We have no interest in the primitive

[techumseh]

Does anyone know what factors influence an AI civs willingness to trade techs?

[Elephant]

Seems to be a mish-mash of Power Ratings, AI Civ/Mil characteristics, tech "value" ratings, and what you got versus what he's got. Attitude may play a role in there as well. Have you looked through how RULES.TXT rates the different techs versus the AI Civ/Mil characteristic? One example is how just about everybody wants Gunpowder and MobileWarfare.

[Bloody Monk]

Perhaps the astute Elephant answered your question....

If however you did not mean particular techs but ANY tech trading...

Then the answer is Attitude. If you gift them techs their Attitude will improve. Generally, if you give them enough to move the Attitude up to Enthusiastic (sometimes all the way to Worshipful is necessary) then they will trade techs with you. If your Reputation has been maintained at Spotless then trades can sometimes take place at Cordial.

But this info is version specific, for Ver 2.42 of original Civ2. Results for the later Multiplayer version are very different as the AI is markedly more Hostile and prone to blow you off. And of course you must have techs that AI does not have...that could have been the reason you were called "primitive."

A trick to file away if playing V2.42...
Once you have them up to Enthus. or Worship. and have finished trading be sure to trade maps. Then, every 2-4 turns go back just to trade maps again. This will tend to keep their Attitude up...unless you are being a bad boy and your Reputation drops.

Keep on Civing,
Monk

[rjmatsleepers]

It sticks in the back of my mind that in MGE there is a window of opportunity for tech trading when you first meet another civ. After that first contact, trading becomes much more difficult.

RJM

[Elephant]

Yes, "first contact" does seem to have some different rules, or perhaps "opportunities", but if you have developed a tech lead or deficit and a sullied Reputation (reflected in their Attitude toward you) you will have greater difficulty, and if the techs you have to trade (note that you don't get to choose beyond the either/or option, it is usually whatever is considered your "best" relative to what they have) are "rated" by them below some sort of threshold, they will diss your offer and call you primitive.

Oh, yeah, and you cannot be at war with them...

[techumseh]

Thanks everyone. This is for my Frederick the Great scenario. I use events to prevent contact between Prussia and its enemies for most of the game, and then to allow it near the end. I want to encourage the exchange of specific techs between Prussia and it's 3 main adversaries as a trigger for the end of the game. But they wouldn't trade.

One thing that seems to have made a difference is giving Prussia a couple of extra techs, in other words giving the human player a greater technological lead over the other civs.