I had a major win on monarch today, and I was somewhat puzzled as to how it went so easy for me. Usualy I have to struggle as hell, and barely win on a time victory.

I think one big key near the later years, was that everyone was killed or forced to sit on a tiny island and watch while me, china and spain were the main contenders. China and Spain ended up leaving flight for one of their much later techs, and this is what seems to have helped me in a major way. I made a ton of fighters and used this to help decimate stacks, and well as pillage and bomb cities. Usualy the AI is quick to get techs even if I am ahead but no, they still kept chasing other techs somewhere else in the tree. This let me get bombers, etc, and I continued to take citty after citty with my huge airpower.

I will have to say, I almost found this endgame a joke. And it's been making me re-think future games. If these two AIs don't put flight as a priority, which AI does? I think I should target the AI which does early next game, so that by the time the late game comes around, it will be a done-deal for me. I wont have to worry about any of them trading it.

(Bearing in mind that this is the Strategy & Tips forum not the Stories & Tales forum), I have found that while the AI tends not to chase flight, it's no slouch at getting Rocketry and with that SAM Infantry, which it uses with a moducum of success at fending off Fighter and Bomber attacks.

You're right though in that if you concentrate your bombing runs (>6 Bombers), the AI tends not to be able to counter it terribly well (at least that's what I've found).

It seems Asoka is an exception.

It seems to me like the AI towards the end game focuses mainly on the space race and will put off techs such as flight, and mass media. I always have the best airforce, and I also find it Incredibly easy to build the United Nations, and get myself on the ballot.

This has been my experience at the monarch level so far.