[Freeciv] Re: Some questions

[<johannes@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Mon, 18 Dec 2000, Mike Jing wrote:

(snip)

> >>Actually, I think I would like to work with AI, even though I should
> >>probably start with something easier. But putting my shortcommings aside,
> >>I would like to make an AI that could analyze the ruleset to some extent,
> >>and that be used for some clientside micromanagement (the computer AI
> >>player should handle its cities good enough for the human players to use
> >>it for citymanagement etc.). Hence the AI should only use whatever the
> >>client sees (no cheating!), and I need to program it very 'modularized'.
> >>When I get the time to do so, I will go through the AI that already exists
> >>and come up with something more concrete.
>
> That would be great.  AI is probably the least understood part of the code
> since the original author of most of the AI code disappeared sometime ago.
> It's very important to have more people who knows the AI and can work to
> improve it further.

I look forward to throw myself at it. :)

> >>2. How fast do you 'smallpox' players reach the end of the tech tree
> >>(assuming you try to reach the end of it)?
>
> I tried to do a test to see how fast it could be done, but it only proves
> that I suck at ICS (OK, I peobably suck anyways, but that's something else).
>   In any case, I know people who claim that they can research everything by
> 1000AD.  Although I knew the pace of tech advance is pretty fast in Freeciv,
> I never thought that would be possible until I realized how they could get
> so far ahead so fast.  In most cases though, you would never see the end of
> the tech tree because the game would have been long over.

I'll test the ICS stratedy (as far as I understand it) soon.

> >>I have noticed much talk about this smallpox strategy it these forums, and
> >>having a somewhat different strategy (I realize the importance of many
> >>cities, but I usually develop them too, hence am more careful about their
> >>placement), I would like to compare. Of course, I should do this by
> >>playing some games, but I am in no position to do that at the moment.
>
> I guess I am the one who is making all the noise about smallpox right now
> and some people probebly think I am making too much of a fuss over it.  I
> have to admit that I hate it with a passion and never used it myself because
> I find it extremely ugly, both figuratively and literally.  (Of course, the
> fact that I don't know how to use it has absolutely nothing to do with it.
> ;-)
>
> I don't know whether you have played any multiplayer games in Civ2, but it
> is certainly quite different from playing against the AI.  Game balance is
> much more important in multiplayer because the dominance of one particular
> stretagy will almost certainly ruin the game for many people.
>
> BTW, are you saying that you are too busy to play?  I hope you can find time
> soon.  See you at civserver.freeciv.org.

No, the computer system where I was in Germany suffered a hacker attack,
and for a long time I only had access to an ASCII terminal. It doesn't
give much chance for freeciv playing. :( But now that I'm back in Norway,
things might become better.

> Mike

Johannes