Why has the combat-AI become so much worse since SF?

[iskallinn]

In my opinion the AI have trubble controling bigger armies. When I set up Armies of more then 10 div, Ai makes the front to large without considering other armies in the flanks. And spends half the armie on constant stratigic redeployment back and forward without considering to keep the corps diffrent div within hq distance.

Does that work better? Most of the time I use 5 Corps armies with 5 divisions each. I must always stop and redeploy my armies every 6 months to untangle the mess my AI generals have created. Their most recent stunt was redeploying the Manchurian army to India even though that was a different theater.

[Montes76]

Does that work better? Most of the time I use 5 Corps armies with 5 divisions each. I must always stop and redeploy my armies every 6 months to untangle the mess my AI generals have created. Their most recent stunt was redeploying the Manchurian army to India even though that was a different theater.

With smaller armies AI is forced to have a shorter front so shorter distance to redeploy. I also use objectives closer to the front, and feel they stray less then. Maybe if we could set who was going to be on their flanks AI would know his area of operation better ?

[Wminus]

It's pointless putting AI control on any unit below theatre, except in special cases, because the AI simply can't handle it.

I haven't tried this in FTM, but back in the days I used to put the AI in control of my infantry forces, while I personally supervised the mobile divisions. With this method I wouldn't have to micromanage my army on speed 2, and could instead play at speed 5. Do note that this doesn't work at difficulties past hard, as the AI combat bonus becomes far too big.

Another idea would be to divide a front in many small theatre-regions, and assign an AI to each one. This way the AI won't strat redeploy troops far away, but instead keep them in the theatre-region.

Yes, you're right.
It seems that I went a bit over the top lately trying to improve the game experience. All this lines of lua code running around my head.
And I was just paying attention to the word "combat ai" and put up my normal '36 game experience with it. Wich is quite good with enough units.
I only noticed such massive redeploy behavour if the ai has not "enough" units.
Now that I reread the OP it is also clear to me that his problem must be somewhere else if it was way better with SF before and went only worse with FTM.

I'll make some tests now on my own on this too.
Maybe I can contribute something better then.

Cheers,
Chromos

Well, I don't know about AI mass redeploying problem in SF as I never had to check. I was already content with the AI combat performance.

[plasticpanzers]

My German AI holding France after 1940 will send off troops to help the Med and Eastern
Front if nothing is happening. Sometimes its very helpful, sometimes not (LOL!). Most
irritating tho is as either the US or UK with large oceans seperating combat areas as the
AI will send forces all the way around the world to help wreaking your setups at times.

[Sarayakat]

It's pointless putting AI control on any unit below theatre, except in special cases, because the AI simply can't handle it.

I have found the army level AI to be extremely effective on the eastern front. I use 5 armies set with intermediate goals to Leningrad, Moscow, Tula, Kharkov and Stalingrad and the AI pretty much does the rest. One of the best things about this level of AI is that you avoid the kind of front-wide SRs that plague the theatre and AG level AIs. I certainly wouldn't use the AI to garrison the French coastline though, it is too quick to leave ports undefended and no good at containing landings with a small reaction force.

[SuiciSpai]

After several games in random hoi (where historical settings or outcome doesnt matter), i think that the (combat)AI has been improved a lot since SF. Just my two cents.

just... one remark here. AI doesnt know when to stop sending units to invasions.

look at this screenshot (of a random hoi game)

450 divisions in one province with another other 500 in a nearly province.. and only TWO harbour of level 1. Anyway, im having fun watching this:


quick update:

900 comunist units has been lost there. lol