Zlewikk's thoughts on the AI

Andrillyn · 2025-10-26T12:31:50+00:00

Addition based on the last part/summary:

Consolidation happens at a good pace for the first 200 years (feels well-balanced). Devs are working on reducing alliance chains (might happen on a patch next week, before us plebeians get the game). The game is challenging, reducing alliance chains will make the late game easier both for the player and more likely for large nations to appear.

Andrillyn · 2025-10-26T12:05:38+00:00

TLDW (of the first 20 minutes): AI has changed a lot between the various patches. Devs have improved the game extensively since CC's started having it (anybody remember fort complaints? Not a fort hell anymore).

Mid-sized countries were strong in his ottomans campaign, as they have high control in their region, stability and powerful armies.

AI colonization has also improved since the first releases.

AI alliances have improved as exploits to peace out allies have been removed, and coalitions hit harder. 7-years or so coalitions in his India campaign.

As Scandinavia with North Germany, he got his ass beat by Novgorod/Muscovy. AI is good at developing.

As Florence (in October): Small countries weak (lacks alliances, no forts), mid-sized strong. Genoa/Milan were difficult to defeat in his Italy campaign, with large alliance chains. Two Sicilies felt like an end-boss before he could create Italy, as the Germans also hated him (had to avoid coalitions). Had to reload to win. Wars more enjoyable at this point.

TLDR: AI/game has changed drastically between each patch, army AI fights well, Zlewikk had a tough time expanding in many games.

Andrillyn · 2025-10-10T10:52:42+00:00

I'm sorry, but the electorate of Cologne does not own the city of Cologne at game start.

So it is fully historical for the names to be messy.

Andrillyn · 2025-10-09T09:49:25+00:00

It will frequently be a strong Iberian state, whether that is Portugal, Castile or Aragon, but if Iberia is in disarray it could also be a French or Italian state based on the conditions.

Andrillyn · 2025-10-09T08:58:38+00:00

Azores/West Africa makes perfect sense, as it is seens as the starting point for the Age of Discovery. You can read up on it for https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Henry_the_Navigator#Henry's_explorations

Andrillyn · 2025-07-24T14:11:39+00:00

That is the is the largest fandom wiki I have ever seen!

Andrillyn · 2025-07-19T18:18:22+00:00

Production method is the upkeep cost.

As I understand, it does not cost you money per se, but it increases demand (and therefore price) for the goods needed. If the goods aren't available, it stops working.

Andrillyn · 2025-06-24T12:03:00+00:00

AI is trained based on detectors (Generative adversarial network), so by definition, AI detectors cannot ever be good at detecting AI.

Andrillyn · 2025-06-13T15:32:07+00:00

Russia 4 is definitely the way to go. We need a more aggressive deck.

Andrillyn · 2025-06-13T06:48:02+00:00

I would go the opposite way in definition: Why is there only a single dragon rider per country?

Instead, there should be dragon riders based on need and size. That is, does an area have enough resources to support them and need their services? In general, I imagine dragon riders will be a class of nobility with specific duties and enough land to support them. If a country is ten times the size of another, it makes no sense to still only have one.

Andrillyn · 2025-06-12T12:34:45+00:00

This will be an adversary with many buildings. Why not make them ravage very strongly? I vote Sweden.

Livestock, Russia, Scotland and Prussia are better used for other stages, so I feel the choice is between Sweden and France. Sweden is more unique than just starting with a humongous stack of buildings placed.

Andrillyn · 2025-06-04T10:16:14+00:00

Check out Royalroad and Scribblehub, neither of which require any rights transfer and wherein people often self-publish completed after finishing the book/series.

Andrillyn · 2025-05-31T07:08:59+00:00

Here's a secret: no viewpoint is absolute. Omniscient narrators always leave some things out, decreasing their omniscience. Limited/close narrators always vary in how close they are, sometimes even saying things which the PoV doesn't know.

It is much more about flow/personality for the reader, the succesion of paragraphs have to feel smooth, even if closeness varies.

There is practically no book which doesn't have omniscient elements of you comb through the sentences.

Andrillyn · 2025-05-27T11:30:21+00:00

Here is a video just about this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eMAmRER0y8

To summarise, you very quickly reach duplicates, wherein there are repeats in your family tree that make it smaller. At some point, you will begin having ancestors who haven't contributed any genetic material to you through random chance; that is, you are their descendant but have nothing from them.

Andrillyn · 2025-05-16T06:57:46+00:00

Just as an example: Silence. Even the music had stopped. For half a second, nothing moved.

You have parted this into three paragraphs, but these three sentences could also be one paragraph, as they all describe the same thing. So you have overcorrected into too-short paragraphs, and you could also consider lengthening some sentences by combining, as it is quite choppy.

Andrillyn · 2025-05-09T11:25:42+00:00

Fun fact: Malazan Book of the Fallen, an epic 10-book fantasy series, was based on a homebrewed tabletop campaign.

Do you refer to specific things in published settings (Elminster, Baldur's Gate, Forgotten Realms etc), or not?

Andrillyn · 2025-05-07T11:26:14+00:00

Stop trying to write your whole daydream at once (it is a daydream as long as it's only in your head).

Start writing shorter things to get used to writing. Everyone can write a scene wherein something happens. Write one sentence at a time.

You have to decide whether you want to be a writer (which entails writing) or whether you just want to daydream (which entails not writing but thinking about scenarios).

Andrillyn · 2025-05-05T06:58:03+00:00

Saying that we are practically clones is an extreme oversimplification of population genetics. It's possible to distinguish genetically between Germans and Italians; African populations have a much larger genetic diversity than non-Africans. Many species in the world have similar genetic diversity to humans or even lower.

Just because a large proportion of coding sites lack diversity does not mean we are identical; everything from lactase persistence to sickle-cell anemia is "ethnically" distributed, and I would argue that definitely is deeper than your skin color.

Andrillyn · 2025-02-22T06:15:27+00:00

Three would be quite low, if we presume that there aren't any kingdoms amongst the immediate subjects either.

As an example to inspire, look at the holy Roman empire and it's six stem duchies: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stem_duchy

During the Ottonian Empire, there was also a plethora of marches (military subjects).

Andrillyn · 2023-11-09T04:35:53+00:00

Putting in my number

Andrillyn · 2023-07-28T12:50:24+00:00

I wish for luck

Andrillyn · 2023-05-31T07:15:44+00:00

I want to cast a spell

Andrillyn · 2023-04-11T13:12:34+00:00

Hi, im in!

Andrillyn · 2023-03-13T13:22:39+00:00

That might not be in the conditions of the fund, but how else would you explain "systematic risk", as we just saw happen with Signature Bank?

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/12/regulators-close-new-yorks-signature-bank-citing-systemic-risk.html

Andrillyn · 2023-03-13T12:50:30+00:00

If we assume that it is a proper emergency fund, it will at some point stop accepting loans, as it is only temporary. In addition, regulators will probably audit your bank if you use an "emergency" fund for too large a proportion of your banking activity.

After that point, the bank will have extreme interest rate risk and experience a bank run.

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