******ed AI

OK I'm playing the Inca. I have 4 cities; going cultural vic.

France is North of me, Persia to the west.

Early in the game I used my Atlatlists and went to war with Persia but I didn't manage to take the capital because it was in the middle of a million hills and my archers were getting pummelled before they could get into range.

Anyway while my units had Persia surrounded France declares war on me. I ignore them because its early in the game and they are sorta far away. Next thing I know there is a massive army surrounding my northernmost city. I'm crapping my pants now. I pull all my units off the seige with Persia, quickly purchase walls and another atlatist in the city in question and cross my fingers.

Right before his Army is going to start attacking my city I think to myself "This isn't going to end well. Let's see if I can bribe him for Peace?" Guess what?

He settles for Peace. No terms! He just walks away! Awesome!

OK. Like 50 turns go by and now we are at war again. At the same time France is also plopping down cities like they are going to expire if he doesn't use them. He builds two cities near my northern city. Now I have no interest in going to war with France. His territory is far away and has nothing of value that I want. I'd have to cross a desert to even get there. I want to take over Persia still god dammit! Then I'll have a global monopoly on citrus!

I keep asking (and France keeps offering me) ridiculous Peace terms now. 2 sometimes 3 out of my 4 cities and all my gold. Now here's the insane part.

I managed to actually take over one of the little cities he planted near me and the other one is on the verge of collapse. He contacts me again and offers me peace...

IN EXCHANGE FOR 3 OF MY CITIES!!!!!

Dude I just smashed the crap out of your army and took one of your cities! WTF?! Is this AI drunk or something?

This is one thing that really bugs me about the AI is the ridiculous peace terms. I was playing an island map. I had 2 islands that kind of looked like the actual UK. Washington is to my south sharing his own island with a CS and he DOW's me. Well he doesn't decide to actually come after me for probably 50 turns. When he finally does I destroy his entire force and hunt any units down that are retreating and make them pay.

He then comes to me after my death squad is done hunting down his goons and offers me peace for 500g and 2 of my cities. WHHHHAAAATTTTT!!!!!!!!!

Yes he did have a superior army but I was set up pretty well so that he couldn't touch my cities. I wish the AI would realize that the war is a stalemate even though they have more units.

The AI doesn't base deals on what you have done, rather the current status of your civ vs theirs. I can't imagine taking two outlier cities is going to have bothered France too much to make them readjust their perception of how strong you are, hence why they offered that peace deal

Is there any flavor in regards to what makes certain civs give a better peace treaty? Oda has been putting a lot of pressure on me in my current Babylon game but due to a pretty severe tech lead (I have Infantry and he's still using muskets) he isn't getting anywhere on his attempts at taking my cities. He offers me these absurd peace treaties because his army is so much larger than mine but once I start poking Nagasaki with artillery he immediately starts begging me for peace, offering up his gold and resources. I've seen other civs that don't seem to care as much about losing cities, though, so shrug.

To be honest, I can see the logic of the AI. So what if you whooped his first army, wiping it out? You haven`t taken his city (in fact you`re miles away) and he still has more reserves than you. He don`t care about his men slaughtered. He can still demand whatever. I also think the AI asks for more than he expects to get, bluffing you. You may not give 2 cities, but maybe you`ll give one?

You`ll need to be knocking on his door to change his demands.