AI Performance

[james-rae]

Identify areas of inefficient code that get hit repeatedly when the AI does simulations.

Initial ideas

• Have certain lookups that do array searches on individual card class properties and change to global hash lookups. Card classes will just register their value in their constructor.
• Look into an "active" representation of the field
  • Avoid constant array filtering for "active" creatures (which is the most common filter)
  • Able to use basic math instead of a second array search to find "opposed" or "adjacent" creatures.
  • Would require synchronization effort
  • Representation would need to skirt pointer bugs. It will be state-stacked so restoring two pointers will result in separate objects 🐛

[james-rae]

v0.7.3 will skip duplicate analysis of multiple copies of the same card in hand.

It also fixes a counting problem for free plays. If you got a "play a free spell" type bonus, and had 3 spells in hand, the AI would think you had 3 free plays. The correct number is 1 free play.