Not even close. Overall, AI blocking is still terrible compared to what it was before, even on challenging and vs the highest level units.
Ok thank you, I will put the new feature (Shield units block more) in Blue, but I'll leave the issue from the start of the Beta (AI Blocking is broken) in Red until it is similar to pre-Beta!
Brilliant, it's now in Blue in the main post! Would you mind elaborating on this? The clipping is animation-only?
I think I should add something on top of this.
I thought it was just animation-related, but what you describe is quite an unintended consequence. I'll put it back in Grey until more testing and I might split it in two categories : the working feature of shieldwall not preventing friendly attacks, and the issue.
I don't reckon of anything mentionning that spearmen AI should be better against cavalry, they raised the blocking ability of shield units and weapon level all around but that's it. We just have to hope that they'll introduce bracing spears at some point.
Let me just speak from my testing during the closed beta. Through out the beta spearman against cav was a big issue that went back and forth on who could easily win. At first spears couldnt do **** to cav and would glance off a horse more often than not, then they adjusted it so spears would hit and stop more often and the results ended up with cav being utterly useless and not used. They found a decent middle ground for the multiplayer by the end of the closed beta, but it doesnt seem to translate over to the AI very well. All i can say is it will likely take awhile for them to find the right balance for spear troops being useful against cav but not making cav totally useless. Harder to balance than it seems.I'm not sure if this update was supposed to help spearmen AI better deal with cavalry at all, but they're still pretty abysmal at it. Can't hit anything.
Here's the result of 100 cavalry set to charge vs. 250 AI spearmen:
Still hear tons of the characteristic "thwack" of spear hafts making contact.
Stabs still seem to be a problem. They are also bether than before but you still easely get stuck on allies.
Right, right, I know. But I think part of the problem is that the AI bunch together and can't swing their spears because they try to stay in formation and the horses smash them all together. So tangentially related I guess.
Wow!! Thank you so much for that video, I saw your thread and I'll link it to the main post!
I agree. Just hoping that this helped some. Good info though, thanks.
The issue IS the fact that weapons aren't blocked by allies from behind. The issue was never a player-only problem, it affected every agent on the field. Basically, attacks would be halted, meaning less death overall.
I reckon it's a dangerous concoction of friendly units not halting attacks and blocking being broken. So they are many hits, no proper defence and therefore troops die a lot.
I tested 500 vs 500 infantry, put my men in shieldwall (all carrying spears but they never use them, they only use their swords) and the AI got destroyed in around 2 - 3 minutes.
This is looking so much better than before! In an update or two if they continue to update the Combat AI it might get back to the level it was before the Beta, but with the weapon skill instead of the overall level.
