Flawed but interesting AI decision

[Cradock]

First post having been playing game and watching forum for a few weeks - great game!

Playing 1916 Campaign Game as the Germans. BC's had just raided Harwich and fought a sharp successful action against the Harwich forces. BC's returning to port and HSF had put to sea to cover their retreat. I learnt the whole of the GF and BCF were at sea trying to cut off the BC's retreat which I successfully evaded. The HSF had put to sea without it's pre-dreads. Struck me an opportunity appeared to have arisen for the HSF to maybe catch the BCF in the twilight and give it a pounding. However the encounter came with still a couple of hours daylight so I assumed the BCF would turn tail as the GF still appeared to be a little way off. That's what they initially appeared to do.

Then all four Big Cats turned on me and came on at an angle enabling all their guns to just bear. I thought "crap AI but let's not look a gift horse in the mouth". HSF stretching in a beautiful line of dreads 23 knots were ordered albeit I knew the slower ones would not keep up turned in succession onto a course to bring full broadsides to bear - I expected rapid fireworks!

BCF shooting was surprisingly quite good but so was HSF's.... They did however take their initial hits quite well in their stride - Princess Royal took two high calibre hits which she quickly turned back to green after - the damage control boys were obviously doing well! Took a little while but eventually they were all on moderate damage then Lion took several hits and started sinking. The remaining three started to turn tail so brought the HSF dreads onto a course which cut them off from the rest of the retreating BCF. Things then rapidly unwound for them, Princess Royal and Queen Mary blew up within 30 seconds of one another and Tiger disappeared under a welter of hits a minute or two later. I repeated my thought about dumb AI.

But then loomingly out of slightly reduced visibility to the west, cutting through the remains of the BCF I spotted the whole of the GF's dreadnoughts. With my forces quite strung out, light forces quite scattered, and one or two of my battleships slightly reduced in speed from the Big Cat encounter I did think OMG... (incidentally apparently Fisher is the first recorded user of "OMG").

Gefechtskehrtwendung executed I crossed my fingers (the thought did occur to try to cross their T but maybe playing slightly in character I thought better to live to fight another day). Fight ended. My concluding thought was maybe the AI wasn't as stupid as it looked and had been luring me into a bit of a trap even if it didn't come off.

Great game guys.

 

[RAMjb]

If you put things in perspective, the AI should act as not being aware of the serious issue with cordite. For sure the british officers of the period didn't take their decissions based on "careful, that our BCs might blow up". Not until Jutland, at least.

Player hindsight on historical events might make it seem as if the AI had done a "dumb" thing by this BC charge, but in the context of the actual historical era, it makes sense. Noone expected at Jutland for british BCs blowing up like fireworks all around, neither would any british officer expect the same in your battle had it happened historically. So using the BC as bait for lure your dreadnought line into a trap makes perfect sense to me as a solid and (if a bit risky) sound tactic played on you to bring your battleships into the GF range. We all know that a human player would've never done what you've just experienced, but that's because a human player will be wary of his BCs blowing up. The Beatty of the era wasn't wary of that happening and instead tended to be quite aggresive and actively look for trouble. Player hindsight is not present in the AI battles, something that I find refreshing, tbh.

All in all I don't think it was "dumb" by the AI. I kind of thing it interesting, and pretty much believable. Agree with you, tho...GREAT GAME

 

[Cradock]

I agree - seemed a strange decision by the AI until the GF showed up and then I had rather more respect for it as a decision a Beatty just might have made - highly risky but quite intriguing for an AI to make. Also not a decision a Jellicoe would have made himself! I remember as a schoolboy reading about Jellicoe's "turn away" and other conservative decision making and thinking what a disappointing, un-Nelsonian figure he was. As an adult I rather more appreciate the quality of his thinking - against public and maybe some of the RN's own expectations his thinking seems not only sensible but also brave in a different sense to tradition notions of bravery.

 

[Tegetthoff]

I have seen this type of behaviour a number of times and I think there is less AI hidden brilliance behind it than might be suspected at first.

My theory is that the AI considers the total number of ships on the tactical map and if it has superior numbers, it will attack, regardless of how dispersed the ships are. I base this theory on behaviour I have seen when hitting automatic combat resolution with my own ships (where I see all of them). Particularly interesting is a behaviour where the AI will change its tactics from offensive to defensive if a bunch of ships leaves the map and dips the on-map balance.

Of course, I could always be wrong (and I have not played the latest version) ..

 

[Bullethead]

Welcome aboard, Cradock! New guy buys the drinks :toast: Glad you're enjoying the game.

As I said elsewhere before DB came out, the AI is improved and definitely better in some areas than before. It's still not perfect but it does a better job now. I'm glad it's giving you all more interesting fights.