AI Impossible Tiny Warships (Solved)

from GalCiv4 Forums

I have noticed before that the AI players seem to be able to design and build a lot of impossible Tiny warships.

Here is a good example Game is Large 16 Races at Genius level and it is April 2311, i.e. 4 1/4th game years. The Arceans have a lot of 2 designs when I check them out via the Trade Screen.

They have 61 Asteroid Miners (that can really mine Asteroids) that are Guardian Tiny interceptors with 4/4/4 weapons and 0/0/0 defenses and 13 hit points and 13 Speed.

They also have 17 Patrol Tiny warships that are either 4/8/4 or 3/7/3 for weapons and 0/0/0 for defenses with 13 Hit Points and 13 Speed.

How can they be doing things like this? It would take a LOT of investigations of Precursor anomalies with just the right results for me to do things like this. Luckily they do not have Small and Medium Hulls and the ability to use Subspace Streams.

It was fairly common for me earlier in many games to see several Races in each Game with MANY (scores of them) Tiny warships with 1/2/1 weapons and1/1/1 defenses.

added: see following messages

I think that what I am seeing is the affects of military Star Bases on the ships of those AI Alien Players. i.e. most of those ships are either Asteroid Miners or Tiny ships with ONE small (Laser) weapon, i.e. a 0/1/0  for weapons and 0/0/0 for defenses Tiny size ship, plus Military Bases adding to them, plus possibly any Precursor affects from exploring/surveying anomalies during the course of the game, etc.

5,420 views 4 replies
Reply #1 from GalCiv4 Forums Top

can you send provide a save, id love to check it out.

Reply #2 from GalCiv4 Forums Top

Maybe they are using military starbases. Are the ships only found in very specific areas, like near a starbase?

Whats the turn number? (you can click the date to change it). A date in a fictional universe does little for me.

Edit: I did some quick tests and I think there might be as many as 4 military starbases. Are they getting bonuses to attack and defense? I built an explorer (because it doesn't get any weapons or defense), and it got 1 point in each category.

Galactic Civilizations IV
Reply #3 from GalCiv4 Forums Top

The increase in hit points and speed comes from the Genius level.  I just finished going through all the difficulty levels and getting the changes in hit points and speed (moves) the starting survey ship gets for the different races.  At Genius level, the hit points increase by 32.5% over Normal.  Moves increased by 50% to 75%, depending on the race.  The values you are seeing are what they should be.  The AI is following the rules for these two parameters.

I think DivineWrath is correct about weapons and defenses coming from nearby military starbases.  However, the Arcean have the vigilant trait, which includes giving weapons to any ship in the area of effect of any of their starbases.  This also stacks, so being in the area of effect of two starbases means double the weapons.  Since I think in GC4 the military starbases give even more, it can add up in a hurry.

EDIT

Also, the area of effect of Arcean starbases is increased by one in all directions.

Reply #4 from GalCiv4 Forums Top

Maybe they are getting Military Base upgrades (as suggested in above messages), e.g. they are sitting at their Home World and maybe other locations, where there are Military Star Bases that are giving them bonuses for being inside the area of affect of a Military Base.

That seems a reasonable idea to explain what I am seeing, as well as why they can be different for different Races, and sometimes for different individual ships of the same Race.

It could also explain the 13 Hit Points and speeds.

I tried to upload a file to Dropbox, but it told me that my account is full. So I have to figure out how to delete a lot of years old files they have stored for me. I have already tried deleting files, but I still need to do more apparently.

added:

It was the Arceans that I was seeing 4/4/4 Asteroid Miners for. So You have come up with a good and proper explanation for what I have noticed.

So before I attack the Home World (HW) of one of these Races, it would be a good idea for me to destroy any military Star Bases nearby boosting those ships. Otherwise attacking their HWs could/will be very unpleasant.

Thank you for your help.