Tampa_Gamer Dra'kol Version 2.10
February 4, 2003
Space Empires IV Gold (version 1.84)

INTRODUCTION

This AI race is the compilation of many hours of tweaking and playtesting. Many thanks to Aaron and the rest of his team for this game. I have not spent this many hours on a 4x space game since the MOO days and even then there were only a handful of patches and very little interaction with the programmers! Also special thanks to Shrapnel for two great games (AoA:WDK2K and SE4) in one year!

OPTIMIZED GAME SETTINGS

Due to limitations in the ship/unit design files this race is not reccomended as an opponent in tech level 3 starts.  This race is maximized for low tech start, mines on, mid-life galaxy, connected and 1 or 3 planet start. 


INSTRUCTIONS/CONTENT

These files are designed for use in the TDM-ModPack and should contain the following:

(1) A custom race called the "Dra'kol." All files have been built (almost) from scratch.

(2) An original custom shipset created by Don Phillips (a/k/a Voidhawk) and modified slightly by myself.

(3) A specialized speech file for this race was made by John Zamarra (a/k/a Nyx) and modified slightly by myself.

(4) An augmented "Formations.txt" file that includes one additional custom formation for the Dra'kol called "Dark Wing." NONE OF THE ORIGINAL FORMATIONS WERE MODIFIED.

(5) Three .EMP files called "Drakol 2000" "Drakol 3000" and "Drakol 5000" for the respective racial points used. It is highly reccommended to use the "Add Empires" method of adding AI races to your game as this will ensure that initial bonus research points are used as well as designs unique to a particular .emp file.

(6) New design names file with 3000+ names called "Drakol.txt"

HISTORY
Ver 2.10 - RELEASE #13
	 - Modified designs (once again) based on AI inspection reports 2-1-03 through 2-1-04
         - Removed all calls to build Drones and Drone Carriers (just not worth the resources)
         - Removed all Drone research (why research if not going to build)
	 - Reduced ratio of LR attack ships to SR attack ships from 2:1 to 3:1
         - Added all 3 types of colony ships specifically to Explore & Infrastructure state due to bug in AI end-game call systems (thanks Mephisto)
         - Reduced ftr groups from 15 to 8 and eliminated type priority firing in strategy file
         - Created new .emp files to match changes in strategy file and eliminate special ships
         - Corrected typo in fleets.txt file; lowered % ships to use in defense
         - Reduced max. maintenance threshold in Settings.txt file
         - Added a queue for colony type "Resupply Base" in case they capture one (thanks Mephisto!)
         - Eliminated Ship Capture, Mil Sci 2 & Shield damage weapons research (no longer using boarding ships since not worth the resources spent)
         - Added Computer Combat 1-3 in research file to utilize virus weapon on Kamikaze Ships
         - Increased % of revenue to use for units production from 20% to 30% (need more troops)

Ver 2.00 - RELEASE #12
	 - Created "Drakol_Construction_Units.txt" to take advantage of new unit control
	 - Stripped most unit purchases from "Drakol_Construction_Vehicles.txt" now that we have the _Units.txt file (left in WPs in explore mod and "capper" at end of each queue
	 - Added "Attack Sweeper" and "Scout Ships" designs and to build queue (left in even though purchases based on unique names (as opposed to types) is not working yet
	 - Added Troop Transport design and applicable research now that we can control the AI production of troops
	 - Increased variety of vehicle purchases in "Defend (Short Term)" state since AI is in this state most of the time
	 - Separated queues for each AI state in both Construction files
	 - Modified designs based on AI inspection reports 4-5-02 through 4-7-02
	 - Increased max. turns before next attack, # systems to defend & fleet % based on research by Mephisto and my experimentation
	 - Streamlined design file for single ship call approaches
	 - Increased recon sat production based on AI inspection reports
	 - Put mid-way points into attack ship vehicle purchases due to choke symptoms
	 - Adjusted research file to "33" to avoid unused points after certain projects
	 - Modified Drone attack strategy and design based on research by Mephisto and my experimentation

Ver 1.90 - RELEASE #11
	 - Reset/verified certain Empire options (moving through minefields, etc.) now that they are working
	 - Increased # recon sats in different queues
	 - Removed rad/org extract tech level 2-3 due to monolith strategy
	 - Revised strategies based on testing, including overall fleet
	 - Added Kamikaze ship design (fleet support) and construction queue now that they are seeking fleets
	 - Added Boarding ship design and construction queue now that they are seeking fleets
	 - Added Ship Capture, Drone and Shield Damaging Weapons to research queue
	 - Added Drone designs and construction queues (still testing)
	 - Removed Cargo Transport and design since could not detect use by AI
	 - Changed fleet strategy back to optimal firing range b/c not hitting anything
	 - Added Drone Carrier to design file and construction queue
	 - Added new settings for fleet and overall AI, tweaked Drone cargo settings

Ver 1.85 - RELEASE #10
	 - Additional boost to # research facilities located on rad/organic colonies
	 - Moved up CA, BB, DN in tech tree, moved down Stellar Harness
	 - Increased # colonizers in all states to min. of 3
	 - Adjusted Stellar Manipulation designs to take into consideration 250/400k component sizes
	 - Changed SRLT/HV designs back to Optimal Firing Range b/c not hitting a damn thing
	 - Moved up "Create Planet" ship in construction queue
	 - Added new lines to Settings.txt
	 - Added Drone designs and strategies based on default AI files (tweak pending usefulness)
	 - Eliminated Shield Regeneration components in all but attack/defense base designs
	 - Reversed treaty levels back to default based on testing
	 - Overflow queue for farming colonies converted to intel facilities
	 - Increased # attack ships in attack/defense modes
	 - More tweaks to all designs based on testing
	 - Added Cargo Transport back in based on Population Transport Design
	 - Added recon sats back in now that the construction bug is fixed
	 - Fixed grammatical problems in speech file
	 - Converted both "Fighter Attack" movement strategies to "Point Blank"
	 - Fixed .emp files that had emperor name/title reversed
	 - Changed strategies fire to reflect revised firing priorities

Ver 1.80 - RELEASE #09
	 - Removed recon sats from build queue pending bug removal (placed sensors on other platforms)
	 - Totally reworked research tree based on tech min lines working now
	 - Totally reworked designs all the way through late game attack bases
	 - Limited pop. transports to 600kt b/c taking away whole planets of population
	 - Removed defense ships from design and build queues
	 - Tweaked strategies file for larger units launched and to use "Type Priority" first
	 - Confirmed cloaked colonizers used properly by AI, new dual-class colonizers added
	 - Tweaked build queues for late games where player has 100+ planets
	 - Reduced # of auxiliary ships AI not using fairly well (Sat Layer, Pop Cargo, etc.)
	 - Changed carrier strategies and load-out
	 - Limited size of mines to 10k to avoid wasted efficiency
	 - Converted most auxillary ships to max. range with engine overloading weaponry
	 - Turned off certain boxes in empire options when creating .emp file (no move through minefield, autoclaim)
	 - Turned on "damage until weapons gone" in .emp file strategy settings
	 - Removed cloaking from spaceyard ships b/c ministers having trouble using while cloaked
	 - Converted latter part of farm planets to research havens
	 - Re-tooled planet selection to boost research planets
	 - Eliminated "Ancient Race" as selection since this was causing havoc for the colonization minister
	 - Changed strategies for weapon platforms and sats based on changes MM made in recent patch
	 - Eliminated emissive armor (again) from designs since reports show that it is still not working
	 - Boosted desire of race to accept treaties early on when struggling
	 - Eliminated certain techs from research queue that were not efficient for AI (extraction 4-9)
	 - Forced AI to have a recon ship in the first turn with all supplies via the .emp file

Ver 1.70 - RELEASE #08
	 - Moved stellar manipulation up the research tree
	 - Tweaked fleets file to attempt to get higher % of ships in fleets
	 - Created a mandatory research planet in every system in the Planet_Types file
	 - Due to fighter design problems, reduced number of valid designs to one
	 - Increased number of research & intel facilities in the Construct_Facilities file
	 - Removed duplicate facilities in the Construct_Facilities file when a facility has more than one ability
 	 - Totally reworked Epoch 1 research to attempt to provide stronger early game ships
	 - Removed blanks from the end the design name file
	 - Redesigned early game mine/sat layers to provide more laying ability
	 - Increased # of PD weapons on small attack/defense ships

Ver 1.65 - RELEASE #07
         - Removed minesweeper as component to larger attack ships (sweeper components do not work while cloaked)
         - Tweaked planet selection to decrease farming and increase research colonies
         - Modified default formation "Dark Wing"
         - Further tweaking to research tree and ship designs based on testing

Ver 1.60 - RELEASE #06
         - Fixed error in 3000 point start in General.txt where all points were not spent; added new design name file; removed cloaking from sweepers and colony ships due to bugs
	 - Created new .emp files with strategies (previous ones had some bugs)
	 - Tweaked Anger/Politics file for better reactions re: trade and treaty policies
         - Made dramatic changes to research tree, designs, construction and facilities queue file

Ver 1.55 - RELEASE #05
         - Modified .emp files since unique strategies file still not working in race folders
         - Modified unit launching designs to use cloaking
         - Modified construction queues based on extra resources & unit caps

Ver 1.50 - RELEASE #04
	 - Deleted Kamikaze & Boarding Ships (again) b/c still not used in fleets by AI
         - Added back unique strategy file now that it is usable by AI
         - Modified Construction Queues and Vehicle designs
         - Added back defense bases and research of cloaking now that these are fixed

Ver 1.40 - RELEASE #03 (shipset graphics by Voidhawk now added)
         - Deleted all calls to "Defense Ship" (until bug fixed) and completely overhauled construction queues
         - Fixed several range error bugs and added multi-class attack/defense ships

Ver 1.35 - RELEASE #02 (shipset based on Xiati)
         - Additional tweaks to designs and construction queues based on tech levels 2 and 3 playtesting
         - Overhauled planet selection file to make decisions more consistent with human player and limit number of facilities built in early game
         - Overhauled research, construction and design files to eliminate under-utilized tech and ships (i.e. boarding, troops, kamikaze, cloaking, etc.)
         - Fixed spacing errors

Ver 1.30 - RELEASE #01 (shipset based on Xiati)
	 

KNOWN LIMITATIONS

(1) The biggest advantage the Drakol have is their Intel capability. Although I have given them a considerable Intel boost via racial %, the text files currently do not let you prioritize the Intel projects by a certain race. This leads to many projects. Most races have between 8-12 projects outstanding at a time with very long completions times. My suggested fix is to have a file similar to the research file where races can have a priority order and % operating at a time (again similar to the research file). This would accomplish the following: (a) certain races could have aggressive, neutral or defensive projects depending one their demeanor and AI_State and (b) it would eliminate the current problem of inefficient use of Intel Points for projects which result in information the AI will never use (i.e. census or designs).

(2) Certain Intel projects are not useful to the AI even if successfully executed (i.e. information gathering ones in particular). The file described above in (1) would solve this problem. Another solution is to use on the of mods which essentially classify such projects as "Human Intel" projects. There is one by Lucas and I located on the Gold CD which I recommend. In that mod a tech area is created for human intel and those projects are only acquired after researching the "Human Intel" tech area (very cheap). Accordingly, all AI players will automatically have access to only those projects which they fully utilize and no changes have to be made to any of the AI files.

(3) The AI still likes to redesign its ships/units every turn even if there is no new tech available. While I have included 3000+ names in the design file and the program allows it to loop several times, there is not guarantee that the race will not run out of designs eventually.

(4) Sometimes an AI race will get trapped behind a blackhole and does not know how to plan accordingly. If you want an AI Friendly quadrant, check out the download section on the Shrapnel Games website.

NOTES

(1) As this will be a continual work-in-process, please forward all tweaks, suggestions and bugs found in the AI files to me at ctraber@ngn-tampa.com.

(2) You can find the most recent version of this Mod as part of the "TDM-Modpack" located at http://home.t-online.de/home/320045362204-0001/ or on the Shrapnel Games website.

(3) This Mod may be freely distributed as long as no files are modified, added or deleted.

Have Fun!
-Tampa_Gamer


***

All portrait artwork contained herein is authored by and Copyright 2001, Don Phillips (aka Voidhawk). None of these images may be used outside of the Space Empires IV game for which they were created without prior consent from me. I can be contacted at leophillips16@hotmail.com.