With latest patch update 169123, AI is all the sudden on steroids again.
Tried two games, and played like I always do, 1 v 2AI (Moderate) – me Spanish, them Full Random – but they’ve wiped me out with ease both times since the patch. Whereas I don’t think I had lost a match for months preceding the patch. Arabia map.
Only reason I knocked orange out in 1st match is through the use of the highly skilled Cobra Cars.
- I was getting demolished by relentless streams of enemy units from both civs, even though I had fairly heavily damaged one of the AIs early. They somehow came back and had a more formidable military than me within no time, combined with the other AI who, of course, was a post-patch juggernaut
Here were the civs I was up against…
Match 1
Match 2
I’ve revived this old thread because I also have a fundamental question about the AI and didn’t want to spam a new one.
In one of my scenarios, I’ve noticed that the AI is sending its villagers around aimlessly.
To prevent the AI from clearing all the designed flora, I’ve assigned it specific areas for logging and farming within the settlements.
What I’ve already noticed is that without a village center, the AI hardly uses mills or folwarks to build fields. I’ve mostly solved that problem.
However, what I’ve also noticed is that even though I assign the AI specific areas via the necessary buildings and place villagers there, it tries to swap groups.
In other words, instead of building fields next to the village center or the mill, it sends three villagers to logging and, in return, sends three of the designated lumberjacks to the fields. Since I’ve separated them so that there are no paths between them, the AI essentially removes these villagers from the game and doesn’t assign them any other tasks. Why is that? Can anyone help me with this?
That sounds like the opposote of AI on steroids 
, so I’m thinking a new thread, like a bug report thread in that area, would have been better for you. I doubt devs saw this thread, and there is better luck they will see your post there, imo
I’ve gotten many more dev replies there in bug report area than here
PS: AI are still on steroids. Tried to do the good ole’ 1v2 AI Moderate the other day while maintaining a defensive posture and they flooded my town with big waves of units timed to strike me at exact same time and keep it up. Cobra cars were the MVPs. Pew pew!
I know this isn’t really related to your topic. I just didn’t want to create another thread for what is essentially a single question.
It’s not a bug, but I suspect the AI has such a strict “logic” in its programming that it’s trying to do exactly what it’s supposed to.
It tries to use all resources near the town centers and can’t be restricted to specific areas without a completely different script.
For example, it even demolishes buildings that I use to block the forest near the town center and then still cuts wood there. It only uses mills if they’re near town centers. I tried changing it with triggers, but that doesn’t really work either. The AI is determined to follow certain patterns, which then leads to “errors” when I try to prevent it through construction or map design.
Did you try the “AI (HD)” on moderate instead ? I might not work well with DE civs like the Wei and Gurjatas though. But it should have a similar level as the DE AI.
I should have a version of the AI from 2025. If the AI is only on steroids since February 2026, I can have a look at what changed for the moderate AI. Or make a mod for the AI of a 2025 patch before Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition - Update 169123 - Age of Empires - World's Edge Studio .
I’d prefer to play AI on DE, not HD.
If you’re able to find the difference between old DE AI vs. new, I’d be curious to see! Don’t spend too much time, though. I could edit the AI file on my end if it’s a simple code change
I’ve edited an AI file before per a dev here so AIs wouldn’t resign, so if it’s a matter of just editing a file in notepad, I can do that if you find the difference
Note: I think that AI file I edited has since gotten auto-reverted by a patch. But it’s okay, they fixed AI Commands > 104 (Don’t Resign) to work 100% of time
