# Skull match request **URL:** \ **Category:** Feature Requests and Game feedback\ **Created:** [June 27, 2017, 5:21pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500 "2017-06-27T17:21:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dende2000](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/dende2000/32/19898_2.png) [@dende2000](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/dende2000)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 5:21pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/1 "2017-06-27T17:21:54Z")
Why an entangled unit insists to match skulls? Is it possible to make a change to the AI so that at least these situations do not occur anymore? Thank you… ---
**Author:** ![Stan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/stan/32/29888_2.png) [@Stan](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Stan)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 5:26pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/2 "2017-06-27T17:26:23Z")
The upgraded AI that exists on console is slightly better about doing that, and on defense, can be modified to take skulls less frequently in general. Once the Unity version rolls out to mobile, they should also unlock the upgraded AI for you (might be a 3.1 thing, who knows?). Even then, you’ll still see the AI doing the same thing, but it won’t _always_ take skulls even when entangled. ---
**Author:** ![dende2000](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/dende2000/32/19898_2.png) [@dende2000](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/dende2000)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 5:29pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/3 "2017-06-27T17:29:48Z")
Improved AI or not… it’s foolish to match skulls when the first unit is entangled… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Stan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/stan/32/29888_2.png) [@Stan](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Stan)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 5:31pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/4 "2017-06-27T17:31:44Z")
Generally true, but there are times when I do it myself (if I think the consequences of making a different match are worse than wasting a turn). I don’t think the AI programming is quite at the level of the kind of situational recognition that you’re looking for, though. ---
**Author:** ![dende2000](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/dende2000/32/19898_2.png) [@dende2000](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/dende2000)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 6:15pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/5 "2017-06-27T18:15:10Z")
Well… I’m a programmer and I can suppose it’s just an easy “if” to add to the code. ---
**Author:** ![Lyya](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/lyya/32/3650_2.png) [@Lyya](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Lyya)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 6:15pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/6 "2017-06-27T18:15:35Z")
It’s not always foolish to skip skulls if the result would be the opponent hitting you with skulls. Sometimes it’s in fact a good idea. ---
**Author:** ![Stan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/stan/32/29888_2.png) [@Stan](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Stan)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 6:24pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/7 "2017-06-27T18:24:41Z")
Sure, that would be easy to add to the code, but there are a whole series of status effects that would also influence how a team should ideally be played. For example, I generally don’t cast Mercy unless I can get an extra turn by doing it, but sometimes if I have some troublesome status effects on my troops (like deathmark or stun), it’s worthwhile to cast it even if I don’t get a bunch of mana or an extra turn. This is just one example, but I could probably come up with a whole series of status-effect problems that the AI _could_ take into account. These would get increasingly complicated to resolve as more and more specific situations are added to the program. You’ve pointed out one example, but if you take that step, why not the next, and the next? The AI is what it is, and we play to what it does. The console AI is an upgrade over the existing PC/Mobile AI and takes more factors into account with each decision. For now, that’s good enough for me. ---
**Author:** ![dende2000](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/dende2000/32/19898_2.png) [@dende2000](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/dende2000)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 7:37pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/8 "2017-06-27T19:37:52Z")
99.9% of cases matching skulls when entangled is a dumb decision. Mercy considerations are definitely not the same thing. Not even comparable. If you like to win easy against an idiot AI, getting an easy extra turn just say it. ---
**Author:** ![Stan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/stan/32/29888_2.png) [@Stan](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Stan)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 7:46pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/9 "2017-06-27T19:46:49Z")
I _do_ like getting easy wins against a dumb AI, but that’s not what I’m saying. Mercy was just one example, but this is a complex game where any given situation can have a large number of factors that play into what the optimal decision is at any point in time. The existing PC AI has a very simple decision process. The console AI has a more complex one, but it still largely ignores the consequences of its immediate actions. I agree that taking a skull match while entangled is usually a less than optimal move, but my point was, if you’re going to put in an exception for that status effect, there are probably a million other conditions that you should also take into account. They’ve written an improved AI that takes more things into account than it used to. Can it be improved? Of course, but trying to improve it by writing in specific conditions to respond to in specific ways is going to be problematic. That’s my only point. ---
**Author:** ![Lyya](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/lyya/32/3650_2.png) [@Lyya](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Lyya)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 7:47pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/10 "2017-06-27T19:47:58Z")
78.3% of all statistics are made up on the spot. I’m just saying that there is no strictly “better than” in the simplistic decision tree of the AI. If the AI skipped skulls entirely when Entangled, players could exploit that behavior just as easily, setting up future 3-Skull matches for themselves, knowing the AI won’t interfere. ---
**Author:** ![Rickygervais](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b77776/32.png) [@Rickygervais](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Rickygervais)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 7:58pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/11 "2017-06-27T19:58:48Z")
I match skull sometime when i am entangled if there is 4x skull if you got mab or any status effect on x4 gems, you can freeze someone and get extra turn so it’s not always foolish ---
**Author:** ![dende2000](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/dende2000/32/19898_2.png) [@dende2000](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/dende2000)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 8:33pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/12 "2017-06-27T20:33:22Z")
4 matches gives you an extra turn… even if the first unit is entangled is probably a good move, cause you can “move the board” and get for sure another move, maybe with better matches. ---
**Author:** ![Vangor](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/vangor/32/31404_2.png) [@Vangor](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Vangor)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2017, 8:35pm UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/skull-match-request/26500/13 "2017-06-27T20:35:50Z")
It also makes sense to get skulls off the board even if im entangled… I just dont see the benefit to anyone to force the ai to ignore skull matches due to entangle