Starting Wars

[The Hun]

Try infuriating them with unreasonable trade deals, and then have a settler start a city on your enemy's border. Leave the city unguarded as bait. Or if you're really desperate vacate a border city with improvements and population. Signing those MPP's may be a deterrance...?

So attacking w/o declaring war first is a crime? Do I have to wait until my next turn to attack? That sucks. That's the equivalent of CNN showing up on the beach to film your invasion.

[Willem]

Originally posted by Ironikinit
Hopefully, when you demand that they remove their units from your territory after insulting them until they're furious, they'll declare war.

But when I'm strong, they don't have any units in my territory. If they know I can kick their butt, I don't see a single one. It's only when I'm weak, and don't want a war that they come around. There just isn't enough options for pissing them off.

[Platypus]

Originally posted by Willem
But when I'm strong, they don't have any units in my territory.

In my most recent game, I had a Roman galley dancing around my cities, clearly itching for a fight. I had left the Romans with only two island cities, while I had control of two continents. I was in the middle of shuttling Panzers around, while the Romans were still working on middle ages techs, so I first just ignored the galley. When I did start demanding that it leave my borders, I got a response that was something "So you do have a backbone after all. We were beginning to wonder." Despite demanding its removal every turn, it stayed in my territority. After about twenty turns of this, they finally began to automatically moved outside my borders after my demands. However, each turn they'd be right back in my borders. After at least ten turns of this, the Romans declared war on me. So I stomped their spearman with my Panzers. What were they thinking?! That said, that's the only time I can think of a weaker civ not be very respectful. I'd guess that the AI code must have decided that the Romans were hopelessly behind and decided to make things more interesting.

[The Hun]

Originally posted by Platypus

"So you do have a backbone after all. We were beginning to wonder."

Ha ha! The AI delivered that line flawlessly. The AI has done the same thing to me too , but I never read what the AI says to me to catch such wit.

[Eric S]

Originally posted by Willem


But even then, you're starting the war by attacking them.

Not really. If you demand that they get out of your territory often enough, and are already angry with you, sooner or later, they'll declare war on you. The best of all worlds.

1) Your happiness level goes up.

2) Your reputation doesn't get hurt.

3) You still get the first shot at his units, since he declared war during your turn.

Mind you, this will only work if you're doing other things to anger that particular leader. One time I managed to provoke a civilization from polite all the way to almost-drooling-on-self anger, and then got a war declaration with 10 or so demands, with an opponent that my military advisor said was weak compared to mine, and who was attacking with swordsmen and horsemen against cavalry and riflemen.