Noob with some questions...

Yeah the AI isnt the best. They dont use superweapons, Personaly I like that. But to each his own.   I dont build superweapons, cuz like you said it can give you an unfair advantage. So if you want it to be more fair just dont build them.

And yeah the AI can and does throw itself against a starbase stupidly. Other times they are smartt if your not careful. But its no different than in non-entrechement SINS, the AI will throw itself into traps very easy.

The AI throws itself into defenses, wasting ships.  A player will move around an Argonev while the AI will try to go through it.  Humans will try to lure enemy ships away from repair bays, enemy ships just engage at will.  The AI isn't perfect, but try playing on hard/unfair.  They give the AI income bonuses which neutralize many of its shortcomings in battle tactics.  

AI Strategy: Pretty Good

AI Tactics: BAD!

When you give the AI extra ships, it gives it the opportunity to recreate those lost ships.  Of course, a human player can still win, even against an unfair, just because we are so much smarter than it is.  We know synergies, it doesn't.  We know tactics, it doesn't.  We can micro, it can't.  We maneuver ships to get them into position to fire, it doesn't.  We focus fire on caps, it doesn't.

You have to embrace the AI for what it is, a series of conditional statements. If X do Y. ( i know that technically it is much more complicated that this, but for this thread it works)

Do not let the AI make up your mind on whether or not to get the game, it is a very fun (and time consuming) game with great potential.

The AI can actually be challenging on larger maps or with multiple Hard or Unfair AIs, most players lock teams while playing against mroe than one AI so the AI does not gang up on them.

And yes, they will continually throw themselves at a heavily defended world, suffer heavy losses, and then retreat. But if you neglect to fortify another planet that they can reach, they will eventually attack that.

Superweapons are not overly powerful, especially the vasari Kostura cannon which blows. One super weapon will not win a game, and multiple weapons need time before they can make your enemy surrender.

Hey Carbon, Volt & CaptainAanderson -

Thanks so so much for the great replies folks, great explanations and wording there.

Ok, well, that does put my mind at ease and so after a bit more reading tonight I think I might order it online.

One question that I have from what captainAanderson said... does the AI team up in a game and then break alliances with its co-AI?

Just to give you a background as to why I am asking all these trivial basic questions.  I do not play games.  Not on any consoles or PCs.  I used to be into Unreal Tournament and Red Alert many moons ago and prefer a good tactical strategy game.  In fact I love chess!  When I heard about Sins I thought it sounded like a great game and with so many great reviews it seems a certainty that it will be the game I enjoy.  Afterall, it will have to be as I dont play anything else.  So yeah, not being a regular gamer but having a PC that will cope easily with modern games I wanted to find something to occupy some time.

Sorry if I ask any further questions for which the answer would normally be "just play the game and you will find out".  But I am not a hardened games player and want to have a good grasp of the game before I spend money I have not got to buy it.

Cheers again folks and I welcome any other replies. 

PicardsRug

Well, there aren't many players that can handle 1 vs 2-3 Unfair AI's I think.

So they should be able to give you some treat.

Yes. There is an option you can set before beginning a game that will either allow players (AIs and humans) to switch teams throughout the match, or will restric them to the team they start the game on. So if you are playing a game against multiple AIs with the teams "unlocked" you are free to make agreements (trade agreements, ceasefires, peace treaties) with any AI you want, provided they accept of course.

The AI is also free to make any deals it wants with other AIs, the problem is that once the AIs gather on to the same team they ususally stay there and a human player ends up being outnumbered.

This is why entrenchment is useful, you can fortify a lot more than you could in the original game, so it allows you to focus your fleet on a single enemy at a time without worrying about the other AIs raiding planets while you are away.

I highly recommend this game, it may take some getting used to, but it is worth it. And if you have any questions about gameplay or strategy, you can just ask the forums

there are actually a lot of opinions that came out after having this game. the best thing i could recommend to you is to try and buy the game for yourself. that way you;ll be able to test it and make a review on your own.

1) You're right: The AI doesn't build super-weapons. This is great in my eyes, since I hate virtually all "super" weapons in RTS type games. I don't understand the need to keep putting them in...  ever since nukes first appeared in C+C. Anyway, it doesn't spoil the game at all, since you can simply not build them. I must have played 50 games against the AI, and I've never built a superweapon.

2) Yes, the AI isn't too smart when attacking a starbase, but they will (almost) always send a fleet which is large enough to destroy the starbase. They don't just send a trickle of units to die on the guns. Anyway, the starbases aren't indestructable; and I've lost many a fully-upgraded starbase to AI fleets. In particular, if you play against multiple AIs which are teamed against you, a starbase with other static defenses and a minefield is the only way to keep the never-ending hoardes at bay - they tend to attack simultaneously.

If you want to try the game without buying it, there is a demo available on the website. Under the downloads section, I beleive. You only get the try out the TEC, and the games all have time limits, but it's a good way to get a feel for the game.

I don't think it is there anymore

Thanks again to alll respondants, I have bought the game and played my first game.

I love it, an amazing game, but I suspect I will be asking a few more questions over time

Cheers all!

PicardsRug