Selecting an best target algorithm in arcade/strategy game AI programming.

Question

Hi All,

I would just like to know the various AI algorithms or logics used in arcade/strategy games for finding/selecting best target to attack for individual unit.

Because, I had to write an small AI logic, where their will be group of unit were attacked by an various tankers, so i am stuck in getting the better logic or algorithm for selecting an best target for unit to attack onto the tankers.

Data available are: Tanker position, range, hitpoints, damage.

please anybody know the best suitable algorithm/logic for solving this problem, respond early.

Thanks in advance, Ramanand.

Answer 1

I'm going to express this in a perspective similar to RPG gamers:

What character would you bring down first in order to strike a crippling blow to the rest of your enemies? It would be common sense to bring down the healers of the party, as they can heal the rest of the team. Once the healers are gone, the team needs to use medicine - which is limited in supply - and once medicine is exhausted, the party is screwed.

Similar logic would apply to the tank program. In your AI, you need to figure out which tanks provide the most strength and support to the user's fleet, and eliminate them first. Don't focus on any other tanks unless they become critical in achieving their goal: Kill the strongest, most useful members of the group first.

So I'm going to break down what I feel is most likely pertains to the attributes of your tanks.

RANGE: Far range tanks can hit from a distance but have weak STRENGTH in their attacks.

TANKER POSITION: Closer tanks are faster tanks, but have less STRENGTH in their attacks.  Also low HITPOINTS because they're meant for SPEED, and not for DAMAGE.

TANKER HP: Higher HP means a slower-moving tank, as they're stronger.  But they won't be close to the front lines.

DAMAGE: Higher DAMAGE means a STRONGER tank with lots of HP, but SLOWER as well to move.

So if I were you, I'd focus first on the tanks that have the highest HP/strongest attacks, followed by the closest ones, and then worry about the ranged tanks - you can't do anything to them anyway until they move into your attack radius :P

And the algorithm would be pretty simple. if you have a list of tanks in a party, create a custom sort for them (using CompareTo) and sort the tanks by class with the highest possible HP to the top of the list, followed by tanks with their focus being speed, and then range.

And then go through each item in the list. If it is possible to attack Tank(0), attack. If not, go to Tank(1).

Answer 2

The goal is to attack only one opponent at a time and receive fire from at most one enemy at a time (though, preferably, none).

Ideally, you would attack the tanks by remaining behind cover and flanking them with surprise attacks. This allows you to destroy the tanks one at a time, while receiving no or little fire.

If you don't have cover, then you should use the enemy as cover. Move into a position that puts the enemy behind the enemy. This also improves your chance to hit.

You can also use range to reduce fire from multiple enemies. Retreat until you are only within range of one enemy.

If the enemies can all fire on you, you want to attack one target until it is no longer a threat, then move on to the next target. The goal is to reduce the amount of fire that you receive as quickly as possible.

If more than one enemy can fire on you at the same time, and you can choose your target, you should fire at the one that allows you to reduce the most amount of damage for the least cost. Simply divide the hit points by the damage, and attack the one with the smallest result. You should also figure in any other relevant stats. Range probably affects you and the enemy equally, but considering the ability to maneuver out of the way of fire, closer enemies are more harmful and should be given some weight in the calculation.

If moving decreases the likelihood of being hit, then you should keep moving, typically by circling your opponent to stay at their flank.

Team tactics would mostly include flanking and diversions.

What's the ammo situation, and is it possible to miss a stationary target?