"매 eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, eXterminate — 매 long-horizon empire-building loop." 매 1993 Master of Orion 의 Alan Emrich 가 coined. 매 Civilization, Stellaris, Endless Legend, Old World 의 cornerstone genre — 매 2026 에 AI agents 의 benchmark domain (Pyrrho, Civ-Bench).
deflanchester_combat(att_strength,def_strength,terrain_mod):# Square law for ranged + simultaneous combata,d=att_strength,def_strength*terrain_modratio=a/datt_loss=d**2/(a+d)def_loss=a**2/(a+d)returnatt_loss,def_loss
MCTS for 4X agent
# Minimal MCTS for turn decisionsdefmcts(state,n_sims=1000):root=Node(state)for_inrange(n_sims):leaf=root.select()# UCB1child=leaf.expand()reward=child.rollout()# heuristic playoutchild.backprop(reward)returnroot.best_child().action
Diplomacy as repeated game
classDiplomat:def__init__(self):self.history={}# opponent -> [actions]defrespond(self,opponent,their_action):# Tit-for-tat with forgivenesspast=self.history.get(opponent,[])ifnotpastortheir_action=="cooperate":return"cooperate"returnpast[-1]# mirror last
매 결정 기준
상황
Approach
Early game
eXplore 우선 — map info 의 highest marginal value
Mid game
eXpand + eXploit — economy snowball
Late game
eXterminate or science/cultural victory
Tight map
매 tall play (few strong cities)
Open map
매 wide play (many cities)
기본값: 매 explore-first, 매 expand-until-economy-saturates, 매 specialize.
언제: 매 narrative event generation, flavor text, 매 dynamic dialogue with diplomats.
언제 X: 매 hard rule resolution (combat math, yields) — 매 deterministic engine 사용.
❌ 안티패턴
Snowball lock-in: 매 early lead 의 unwinnable game — 매 catchup mechanics 의 추가.
Micromanagement hell: 매 50+ cities 의 manual ordering — 매 governors, automation.
Tech rush dominance: 매 single optimal path — 매 multiple viable trees 의 design.
Combat spam: 매 stack-of-doom — 매 1UPT or limited stacks.
🧪 검증 / 중복
Verified (Sid Meier 인터뷰, Master of Orion 1993 design notes).