[R&F] How do you fight a religious war?

[Question]

From what ive seen, you are supposed to use apostles to convert other civs since missionaries dont work very well when converting other religions. But they can easily use one inquisitor to negate multiple apostles, and if they took certain beliefs like +1 faith for high appeal tiles combined with 30% less faith purchase costs for apostles they can easily out spam anyone else.

Edit : On a related note, why are mapuche units exercising ZOC on my religious units in his territory? I even have open borders with him.

 

[Monthar]

Don't use all the charges from your apostles. Instead save that last charge and use them to attack their religious units. Every time one of their units dies, all the cities in range will lose some of their religion, unless they took the bonus that negates this loss. You heal your apostles on or near holy sites/city centers. Guru's have charges that can instantly heal up to 6 apostles (if they are in the tiles next to the guru).

 

[Question]

Yes, but even if you do that its pointless when they can just use one inquisitor to counter each of your apostles (which are much more expensive).

 

[Arilian]

Use polices that adds theological combat and other advantages. Get more apostole with god of the harverst+magnus.

Try to have +1 Promo Apostoles.
Apostoles with

Proselytizer Religious spread eliminates 75% of existing pressure from other Religions in the target city.*
and
Translator Religious spread is triple strength in cities of other civilizations.**

can very easy convert any foreign city, often with one charge.

In this expansion, religion victory is easier.

 

[Monthar]

Yes, but even if you do that its pointless when they can just use one inquisitor to counter each of your apostles (which are much more expensive).

Kill their Inquisitors with your apostles.

 

[Question]

But inquisitors have roughly the same strength as apostles, unless you luck out to get the +20 strength promotion for the apostles...and inquisitors cost like 1/4th of an apostle.

 

[Arilian]

They don't really use them in practice.

Also if they are troubling you, from the +2 promo, you will likely get one +20 str. If they still causing trouble, move in packs, kill them in theological combat, then rest at home if needed.

Attila.

But inquisitors have roughly the same strength as apostles, unless you luck out to get the +20 strength promotion for the apostles...and inquisitors cost like 1/4th of an apostle.

 

[Question]

When i was trying to convert Russia, they had about double my faith output and had the -30% apostle cost belief and could just out spam me with apostles easily...they werent even using inquisitors and i just couldnt make any headway.

 

[MrRadar]

But inquisitors have roughly the same strength as apostles, unless you luck out to get the +20 strength promotion for the apostles...and inquisitors cost like 1/4th of an apostle.

Slot in Religious Orders policy card for +5 theological combat. Do save your debater apostles with one charge and use them in groups to kill off inquisitors. Have a guru or two nearby to heal your frontline apostles. Simple missionaries can be used for the final nudge to city conversion, they are also useful as screens to cover the movement of your apostles and for reconnaissance. And if you can get proselytizer-translator duo on the move - that's your religious spec ops right there. One hit from each - most likely one large city converted.

And if you find Yerevan on the map, become it's suzie whatever the cost, because that CS is your ultimate weapon for RV, if you have decent faith generation (Simultaneum card may be useful). Then you just churn out debaters and pairs of proselytizers-translators as needed.

When i was trying to convert Russia, they had about double my faith output and had the -30% apostle cost belief and could just out spam me with apostles easily...they werent even using inquisitors and i just couldnt make any headway.

Well, if everything else fails, slot in Wars of Religion, declare war and hunt down their religious units with your military. If you can take over their cities with all those Holy Site districts, the better for you, if not, at least get there some fast horse units and pillage them.

 

[Monthar]

But inquisitors have roughly the same strength as apostles, unless you luck out to get the +20 strength promotion for the apostles...and inquisitors cost like 1/4th of an apostle.

Inquisitors cost the exact same as apostles, because they are apostles that used their "start inquisition" option.

 

[Uberfrog]

Inquisitors cost the exact same as apostles, because they are apostles that used their "start inquisition" option.

This is not the case: you need to use an Apostle to gain the ability to produce Inquisitors in the first place, but thereafter they are bought directly with Faith like any other religious unit.


As to how to fight a religious war - much like a regular war! As others have said, try to stack the bonuses from policies as much as you can, and use the units in packs rather than trying to send them separately. But beyond that, build an army of Apostles, have them supported by some Gurus so you can heal them in the field, and wage Theological Combat.

 

[Question]

Yea but in a real war you cant just instantly "take" an entire city with one unit and its way easier to spam religious units than normal units.

 

[Uberfrog]

Yea but in a real war you cant just instantly "take" an entire city with one unit and its way easier to spam religious units than normal units.

Sure, but it's more effective to move that spam as an army instead of just randomly sending units one after the other