Should I Take Over The AI On My Continent

Hello Fellow Die Hard Civ Fans:

I have bumped up my level to Prince and I do enjoy to play on Continents or Archipelago on huge maps. I will usually have one and sometimes two AI's on my continent. I find myself late in the game to take them over like the time era of 1700 or even 1800.

I keep thinking I need this that and the other and rather shoot for buildings and wonders then building up units. I play on Marathon primarily.

I know it depends which Victory you are shooting for but that said...do you guys mostly try to take out the AI which is on your continent so you can engulf the entire land mass over the game and have your 4 cities and focus on a great economy.

Or do you adjust to live with them and let them expand into your area etc. taking resources and great spots to locate your next city etc.

If you don't wipe them out...do you just take over their Capitol city since it's going to be in a great starting location for multiple reasons. Plus they might have a Wonder or Two by the time you conquer it.

Any thoughts would be great.

Brew God

I like to take them out early - like before you know that they (or you) have discovered the CIVs on the other continents. Makes dealing with negative diplo easier.

And yes, most of the time I will just take the capital and leave them one city in the corner somewhere. Most of the time.

Even though the big papas are going to give much better opinions, I think I can still share my two cents:

1. Taking over civilizations is considered easier in the later eras due to better units - In the first 4 or so eras you've got a ranged unit, a cavalry one, a unit with a pike and a machinery of some sort. Later you get better versions of the former types + some new ones like airplanes. all of which make up a much smoother process of taking over cities.

2. You can either bump up the difficulty to a level where the AI will punish you for not having at least some military units, or force yourself to produce such at the current difficulty you're playing. (In any case you will have to start working towards some military since when you head to Immortal and Diety, you won't manage to survive the hipster way. )

3. You don't need to go to war for land, there should be plenty. Maybe you are founding new cities too late, when most of the tiles are taken? Sometimes on Continents map one of the main landmasses could be filled with +1 more civs, than the second one - that's when it could get kind of packed up. On Archipelago maps space shouldn't be a problem at all.
If you are adding civs, then that's another question, but if you're not, then you just might need to start founding cities earlier.
What do you mean by the "so you can engulf the entire land mass over the game and have your 4 cities and focus on a great economy"? You can work only as much as 3 tiles away from your city => 4 towns for a whole continent is nowhere near enough to cover.

4. You don't leave the AI to take your spots - you take them first. Of course try not to shove your cities in their faces, since they might get pissed off. Try to both maintain a healthy distance, and claim enough land for your civilization.

5. If you aren't going for a Domination victory it might not be worth it to go to war, since war punishes you economically, decreases happiness and damages your diplomacy. Wars are not to be taken lightly, you really need to consider the benefits of going to war before doing so, since it could pull you back, a lot. Often enough, if you manage to claim good land, you will be perfectly fine on the road to any of the victory conditions, without going to war (Obviously this excludes the domination victory.)

To sum up: If you are going for any other victory except Domination, going to war would be most likely counterproductive. Heads up though, this does not mean you shouldn't have some military, since AI warmongers will be there to take your lands like hyenas fighting over a steppe rabbit's already wormfilled body.

Trade routes are good things to have, and if you wipe them out early they can't create great works for you to steal later.

To be honest, I cleanse my continent of AI. After that, all I need is a strong Navy and Air Force to protect my people while I pursue any Victory Condition. If you kill those AI's very early before you meet other Civs then you don't look like a Warmonger either, Win-Win

If you can clear out your continent before meeting anyone else, I think it could be a good idea, especially if you're really going for domination to begin with. You'll have to send your trade routes to city-states though.

Clear the continent?, oh, yes!
Then I'll put as many cities as will fit there .
With lots of trade routes internally to build up my cities to decent levels, I can lay the groundwork for external trade/conquest .
Remember, killing CS's are a HUGE NO-NO !!!, buy them out , instead .

I like to leave the AI one city on my starting continent.

Last night I sorted out the Huns and the Swedes. Now my continent is me, and one city each for them.

Sherlock said:

I like to leave the AI one city on my starting continent.

Last night I sorted out the Huns and the Swedes. Now my continent is me, and one city each for them.

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What I don't like about that is that you constantly have a Civ trying to make trouble for you by denouncing you, screwing you on WC votes, and maybe causing inconveniently timed wars. When I'm going for the gold, its nice to know that I have one fewer competitor vying for it.

I kill everyone before sailing the seas... that way the rulers on the other continent(s) will never know of my deeds and I can have lucrative trading with them until the time comes for me to kill them too.

On a continents map it's best to wipe out the AI completely before the other guys overseas get to hear of it. Then you have a clean slate with them.

Leaving pockets of angry civs laying around will just stir up diplo trouble later on.

It really ruins my day when some Polynesian on an airbed turns up as I'm crushing my final victim.

comatosedragon said:

I like to take them out early - like before you know that they (or you) have discovered the CIVs on the other continents. Makes dealing with negative diplo easier.

And yes, most of the time I will just take the capital and leave them one city in the corner somewhere. Most of the time.

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Why not wipe them out completely? The little guy will keep denouncing you for the rest of the game

Versaguy said:

Why not wipe them out completely? The little guy will keep denouncing you for the rest of the game

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Agreed.

If one is going to take these guys' capitals early in the game before meeting anyone else, might as well go the whole way, unless you meet the other continent's civs before you can take their last city.

Even with one crappy city, these guys are gonna be denouncing you and spying on you the whole game.

And don't forget they'll happily be giving out RA's to much more powerful civs...