Oh, the frustration!

[NFIH]

Lookin' for something to do? Why not share with me and everyone else your most frustrating CivIV in-game moments!

Here's mine, newly minted:

Game is normal speed, pangea, standard size, noble. I'm Hatshepsut (Egyptians). I start surrounded: Ethiopians to the north, Mali to the NW, Portugese to the SW, Americans to the S and Carthaginians to the SW and Spanish to the E.

So conquest it is.

I expand to three cities and start cranking out axes and swords. I declare on Isabella and knock her down to one city. I take the Buddhist holy city from her, meaning I share religion with Yakoub's Ethiopians and the Carths. I rest for a bit and declare again on Isabella. I finish her off and reposition to take out the Carths. Meanwhile I'm No. 1 in score but I know the Ethiopians are fairly well ahead in tech.

I declare on the Carths. Someone builds the AP and, incredibly, uses it to declare on the Carths, bringing another three civs in to gangbang the Carths. Not that there's much for them to do as it's my backyard and I'm busy cleaning up there. They don't send a single unit against the Carths.

Their "war" against the Carths stops and the Ethiopians declare against the Malinese. Fine by me! I hope the Malinese can knock Ethiopia down a peg or two.

Meanwhile, Ethiopia vaults into No. 1 but we share the same religion and Yakoub is "pleased" with me.

I finish the Carth's except for one city on the other side of a gulf and which I can't easily get to because it's blocked by American territory. I demand vassalage from the Carths instead and get it. I reposition for an assault on the Portuguese, who are third behind me but share no one's religion.

BOOM!

The Malinese become vassals of the Ethiopians. The Americans become vassals of the Ethiopians--and not a shot was fired in that case! WTF? This all happens on one turn.

On the next turn Ethiopia declares on me, triggering her vassals to declare as well. One stack of doom crosses into my land from his area. I know two more will be coming from other directions--one from the Americans and another from the Malinese. (Yes, that's right--Yakoub went in one turn from being pleased with me to launching a three-country invasion.)

I don't even bother to see where from and quit the game in EXTREME FRUSTRATION. Hours of play all for naught.

Damn, but do I hate the Vassal thing.

[guermantes]

Personally I play without vassal states precisely because it can put rather large sticks in your wheels... Also I find Yaqoob to be one of the most flipfloppy leaders of the game... a bit like a human, can backstab you rather severely... always interesting games when he is around.

[rah]

an attack by the NA when I was +17 with at the time.
I was also quite far ahead of him on the power graph.
I had also prior joined a war at his request and was still fighting it with him.

I can understand being sneaked upon BUT NOT WHEN I"M +17. What good is diplomacy. In general frustration, I now don't spend much effort on it anymore. What's the point.

And I usually turn off vasal states for similar reasons.

[johnmcd]

I'd have done Zara immediately after getting the Holy City on the information given, you just can't let him share borders/ land mass with you IMHO.

[Vampgelus]

Have you ever fought these fights where you had only one ally in the whole world ? Have you ever felt the frustration of getting him forced to join the other faction because of one of his citys having the AP religion ? >.< THAT is frustration...

[MoonWolf]

I've had a few games where I feel I'm doing quite good, silently building my empire alone or perhaps with a neighbour. Then I'm visiting other continents and a few turns later an AI with riflemen declare war on my macemen-army

Or when you work really hard towars the pyramids and 1 or 2 turns before it's done, someone else builds it...

[Supr49er]

Originally posted by guermantes
Personally I play without vassal states ...

No Vassal States

[Tattila the Hun]

And he was Friendly the turn before...

The most annoying thing is, of course... That he is still smiling. While preparing a grand game of ceremonial football... "No offence, we like you, but we like your lands better."

[Colonâ„¢]

Screenie

What was your power rating compared to his?

[Jaybe]

Humbug!!
Civ is NOT a game of competitive skill. It is a game of coping with your environment, and how that environment CHANGES on you!

Vassal states are a wild variable that can be against you or for you (as with permanent alliances). Random events are (usually) mild variables that apply welcome-to-alarming changes to keep the game fresh.

[TriMiro]

I learned that the best strategy is to always go for the first in score. That way you make sure you are the strongest no mater what.

The AI declares war for no apparent reason. However, there is some logic to it. At some point of time any AI will decide to expand, then he will declare war on you even if you are +100 diplomatically. With all others being vassals to Ethiopia and since with their combined power Zara thinks he is stronger, he will attack you.

I still have hard time predicting when an AI will become vassal to another AI without war.

[frenzyfol]

Ive always thought that the + - towards your civ should also reflect the attitude of the civs poeple and not just their leader. Kind of like the "we wont war with our brothers and sisters of the faith"
If a guy +17 goes to war with you his people will go into anarchy..

[couerdelion]

Well I've declared war on friends plenty of times. Yakoub is obviously just being human

[Tattila the Hun]

Originally posted by Colonâ„¢
Screenie

What was your power rating compared to his?

That was most likely a driving factor. But then again, if the only other free nation in the world has been my friend and ally for the last thousand years, I don't expect to be needing an army... Heck, if I'd have permanent alliances on, we'd been one! ...I'm slowly learning my way out of common sense, and into Civ-sense.

[rah]

That's the only thing about the +17 sneak attack that kept me from being really irritated. I've done it many times.