Poker AI?

I've just finished my first BlitzMax game, Area 51 Blackjack ( www.ragtag.net/games ), and was wondering how hard it would be to do a poker AI for a 5 card draw poker game. I've found code (in Java and C) for hand evaluation, but none for Poker AI. Has anyone done this in Blitz or have any pointers to where I should start. I figure it's about a hundred time harder to code than Blackjack AI, but could be fun to try.

Ragnar

Well the hand evaluation stuff is a good start... if it is Poker like the kind on TV (Texas Hold'em... VERY POPULAR) I would say setting up the general RULES about when to open and for how much could be found in one of the multitudes of Poker strategy books or websites on the net.

Condensing those rules into BASIC would go a long way towards your poker engine. Take a bit of research and work though...