Good ways to make the AI like you?

The Last Conformist

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I just won a time victory because I was unable to convince either Isabela or Mao to vote for me in the UN elections, despite giving them piles of tech, resources, and attacking their enemies. Besides those things, and adopting their civics and religions, are there any other way to make the AIs happy?

It was too easy to get the AI to vote for you in CivIII, but this seems to've gone too far in the other option. Isabella refused to vote for me despite both me and her being at war with Montezuma, the other candidate.
 
i never got a diplo victory cause by the 1800's 4-5 guys are furious at me...good thing the other guy Roosevelt didn't win either even i got more votes then him :)
 
TLC: Did Isabella have chance to win herself? If so, not voting you to victory actually would have been an example for a smart AI.
 
I spread an early religion to my neighbors and they tend to like me. A lot of times during mid/late game I capture a city that is just too far away for me to maintain and I donate it to one of my close allies. That chocks up a lot of points with them. I do a lot of benevelent trading even to the point where it is strongly in their favor after all it is best to keep them smiling they tend not to notice when you stick them in the back with the dagger.
 
The answer: Three words: Religion, Missionaries, Convert

Simple idea, if you're going for a diplo victory then send out missionaries of your state religion to convert everybody you can to your own. The earlier you do it, the higher the diplo modifier will be when the election comes around. If you can't convert them for some reason (shut borders, Theocracy), then switch to Free Religion to remove negative religion modifiers (but also positive ones as well).
 
rabottens said:
I spread an early religion to my neighbors and they tend to like me. A lot of times during mid/late game I capture a city that is just too far away for me to maintain and I donate it to one of my close allies. That chocks up a lot of points with them. I do a lot of benevelent trading even to the point where it is strongly in their favor after all it is best to keep them smiling they tend not to notice when you stick them in the back with the dagger.


Yep and giving them everything they ask for and I mean everything helps. Don't have any agreements with AI's they don't like. Even with all that I find getting enough AI votes to push you over the top for a Diplo. victory is very hard. For me it is much easier to just kick all their arses tell I have enough votes on my own to win :)
 
There is one thing, but it is THE ONE AND ONLY THING that will ever make the AI like you. You have to share religion!

As long as you do not share religion the AI will sooner or later initiate a demand something -> like you less -> demand something more - cycle.
 
Ironically, the best way to win a Diplomatic Victory is to be a warmongering destructive *******.

Since you're most likely to be relying on the votes of yourself and one close ally, and voting is a function of population, the best way is to increase your population percentage. By the late game, you can't really increase YOUR population, but you can decrease everyone elses. Send your ground troops on a city-razing rampage of whoever isn't going to vote for you. Nukes also work wonders for this. That's right, firing nuclear weapons at people for no reason HELPS your chances of winning a Diplomatic Victory.
 
SmartMuffin said:
Ironically, the best way to win a Diplomatic Victory is to be a warmongering destructive *******.

Since you're most likely to be relying on the votes of yourself and one close ally, and voting is a function of population, the best way is to increase your population percentage. By the late game, you can't really increase YOUR population, but you can decrease everyone elses. Send your ground troops on a city-razing rampage of whoever isn't going to vote for you. Nukes also work wonders for this. That's right, firing nuclear weapons at people for no reason HELPS your chances of winning a Diplomatic Victory.


LOL oh yea forgot about that one, wreck the earth with Nukes to make friends. I love playing this game but it does have some flaws and one of the major ones is the Diplomatic side of the game. There is just not a lot of logic in it.
 
IMHO, the Diplo victory is somewhat ..., well, not really broken, but somewhat unusual. One coutry equals one vote, or so I have thought always. Well, does not seem to be true in Civ4. That is strange, does not look either logical or reasonable. However, these are the rules although whatever is the reasoning behind them remains a mistery to me. :)
 
If you need to befriend an AI in a hurry, suck up your pride and bend to their requests (except when it's way too ridiculous).
With a few exceptions, most AIs will turn around from Annoyed to Pleased pretty quickly if you did certain things they request you to do. If I want to befriend certain AI, I might gift tech when they prompt to, and gasp, consider switching civics (as long as it's not too detrimental) for a while. I'll only stop trading with people who I don't trade much (i.e. only Open Borders) and they are small, behind, and not particularly friendly.
 
As I've seen when AI tries diplomatic victory... he will not obey my requests... he just eliminates countries who will not vote for him. So that's the way to get diplo victory. But always the space victory ends that story. It is impossible to be just a friend for everyone. Sometimes just ai insist you to cancel deals with another civ, so if you say no(What I usually do), you get -1 with this AI, if you agree, the target refuces to talk with you and you get penalties with him. So just build an army and make conquest.
 
btw last game it was me and 3 civs, rome and i shared 1 contenent pretty equal and isabella and montezuma on another, rome i kept close ties with but always kept a small army on our border to let him know im not being messed with, isabella i gifted techs, listined to her demand of embargoing rome, and had her assist me in destroying montezuma, by time dipo vic came rome voted for himself being second largest empire but isabella love my gifts, trades, and war ally she voted for me
 
Religion is a key, specially if the majority are following one religious. Go be a sheep even if it means dumping your founding religion.

Also if you have Emancipation, Free Religion, etc and you have the UN wonder. Try to continously press those UN resolutions until they are voted in so you globally force those traits onto everyone. If the other Civs are too friendly with each other because they are not enlighten with your modern ways or share the same religion. A few new civic resolutions can you get help off set this.
 
Religion isnt the key here. I know this for a fact. 3 games now I have had my religion bust me in the arse from behind. Let me explain.

MY most valuable tale here was a recent Aztec game. I founded Buddhism and thought I would go after as many of the religions to control the influence. I put it off, here and there and as a result discovered only Buddhism. Figuring to make the best of it, I was on the mainland and somehow got lucky noone on the mainland discovered any other religion.
Needless to say, I went on a Holy crusade coverting EVERY city to buddhism. 8 civs were Buddhists with the religion in all their cities by 1400 AD. Everyone on my continent LOVED me for the majority of the game. My political power was the best I have ever had. I could end any war between them usually by merely suggesting them to do it for a good friend.
Defensive Pacts got discovered and I had 5. English wouldn't do it - Elizabeth went to Free religion early. As did Mao. And Alexander got a little mad (went to Pleased after I made him stop fighting Rome for the 4th time.) So I used protection Pacts with everyone else to maintain peace.

The other continent showed up as Hindus. My whole continent save Elizabeth hated them. Then the UN was built, I wasnt Sec Gen... First proposition 'Free Religion' I was the only person to vote 'NO'. MY relations were tossed in the trash in 1 turn. 4 pacts remained as Ceaser decided he didn't want a protection Pact with me anymore regardless that I and the French (who sucked) were the most peaceful civs.

Moral here: Don't count religion as a helpful factor with UN Dip win.

Free religion will always pass which pisses me off considering that religion is suppposedly a 'key factor' of gameplay now. I still say we shoudl be able to Vote 'Global Theocracy' and the AI would almost always propose 'Global my favorite Civic'. The whole point of Civ is for alternate versions of history yet, they aim the UN to copy todays time.

Anyways, I think war with the right people is what helps with Diplomatic wins. Diplomacy, for me, has been determined by who you attack - for how long you stay at war with them - and the key element of making sure you stay top dog and taking cities from AI to gain more voters for yourself.
 
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