As you may know I'm the guy who does the campaign and battle modding stuff for the demo. I was messing around in some of the files, and well, I seem to have fixed the AI in my custom battles to the level where I believe it should be at, and inevitably I think it will be at in the final game.
EDIT: Just to clarify as there seems to be some confusion, this isn't my AI, its CA's AI, I didn't change it, I just let it loose.
I say this because it was quite frankly: the best AI I'v ever played against in a Total War battle. If the Demo AI is the Final Game AI, make no mistake, I will not be a disapointed customer.
CA say that this AI isn't the one in the final game, I shudder to think if they aren't telling porky pies, what it will actualy be like. They seem to have nailed it.
A run down of what happened. (I played on Hard) Both armies consisted of the same units.
Phase 1 - Setup
The AI started slightly split up into two groups, a force of 1 archer and 2 melee units were off to the right slightly infront of the large main body force.
I started my army as a defensive line. Archers in front, Ashigaru spears behind and Katana Samurai behind my Spear wall, ready to assist any engaged Ashigaru. Off to each flank I placed my elite infantry and my cavalry units, hopefuly to flank and do damage to the enemy when they got closer.
The first thing the AI did upset me greatly. They walked backwards... away from my army. I was thinking "Oh dam.. I thought I got this bloody AI working..". It was then I realised there was method to the AI's madness.
They were reforming, ready to assault my lines, they had marched their small detachment I had described at the start to the main body of their army, so they may fight as one. I was smiling.
The AI then gave me a very nice feeling in my pants. They formed up into a formation of ranks fit for command by Sun Tzu himself.
They chose to adopt my formation for the large part, archers in front, Ashigaru in the second rank, they chose Katana Samurai for their third rank. They also put their Elite units and their cavalry on their flanks. The one difference was that they kept one of their Katana Samurai units with their General at the back, to protect him from flank attacks is my best guess, I thought this was smart, I usualy try to kill the enemy general by sacrificing one of the cavalry units, this tactic was now off the cards.
Current score was 1-1. We'd both set up our lines nicely.
Phase 2 - The March
They then marched towards me, maitaining their formation, the buildings in their way gave them little trouble.
The ominous white in the distance grew closer. I was eager to see what they would do when they got near to my lines.
No army had yet seemed to try a flanking manour, I seized the initiative. I sent one of my cavalry units out into the woods off to my left, I hoped the AI would perhaps not notice, or forget as their main body passed, I could then attack from behind.
As my cavalry arrived in position, the AI moved all of it's cavalry to it's right flank. I knew something was up. I moved my Yari Samurai to my left flank, hoping to meet his cavalry.
As my elite Yari Samurai arrived in position, all of the enemy cavalry charged towards my men in the woods. I charge out a unit of Yari Samurai to attempt to save my cavalry from their inevitable doom, I caught the edge of one of their charging cavalry units, their was a minor scuffle (you can see it in the image above), but they broke free and joined the rest of their cavalry in destroying my attempt at a flank.
The main body of the enemy was now at my doorstep. My cavalry was dead, my ego was hurt, but I was still in the fight and ready to go Chuck Norris on these noobs.
Never the less the score was 2-1 to the AI.
Phase 3 - This doesn't seem so bad
The enemy lines were now in range of my archers. My archers exchanged a few vollies with the enemy archers, nothing terrible happened.
I didn't want to waste my arrows on the enemy archers who I hoped I could outflank later, so I told them to instead target the enemy Katana Samurai units.
This angered the AI. They pulled back their archers, they sent in the melee troops. They rushed my lines. I barely managed to get my archers to relative safety behind my spear wall of Ashigaru.
I say relative safety because the AI still did seem to hold a grudge about me firing arrows at their Katana Samurai. They pulled out one of their Katana units and sent them out around the side of my defensive line, THEY WERE GOING FOR MY ARCHERS. I rushed up one of my own Katana Samurai units to block the gap between them and my archers. They got there just in time.
The AI seemed to know what it was doing, and I mean really know how to go about its business.
I was scared, the AI was angry, my spear wall was failing.
I slapped my face a few times, told myself to get my head in the game. I was ready to punch back.
The score was 3-2 to the AI, he'd thrown some nice attacks my way, but I had matched them, thankfuly.
Phase 4 - Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
It was now my turn to try and hurt the enemy. I pulled back my archers to behind my supporting Katana Samurai units. As the enemy clashed with my, now weak, Ashigaru Spear wall, I decided to send in half of my Katana units, to support them. With the rest of my Katana Samuria, I sent them to the right of my line, I was hoping to flank that way, and do damage. The enemy had previously left that area of the field undefended, I saw an open route to the enemy archers. I joined my Katana forces with my elite Yari Samurai who had regrouped on the right. We charged up the right side of the field.
The Generals bodyguards-bodyguard (lol), the Katana Samurai unit they kept back, now rushed forward to meet my attack. I engaged them with my Yari Samurai, hoping to hold them off long enough for my Katana's to get into behind the enemy lines (you can see that fight in the image above at the back). It was semi successful, one of my Katana units managed to engage an enemy Ashigaru unit from behind, however the rest were met by enemy Katana units.
The Battlefield was now a mess, there was no distinguishable lines anymore, just an open expanse of Samurai and Ashigaru fighting and dying. My remaining movable units were now my archers and General.
I made my General rally the troops one last time, I then pulled him back to safety in the trees behind the fighting.
My faith in my melee forces to see of the enemy was no use. I had forced far too many mismatches. My forces were routing one by one. My last remaining strong unit was a detachment of my Elite Yari Samurai who had seem off many of the enemy. I sent them into the wave of enemies that were now bearing down on my archers and my General, hoping to stem the tide. They fought well, giving my archers some valuable time to fire down on the mass of enemy soldiers.
The Battle seemed lost. I charged my General into the side of the enemy melee troops in a last ditch attempt to try and start a rout.
It was at this point, as my General hit the enemy lines, I knew the battle was lost.
All of my melee troops apart from my General and my Yari Samurai were in retreat. The AI not content with my utter ruin decided to add insult to injury.
The enemy cavalry had now arrived from the left side of the field. And with the huge open expanses that had now opened up in the battle, they wieved in and out of my dying men, to find my archers.
They hit my archers, and destroyed them.
Even my Yari Samurai were now in retreat.
My last unit alive was my General, I pulled him back away from the fight, I prepared for him to make a last charge. It was a surreal moment. The AI did not charge my General, they stood. The enemy General now broke out from the enemy ranks, time to seemed to slow. After I un-pressed the slow motion button, the enemy General began running tenatiously at my General.
In return I charged my General at him, hoping to spite my enemies victory and kill their leader. It was no good. My Generals bodyguard had no intention of dying for my Generals honour. They ran like cowards. My General followed suit.
The Battle was over. The AI victorious. I was more than impressed, I was something far more pleasing. I was excited for March 15th, I was now bitterly excited for Shogun 2.
EDIT: I should make it very clear this battle was 100% unscripted.
A genuinely awsome BAI
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Originally Posted by Ujio
