Improving the AI (M2TW fixes & omissions cf RTW)

[Noir]

Good work econ21

Points 4 to 8 relative to the strategic AI would make the game much much better.

The tactical AI can give a reasonable challenge on the field and even win wars in the long term if he has the resources to wage them, engages when he has favorable odds and comes in a coordinated manner. All of the above were present in the older games.

The strategic AI in STW/MTW was waging war when he had lots of armies and so he was getting/would get on the red; then he would invade the weakest usually neighbour. When he didn't have more armies than the weakest neighbour, he would wait until the opportunity of a weak neighbour presented itself and not otherwise (this is why the Danes an the Aragonese were waiting for ages and were drowning in debts because in the process they were getting all these expensive heirs they couldn't support - but that is easily solved if the boduguards cost nothing to maintain; the actual AI behaviour was correct!).

In RTW/M2 the AI will declare war anyway upon having common borders, even if he hasn't the resources to do so - you can also see the *recently revealed* but long time anticipated "conflict" between the military and diplomatic AI in RTW and M2TW: one turn we offer you a protectorate only to attack you anyway (you accept or not) in the next (with that great stack we brought to make you accept).

Let me add at this point that the AI often opts for mass producing the cheapest units available - and the cheapest units tend to be oddities (like the wardogs or screetching women of RTW). Its better to keep these oddities perhaps as recruitable before a battle (something like siege engines) instead of killing the AI stacks composition in that fashion.

Noir