does the AI have a rich uncle?

[RogueSeraph257]

If they AI has the same amounts of claims as me, then how the heck do they always seem to have 50-100% more claims at the same HQ level as me? And sabotage, dont even get me started... the last game I played I was hit with 2 emp and 2 mutiny all before either company had a rank 3 HQ. And when something comes up through auction, the AI always bids around 8k for anything, pre lvl 3 HQ, after lvl 3, it almost doesnt pay to try. So, with all the sabotage, auction bids, and claims, how does the AI afford everything, plus buying me out?

[Darmky]

I have the same feeling. I would like to know if the AI has got cheat bonuses.

[DeftMunky]

The AI is extremely good at getting extra claims from the black market. If you're not seeking to buy them, the AI will and will get a big lead. Buying those early extra claims are key to victory.

[Kozzy]

Originally posted by DeftMunky:

The AI is extremely good at getting extra claims from the black market. If you're not seeking to buy them, the AI will and will get a big lead. Buying those early extra claims are key to victory.

This x 10

[Bunnywinkles]

My issue is, when playing with tight debt, seeing the "leaderboard" showing how much debt everyone has, seeing the AI has 800k debt (but somehow a $30 stock price) and being bought out in the next 2 minutes when my stock is $42. That bugs me.

[Swisspike]

Originally posted by FU Bunnywinkles:

My issue is, when playing with tight debt, seeing the "leaderboard" showing how much debt everyone has, seeing the AI has 800k debt (but somehow a $30 stock price) and being bought out in the next 2 minutes when my stock is $42. That bugs me.

I have watched just about every video that exists for the game in youtube...are you sure of this? I have yet to see the AI proven to cheat. If anything, the programmers have had to tone down the AI, as it's too good!

No cheating, just solid programming.

[Bunnywinkles]

Yep. It was a multiplayer game, where AI had taken over someone who left. Always play with tight debt on. I had $0 debt, AI had $800k.

[notu]

The AI cheats/is buggy on the blackmarket and does not pay the cost nor have any cooldown - this is how they buy extra plots and sabotage with $0 cash, plus run multiple (3-5) sabotage events in a row ignoring the player imposed cooldown on each purchase. Hopefully they will fix it soon.
As for auctions, the cost is added to your debt not deducted from your cash, so you can bid as much as you want on the item (and pay for it later). At least this you can see repoted on the AI sheet correctly, although who knows if they really pay it off or not (or pay for it with the same $0 cost as the black market is for them)

[notu]

Also, the AI is buying claims from the black market *before it even opens*

[DeftMunky]

Originally posted by notu:

Also, the AI is buying claims from the black market *before it even opens*

The black market does not open at the same time for every player. It is based off when the player founds and when they last bought from the black market. Also: the scavenger faction allows them to access the black market faster than other factions, so if you have a scavenger player in your game, that's who may be buying things faster.

I'm pretty sure that the AI plays by the same rules as the player. The difference is that if you play a game against 3 AIs, all 3 AIs are total sharks when it comes to the black market and will buy cheap things very quickly. Experienced players work in the same way - nothing cheap is left on the black market.

[Darmky]

Thanks for the answers, devs aware of their community is always appreciated : )