Cottonbalers difficulty interface now has a checkbox. The mouse over explains why it is optional:
Better use of terrain when dealing with enemy fire - AI will use cover (any level) where it can when dealing with enemy targeting hexes but is not smart about optimizing for maximum cover. But what it does do is avoid running under fire in the open unless there is no choice. Hopefully this will cut down on AI leader casualties. Which we have been seeing more of with fights with experienced US units and experienced German units like in Three Nations.
Ruthless(Cowardly?) AI with regard to moving to units needing a Rally - if a unit is under fire in the open or the path to it requires moving in open under fire the leader will NOT rally and will abandon till that's not true. Hence ‘Ruthless(cowardly?)”
Non Adjacent AI units would not move forward and assault if their weapons firing range was out of range - i.e. if only short range weapons were falsely prevented from moving up into range and assaulting.
AI no longer overreacts to ‘contact’ (Henk, Patrick, Luke)- that is if a unit’s organization (e.g. Plt(oon)) can’t see the contact that Plt will not respond to. Before all plts whether could see or not would respond.
Conservative rallies (Henk, Patrick, Luke) -AI only considers rallies as follows:
For a Ldr in the same hex - if squad morale is <= 4 Morale or if 40% or more suppressed (e.g. a Morale 13 unit is down to 5).
If a Ldr must move to unit (costing more Orders and more risk potentially) - squad must be suppressed by 60% or more
Comments:
All of this means less leader attention to rallying but also means AI forces will be a bit more demoralized as a force.. But presumably doing more now.
AI units that are not in assault range will move into assault range if breadcrumbs allow- before they would stall out.
Less pointless firing - if enemy is cowering AI will no longer fire at and will do other things (like advance on breadcrumbs)
AI “Too Far” bug for plan “move to unit and Bolster and Assault”! - AI leaders were not getting Bolstered (which gives extra MPs) so if the leader didn’t intrinsically have enough MPs then long range assaults would fail with “Too Far” message.