it cannot conceivably win. Another issue is that it never makes good use of multiple fleets, leaving its flanks critically exposed any map without good chokes. In fact, any map with a back entrance to your empire leaves the AI woefully exposed.

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Not just AI. Some stupid people are stubborn like that too.

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kyogre12

Join Date 07/2008

+100

It could be because the AI was changed recently to go after those neutral extractors. Before, the AI completely ignored them all, and you could easily claim extractors one jump from their homeworld (especially with Vasari) and you would still own it by the end of the game. The AI would do absolutely nothing about it. But in a recent update (don't remember which) the AI actually started the pay attention to them, and actively try to obtain them, or take them from you. Maybe they were set to too high of a priority?

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Uh, I just played with a friend against two normal randoms, one of which divided its fleet in half and came at my buddy from two directions, the same planet, but was alternating the two fleets.

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