How do I give a worker back?

[MyOlde]

I've reduced India to two pathetic cities but he has a few techs I'd like to get. I also have a slew of workers, some of them his. I thought I could give a couple of them back to him via these cities. But I can't find a button or command that lets me do that.

There's nothing about workers in the drop-down list of deals I can make with him.

If you can help, thanks.

[SanPellegrino]

Workers must be in your capital to be used during negotiations. When you talk to a civ you can give it to them like money or tech (but you get very little for it)

[ducki]

Has anyone noticed that when you Right-click on a captured worker, it shows where he originally came from, but when you TRADE a captured worker, the trade window gives YOUR nationality?

It's really annoying and slightly scary - I usually play industrious Civs, so I don't want to accidentally give away one of MY workers, I just don't want anyone ELSE'S workers, since they tend to upset the other AIs.

Slave trade - bad. Huh, go figure.

[SanPellegrino]

I noticed the same thing about the trade window, but are you sure about the AI getting pissed if you use their workers? I try to get slave labors if I can, especially early on, I never noticed a negative effect.

[ducki]

I forget if I read it here or in the manual, but I definitely recall hearing that the AIs don't like "slavers".

It's not as bad as breaking a trade agreement, but it's not "good".

Of course, wherever I read that could have been mistaken, too.

[JohnM2433]

Just from what I've read on the forums, I've gotten the impression that the AI doesn't like you keeping workers of their nationaliy. So selling those workers to someone else could actually improve their opinion of you. But maybe they don't like that either; I dunno.

To make sure that you only trade workers of the nationality you wish to trade, just make sure that only workers of that nationality are in your capitol when you negotiate. And yeah, this is an annoying bug, even more so if it works the other way as well (that is, if you see the incorrect nationality for the AI's workers); I'm not sure if it does.

[Bambul]

Yep, the AI does not like you holding on to its workers. Usually they comprise the bulk of my workers, with my Civ's workers going back into cities after I've improved everything but before getting railroads.

And a worker loses its "industriousness" when you give it away. So if you are Aztec and capture an American worker it loses its industrious bonus. On the other hand, if you are America and capture an Aztec worker, then it now gains that bonus.

[SanPellegrino]

At least I know now why they all hate me

I will try to give some of my foreign workers away, especially the Aztec ones....

[Demerzel]

heh I've never ever considered giving back a captured worker, for me they're war booty in reward for the enemy being dumb enough to attack me.

[SanPellegrino]

Guess, you're right, the best civs are dead civs and they can't moan about their workers.

[JohnM2433]

You dont have to just give captured workers back; you should be able to trade them for something. (I don't think I've ever done this, but I don't see why the other civ wouldn't offer something for them.) This should doubly improve the other civ's attitude toward you, as you've both traded with them and stopped using their workers.

[Ribannah]

I've had games I which I had 50+ slave workers without any noticeable effect on the AI's attitude, so I really don't think they care.
Slave workers are great since they don't cost any upkeep, and you can get them cheap.

[vmxa1]

They pay around 20-30 gold when I have sold them. I tend not to, but sometimes I do not need all of them and figure why not get some gold.

[vmxa1]

I should have said, I often sell my workers and keep theirs. Mine cost upkeep and theirs do not. Yes they are 1/2 speed, so I use twice as many, they are free.

[Iron Chancellor]

If the AI was irritated about me owning their people, why would they have sold them to me dirt cheap in the first place?