The absurdity of campaign AI captured in a few screenshots

[GuyofJerusalem]

The Normans, who keep to themselves in Italy and leave others alone after turn 30, somehow manage to provoke the ire of the entire world all at once, just after turn 100 (1 year 1 turn too). Why? I've seen German and Danish stacks march 15 turns around other factions to come and attack me, when they are neutral. Why?

https://img152.imageshack.us/img152/4647/againstall8hx.jpg (https://imageshack.us)


Look at all these slavering ships from different countries surrounding me to attack me all at once when I posed no threat to other countries at all, and am only in the Middle East to whittle down the Mongols when they arrive, to help the other faction AIs, because they leave cities unattended. Why this ridiculous aggression? Do you yourself increasingly hate your home's neighbours after each day, for no reason because they don't bring a cake or pie to your door every day? The AI is pathological and I'm not afraid to say it.

https://img409.imageshack.us/img409/371/getin1oi.jpg (https://imageshack.us)


The problem is that the game could be so much better. In 100 hours or so of playing, I have only had one instance when I went to battle with an ally, the Byzantines, but only because I parked an army there over their protests to defend aganst the rapacious Hungarians. To be honest, it was tremendous fun fighting with an ally, but it very rarely happens. It should more. But even the Byzantium tactical AI is screwed. They began with many more, better troops but they did virtually nothing during the battle and I had to lunge across the map to defend them.

https://img147.imageshack.us/img147/2783/alliesforonce7ao.jpg (https://imageshack.us)


On the tactical map, if the enemy sallies out of the castle, there is only one way to attack, treat the small castle gate as a bridgehead and attack!

https://img408.imageshack.us/img408/3955/slaugerall1ju.jpg (https://imageshack.us)


One good thing though is that since you fight so much for no reason at all, your generals get amazing, especially after battles like this. This was tremendous because the Byzantines had everything - Scythians horses, etc.

https://img408.imageshack.us/img408/666/goodlikethat1mc.jpg (https://imageshack.us)


How amazing can your generals get? If you fire up Sicily as a game, you have Alberto, a virtual nobody, mediocre general and shy chap. Within 20 plus turns he becomes Alexander god-like, even on the hardest difficulties.

https://img444.imageshack.us/img444/8875/merciless0fq.jpg (https://imageshack.us)

Please, someone improve the AI, and not using forced diplomacy like the offensive renaming of Shaba Wangy mod deleted or whatever.

[PaulTa]

There was a thread recently about hours of enjoyment vs money spent, and how the ratio for MTW2 is higher than many common forms of entertainment.

For you though, it seems like hours spent complaining (which you seem to enjoy enough to dedicate many many hours to) far out-pace anyone else's personal testimonies about how much time they spend.

Have you ever considered advertising for MTW2? Your slogan might follow the lines of "Even I, the most incessant "complainer" of the forums I frequent, enjoy this game enough to gripe about it for many hours" :laugh4:

[Yun Dog]

4 words

Lusteds Lands to Conquor

thankyoucomeagain

[Kruniac]

There was a thread recently about hours of enjoyment vs money spent, and how the ratio for MTW2 is higher than many common forms of entertainment.

For you though, it seems like hours spent complaining (which you seem to enjoy enough to dedicate many many hours to) far out-pace anyone else's personal testimonies about how much time they spend.

Have you ever considered advertising for MTW2? Your slogan might follow the lines of "Even I, the most incessant "complainer" of the forums I frequent, enjoy this game enough to gripe about it for many hours" :laugh4:

No... No, the AI sucks ass. Yep. Thats all there is to it.

It takes a modder to make a game playable? Thats the most hilarious thing ever, and I just watched my Drawn Together DVD collection. Sad.

How about when I have Perfect standing with the pope, then France attacks me, and no Catholic really cares?

What about the AI sending STACK after STACK of men to seige a castle, and after losing 3000 (!) troops, they want a ceasefire? You just sent 3000 men to their deaths to wipe me out unprovoked, and im going to sign a ceasefire? Why? So you can attack me in ~10 turns?

The AI has the tactics and decision-making skills of someone from a special school. Darthmod helps A LITTLE, but not much.

Invincible Seige Towers, archers that dont defend walls, and lets not forget the "Im going to rush into your center, then when a mass of archers fires at me, im going to run back. That way I can try to rush the center again, so I can get a mass of archers to fire at me, so I can run back, so I can rush your center again, so I can get a mass of archers... Oh. 1200 men are dead, and you didnt get a single loss. Wow." tactic - laughable.

[GFX707]

There was a thread recently about hours of enjoyment vs money spent, and how the ratio for MTW2 is higher than many common forms of entertainment.

For you though, it seems like hours spent complaining (which you seem to enjoy enough to dedicate many many hours to) far out-pace anyone else's personal testimonies about how much time they spend.

Have you ever considered advertising for MTW2? Your slogan might follow the lines of "Even I, the most incessant "complainer" of the forums I frequent, enjoy this game enough to gripe about it for many hours" :laugh4:

Maybe he complains so much because he sees how great this game could have been if it wasn't for the campaign map.

Maybe if more people had made similar complaints so vocally in the RTW forums we wouldn't have to put up with a mediocre campaign in MTW2.

Maybe if there were less CA fanboys who refuse to admit there is anything wrong with the TW games there would have been more improvements made.

Furthermore, he's right. The AI all turn on the player eventually. It doesn't matter what religion, culture, or position the AI is in, they'll sidestep everyone else to attack you even if they're on the other side of the world. They'll sail a fleet from one side of the map to another (which incidentally, takes 40 years or so....movement rates in MTW2, another game-ruiner) to blockade one of my ports even though we've never even heard of each other. To me, that is unrealistic and downright stupid.

[Hamburglo]

Please, someone improve the AI, and not using forced diplomacy like the Shaby Wanky mod or whatever.

So you want improved diplomacy without anyone fixing it...?

Theres a file that programs the AI into a tall-poppy syndrome that encourages them to hate you as your ranking improves. Remove this and you'll fix most of your problems. Heck, if you can do this you can problem reverse it so that your allies relations increase the stronger you get.

People should learn to help themselves. Especially picky people. :P

[econ21]

Maybe if more people had made similar complaints so vocally in the RTW forums we wouldn't have to put up with a mediocre campaign in MTW2.

Where have you been for the last three years? The Citadel is currently a CA love fest compared to what the Colosseum was in the year after RTW's release.


Maybe if there were less CA fanboys who refuse to admit there is anything wrong with the TW games there would have been more improvements made.

Maybe if less people call each others "fanboys" and "whiners" we could have more productive discussions.

Given the way he snuck an offensive renaming of the Shaba Wangy mod (which I have edited out) into an otherwise reasonable sounding post, I am not persuaded GuyofJerusalem has changed his spots from being an unpleasant troll. If people want to discuss how to improve M2TW, I don't think this is the most auspicious thread to do it in.

:closed: