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I've made a new Very Easy config which I believe accomplishes the goals I discussed earlier. I started with the Hard config and then crippled it as follows:
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I've made a new Very Easy config which I believe accomplishes the goals I discussed earlier. I started with the Hard config and then crippled it as follows:
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* Set the max mexes to 15%
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* Set the max mexes to 15%
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* Set the construction delay to 15 seconds
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* Set the construction delay to 15 seconds
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* Removed planes, gunships, ships, and striders
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* Removed planes, gunships, ships, and striders
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* Limited the type and number of units built
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* Limited the type and number of units built
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* Constructors: 3
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* Constructors: 3
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* Raiders: 3
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* Raiders: 3
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* Scouts: 2
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* Scouts: 2
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* Skirms: 1
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* Skirms: 1
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* Riots: 1
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* Riots: 1
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* Assaults: 1
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* Assaults: 1
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* AA: 1
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* AA: 1
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* All other units: 0
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* All other units: 0
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* No artillery, no specials, no heavies
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* No artillery, no specials, no heavies
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* Most facs use these limits, but there are some exceptions/tweaks
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* Most facs use these limits, but there are some exceptions/tweaks
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* Limited the type and number of static defenses
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* Limited the type and number of static defenses
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* Bases contain one Defender, two Lotuses, one Stinger, and two Hacksaws
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* Bases contain one Defender, two Lotuses, one Stinger, and two Hacksaws
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* Expansions may have Defenders and Lotuses, and may have several of them
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* Expansions may have Defenders and Lotuses, and may have several of them
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* No Stardust, no Faraday, no Gauss, no other AA
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* No Stardust, no Faraday, no Gauss, no other AA
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* Nothing heavy (DDM, Anni, BB, nuke, etc)
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* Nothing heavy (DDM, Anni, BB, nuke, etc)
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* Bases have one caretaker plus one more per factory
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* Bases have one caretaker plus one more per factory
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* Assigned all buildable units the "raider" role only, regardless of their actual unit type
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* Assigned all buildable units the "raider" role only, regardless of their actual unit type
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* Set the maximum comm morph to Level 2
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* Set the maximum comm morph to Level 2
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* Removed custom initial build queues for each com/fac combo
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* Removed custom initial build queues for each com/fac combo
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* Disabled retreat for all units
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* Disabled retreat for all units
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[b][u]Here's how the crippled AI behaves:[/u][/b]
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[b][u]Here's how the crippled AI behaves:[/u][/b]
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\n
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\n
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It quickly builds a base and expands out to 15% of the map. It makes a very small set of units and sends them roaming around the map independently of each other rather than in groups. The units mostly stay concentrated in the middle of the map but will make excursions to the edges and corners in ones and twos. It never assembles an assault squad and never launches an attack on the player's base. It sort-of raids, but the raids are easily repelled by token defenses. Even if it happens to attack with a force large enough to overcome the defenses, it usually abandons the raid and withdraws if there is any resistance at all. However, it will find and destroy any [i]undefended[/i] expansions anywhere on the map.
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It quickly builds a base and expands out to 15% of the map. It makes a very small set of units and sends them roaming around the map independently of each other rather than in groups. The units mostly stay concentrated in the middle of the map but will make excursions to the edges and corners in ones and twos. It never assembles an assault squad and never launches an attack on the player's base. It sort-of raids, but the raids are easily repelled by token defenses. Even if it happens to attack with a force large enough to overcome the defenses, it usually abandons the raid and withdraws if there is any resistance at all. However, it will find and destroy any [i]undefended[/i] expansions anywhere on the map.
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\n
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\n
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It completes its base within five to ten minutes. Bases have some defenses but nothing that's particularly hard to overcome. Bases have wind, solar, fusion, and sometimes even singus, because killing fusions and singus makes explosions which are exciting and fun.
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It completes its base within five to ten minutes. Bases have some defenses but nothing that's particularly hard to overcome. Bases have wind, solar, fusion, and sometimes even singus, because killing fusions and singus makes explosions which are exciting and fun.
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\n
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\n
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It never builds more than the unit limits. As units are destroyed by the player, it replaces them quickly, but never has more than the limit on the field at one time. It excesses metal like crazy.
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It never builds more than the unit limits. As units are destroyed by the player, it replaces them quickly, but never has more than the limit on the field at one time. It excesses metal like crazy.
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\n
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\n
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The unit limits are per-factory. The AI usually (but not always) builds a second factory sometime between 15 and 45 minutes, and sometimes builds a third as well. If it builds three factories there can actually be a sizeable force in play, but even so it will still never raid more aggressively and will still never launch an attack. It just means that the middle of the map is harder for the player to take, and undefended expansions will be found and destroyed faster.
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The unit limits are per-factory. The AI usually (but not always) builds a second factory sometime between 15 and 45 minutes, and sometimes builds a third as well. If it builds three factories there can actually be a sizeable force in play, but even so it will still never raid more aggressively and will still never launch an attack. It just means that the middle of the map is harder for the player to take, and undefended expansions will be found and destroyed faster.
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\n
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\n
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[b][u]Here's what the player experiences:[/u][/b]
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[b][u]Here's what the player experiences:[/u][/b]
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\n
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\n
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The player is mostly left alone in his corner. As long as his base is defended at all - whether by statics or units - he will occasionally be visited by some units that he can easily dispatch, but is otherwise perfectly safe. He can take all the time he wants to figure out how to use the UI and to experiment with building various units and to learn about the economy.
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The player is mostly left alone in his corner. As long as his base is defended at all - whether by statics or units - he will occasionally be visited by some units that he can easily dispatch, but is otherwise perfectly safe. He can take all the time he wants to figure out how to use the UI and to experiment with building various units and to learn about the economy.
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\n
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\n
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About the only way for the player to lose is to walk his unupgraded comm into the middle of the map, and leave it there, without having plopped his factory elsewhere first.
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About the only way for the player to lose is to walk his unupgraded comm into the middle of the map, and leave it there, without having plopped his factory elsewhere first.
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\n
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\n
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While the player can't lose, it's still somewhat of a challenge to [i]win[/i]. He needs to build a large enough army to break through the middle (usually very easy, unless the AI has built three factories) and to kill the AI base (which is somewhat harder due to the defenses and usually the AI's comm). It's not particularly [i]difficult[/i] but it may take a new player some trial-and-error to learn what works. But it can be done by a completely new player, even someone who's never played an RTS before, even if they don't figure out things like how to expand and how to increase production. At the absolute worst, they just need to be patient enough to build a huge pile of units and march them into the base (maybe a few different times). It almost doesn't matter what they build or how they use them as long as they build [i]enough[/i] of them. That could take many minutes if they haven't learned how to increase their income and assist their factory, but even at 10 m/s it doesn't take too long to spam out enough Glaives to wipe out the AI base.
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While the player can't lose, it's still somewhat of a challenge to [i]win[/i]. He needs to build a large enough army to break through the middle (usually very easy, unless the AI has built three factories) and to kill the AI base (which is somewhat harder due to the defenses and usually the AI's comm). It's not particularly [i]difficult[/i] but it may take a new player some trial-and-error to learn what works. But it can be done by a completely new player, even someone who's never played an RTS before, even if they don't figure out things like how to expand and how to increase production. At the absolute worst, they just need to be patient enough to build a huge pile of units and march them into the base (maybe a few different times). It almost doesn't matter what they build or how they use them as long as they build [i]enough[/i] of them. That could take many minutes if they haven't learned how to increase their income and assist their factory, but even at 10 m/s it doesn't take too long to spam out enough Glaives to wipe out the AI base.
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\n
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\n
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They could also win by building superweapons, although of course that will take even longer if they still haven't figured out how the economy works. But new players seem to enjoy doing exactly that, so with this config, they can, and they'll (eventually) win when they do.
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They could also win by building superweapons, although of course that will take even longer if they still haven't figured out how the economy works. But new players seem to enjoy doing exactly that, so with this config, they can, and they'll (eventually) win when they do.
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\n
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\n
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----
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----
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I've tested this config on different maps, against different AIs, and against myself playing like an absolute starting-from-nothing beginner. I'm reasonably sure that this config will give our newest players the space they need to experiment with the game while also giving them something to defend against (the occasional raid), something to attack (a variety of units in the middle of the map) and something to destroy with some effort (the AI base).
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I've tested this config on different maps, against different AIs, and against myself playing like an absolute starting-from-nothing beginner. I'm reasonably sure that this config will give our newest players the space they need to experiment with the game while also giving them something to defend against (the occasional raid), something to attack (a variety of units in the middle of the map) and something to destroy with some effort (the AI base).
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\n
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\n
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Further
testing
and
feedback
is
welcome.
Please
see
this
github
issue
to
download
the
new
config.
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49 |
Further
testing
and
feedback
is
welcome.
Please
see
[url=https://github.
com/ZeroK-RTS/Zero-K-Infrastructure/issues/1791]this
github
issue[/url]
to
download
the
new
config.
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\n
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\n
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Some feedback about how AIs of each difficulty should perform