Beefing up the AI

[Luther]

Hey everyone.

 

Just wondering, are there any files out there that improve on the game's AI? The ai in rebellion does not pose a challenge at all, even on expert level. Here's my basic start, regardless of which side I'm playing. I'll start the game by taking everything, all my ships, fighters, and characters, and move them all to Coruscant (or whatever planet the reb base is on), leaving only the garrison troops on their planets. Then I'll put the game on fast speed, and all I'll do is recruit other characters. I'll keep doing this until all characters are recruited, and maybe I'll build a couple of facilities to get a base or 2 ready. I'll actually start playing when all recruiting is finished, and I hit the 300 day mark. So, I'll give the ai a free 300 days to get it's sh*t together before I do anything save recruiting. Once, as the Rebels, I even 'gave' the empire the entire inner ring of planets, and still kicked it's arse. I've looked everywhere for some kind of AI mod, but haven't found anything. This is a great game, even if it is a bit dated, and I don't care for multiplayer because I like big games and I figure on the 'net they would take way too long. Only tried it once though, vs a friend.

 

A fun game, but man the AI just kills it for me. I mean, as the Empire, I see the AI doing the same stupid mission over and over. Trying to abduct Palpatine from Coruscant with Chewbacca. I mean, really.

 

Interesting, I've read in other threads about traitors in the game. I've had this game for years, and never once saw any traitor. Hmmm.....

[DarthTex]

While you're doing your "recruiting phase", make sure you cut the maintenance/refined materials of all "enemy" forces by at least half. Maybe even "speed up" enemy research by having two enemy items researched simultaneously (just change the research level with RedEd). This would allow the "enemy" to mass produce much quicker, but inevitably the AI sucks, and will always suck, and you will win. It's the journey to victory that is fun, not the victory itself Good Luck.

[DarthTofu]

Wasn't there a galaxy move-around that made the AI much more powerful? Well, not more powerful, just better, because it had something of a leg up in the fight. I've heard people say that it helps tremendously to decrease the price of enemy ships to ridiculously low amounts- sometimes more than half if you really know what you're doing. Also, you can up the firepower on AI ships, giving them that much more "oomph" in a battle. I think there was a way to make sure that the AI won't run away whenever there isn't an interdictor present, too, though I don't recall what it was.

[Jacen_Fel]

I remember there are a lot of scenarios around where the AI starts with huge advantages... most of which are downloadable on this site I believe. The one I remember was when you start with like one planet and the AI has the entire galaxy. Stuff like that can make the game feel challenging for a while .

[Slocket]

You can edit the savegame to give the AI a huge advantage. I was going to write a simple editor to do it over in the Rebellion Editing Thread. Increase power, change loyalty, starting conditions.

 

But the AI is really, rather lacking.

 

I sat back and just let the AI try to conquer me, it took over hundreds of turns even though Coruscant was undefended. I wanted to see what routines the AI used to play with.

[DarthTex]

You can edit the savegame to give the AI a huge advantage. I was going to write a simple editor to do it over in the Rebellion Editing Thread. Increase power, change loyalty, starting conditions.

How goes that savegame editor Slocket, any progress? I've been working on deciphering the savegame format, but my programming skills are beyond obsolete to even consider writing an editor. Besides, I still have much to decipher and learn (but I am getting there ).

[Slocket]

I never got to it, since I decided to try to make a new version of Reb 2. But the things I learned will be helpful.

 

Yes, a real Windows GUI application written in C+ would be more user friendly and look good. I should fire up Visual Basic 6 (which I have) and it makes things quick too, but it is seems very restrictive for manipulating Files: I need to learn more about it. That would take ful C+ and Microsoft's free Express compiler to do hex data. Sooo...since my skills are rusted to say the least...

 

...I have made editors for the new Reb 2 , they are simple Windowed DOS command line like programs but it will read in a hex file of .dat just like the original files of Rebellion and manipulate the hex data within that file. The progam I am using is really easy to use, it reads in files, change the data, then output file.

 

I guess I should be able to flip one out quickly if you want to try it out. It is based upon the code Editor I made to go with the New Source Reb 2 Galaxy Mapper. (I know, it was done 3 months ago, but I tried to make things too perfect and pretty, which is not realistic, so I am just going to 'get it out the door' and see where I need to go from there).

 

IE. I would read in the savegame file, look for that particular 'pattern' of hex data (according to that editing thread) associated with that planet number (Coruscant was 166 decimal) then change:

 

1). Planet energy present/max

2). Planet mines present/max

3). The loyalty number?? -I never could figure out from looking at it. Nor could I completely understand the format pattern for the troops, ships, and buildings on the planet.

 

I think someone does know how its done. Some of the those numbers for troops, ships etc 'look' familiar. Remember that chart that you sent me? It diagramed what was known about the savegame format.

 

It be useful to make a Savegame Editor for gameplay to set up planets (either custom or random or script) changing the total Energy, Mines, basically everything?

 

I know I can do Energy and Mines. I would like to figure out those loyalty numbers.

 

I am learning that I should not be a perfectionist and just put something out I know that will work for now, and always can improve upon it later. I think just having even a primitive editor with limited editing may generate enough interest to warrant the community to really put the Mark I Eyeballs to that savegame format to elucidate that which evades me.

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I even thought about writing and AI module so to speak which can take in the multiplayer data and then it can spit back out its moves into the game. IE Instead of playing against a Human, I can take that data savegame or multiplayer data and you would be playing against the new AI.