MTW too easy

[Vistula]

This game is too easy - what do you think ?
I play on expert. AI has poor economic (because he trade too late) only few & poor armies, he don't use diplomatic units propely. I forgot when I lost my last battle ... http://www.totalwar.org/ubb/wink.gif

expert is too easy - if CA can't do better AI (on strategic & battle map) maybe AI should cheating ?

[Gregoshi]

No cheating - better AI. Nothing pisses off more people than a cheating computer.

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Gregoshi
A Member of Clan Doragon

[Papewaio]

Quote Originally posted by Gregoshi:
No cheating - better AI. Nothing pisses off more people than a cheating computer.

[/QUOTE]

Except cheating on your spouse with your PC.

'Oh what a big floppy drive you have. Such a huge RAM and you are so well config.exe.ured. Its not just your physical attributes but that you adapt yourself to my favourites and charmingly call your memories of me cookies that are locked away in your deepest memory.'

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Pape you're a disgrace. - NinjaKilla
Pape has the right idea. - Sir Kuma of The Org
Papewaio is right on the money. - Nelson
True Pape, so very True. - Barocca
Pape has it right./ As usual. - Minamoto Yoritomo / Sjakihata Akechi
Pape, Pape, Pape, naughty naughty naughty. - BigHairyDeal
Pape, have you been taking viagra with your evening milk and cookies? - NagatsukaShumi

[Gregoshi]

ROTFL Pape!

Insert disk now, then click on the "yes Yes YES!!" button

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Gregoshi
A Member of Clan Doragon

[Daevyll]

Try playing the Turks in Early on Expert mode.

That is the hardest faction I found, other supposedly 'hard' factions such as the Spanish are pretty easy, but the Turks on early is difficult enough to give me a real challenge.

[Rosacrux]

Better, try to mod the Novgorod-ians to a playable faction and play with them - even on hard. On early there is NO WAY to win with those guys. Even better, the aragoneze. They are really doomed.

As for the "valid" factions... play with the Byzantines in early (expert) and smash the Turks right from the start, then take on the Egyptians and smash those to.

Right when your first ship reaches the Ionian sea (thus starting some "real" trade) the whole Europe will team up against you. At least Italy, sicily (if they are still around) Hungary, Poland and Spain will. Deal with 2 crousades every turn heading to Constantinople, while trying to supress the one-a-round revolt or reappearance of the Turks and/or Egyptians... and then you talk to me about "how easy this game is".

[maroule]

agreed rosacrux,
that also my configuration and more or less the way my campaign goes, and it's fun :

Yet, as Biz, Expert, starting 'late', I still managed to get rid of the turks, egyptians and mongols early. That was a decent challenge in terms of crap starting position for the Biz (without even Constantinople to start with) but the AI definitively used only 10% of the power of nuisance a human player would have used, and that's where it was disapointing. I did afterwards have to fight the whole of Europe, plus the almohads who had grown stupendously (the whole of France and half of Germany is theirs). Only one crusade, though, and very weak.

Overall, I don't have the feeling I'm beeing strechted enough by the battles. Very often the AI starts with a very good position, more and better troops, and I still win without beeing outstanding. Understand that I'm not blowing my own trumpet here : I'm a decent wargame player, having started about 17 years ago on Napoleonic board games, and playing regularly since, but I have rarely been pulling off amazing tactics in the more or less 200 battles I played in MTW since 18 days.

I'd like a better AI, of course, but it will be difficult to significantly improve it quickly. Therefore I'm for a bit of cheating FOR the computer. A standard +2 morale for all his units, for example, or +2 command for all his generals (both added to their current stats). It could be just one option to click, though, I understand that some people wouldn't like that.

[Kowalski]

you guys are good...
i have challenges playing on normal, any faction. I guess i'm lucky to be able to enjoy the game as it is.

[ltj]

Quote Even better, the aragoneze. They are really doomed[/QUOTE]

i managed to capture all of england's european provinces, and most of france with the argonese before i got bored and quit the campaign. :]

just have to be careful and prioritize provinces.

[Rosacrux]

maroule
Agreed. I am not an experienced wargamer myself but I know a couple of things about military tactics and I have to say the AI is nowhere close to a challenge when it comes to battles.

But... #1: I rarely carry out more than 10% of the battles because they are too time-consuming and my time is severely limited (I can play only 1-2 hours/a session, I am a married man you know with a quite demanding job too). so I just leave the comp do the calculations most of the times. I occasionaly take on a serious challenge and 9 out of 10 (due to AI poor performance) I win, but that's not the point, is it?

But #2: When it comes to the strategical map on Expert, you have some serious disadvantages. I particulary enjoy playing the Byzantines and in Early they are fairly equiped for a might rush: Wipe out the Turks in less than a decade, you enemize Egyptians. Take on the Egyptians (in 15 more years) you enemize several christian factions ( !!! )

After that, the problems start when you try to establish trade routes - you simply can't. The Italian always attack on sea and at the same time they launch a Crusade. Next turn the Hungarians invade the Balkans and the Spaniards set route - crusading, of course - to Constantinople. Outrageous. Winnable, yes, of course, but simply outrageous. I wish there was a way to settle down a bit and concentrate on building up the empire, instead of fighting a 6-front war for the rest of the game (because they all fight to the bitter end, they never compromize to a ceasefire).

P.S. It is fun, actually, that is why I love that setting. I just wish I could play it otherwise, If I desided so. But I can't. No matter what you do as the Byzantines, the Turks attack you in the first decade. And if you don't take Rum quickly, they can be a real pain in the arse. So... it's downhill from there on.

[This message has been edited by Rosacrux (edited 09-20-2002).]

[maroule]

indeed rx, I see we share a very similar experience. I was actually able to trade for about 10 years (over around 150 years, my campaign is still going), but since then I'm fighting every faction and their mother. I long for peace and development...

I'm thinking about my next campaign, though, and how to make it even better.
I've seen an interesting idea in this forum : play as the english in early and for the first 100 years do not get out of your island (and loose your French posessions). All you can do is take the rebels around (but only on your island, not in sweden). After the waiting period, game is on (that would be expert, and on points, not complete conquest).
Another idea : play as the Nov in high, and try complete conquest (beating the clock, very military oriented).

What do you reckon?

[This message has been edited by maroule (edited 09-20-2002).]

[Rosacrux]

I haven't seen the English-isolation idea, but it sounds very interesting, from a role-playing perspective.

Novgorod? Did it. Early, Hard, Conquest. Went into the reds after 15 years and never recovered. Turks came in after some time, and busted my arse. Game over. I even tried to beef them up a bit (gave them a couple of buildings and one more starting Boyar unit) but that didn't help much - this time the Byzantines betrayed their orthodox counterparts.
Giving them more money would work, but that would also spoil the fun.

Maybe when I finish of the bleeding all-out-war in my current campaign, I'll give it one more shot.

[DrNo]

Ok alot of people are agreed it's too easy on expert with whatever faction you use.

So come up with reasons why the AI struggles and some possible suggestions on how to improve it.

Firstly AI struggles with trade so we need to change it's unit and building construction priorities to sort this out.
Ports are my top priority followed by a couple of shipyards, and trading posts in early game. Trading posts go up first in provinces with 2 or more tradeable goods.

Once the AI has money we can then see how well it does but the key is for it to build ships. If an AI faction has ships in alot of sea provinces it will serisouly cut your trade if you go to war with them. Same goes for other AI factions attacking them.

The increased money should lead to better buildings and hence tougher armies. Again a bit of AI unit construction rejig needed here, so better troops are always built before poorer ones unless it's a real emergency. i.e. Peasants(5), UrbanMilitia(40), Spearmen(60), FeudalSergeants(100) etc..

Once the AI is fielding better armies then the battle AI can be assesed properly but as it stands it always fields low morale low ability troops mixed with a few better units, making it's strategies fail before they start.

[Daevyll]

You might want to try changing the faction AI for all factions to 'agressive expansion' or something similar for all factions (in the 'early.txt' file), then you probably wont have time to expand your own economy which you seem to be doing.

[This message has been edited by Daevyll (edited 09-20-2002).]

[Gregoshi]

Actually a bit of randomness in AI strategies would be ideal. Then you'd never quite know what to expect from any faction.

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Gregoshi
A Member of Clan Doragon

[BlackWatch McKenna]

HRE on Early Expert.

Sheesh- the rest of the world can't take a joke... Can't they just relax and let me ace them one by one?

[Whitey]

It really depends on how you play the game as to how hard it is, if you take some time over the conquest then it is quite easy - if you refuse to use spies and play as Byz up to the later periods then you begin to get a challange when your units really can't cut it against the remaining christain bastions in France, Germany, and England. I've got something like 50 stacks of pretty standardised armies (heavy, normal, and light units, about 5:35:10 ratio) and while massed cataphracts (sorry - can't hack that non-anglicised spelling http://www.totalwar.org/ubb/smile.gif ) just wipe the floor with just about anything, my Byz inf are really showing themselves up.

It gets fun rolling up the opposition, but some of the micro-management gets to me. Not so difficult, but then what game player worth their salt has never handicapped themselves when things get too simple (remember 'archer only' Uesugi campaigns anyone http://www.totalwar.org/ubb/smile.gif ) or set your own achievements. Or just live by conquest and forget the very concept of building. I've taken the turks from Cyrenica to Prague via Constantinople only holding the ground under my feet - its real fun to try and keep the treasury in the black - every turn means war http://www.totalwar.org/ubb/smile.gif )

[Stu35]

it is too easy... they tried to compensate in a terrible way (lots of rebellions if you didnt keep your king in the centre of your empire)...

Then again, we have no right to demand anything from them - this game does exactly what it says on the tin(well they stretched the truth a bit of a lot), and we didnt make it...


so basically we cant whinge, until we go out and make our own AI for the game we cannot tell them what to do, how to do it, or how easy it is... lazy bastards. http://www.totalwar.org/ubb/wink.gif

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Alba Gu Bragh

[spmetla]

Quote HRE on Early Expert.
Sheesh- the rest of the world can't take a joke... Can't they just relax and let me ace them one by one?
[/QUOTE]

It's hard to be Holy Roman Emperor but I'm getting quite good at it. Soon all will bow before my might and the fools who....

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