AI of close combat aliens

[Quixote]

Just wanted to give a bit of feedback - against Reapers I noticed that they don't try to get into close range to bite, they just run around at the edge of vision and do nothing unless there's a target really close by.

Maybe a special AI routine for melee units would work?

Wouldn't have to be advanced, as a Reaper is just a big berserk terror monster anyway, so it would seem credible that it would just run mindlessly at any target at top speed to bite..

I'm using the latest build by the way.


EDIT: just realized that this should probably have gone in the "suggestions" subforum, and that probably you are already are of this issue with Reapers

[Solarius Scorch]

It's not a bug, it's psychological warfare.

[kkmic]

Shhhhhh!!!

Do not use the words "bug" and "reaper" (in any form or combination) in the same post, or Warboy will get really really really crazy and will mess with the savedgames again!

[SupSuper]

Just wanted to give a bit of feedback - against Reapers I noticed that they don't try to get into close range to bite, they just run around at the edge of vision and do nothing unless there's a target really close by.

Sounds like the original to me.

[Quixote]

Yeah, it does work very much like the original, so if it's working as designed, great job

But since apparently a new AI has been put in, maybe it would be cool to make the Reapers a bit more bloodthirsty. Right now they are nothing but free reaction training for my troops...

[Danny]

Yeah, it does work very much like the original, so if it's working as designed, great job

But since apparently a new AI has been put in, maybe it would be cool to make the Reapers a bit more bloodthirsty. Right now they are nothing but free reaction training for my troops...

Well your troopers need that reaction training for when they face Chrysalids... XD

[kharille]

I've had a few soldiers chewed up with OpenXcom.  I thought it was a pleasant surprise, and they don't inspire the fear as do Chryssalids.

I heard they removed the sound effects for the chryssalids...  I guess it would be annoying, can't surrender with stained white underwear....

[Mr. Quiet]

Before letting them out into the city, the floater beast master should have starved the reapers, so they would go on a blood rage upon sensing anything that moves. That's why floaters can fly, so they don't get ripped apart by the primitive creature they themselves let loose.

Here's a great idea if you want to fear the reaper: Let them burst through walls as they're walking to anyone. Here's the fun part, Remove the part of the Reaper's AI that gives them a path to avoid walls. Remove that and just let them ram through walls and most objects besides the UFO and our landing craft, and just add the extra TU cost when they go through any walls. Going through small objects shouldn't cost a single extra TU.

You can no longer hide behind walls or tight spaces anymore and you'll want to bring Incendiary weapons after reading the Autopsy.

Can the OXC engine handle this much brutality?!

[Gifty]

Holy crap, I like the sound of that.

[moriarty]

Here's a great idea if you want to fear the reaper: Let them burst through walls as they're walking to anyone. Here's the fun part, Remove the part of the Reaper's AI that gives them a path to avoid walls.
[...]
Can the OXC engine handle this much brutality?!

this was suggested before... but considering the pains it took WarBoy to handle the reaper's pathfinding, this suggestion might just make him burst through a wall 

[Warboy1982]

i'd settle for getting reapers to not be completely useless. they need TUs if they're gonna be melee units, something they severely lack compared to say... a chryssalid

[B1ackwolf]

Here's a great idea if you want to fear the reaper: i see what you did there  ,
and well yes, it should be pretty cool if the reaper gets some buff and make them more dangerous,i mean they are TERROR WEAPONS...and are so far way for making us soil our pants just like the chryssalids do...or even the another "easy first months race" sectoids have big and bad  terror toys :T

[kharille]

Perhaps their AI can include a double attack to create a hole in a wall? 

[Mr. Quiet]

I just thought maybe it'll be too hard. This might get most of our Operatives killed in the first Terror-Site encounter. I don't know though. Would it be impossible to beat these guys in the beginning? Reaction shots will help a lot and staying in groups facing every direction when you're surrounded by walls can help, because you don't know if the damn thing is right on the other side. And it will sense your low bravery stat.

Here's adding more to it. As a Reaper rams through walls, add sounds of everything breaking and shattering so we'll be frozen on our seats just listening to the Reapers make waste during alien's turn when all our guys are spread out. Now I'm wishing Julian Gollop would have added this to Reapers in the original...

If the Reaper doesn't see you, it will still be able to sense your fear through low Bravery(Veteran Difficulty and up), but you'll feel relieved on higher ground or after researching Flying Armor. "To terrorise and destroy" is a good slogan for the Reapers.

Sorry, I can't stop thinking about this one XD

[Solarius Scorch]

Some wall-breaking ability would be fine and potentially quite fun. I wouldn't however want Reapers to outright ignore any terrain on their path, that would be silly.