AI Carrier Crazy |
I've noticed that the AI's are Carrier Krazy in that they build way too many of these worthless ships. Too many times I've come upon an enemy AI colony with one of my little recon frigates to find it guarded by 15 or 20 Heavy Carriers with no fighters. Since they only sport Point Defense weapons those AI carriers are useless against my small recon frigates and my ship chases off the garbage even killing some before it blows away the AI colony.
This is the same problem Supreme Ruler 2010 had in that the AI's built way too many expensive carriers only to waste them because the AI didn't know how to operate aircraft from carriers. After pointing out this stupid rush to build carriers the programmer for SR2010 got smart and reduced the number of carriers the AI puked out which helped make the AI better.
Please cut down the number of carriers the AI's make. Remember proportions when having the AI's make ships. Each heavy carrier carries 96 large fighters and to fill up those carriers will take plenty of fighters. I think one carrier for each fleet is sufficient. Think of a USA Carrier Naval Task Force with 5 Frigates, 3 Destroyers and 2 Cruisers in each task force with that carrier.
I started with all techs and the AI builds nothing but Dreadnaughts along with too many carriers. No Cruisers, no Battleships or anything else. The AI's should build a better balance of smaller and bigger ships so that it can have more ships for the same cost.
Omnius
A random thought that
A random thought that occured that might assist in the 'fixing' of this bug. Why not create a 'Space Unit Yard' That only does units, no facilities or ships, and make it fairly small, say 50 tons, and include it in the design of all carriers/mine layers/drone launchers/Satellite launchers. And then each carrier can produce it's own fighters on the move, it might remove the complication of trying to get the AI to build them on nearby planets then load them. And the same with mine layers/drone launchers.
I've tried this in my own
I've tried this in my own designs of carriers, the problem is that when a ship born space yard is constructing... it can't move. I still like to have a ship yard on my carriers to repair damaged fighters (I ususally just have armor, not shields on fighters, and armor needs repair).
fighters are extremely useful, and the carrier really brings the battle to the bad guys... but really you only need one in a fleet.
SEV, more than a feeling.
Good Warships
Even though I am a noobie with SEV... I have noticed that the AI doesn't really build any good warships in the stock game. I'm still learning which weapons are good against which defense (or lack of in the AI case.) But I have noticed that even my technically inferior ships seem to have little problems taking the higher tech AI ships.
The balcence Mod seemed to have changed that though....
Re: AI Carrier Crazy
There are several issues with ship design and construction in stock. The AI in stock is very bare bones. Try a mod or three, and see what happens.
"Only by being constantly at war with evil in all things, including yourself, can you truely know peace."
Download my mod here: GidMod
Re: AI Carrier Crazy
lol yea when i first played a stock game I built up my defenses expecting the worse and was surprised how poorly stock designs are 
I'm sure Gideon will have that taken care of in his mod
- United we stand, divided we fall...but dam it you touch my cheez its and not even god will be able to save you!
I agree
I agree but the problem is with the AI not building fighters rather than not knowing what to do with them when it has. I have in a stock game got fed up with this and went into the AI and ordered it to build 10 of its standard fighters on all of its planets and left it to it.
A few turns latter an AI carrier group came through with fighters much to my surprise resulting in just about the only battle I have ever lost in Stock. The priority to build fighters needs to be increased when the AI has carriers in its fleet.
The other thing is due to the AI being convinced bigger is better on all occasions