How does a Civ know...

[Ethelred]

That is the way I think it works Meathead. Of course it could be very different. The AI could have special peaking routines but its my impression that Soren was trying to make it so the AI plays the same game we do except that in few cases he gives them information because of the difficulty of giving the AI a long term strategy. Much of the AI's adavantage is that it is going to check everything every turn but that isn't enough in game where strategic planning and seeing overall patterns can make a huge difference.

The AI also has the handicap that it can't keep track of our patterns over many games and we sure can tell that:

Liz is going to bluff and annoy all the other Civs.

Bismark is going to self-destruct unless he gets lucky.

Catherine is going to extort and annoy the other civs.

Shaka is going to forget about the future and attack now IF you don't have more troops. If you do he is your friend.

If Rome and Greece are both in the game they will damage each other irretrievably.

Joan is going to be polite untill she puts on the T-Shirt and goes to war. Makes a good ally till the modern age. I have seen Joan build privateers.

Honest Abe is another extornionist. I wonder if a Southerner progammed him.

Tokagawa is annoyed with me most of the time so I don't know his pattern except for that. Don't have to deal with him much for some reason.

Cleo wants big bucks for everything.

Ghandi is dangerous if allowed to survive. A good builder and a another that charges a lot.

Don't run into Hammarabi much but he sure does have high culture if he lasts long.

Persia is similar in that respect but if he is my neighbor I want him gone before he has iron.

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I am playing Persia at the moment and my neighbor was Rome. A potential classic war between UU in the ancient era. However I wiped out Rome with horsies and kept my Imortals in reserve. I was able to get away with that because poor ol' Ceasar had iron deficiency anemia.

[asleepathewheel]

This has probably been discussed ad naseum, but what annoys me is that the AI never seems to buy my mailing address from another AI civ. I have to purchase the communicatin or meet face to face.

[Hagbart]

The AI is willing to pay lots of gold for communications if you are the only one having it.

[Moonsinger]

Originally posted by Hagbart
The AI is willing to pay lots of gold for communications if you are the only one having it.

Yup, but most of the time, especially at the tougher level, they are the ones that having it.

[JohnM2433]

Hagbart, what I believe asleepathewheel means is not that civ A won't purchase communications with civ B from him, but that civ X will never buy contact with him from civ Y. He knows this because he never sees a civ suddenly contacting him that he had no previous contact with. Maybe this is something that can happen, but only occurs occasionally (at least on the lower difficulty levels) like other civs establishing embassies with you. After all, the human generally does most of the diplomacy in the game (if you're playing it right! ).

[asleepathewheel]

Originally posted by JohnM2433
Hagbart, what I believe asleepathewheel means is not that civ A won't purchase communications with civ B from him, but that civ X will never buy contact with him from civ Y. He knows this because he never sees a civ suddenly contacting him that he had no previous contact with. Maybe this is something that can happen, but only occurs occasionally (at least on the lower difficulty levels) like other civs establishing embassies with you. After all, the human generally does most of the diplomacy in the game (if you're playing it right! ).

That's exactly what I meant.
which is annoying when since the AI civs will trade each other everyone's communication except for mine.

granted, it IS in their best interest not to allow me contact