Campaign AI still disappointingly stupid?

[IPoseTheQuestionYouReturnTheAnswer]

This is probably not a common case, but it's my situation nonetheless: As the Turks, I've been allied with the Venetians for at least 50 or so turns now. We've fought in tons of naval battles together against Russia and the Byzantines, and have fought a couple land battles and 1 siege together. It's been pretty cool. What's more, is that I am a Muslim faction. Also, I declared a Jihad on Rome and captured it from the Papacy, then the pope called a crusade on Rome to get it back. Every catholic faction left answered it - except Venice. They honored our alliance and stayed away.

I haven't been giving them money, either. We just have mutual enemies, and have been supporting each other pretty well. Good stuff.

[Reapz]

GFX707 I think the campaign AI is improved from RTW. VH in RTW means the AI factions just outbuild you with stack after stack of armies even though its economically impossible and its not much fun after the novelty of winning a few times wears off. In M2 however I don't see any of that type of AI advantage on VH. I am not sure what faction you are playing but try playing Rus on VH/VH and I don't think you will have the kind of experience you described. I'm about 280 turns into a great Rus vh/vh campaign where the AI did all kinds of "clever" things that really taxed my brain for a while. The AI did not let me build up peacefully it was a bloodbath from about 15 turns onwards. I don't think I have been "back to peace" for about 200 turns. Allies never attacked me. I had a couple of encounters with small armies that had no business wandering around hostile territory but I made that mistake myself.

[NihilisticCow]

I'm now playing my third VH/VH campaign, what I have noticed is that some factions seem to build fairly reasonable armies but others seem to just build really silly ones. The Italian states are the best example of it, rarely do I see one of their stacks that has less than 10 crossbows in it and quite often approaching 15... It just makes it far too easy to walk over their armies. With a proper army the battlefield AI does do a half decent job at times, though not really compared with human players ofc, but it just is a bit frustrating that it keeps getting fed rather rubbish armies that have no chance of winning by the strategic level AI.

It also seems to make quite a few irrational decisions, maybe that is more the VH campaign difficulty, but breaking an alliance to siege a well defended city with a very weak army and to retreat immeadiately next turn and request a cease fire seems.... well mad.

[neilm85uk]

In an English campaign Edinburgh, taken from the Scots, was assaulted by eight units of cavalry. This was quite amusing when I reached the battle map.

[wzup]

In an English campaign Edinburgh, taken from the Scots, was assaulted by eight units of cavalry. This was quite amusing when I reached the battle map.

they tried to pull that on me too

[Furious Mental]

One unit stacks? I don't know what you're talking about. In my HRE campaign I haven't been the subject of one such attack- the AI always sends a full stack or close to one my way.

[Senta]

i play on h/h with Poland. been at war with all of my neighbours for over 30 turns. HRE and Denmark keeps coming at me, i beat them back, usually annihilating their armies and yet they come back... they do bring lots of troops but after i have won every battle decisively and taken some teritories from them on my penal expedition, you'd think they would stop... at least Russia is being extremely passive, sending priests and trying to bribe my generals.

[Werner]

One unit stacks? I don't know what you're talking about. In my HRE campaign I haven't been the subject of one such attack- the AI always sends a full stack or close to one my way.

Same in my HRE campaign. And I am playing m/m