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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Truename" data-source="post: 5025170" data-attributes="member: 78255">About the AIOkay, about the AI, and why it's so stupid. Short version: Computers are stupid. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f600.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=":D" title="Big grin    :D"  data-smilie="8"data-shortname=":D" />(Slightly longer version: ...and I'm not an AI programmer.)Cheekiness aside, the big challenge here is creating an AI that doesn't have to be rewritten for every character and every level. Remember, our goal isn't to create a dwarf that fights intelligently; it's to create a dwarf that fights consistently across 30 levels. Consistently low performance is just as good as consistently high performance as long as all powers, magic items, and so forth get equal love.In practice, though, that means that the 'bash it in the head' powers are used to their potential more easily than the 'set up a big combo' powers right now, so they may be weighted more favorably. So we do need some AI. But I want to remind you that we don't need great or even good AI. Just consistent AI.What I have the ability to do, easily, right now, is this:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Have powers be turned off (not chosen) until certain conditions are true. For example, Second Wind is set to :do_not_use until the dwarf has received at least a healing surge worth of damage.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> Have powers set to :low priority, which is the same as :do_not_use, except that the power isn't turned off entirely. :Low priority powers will be used if no :normal powers are available.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Make decisions based on perfect information. For example, I can give Brute Strike :low priority if the enemy has fewer than 4 hit points remaining.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Change the overall, non-power-specific rules about power selection. For example, I can have all dailies fire before encounters, or all standard actions before minor actions.</li> </ul>What I want to avoid is anything that increases maintenance costs. In particular, I don't want to have to reprogram the AI in order to test different builds, power combinations, or levels. This means avoiding:<ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> Complex logic with a lot of special case rules. ("If this power is active, but that one isn't, and the monster is such-and-such, don't use this power.") This is hard to test thoroughly and will lead to hard-to-find bugs. A few special cases are easy to test, and potentially okay (for example, I've programmed ":do_not_use Boundless Endurance if Second Wind is still available"), but I don't want to program in every combination of every power.</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> Decisions based on assumptions about other powers being present. For example, we could :do_not_use Brash Strike when we don't have temp hit points. But what if we don't have any powers that grant temp hp in this build?</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Giving certain powers higher than normal priority. This will require constant tweaking as we change builds and levels. For example, giving Crushing Surge a hypothetical :high priority when the dwarf has no temp hit points might be appropriate now, but is it still appropriate at level 25? Is it appropriate for all fighters of any build?</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul"> Power combos, such as "use power X, then action point, then power Y." Is that combo still appropriate at all levels? Does it apply to all builds?</li> </ul>The key here is keeping AI programming costs low. Remember, the quality of the AI isn't that important as long as the creatures fight consistently across levels. We're looking at how survivability changes from level to level, not the absolute number. So, how can we best achieve that goal given the above constraints? Creative solutions welcome.</blockquote>

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