Giving this another try - some questions

[Elerond]

 

I think the AI is pretty good already. They actively go after the squishiest and most dangerous characters in your party, and use their abilities actively and relatively intelligently. It's come a long way.

 

It has indeed, but still enemies make no use of potions, scrolls, or items' spellbound abilities. They never try to suppress afflictions you cause them, or help each other out when in a group. Basically when you're fighting a mob, you're actually fighting a number of individual enemies that act as though the other weren't even there for the most part. Whatever you do, A.I. will never change what they are doing to react/adapt. After a while, it becomes really predictable and easy to best.

 

 

Adaptive A.I. is actually extreme difficult to do and time consuming and its testing is difficult and and resource consuming. Which is why games mostly use A.I. that use more or less complex behavior lists where there are coded triggers that change how A.I. behaves and premade behavior models that A.I. will follow. Which of course means that when player learns those triggers and behavior models then A.I. become predictable, which usually also means that it is quite easy to beat.

[Eliteseraph]

Adaptive A.I. is actually extreme difficult to do and time consuming and its testing is difficult and and resource consuming. Which is why games mostly use A.I. that use more or less complex behavior lists where there are coded triggers that change how A.I. behaves and premade behavior models that A.I. will follow. Which of course means that when player learns those triggers and behavior models then A.I. become predictable, which usually also means that it is quite easy to beat.

It doesn't necessarily need to be super complex adaptive. It just needs to be a little better than "Move to where target is in sight/range, then attack until death."

 

Creatures which behave in different ways depending on their intelligence, or their current hitpoint levels are a start. I guess I just get tired of how every time you fight something it's a duel to the death with very little variation. Even fighting different types of enemies, from humans to animals to mindless undead, they always act the same way. They either cast their spells til they die, or melee til they die, or shoot something til they die. Ad nauseam.

 

I get that it's a trope of the genre, and in a LOT of ways that's actually part of the attraction of the game for various reasons. But sometimes I also wish games would push the genre forward in this regard.

Edited January 11, 2016 by Eliteseraph

[Torm51]

Am I not playing the same game?  since 2.0 I see that AI does not dog pile my tanks constantly.  It does switch and routinely targets the lowest deflection combatant if they cannot push to my second line.  Currently running a Paladin, monk and fighter.  The AI targets the monk the most by far because she has the lowest deflection.  Also ranged enemy AI equipped with long range weapons will target my back line all the time.  In a certain temple where you are fighting cultists there are a lot of enemy ranged rogues with warbows and they do this constantly.  Forcing me to use Liberating exhortation on deep wounds just so that my party health doesn't get eaten away by attrition (there are a lot of rogues in that temple). that or rest a lot that would mean constantly leaving to get my 2 supplies.  I hate cheesing that way.  It forces me to ensure the back line is farther back so that enemies cant reach them or are forced to run up closer to my front line.  Which they do.  I know its not perfect but its damn better then any CRPG I have played.

 

Also certain very aggressive classes like monks and barbarians with wild sprint will try there their hardest engagement be damned to kill my back line.  If I cant physically block them or CC them with my front line they will get there.  Its why I have some type of defensive cool down for every class.  I am by no means saying this is a pvp human type level AI as they do sometimes run around and not target the best target available...but a lot of the times they do.

 

Maybe its cause I play on PotD?  and there are so many bad guys that the switch to target my backline is inevitable?

Edited January 11, 2016 by Torm51

[PrimeJunta]

Yeah I actually really like playing that certain temple now in 2.0. Have to actually figure out how to neutralise those damn archers before they bleed everyone to death. (Very easy with a bunch of rangers with suicide pets. Not so easy with most other classes.)

[sffrrrom]

Well, the fight against Raedric was super fun - died once, but the second time I managed to take him down with only two party members left standing, and my main (a wizard) totally out of spells and abilities. PotD really makes you use those consumables - had to use potions and scrolls for the first time ever. 

[PrimeJunta]

Yeah Raedric is the first fight where consumables are... if not a must, at least a big help, especially if you do it early-ish.

 

The Rauatai Bonebreakers handled it by glugging potions of Power or Deleterious Alacrity of Motion. Oh, and pie. Pie always helps.