my games are kind of one-dimensional

from Stardock Forums
Granted I have only played a dozen or so games, but so far my gaming experience has been pretty similar every time (oh and I love the game!).

1) Mad rush to colonize
2) One or two AIs totally eclipse the other AIs, so much so the other AIs end up being mostly nonfactors the entire game.
3) The AIs who won the colony grab race to get big ships as quickly as possible. (I have seen races like the Altarian's branch out a little and get medical stuff, but it doesn't seem to slow them down much at all).
4) As soon as the AI has a military advantage, be it technical or material, they usually end up attacking me and the weak AIs.

To counter this so far I have had to race through the ship upgrade process as quickly as possible. If I am not close to par with the AI in ship technology they always attack me when they take the lead.

I keep thinking I am going to establish a trade empire, but falling behind militarily isn't an option. Part of the problem is as soon as the AI starts pumping out frigates and up they can pretty much clear any unguarded starbases and lightly guarded planets with ease.

I keep thinking I can turtle up with a network of starbases with heavily upgraded military equipment, but it takes years to get a nice starbase going and they die very quickly to capital ships.

How has everyone else's play experience been? I am sure my experience is partly because of the style i have developed and the initial picks I usually make (PQ, federalist and usually 10% military production). I take out mass loans on colony ships and expand extremely quickly, but it takes a long time to build up enough infrastructure to support a big empire. Especially if I am pouring as much into research as I seem to need to keep up with the AI.

In my more successful games I have been able to fend off whichever AI attacks me first, usually taking a few of its planets to make it stop attacking. But I always have to bust out high % military production to do it. Unfortunately a couple turns neglecting research ends up putting me behind the AI, which usually triggers any other AI doing well to attack me while I am recovering from the last war (yes I know that is a smart tactic!).

I usually play on large maps with all intelligent AI.

493 views 11 replies
Reply #1 from Stardock Forums Top
I've noticed the same type of behavior -- I call it the Bully AI. You have to stay on par militarily with the most militaristic AI, or they will attack you, disrupt you, and send you spiraling towards defeat.
Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top
I think this is part of what got tweaked in the untested patch Brad released today.
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Reply #3 from Stardock Forums Top
Try changing you starting conditions.
The Tight Clusters tend to generate this.
Try Scattered is make game play very different.

~SDC~
Reply #4 from Stardock Forums Top
It's easier to start a trading empire if you have trading bonuses. I've done that my last two games. Everyone were strangely friendly both times. I think it's better for the AI to trade with your or something.
Of course, military is a big part of the game that can't be ignored(I was forced to rush for transporters and starfighters my last game because I lost the colonization race. I took over a minor civ's worlds. No longer very good for trading, but they give excellent real estate :)), but it's not as bad as you say.

Agree about the fact that one or two AIs tend to dominate. But I've found that trading(tech and regular) with the smaller civs and destabilizing the larger can keep them fighting eachother for a long time.
Reply #5 from Stardock Forums Top
I find the game rewards militaristic play styles above all else as well... Obviously there should be elements of this but it does seem like it's difficult to get the other kinds of victories because if you waste resources on the other stuff you're just going to get attacked and beat on.

~SDC~
Reply #6 from Stardock Forums Top
I don't think the game demands a militaristic play style. Of course, you have to have SOME defense ships, but you can for example put a battle axe on each of your systems and go for a cultural win. As long as you have some warships, you don't have to go to war. Why would you expect AI to leave you alone if you're defenseless?
It's more difficult to do that on higher AI levels, but on lower settings (bright) I think it's a perfectly viable strategy.
Reply #7 from Stardock Forums Top
I agree about how some of the major races fade into the background, which leaves you and maybe 1 or 2 races to deal with and limits the amount of strategic options you have, as well as limiting some of the depth of the gameplay. I think if the starmap was more evenly distributed then all the ais would have a chance to prosper. It would be really cool if you could have a Galciv game that was like Battletech's "inner sphere" Where all 5 powers were more or less evenly balanced, but so far nothing like this has happened.
Reply #8 from Stardock Forums Top
Oh, btw, I've played on scattered many times and this still happens.
Reply #9 from Stardock Forums Top
yes. i've noticed that as well. good aligned AI's also declare war on weak minor races that have even JUST spawned on the game map for a colony grab. that's not something a 'good aligned' country like the US would do. they just usurp the power, not conquer. :D

~SDC~
Reply #10 from Stardock Forums Top
I've always been bothered by the so-called 'good' aligned majors demanding tribute (from me, each other, and minors). It seems like demanding tribute should cause an alignment hit.
Reply #11 from Stardock Forums Top
I think that strangely, we should blame the metaverse for this. Having military conquest is the best strategy to achieve the highest score, so AI uses the same stratagy as the best human players.

The solution might be 1) modify scoring to promote “peaceful” games 2) give more advantage to peaceful empires 3) make alliance technology easier to achieve, or make new technology like defensive alliance (or pact) so that AI think twice before starting the war with alliance.
If an alliance member (from defensive alliance) starts the war, then it should not automatically make all members of the defensive alliance start war. They should start the war only in “defense”, that is when any alliance member is attacked. In fact I would make defensive pact technology available very early in the game.