I hate Zara Yaqob

[Molybdeus]

In my last game I was finishing up a chariot rush on Gilgamesh when my scout located Zara Yaqob. (I had Gilgamesh, Zara Yakob, Joao and Suryavarman in this game. )Since he is always the leader in my games, I decided to expand my warmongering to include faraway Ethiopia. I captured one of his workers, pillaged all of his improvements, and razed two of his three cities, leaving only the capitol of Aksum.

By the rennaisance he was leading in score again, having used his obelisks to rebuild a massive empire. I really, really hate this guy. How do you deal with him if he isn't a neighbor? I hate wiping out enemies far away from me, since that just means that someone else will control the territory. Should I try to isolate him diplomatically?

 

[Ace4nyC]

next time that happens starve the city if you can let him build nothing but archers and eventualy he will not have any money to expand ^_^

 

[marconos]

I just won a diplomatic victory and he was one that voted for me!!

Course I kept playing to see if I could finish a space ship before the computer. Once of those damn random wedding came up. It gave me a -1 relation with him (remember he was friendly). When I pressed the button to take the -1 relation ... he declared war on me???? This was 5 turns AFTER he voted me the winner of the game in diplomacy. Damn is that guy fickle.

 

[Mik1984]

I hate to play as Zara Yaqob, he's organized, but creative is a waste of trait for a warmonger like me. His UU rocks however. The +25% vs. gunpowder is quite insignificant at the time of his unit, but DI+II for free...

 

[Leodavinci]

I hate to play as Zara Yaqob, he's organized, but creative is a waste of trait for a warmonger like me. His UU rocks however. The +25% vs. gunpowder is quite insignificant at the time of his unit, but DI+II for free...

I see Creative as one of the most important warmonger traits.

 

[CivMcNut]

Yeah you can count on Yara to be topping the charts all the time. He ranks high on the list of take out AIs for sure. I don't like him either unless he's right beside me and I can wipe him out early on.

 

[Infantry#14]

I hate to play as Zara Yaqob, he's organized, but creative is a waste of trait for a warmonger like me. His UU rocks however. The +25% vs. gunpowder is quite insignificant at the time of his unit, but DI+II for free...

Zara's traits Organized and Creative used be Augustus' traits back in Warlords, which was pretty useful in culural and domination/conquest game

 

[HerrDoktor]

<IRONY>Those racist bastards at Firaxis!!! We have three black leaders and all are designed so you have to hate and destroy them!</IRONY>

In fact, isn't that veeeery ironic? Small civilizations with some local success were designed to be top tiers in the game, as a form to foster African pride or, being cynical, as a device to reach the Afro-American audience. As consequence, you have to go KKK-ape-s***t and kill all black leaders that appear in the game... That's horrible.

Nevertheless, in my less-than-100%-warmonger view, Shaka is a rogue state, but Zara and Mansa are chilvarious pals if you can have them by your side before they reach their oft-sought space or cultural victory.

 

[Supr49er]

... Shaka is a rogue state, but Zara and Mansa are chilvarious pals if you can have them by your side before they reach their oft-sought space or cultural victory.

I find that if I let Zara or Mansa hang around unharassed for too long, they will out-tech me, especially Mansa.

Destroy Shaka on sight.

 

[Molybdeus]

It is strange that all of the African civs are superstars in the hands of the AI. In addition to their solid traits, I think the reason is that they all have great unique buildings. The AI isn't intelligent enough to use the unique units well, but it doesn't take any skill to benefit from the synergy of the mint and financial trait.

Zara Yaqob and Mansa Musa are too much of a danger to actually win the game to ally with. I prefer allying with leaders like Hammurabi and Isabella that are useful for forcing enemy tech threats like Elizabeth and Mansa Musa to invest heavily in defense.

 

[Leodavinci]

I find that if I let Zara or Mansa hang around unharassed for too long, they will out-tech me, especially Mansa.

Destroy Shaka on sight.

Shaka is my friend usually. In my last game he constantly fought all Civs that were going away tech wise, so I could stop focus on my own research and build strong enough army to take out himself and the rest of the world as well

 

[Wolfshanze]

I always seem to get along with Shaka... I've played many games with "warlike" AI civs... Shaka, Toku, Ghengis... they're all wusses in-game and are never a threat...

Seems game after game though, the REAL TROUBLE comes from Mansa, Zara and Ghandi. Those guys are always trouble for my empire.

 

[gettingfat]

I hate to play as Zara Yaqob, he's organized, but creative is a waste of trait for a warmonger like me. His UU rocks however. The +25% vs. gunpowder is quite insignificant at the time of his unit, but DI+II for free...

Creative/organized is likely the best combo for domination victory.

I still miss the old Warlord Augustus. Praets take a city => whip courthouse => whip library => praets take another city...lather and rinse again. Imp/Ind just doesn't cut it for me.

 

[The SciWalker]

Once I was betrayed by Zara Yaqob, that time I forged an alliance between him against Hammurabi. I thought he might be a faithful ally( since his attribute towards me is several points up to positive), so I didn't put much defensive forces at my bordering cities which near him. Then suddenly he turned against me, made peace with Hammurabi and attacked my cities within 2 turns...Since that time I don't ally with Zara Yaqob in any game at any circumstances anymore.

 

[TheWilltoAct]

Necro.

 

[azzaman333]

<IRONY>Those racist bastards at Firaxis!!! We have three black leaders and all are designed so you have to hate and destroy them!</IRONY>

In fact, isn't that veeeery ironic? Small civilizations with some local success were designed to be top tiers in the game, as a form to foster African pride or, being cynical, as a device to reach the Afro-American audience. As consequence, you have to go KKK-ape-s***t and kill all black leaders that appear in the game... That's horrible.

Nevertheless, in my less-than-100%-warmonger view, Shaka is a rogue state, but Zara and Mansa are chilvarious pals if you can have them by your side before they reach their oft-sought space or cultural victory.

On top of that, Hatty and Hannibal are two of the more consistently powerful civs too. Firaxis was feeling mighty generous to Africa this time around, possibly to make up for giving all the American civs the huge advantage of Agri in Civ 3.

 

[Schmieds]

I hate Zara Yaqob

<-----
Oh really?

Oromos are beasts, btw.

EDIT: Wow, big necro

 

[Willem]

Necro.

There seems to be alot of that these days. I really don't understand why people dig through threads that have been dead and buried for years. I saw one recently that had been started in 2005 and not responded to since 2006, yet someone was trying to continue a debate that was going on there. If it's not on the first page of the forum, it really isn't worth responding to anymore.

 

[TheWilltoAct]

Yea.
I remember there was a case where a guy came back to an old thread that was necro'd from 3 years back, and defended a point he had made!
But generally I agree, what's the point in debating with old members who may not even visit these forums anymore?

 

[lasombra1984]

<IRONY>Those racist bastards at Firaxis!!! We have three black leaders and all are designed so you have to hate and destroy them!</IRONY>

I'm not agree with you.
Mansa Musa & Zara Yaqob are very annoying with their tech-greed, but they are absolutely stupid in diplomacy, they can easily be bribed (especially with techs).
As with Shaka he is my favorite AI warmonger. It is difficult to make him Pleased with you, but joining his wars makes him loyal ally. Just bribe him to DoW on somebody and then wait until he asks you to join this war)