How can I stop games from becoming nothing but wars?

  Alpha Centauri Forums
  The Game
  How can I stop games from becoming nothing but wars?

profile | register | prefs | faq | search

Author Topic:   How can I stop games from becoming nothing but wars?

The Dude posted 05-13-99 05:59 PM ET
It seems that no matter what I do, I'm always drawn into some prolonged war with the other factions. I'd like to try one of the other victories, but the other factions always seem to be itching for a fight and I end up having to pursue a conquest victory whether I really want to or not. Any tips?
Europa posted 05-13-99 06:35 PM ET
Have you tried turning the Intense rivalry option in the game rules menu before starting? If not then try giving them something like a gift when you first meet them, don't worry about sucking up in early negotiation just don't go overboard. Try to get pacts together as soon as you can, but be careful of this as fellow pact brothers end up declaring vendettas on each other and each expects you to support the others. Finally, do whatever it takes to become Planetary Govenor (Being Lal helps this as his votes count double) then you have a shot at the supreme leader victory!
Good luck
BusterMan posted 05-13-99 06:43 PM ET
For a suggestion:
Build up a massive military in the beginning of the game. At that point most faction leaders won't want to provoke a fight. If they do however, send your entire force to their continent and wage all out war. Don't do anything to piss them off (NO PROBE TEAMS, ATROCITIES, CAPTURING OF THEIR HQ ETC.)! When they give up they won't bother you anymore. Do the same to any other faction that messes with you.
-Parker
Mcerion posted 05-13-99 07:09 PM ET
I feel your pain Dude. In Civ2 you could force peace with the warmongering AI by building the Great Wall and the United Nations, but for some reason this time around, the designers dropped these Wonders/Secret Projects. I would love to see a Secret Project that would force peace. I too get tired of constant warring. It seems to be a bit idotic fighting all of the time. Other than adding the aforementioned suggested SP's in the upcoming patch, there is nothing you can do to avoid war.
Singularity posted 05-13-99 08:46 PM ET
Kill everyone else.
Xerxes314 posted 05-13-99 08:54 PM ET
I think you're being unfair to the computer again. What you're really asking here is:
Why doesn't the computer just let me win the game the way _I_ want to win?
Duh. Why should the computer let you win? Shouldn't it try to win itself? If the computer thinks you're winning, it's going to attack you. Think about it; it just makes sense.
yin26 posted 05-13-99 10:44 PM ET
Dude,
The key is to abuse your enemy in a loving way. When a nearby faction (far away doesn't matter, at least not for a while) declares Vendetta and attacks you, CRUSH it! But, and this is important, don't eliminate it--just make it surrender (your social engineering status and past atrocities might make this surrender more difficult, so keep this in mind). Then give back all or many of the conquered cities. Now this is great for many reasons: One, that faction will no longer bother you (well, unless..). Two, and more importantly perhaps, you now essentially are working on two completely different lines of research. Without this submissive faction, you can only research one thing at a time. Multiply Submissive Factions x 2, 3, 4 and you can see the real benefit to this. Of course, you'll also have to give them all YOUR tech as well to keep them working on stuff you need and not stuff you already have. It's a bit of a balancing act, however, because if they become too powerful again, they'll turn on you (with YOUR technology). So watch the power graph carefully.
Another advantage is that you now have a partner who will keep the other factions busier in fighting against you. They act as a natural buffer from other factions reaching you. So pick your battles carefully, don't get caught in a multi-front war (even if you have to buy time), and slowly but surely add one faction at a time to your submissive list.
And, if you are really strapped for cash, you can always demand money from them or else you'll cancel the pact. They always say, "Temper, temper, Yin. I can only spare X amount." This, in my experience, is a lie. I can keep demanding money until they have nothing left. But I WANT them to have money so they can fight my enemies more effectively. But it's a good source of quick energy when you need it.
After a while, nobody will be fighting you anymore (or will still be too far away and fighting other battles) to try. The extra tech boost and access to quick energy will also allow you to really speed up other forms of victory, not to mention that now you can actually use a builder's strategy instead of cranking out military stuff. However, ALWAYS have a force ready for a quick, crushing response to the next faction that creeps up against you and starts war. By then, though, you should be the clear Superpower, so it won't take much to crush that faction, too.
Finally, DON'T accept the surrender of the last faction, of course, or the game will end in conquest victory. If necessary, cancel the pact with a weaker faction just so the game will keep going.
By using this strategy, I greatly increased the "fun factor" of the game and actually felt like I was a leader instead of a pure tyrant bent on killing everything (I also had to stop using atrocities, which makes me feel warm and fuzzy now that I'm a benevolent crusher of foreign ideology ).
Good luck.
Koshko posted 05-13-99 11:55 PM ET
Just because you are at War with someone, it doesn't mean you have to fight them. There have been games where I was at war with someone, and neither of us attacked each other for many, many years. If you can get to the point of owning your own continent, you can usaully avoid massive wars.
R A Spottiswood posted 05-14-99 08:34 PM ET
One thing that might work is to turn off the Conquest Victory while setting the rules. That might influence how the other factions operate. However, the island strategy works. In one recent game all the Factions were in Vendetta with five of the six other Factions, but no one was actually attacking me because they were all fighting each other and I was on an island.
RAS
onepaul posted 05-14-99 08:48 PM ET
Yeah, simply build the wonder called: Forbidden City and no other civilizations can call war upon yours...wait a minute that's CtP
WyldKarde posted 05-15-99 04:31 PM ET
Try playing on a he-yooge map, the greater the distance between you and the other factions, the less intrusive a war becomes. Just use the Black Hole defence where you use a domestic army to immediately wipe out anyone who enters your territory and you're laughing, so long as your 'puter is up to the job. My p-pro 200 handles up to about 200x200 before things start getting really slooow.
To close this thread, click here (moderator or admin only).


Hop to:

Contact Us | Alpha Centauri Home

Powered by: Ultimate Bulletin Board, Version 5.18
© Madrona Park, Inc., 1998.

Author	Topic: How can I stop games from becoming nothing but wars?
The Dude	posted 05-13-99 05:59 PM ET It seems that no matter what I do, I'm always drawn into some prolonged war with the other factions. I'd like to try one of the other victories, but the other factions always seem to be itching for a fight and I end up having to pursue a conquest victory whether I really want to or not. Any tips?
Europa	posted 05-13-99 06:35 PM ET Have you tried turning the Intense rivalry option in the game rules menu before starting? If not then try giving them something like a gift when you first meet them, don't worry about sucking up in early negotiation just don't go overboard. Try to get pacts together as soon as you can, but be careful of this as fellow pact brothers end up declaring vendettas on each other and each expects you to support the others. Finally, do whatever it takes to become Planetary Govenor (Being Lal helps this as his votes count double) then you have a shot at the supreme leader victory! Good luck
BusterMan	posted 05-13-99 06:43 PM ET For a suggestion: Build up a massive military in the beginning of the game. At that point most faction leaders won't want to provoke a fight. If they do however, send your entire force to their continent and wage all out war. Don't do anything to piss them off (NO PROBE TEAMS, ATROCITIES, CAPTURING OF THEIR HQ ETC.)! When they give up they won't bother you anymore. Do the same to any other faction that messes with you. -Parker
Mcerion	posted 05-13-99 07:09 PM ET I feel your pain Dude. In Civ2 you could force peace with the warmongering AI by building the Great Wall and the United Nations, but for some reason this time around, the designers dropped these Wonders/Secret Projects. I would love to see a Secret Project that would force peace. I too get tired of constant warring. It seems to be a bit idotic fighting all of the time. Other than adding the aforementioned suggested SP's in the upcoming patch, there is nothing you can do to avoid war.
Singularity	posted 05-13-99 08:46 PM ET Kill everyone else.
Xerxes314	posted 05-13-99 08:54 PM ET I think you're being unfair to the computer again. What you're really asking here is: Why doesn't the computer just let me win the game the way _I_ want to win? Duh. Why should the computer let you win? Shouldn't it try to win itself? If the computer thinks you're winning, it's going to attack you. Think about it; it just makes sense.
yin26	posted 05-13-99 10:44 PM ET Dude, The key is to abuse your enemy in a loving way. When a nearby faction (far away doesn't matter, at least not for a while) declares Vendetta and attacks you, CRUSH it! But, and this is important, don't eliminate it--just make it surrender (your social engineering status and past atrocities might make this surrender more difficult, so keep this in mind). Then give back all or many of the conquered cities. Now this is great for many reasons: One, that faction will no longer bother you (well, unless..). Two, and more importantly perhaps, you now essentially are working on two completely different lines of research. Without this submissive faction, you can only research one thing at a time. Multiply Submissive Factions x 2, 3, 4 and you can see the real benefit to this. Of course, you'll also have to give them all YOUR tech as well to keep them working on stuff you need and not stuff you already have. It's a bit of a balancing act, however, because if they become too powerful again, they'll turn on you (with YOUR technology). So watch the power graph carefully. Another advantage is that you now have a partner who will keep the other factions busier in fighting against you. They act as a natural buffer from other factions reaching you. So pick your battles carefully, don't get caught in a multi-front war (even if you have to buy time), and slowly but surely add one faction at a time to your submissive list. And, if you are really strapped for cash, you can always demand money from them or else you'll cancel the pact. They always say, "Temper, temper, Yin. I can only spare X amount." This, in my experience, is a lie. I can keep demanding money until they have nothing left. But I WANT them to have money so they can fight my enemies more effectively. But it's a good source of quick energy when you need it. After a while, nobody will be fighting you anymore (or will still be too far away and fighting other battles) to try. The extra tech boost and access to quick energy will also allow you to really speed up other forms of victory, not to mention that now you can actually use a builder's strategy instead of cranking out military stuff. However, ALWAYS have a force ready for a quick, crushing response to the next faction that creeps up against you and starts war. By then, though, you should be the clear Superpower, so it won't take much to crush that faction, too. Finally, DON'T accept the surrender of the last faction, of course, or the game will end in conquest victory. If necessary, cancel the pact with a weaker faction just so the game will keep going. By using this strategy, I greatly increased the "fun factor" of the game and actually felt like I was a leader instead of a pure tyrant bent on killing everything (I also had to stop using atrocities, which makes me feel warm and fuzzy now that I'm a benevolent crusher of foreign ideology ). Good luck.
Koshko	posted 05-13-99 11:55 PM ET Just because you are at War with someone, it doesn't mean you have to fight them. There have been games where I was at war with someone, and neither of us attacked each other for many, many years. If you can get to the point of owning your own continent, you can usaully avoid massive wars.
R A Spottiswood	posted 05-14-99 08:34 PM ET One thing that might work is to turn off the Conquest Victory while setting the rules. That might influence how the other factions operate. However, the island strategy works. In one recent game all the Factions were in Vendetta with five of the six other Factions, but no one was actually attacking me because they were all fighting each other and I was on an island. RAS
onepaul	posted 05-14-99 08:48 PM ET Yeah, simply build the wonder called: Forbidden City and no other civilizations can call war upon yours...wait a minute that's CtP
WyldKarde	posted 05-15-99 04:31 PM ET Try playing on a he-yooge map, the greater the distance between you and the other factions, the less intrusive a war becomes. Just use the Black Hole defence where you use a domestic army to immediately wipe out anyone who enters your territory and you're laughing, so long as your 'puter is up to the job. My p-pro 200 handles up to about 200x200 before things start getting really slooow.