Creating huge city states

[BSPollux]

Just want to know if anyone does/did the same:

I like to play with the option 'no city razing'. Then, in the second half of the game, when I'm happy with my nation and dont want it to grow any more, I used the following strategy to cripple the AI on other continents:

I ally all the citystates there and gift them one unit per turn, each. Beginning with the best I can build. After a few turns they are loaded with excellent units. Then I declare war on the AI that is surrounded the worst (got quite an idea on what the CSs can do and what not, now). This is most likely an easy target, not an important one cause this is only phase one

So... the AI is quite surprised to be surrounded by enemys from one moment to the next and it seems they dont realy understand the threat. It spreads its army to fight on all fronts and gets overrun somewhere, losing its first city. then the collapse begins and it goes down. The first city realy is the biggest problem, as distance plays a big role in the CSs wartactics. If a city is too far away it will act stupid, but as soon as city one is down, all the others are close enough.

Now all the city states take theire share and rip apart the victim. The result is a group of realy big citystates that donate a ton of rescources and science to me (patronage). As its not me who captures citys, the diplomatic effect isnt as bad as well.

After a while, the CSs develop the land and are quite productive. I sent them against one nation after the other and they either kill or cripple them, growing fatter and fatter.

Its important to do this with several city states at the same time, because you cant sent an unlimited number of units to a single one, so you need several 'drop zones'

The only bad thing is that prior to rocket artillery CSs cant handle siege units...

 

[Lakissov]

Huh, never even thought of that king of approach. It's extremely tempting to try.

 

[Profanity]

City States actually... attack cities?

 

[Duke Maynard]

I thought CS' always raze their captured cities unless they're a capital or other CS?

 

[Callonia]

I thought CS' always raze their captured cities unless they're a capital or other CS?

City states in civ 5 has been known to capture and keep control of an normal city on rare occasions.

I saw it happen at least once.

 

[RaiddinnRZ]

He plays with no city razing on.

 

[BSPollux]

He plays with no city razing on.

Yep, for that very reason.

And about attacking citys: They do, yeah realy But you have to make sure that at least one city is close them. They wont travel far. Four or five hexes is ideal, 6 might work, after that you can forget about it.

And, just like the AI in general, they are not realy smart. But I guess I didnt have to say that

 

[Heerlo]

Never tried this, but sounds like a neat idea.

 

[The Peacekeeper]

I did once, playing as Greece. France was a neighbor who was starting to become a runaway. Curious about how big I could get my city state allies, I gifted them 5-6 Mech Inf each, and then DoWed France. They both managed to capture 3 cities rather quickly, but Florence, the CS very close to his capitol was reconquered and then taken out. However, Bucharest ended up taking a few more cities and retaining them with little help from me. Luckily, I happened to take a screenshot at the time. I think it would work out better with G&K, though.

 

[The Peacekeeper]

Here is one from vanilla: just give them 5-6 mech infantry and they are good to go!

 

[Lakissov]

An additional question - do the benefits given by those city states increase when they get extra cities? I mean culture, food, faith, happiness and (with scholasticism) science.

 

[BSPollux]

The fixed ones stay the same, the calculated ones change.

They donate additional rescources, they make more tech for themself, so they give more to you as well... such things.

Patronage is realy usefull then

 

[filli_noctus]

You can direct CS to attack cities by moving one of your units onto their border, within LOS of the target city and then gift using the button in the unit orders menu. The unit will usually attack the city and the CS may send reinforcements - or you can just soften it up with bombers.

It should be noted that when I tried this tactic (in vanilla) I managed to grow a CS to ~13 cities and then it refused to expand any further, I could gift them an entire brigade in striking range of an enemy city on 1hp and they'd just turn round and head into their own territory.