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== Best practices for AI design ==
 
== Best practices for AI design ==
  
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{{InformationCollapsed|1=Test, test, test.|2="If debugging is the process of removing bugs, then programming must be the process of putting them in." (Edsger Wybe Dijkstra) As no developer is perfect, new nodes should be tested and debugged right after they were added.}}
 
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Test, test, test.|2="If debugging is the process of removing bugs, then programming must be the process of putting them in." (Edsger Wybe Dijkstra) As no developer is perfect, new nodes should be tested and debugged right after they were added.}}
  
== Useful resources ==
+
== Micro or Macro ==
  
There are several places to discover new strategies, learn tactics of other players or ask questions:
+
A macro strategy uses a few nodes to do a lot of things approximately, a micro strategy uses lots of nodes to do one thing well. You need both to be great. Try thinking how you can replace a small amount nodes with a more precise sub-AI, but when you have a new idea, try starting small and finding a good default.
  
* Check the [https://forum.gladiabots.com community forum]. Also "old" topics there can give nice information.
+
Some players will naturally be better at one or the other. Remember that you can always find friends to help you out.
** Especially the sections ''Strategies'' and ''Questions'' are interesting.
+
** For example check [https://forum.gladiabots.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=823 this topic about shared ideas how players approach the game]. Several strong players of the year 2017 contributed to it.
+
* Check the chat groups on [http://telegram.gladiabots.com/ telegram] and [http://discord.gladiabots.com/ discord].
+
* Check the wiki itself to learn about game mechanics and bot programming and their sub topics. There are several nifty details to discover.
+
* Check the [[changelog]] or [http://roadmap.gladiabots.com roadmap] to learn about recent or planned changes and adjust your AIs according to them.
+
  
Last but not least one should play the game. Especially lost games show flaws of the AI, that need to improved. Try to analyze the strategy your enemy used.
+
== Ideas worth implementing ==
  
== Simple bots ==
+
=== Retreat ===
  
One can learn of bots with few nodes that have a pretty good performance in the game. They are a great base to start optimizing for beginners but also for advanced players to test their AI against.
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Retreat at shield level other than 0-25%.|2=Retreat early when being attacked by several units at medium range. Don't wait until your shield is 0-25%, otherwise those enemy units attacking you at medium range will continue to attack you as you move into long range, which is something you want to avoid with such a low shield. If you're being attacked by a machine gun and a sniper at medium range then you'll probably want to retreat at all shield/health levels.}}
  
=== Ultimate AI for beginners (16 nodes) ===
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Only retreat as long as someone is attacking.|2=Don't retreat because your shield is low, but because someone attacks you. If no one attacks you anymore stop the retreat process.}}
  
PEW presented this [https://forum.gladiabots.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=647 Ultimate AI for beginners] in the forum.
+
=== Attack ===
  
[[File:Ultimate AI for beginners.png|thumb|none|800px|Ultimate AI for beginners - [https://wiki.gladiabots.com/images/3/3c/Ultimate_AI_for_beginners.png Higher resolution (2236 × 1228 pixel)]]]
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Minimize the time spend switching attack targets.|2=Usually a bot should continuously attack the bot it started to attack. (by filtering a target attacked in the previous tick) Create strict rules for when to switch targets. For the sniper and machine gun, whose reload time is quite long, it's especially important.}}
  
The AI is split into this main modules:
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Focus fire.|2=Prioritize enemies that are already being attacked by your allies or prioritize enemies with low shield.}}
  
* Blue: The retreat module
+
=== Push ===
* Yellow: The shooting module (with high priority)
+
* Green: The resource module
+
* Red: The pushing module
+
* Pink: The shooting module (with low priority)
+
  
=== Grand Master League Bot (30 nodes) ===
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Shoot medium range.|2=Aggressively push to medium range. Little damage is done at long range, so pushing to medium maximizes your damage and also pushes your opponent, especially if you have many pushing at once. Careful, a bad push can be a big risk too.}}
  
LuBeNo presented this [https://forum.gladiabots.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=605 Grand Master League Bot] in the forum.
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Push in the right moment.|2=Don't push when being attacked. Sometimes the pushing process should be aborted, because too many enemies are around.}}
  
[[File:Grand Master League Bot.png|thumb|none|800px|Ultimate AI for beginners - [https://wiki.gladiabots.com/images/7/7a/Grand_Master_League_Bot.png Higher resolution (2276 × 986 pixel)]]]
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Flank or circle bots.|2=Flanked and circled bots get easily destroyed. Try to avoid pushing too aggressively, so you don't get caught between two enemies.}}
  
The AI is split into this modules:
+
=== Collection ===
  
* Defense
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Score wisely|2=Try to score to bases away from the enemy, but not so far away that you spend valuable time carrying the resource there.}}
* Shotgun
+
* Offense
+
* Dancing
+
  
<!--
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Score unexpected|2=Try to rush for early resources or smuggle resources mid game. Sometimes also picking 2 or 3 resources at once works.}}
  
 +
=== Domination ===
  
* Currently targeted / Retreating / Attacking / Scoring / Pushing / Decorators / Ideas worth implementing
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Go for bases|2=You get points for bots being on bases, so any time spent outside bases is wasted time.}}
* Assault specific strategies / Shotgun specific strategies / Machine gun specific strategies / Sniper specific strategies
+
** [https://forum.gladiabots.com/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=126&p=4470#p4470 decorators]
+
  
what are the most important things to implement for new players? (A little bit more explaining text or a link appreciated)
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Find the right force fields|2=Not all force fields are equal, find the ones that cover multiple bases.}}
would you provide HQ screenshots of standalone implementations of the main idea of the strategy?
+
  
1. Retreatment.
+
=== Elimination ===
2. Gathering resources.
+
3. Cooperation.
+
  
Smuggling (catch in mid battle)
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Know when to shoot|2=The less you shoot, the more you push. It's often more important to know when to shoot than who to shoot.}}
Rushing (catch at first)
+
Pushing (we all know)
+
Dancing (both resource and range based)
+
Arena Positioning System (using bases and Bots and resources, used for flanking and retreat.)
+
  
 +
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Work as a group|2=Bots together cancel each other's weaknesses. Keep your bots together.}}
  
1. Aggressivly push to medium range. Little damage is done at long range, so pushing to medium maximises your damage and also pushes your opponent, especially if you have many pushing at once. This is critical. Don't push when being attacked (I don't always follow this rule)
+
=== Shotgun ===
  
2. Retreat early when being attacked by units at medium range. Don't wait until your shield is <25%, otherwise those enemy units attacking you at medium range will continue to attack you as you move into long range, which is something you want to avoid with such a low shield. If you're being attacked my a machine gun and shotgun at medium range then you'll probably want to retreat at all shield/health levels.
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Shoot at second sight|2=The shotgun should not always start shooting at the first bot it sees at medium range. Its good to get as close as you can to medium range units, especially if they are retreating or being attacked by an ally. This will give your shotgun more medium range shots as the enemy unit tries to escape from medium range. For example only stop moving towards medium range units when at least 2 units are in medium range.}}
  
3. Pay a lot of attention to your opponent's sniper. Your sniper should prioritize attacking the enemies sniper. If your sniper hits the opponent's sniper then it's probably worth changing the attack target of all your nearby units to it even if they are attacking medium range units (and only if it is safe/worthwhile doing so)
+
=== Sniper ===
  
4. When attacking, tend to prioritise enemies that are already being attacked by your allies. If no enemies are being attacked by an ally then only attack enemies that are attacking or retreating. If no allies are attacking or retreating, then push(move) towards your enemy.
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Focus on the enemy sniper|2=Pay a lot of attention to your opponent's sniper. Your sniper should prioritize attacking the enemies sniper. If your sniper hits the opponent's sniper then it's probably worth changing the attack target of all your nearby units to it, even if they are attacking medium range units. (and only if it is safe/worthwhile doing so)}}
  
5. The shotgun should not always start shooting at the first unit it sees at medium range. Its good to get as close as you can to medium range units, especially if they are retreating or being attacked by an ally. This will give your shotgun more medium range shots as the enemy unit tries to escape from medium range. One of my SG rules is that it will only stop moving towards medium range units when at-least 2 units are in medium range.
+
=== Machine Gun ===
  
6. The best way to collect resources depends on your current strategy and how well you are doing against the playerbase. Your resource collecting strategy will change as you change so I can't recommend one specific technique. It's ok to not focus on resource collecting while you hone other more important bits of your AI.
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Hold your ground|2=Machine guns are great at holding positions or bases.}}
  
7. Minimise the time you spend switching your attack target. I have rules for when to switch. For the sniper and machine gun, whose reload time is quite long, it's especially important.
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Carry resources|2=Machine guns are the fastest bot to score resources (but not to grab).}}
  
8. New players can totally ignore tagging for now when . They will waste a lot of time with them if they start using them.
+
=== General ===
  
9. Group your units together. Players do this in various ways. Many will move the unit to the nearest ally during a game if they wander too far away. I don't do that.
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Think about maintainability|2=Don't use to complicated structures, map and bot specific stuff. It's easier to make one generic AI then to handle a truckload of specialized ones.}}
  
 +
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Decorate a generic AI|2=The [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decorator_pattern decorator pattern] can be used to add flexibility to a generic AI. A decorator is a simple program to tell a bot what to do at the start of the map or in certain situations. Tags or conditions can activate or deactivate certain parts of the generic main AI. The different parts of the main AI are included as a sub AI.}}
  
1. Retreat at shield level other than 25% (from closest enemy attacking self)
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Ignore tagging|2=New players can totally ignore tagging. (especially for combat) }}
2. Continuously attacking enemy bots(this was a new concept for me)
+
3. Attacking enemies nearby allies are attacking(focus fire)
+
4. Focusing 25% or less shield enemies down(if you don't do this you'll never kill a bot)
+
5. Move towards closest resource when out of range / pick up (good for scoring off pushes)
+
  
1. I can definitely say that of Chris's points, 2,3,6, and 8 is definitely spot on while 7 is simply once again explaining what currently targeted is.
+
{{InformationCollapsed|1=Start experimenting|2=Don't follow rules. Sometimes you have to break a rule to dominate. Some rules also have cons one should be wary about.}}
2. Don't explain dancing. As a tool used to trick enemy bots, it is definitely outdated and beaten by currently targeted, and for the most part, if you are dancing, it usually is for the purpose of retreating to save your shield, because you almost never can never get away with dancing as a trick anymore
+
3. Both grouping together and focusing your fire definitely comes with pros and cons that many should be wary about. Grouping especially isn't something that I really think is necessarily good considering both the limitations in the information the bots has access to and that any time spent grouping is time lost not pushing.
+
4. While Chris is correct that one should push towards getting in medium range, it definitely far from risk free, and always attacking second (as Chris makes it seem) is imo not the best of advice. While pushing is just overall important, a bad push can easily turn out much more horribly than not pushing at all. Thus, imo, it isn't good advice for beginners.
+
5. Besides attacking the currently targeted enemy maybe focus firing, I'm not exactly certain how useful it would be to have strategies of which things to prioritize for attacking for a beginner, and I feel like what is best will change more and more depending on the situation at hand.
+
  
Beginners should avoid tagging for combat. Bad idea, too slow.
+
== Simple bots ==
  
Only thing I would add is to think about maintainability. Don't use to complicated structures, map and bot specific stuff. It' easier to make one generic AI then to handle a truckload of specualized ones.
+
''Main Page: [[Simple Example Bots]]''
  
 +
One can learn of bots with few nodes that have a pretty good performance in the game. They are a great base to start optimizing for beginners but also for advanced players to test their AI against.
  
-->
+
== Useful resources ==
 +
 
 +
There are several places to discover new strategies, learn tactics of other players or ask questions:
 +
 
 +
* Check the chat groups on [http://discord.gladiabots.com/ discord] and [http://telegram.gladiabots.com/ telegram].
 +
* Check the wiki itself to learn about game mechanics and bot programming and their sub topics. There are several nifty details to discover.
 +
* Check the [[changelog]] or [http://roadmap.gladiabots.com roadmap] to learn about recent or planned changes and adjust your AIs according to them.
 +
 
 +
Last but not least one should play the game. Especially lost games show flaws of the AI, that need to improved. Try to analyze the strategy your enemy used.

Latest revision as of 18:55, 12 April 2021

Best practices for AI design

Some best coding practices from software development also apply to AIs in Gladiabots. The following rules can help improve the quality of AIs, enhancing both the initial development and subsequent maintenance of the AI.

Information.png
Divide and conquer. 

Break down a problem into two or more sub-problems and solve each of them separately. Complex sub-problems can again be divided. In Gladiabots this could be done by creating sub-AIs for each sub-problem. The complexity is reduced leading to a better maintainability.

Information.png
Readability first. 

AIs are written once, but read many times. Overlapping nodes, links crossing each other and great distances between linked nodes are difficult to read and should be avoided. AIs should have meaningful names revealing their purpose. One should consider to align nodes to the grid.

Information.png
Don't repeat yourself. 

Avoid using the exact same set of nodes in several places. Sometimes duplicate nodes can be prevented by using bot specific filters or additional conditions. If its not possible to prevent duplicate nodes in the first place one can try to move them to sub AIs.

Information.png
Keep it simple. 

The size of an AI has a significant effect on the error rate. A simple solution should be preferred over a complex one leading to the same or very similar results. One should ask the question: "Has this AI been implemented with the least amount of nodes necessary?". The more complex the AI is the more likely it is to be buggy.

Information.png
Test, test, test. 

"If debugging is the process of removing bugs, then programming must be the process of putting them in." (Edsger Wybe Dijkstra) As no developer is perfect, new nodes should be tested and debugged right after they were added.

Micro or Macro

A macro strategy uses a few nodes to do a lot of things approximately, a micro strategy uses lots of nodes to do one thing well. You need both to be great. Try thinking how you can replace a small amount nodes with a more precise sub-AI, but when you have a new idea, try starting small and finding a good default.

Some players will naturally be better at one or the other. Remember that you can always find friends to help you out.

Ideas worth implementing

Retreat

Information.png
Retreat at shield level other than 0-25%. 

Retreat early when being attacked by several units at medium range. Don't wait until your shield is 0-25%, otherwise those enemy units attacking you at medium range will continue to attack you as you move into long range, which is something you want to avoid with such a low shield. If you're being attacked by a machine gun and a sniper at medium range then you'll probably want to retreat at all shield/health levels.

Information.png
Only retreat as long as someone is attacking. 

Don't retreat because your shield is low, but because someone attacks you. If no one attacks you anymore stop the retreat process.

Attack

Information.png
Minimize the time spend switching attack targets. 

Usually a bot should continuously attack the bot it started to attack. (by filtering a target attacked in the previous tick) Create strict rules for when to switch targets. For the sniper and machine gun, whose reload time is quite long, it's especially important.

Information.png
Focus fire. 

Prioritize enemies that are already being attacked by your allies or prioritize enemies with low shield.

Push

Information.png
Shoot medium range. 

Aggressively push to medium range. Little damage is done at long range, so pushing to medium maximizes your damage and also pushes your opponent, especially if you have many pushing at once. Careful, a bad push can be a big risk too.

Information.png
Push in the right moment. 

Don't push when being attacked. Sometimes the pushing process should be aborted, because too many enemies are around.

Information.png
Flank or circle bots. 

Flanked and circled bots get easily destroyed. Try to avoid pushing too aggressively, so you don't get caught between two enemies.

Collection

Information.png
Score wisely 

Try to score to bases away from the enemy, but not so far away that you spend valuable time carrying the resource there.

Information.png
Score unexpected 

Try to rush for early resources or smuggle resources mid game. Sometimes also picking 2 or 3 resources at once works.

Domination

Information.png
Go for bases 

You get points for bots being on bases, so any time spent outside bases is wasted time.

Information.png
Find the right force fields 

Not all force fields are equal, find the ones that cover multiple bases.

Elimination

Information.png
Know when to shoot 

The less you shoot, the more you push. It's often more important to know when to shoot than who to shoot.

Information.png
Work as a group 

Bots together cancel each other's weaknesses. Keep your bots together.

Shotgun

Information.png
Shoot at second sight 

The shotgun should not always start shooting at the first bot it sees at medium range. Its good to get as close as you can to medium range units, especially if they are retreating or being attacked by an ally. This will give your shotgun more medium range shots as the enemy unit tries to escape from medium range. For example only stop moving towards medium range units when at least 2 units are in medium range.

Sniper

Information.png
Focus on the enemy sniper 

Pay a lot of attention to your opponent's sniper. Your sniper should prioritize attacking the enemies sniper. If your sniper hits the opponent's sniper then it's probably worth changing the attack target of all your nearby units to it, even if they are attacking medium range units. (and only if it is safe/worthwhile doing so)

Machine Gun

Information.png
Hold your ground 

Machine guns are great at holding positions or bases.

Information.png
Carry resources 

Machine guns are the fastest bot to score resources (but not to grab).

General

Information.png
Think about maintainability 

Don't use to complicated structures, map and bot specific stuff. It's easier to make one generic AI then to handle a truckload of specialized ones.

Information.png
Decorate a generic AI 

The decorator pattern can be used to add flexibility to a generic AI. A decorator is a simple program to tell a bot what to do at the start of the map or in certain situations. Tags or conditions can activate or deactivate certain parts of the generic main AI. The different parts of the main AI are included as a sub AI.

Information.png
Ignore tagging 

New players can totally ignore tagging. (especially for combat)

Information.png
Start experimenting 

Don't follow rules. Sometimes you have to break a rule to dominate. Some rules also have cons one should be wary about.

Simple bots

Main Page: Simple Example Bots

One can learn of bots with few nodes that have a pretty good performance in the game. They are a great base to start optimizing for beginners but also for advanced players to test their AI against.

Useful resources

There are several places to discover new strategies, learn tactics of other players or ask questions:

  • Check the chat groups on discord and telegram.
  • Check the wiki itself to learn about game mechanics and bot programming and their sub topics. There are several nifty details to discover.
  • Check the changelog or roadmap to learn about recent or planned changes and adjust your AIs according to them.

Last but not least one should play the game. Especially lost games show flaws of the AI, that need to improved. Try to analyze the strategy your enemy used.