Give the side that spots the other first exactly one free round

Sneaking up on a camp or being jumped on the road should change who strikes first. But when both sides notice each other, or nobody does, a surprise bonus feels wrong. This entry covers when the free round applies and when it ends.

Why this works

Surprise is a matter of who knew what. When only one side noticed the other, that side deserves the first move. If both did or neither did, nobody has an edge. Keeping it to one round rewards the plan without letting it decide the whole fight.

When not to use it

Skip it in games with real-time combat, where surprise is simply a hit landing first, and in games where scouting is not a skill you want to reward. Use a plain damage bonus on the first blow, or no bonus at all.

In the full entry

• What to build, step by step
• Starting values and the reason for each
• 3 common mistakes and the fix
• A diagram of every state
• 22 lines of example code with 4 checks that pass
• How your AI shows you that it works

Say this to your AI

Use the Spielerando entry "Give the side that spots the other first exactly one free round" (read_entry ambush-gives-one-free-round) in my game. Build it step by step, and show me how you checked that it works.

Or skip this and connect the MCP: your AI then finds all of this by itself.Connect the MCP