Request for AI test

Dear players-who-have-the-game

In ETW, there was the famed example of awful BAI where you could leave a custom battle to play its course with no interaction from the player's side. Besides that of positioning troops and such.

Could someone please see how the new BAI responds to the same challenge? Along the lines of the old tests, of course; flat and mostly unbroken terrain, infantry-heavy standard army? The artillery looks a lot more mobile in NTW, so I am inclined to think some tests can be run without the use of artillery; that bit has evidently improved.

Thanks in advance, I do hope someone could take the time. Personally, I find this to be an important point.

This is the most important thread on the entire forum right now.

Seriously, any info on this? This makes or breaks whether I buy NTW.

Originally Posted by BHunterSEAL

This is the most important thread on the entire forum right now.

Seriously, any info on this? This makes or breaks whether I buy NTW.

+1

You tell me that indeed, in ETW you can win a Custom battle by just leaving your army sit there? That can't be possible.

In case it is... I expect a better challenge from the BAI than being able to win my army if ... I'm not around.

Originally Posted by alhoon

You tell me that indeed, in ETW you can win a Custom battle by just leaving your army sit there? That can't be possible.

In case it is... I expect a better challenge from the BAI than being able to win my army if ... I'm not around.

Its possible, but the AI does take better steps. This also isnt the best way to test the AI though I have done so myself.

Dont forget that expecially in a musket fight, the player standing still has the advantage. It doesnt matter what direction the AI comes from, the player is going to get to shoot first. The AI has to march within range and will not fire until most of its units are in firing range.

The players army on the other hand is already in formation, and will start firing as soon as only a few of the AIs men are in range. At the most they might have to rotate.

Originally Posted by GrnEyedDvl

Its possible, but the AI does take better steps. This also isnt the best way to test the AI though I have done so myself.

Dont forget that expecially in a musket fight, the player standing still has the advantage. It doesnt matter what direction the AI comes from, the player is going to get to shoot first. The AI has to march within range and will not fire until most of its units are in firing range.

The players army on the other hand is already in formation, and will start firing as soon as only a few of the AIs men are in range. At the most they might have to rotate.

I agree,as it was often times pointed out in the war between the states,the static army will 9 times out of 10 claim the victory,so what really needs to occur is something on the map,like points that need to be taken,that draw the player out of their entrenched positions

Originally Posted by GrnEyedDvl

Its possible, but the AI does take better steps. This also isnt the best way to test the AI though I have done so myself.

Dont forget that expecially in a musket fight, the player standing still has the advantage. It doesnt matter what direction the AI comes from, the player is going to get to shoot first. The AI has to march within range and will not fire until most of its units are in firing range.

The players army on the other hand is already in formation, and will start firing as soon as only a few of the AIs men are in range. At the most they might have to rotate.

If those people really want to test then they should do it "The Patriot" movie style.

AI marches towards you, you march towards him as well and then form up and fire just like he has to.

What many fail to realize time after time is that there isn't ANY ai that could prevail when faced in such manipulated slated battles where some jackass just sits on a stronghold position and faces off with what would sometimes be militia...

In short, if you want a REAL challenge get off your cowardly ass and go find one. Advance and fight them on their terms and find other variations in battles.

Not to say it will be perfect BAI because there is no such thing but still it seems for the most part it has improved but have yet to play the game..

Originally Posted by {II}Sovereign

What many fail to realize time after time is that there isn't ANY ai that could prevail when faced in such manipulated slated battles where some jackass just sits on a stronghold position and faces off with what would sometimes be militia...

In short, if you want a REAL challenge get off your cowardly ass and go find one. Advance and fight them on their terms and find other variations in battles.

Not to say it will be perfect BAI because there is no such thing but still it seems for the most part it has improved but have yet to play the game..

He is talking about being in flat area where the AI can surround the opponent but doesn't. Would you really send one unit at a time so your oppoenent could shoot with his whole force at every unit and destroy them? Of course not. Would you not surround your enemy if you had a numerical advantage, of course but the AI isn't. There isn't any AI capable of doing so? Just because you haven't seen one doesn't mean its not possible. XAI for M2TW was and still is the best AI i have ever seen. You don't believe me? Have a look for yourself:

NO AI will ever satisfy this collective army of armchair generals & self proclaimed historians.

@Abbysinthe. Look above

for those of you saying an immobile army has the advantage in this scenario, that's really not true at all. the AI should flank a static army or if it has an arty advantage it should shoot the player's army. there is no excuse for repeatedly walking into the players kill zone (often in a jumbled mess) and getting mowed down. if you can win a video game without pressing any buttons, there is a problem.

Originally Posted by dmcheatw

for those of you saying an immobile army has the advantage in this scenario, that's really not true at all. the AI should flank a static army or if it has an arty advantage it should shoot the player's army. there is no excuse for repeatedly walking into the players kill zone (often in a jumbled mess) and getting mowed down. if you can win a video game without pressing any buttons, there is a problem.

What's more, if the attacker has sufficient forces to make the attack feasible (which is half the problem: the AI turns up with totally inadequate forces), they have the initiative.

A big problem is the AI has no idea how to use that initiative. Concentration of force? Flank and frontal? Arty to pin/disrupt formation prior to attack? Etc etc.

Aside from that, maybe I should point to the post in my sig....

I don't post much on here, more of just a reader.

But I have the game in America, and the Battle AI.... is basically the same as Empire.


In my last battle, the AI's infantry lined basically fired once, charged my lines, half of them routed, half of them went back to the square formation right in the middle of the battlefield In the battle before that, their main line, instead of marching straight, criss crossed right in front of my troops, and I had fired a few volleys and routed them before they could straighten out. I've yet to see AI flanking.

... and I'm still beating full stack armies with half stacks. The BAI still doesn't know how to withdrawl without a total rout. They still hide in buildings halfway across the battlefield. And there doesn't seem to be much variance with the maps at all, they are usually boring, boring boring with little to no terrain elevation.

The campaign and battlefield graphics are much improved, but I see little to no BAI improvement. The game feels different because of the effects and sounds, but as far as TACTICAL NAPOLEONIC REALISM (this I wanted more than anything), it falls short in major ways.

If you guys have questions throw them my way and I'll check back in between battles and such,

Originally Posted by Gladiator22

and the Battle AI.... is basically the same as Empire.

this is very sad.

Sorry I actually just saw the main point of the thread, I'll try that in a bit after I'm done campaigning a bit.

Dude i am on it

oh !

My god i will say this,much to my surprise when besieged by my superior force the AI ACTUALLY agreed to surrender.

Originally Posted by Chevalier IX

My god i will say this,much to my surprise when besieged by my superior force the AI ACTUALLY agreed to surrender.

Why the surprise? ETW did this.

Originally Posted by Gladiator22

I don't post much on here, more of just a reader.

But I have the game in America, and the Battle AI.... is basically the same as Empire.


In my last battle, the AI's infantry lined basically fired once, charged my lines, half of them routed, half of them went back to the square formation right in the middle of the battlefield In the battle before that, their main line, instead of marching straight, criss crossed right in front of my troops, and I had fired a few volleys and routed them before they could straighten out. I've yet to see AI flanking.

... and I'm still beating full stack armies with half stacks. The BAI still doesn't know how to withdrawl without a total rout. They still hide in buildings halfway across the battlefield. And there doesn't seem to be much variance with the maps at all, they are usually boring, boring boring with little to no terrain elevation.

The campaign and battlefield graphics are much improved, but I see little to no BAI improvement. The game feels different because of the effects and sounds, but as far as TACTICAL NAPOLEONIC REALISM (this I wanted more than anything), it falls short in major ways.

If you guys have questions throw them my way and I'll check back in between battles and such,

As I suspected. Better graphics, same BAI. ETW 2.0. So how can the ETW BAI Patch be any better?

Originally Posted by Chevalier IX

My god i will say this,much to my surprise when besieged by my superior force the AI ACTUALLY agreed to surrender.

Are you sure? Perhaps you got lucky and fell in the 0.1% chance that this can happen.

Its possible, but the AI does take better steps. This also isnt the best way to test the AI though I have done so myself.

Dont forget that expecially in a musket fight, the player standing still has the advantage. It doesnt matter what direction the AI comes from, the player is going to get to shoot first. The AI has to march within range and will not fire until most of its units are in firing range.

The players army on the other hand is already in formation, and will start firing as soon as only a few of the AIs men are in range. At the most they might have to rotate.

sorry, but if the AI would be somewhat clever it would never throw all units one by one in suicidal waves straight towards the human player. this behaviour alone shows that the AI is extremely limited. If the player is not moving any half decent AI would either move around and flank and shoot the player to pieces from one side or search for a distant fight with art and waits for the player to come.

testing the AI in flat ground without doing anything is very significant and tells you a lot about it.