Is it unethical to attack your ally to win?

[cabert]

It is unethical. Don't attack anyone. it's mean.

You may also not use nasty civics like State Property, or build military units, because people might die!

why would state property be nasty?
You certainly are confusing it with police state, aren't you?

 

[Giaur]

A good deal of those dubious moves are amongst the most powerful ways to play.
There are ways to win without them, but not a lot.

Not necessarily. Do you believe that Hitler achieved victory? I say he failed. His strikes were unfair and he failed.

I believe that the same rules are in the game.

edit: On the other hand, Jesus Christ poisoned mankind for 2000 years and some experts say that Christianity hasn't even begun. Jesus never stroke anyone.

 

[Technocactus]

why would state property be nasty?
You certainly are confusing it with police state, aren't you?

Yeah, I was.

 

[Giaur]

In fact it's not what I wanted to say.

Maybe the most powerful acts are visible only too people who act fair. Am I not crazy?

 

[Giaur]

I guess it's very hypotetical, but never know

 

[anima36]

if you want to win the game make the best move, if you cant see the best move, likely if you are a beginner, then make the move you think is best, you will slowly learn whether theses moves were a good move or not.

if you want to have fun do what ever the hell you feel like and don't let anyone elses opinion affect you.

 

[Winston Hughes]

I like to play 'ethically' from time to time, partly because it makes for a very different playing experience, partly because it's nice to feel like the good guys for once. No war without just cause, no razing cities, no nukes, no slavery, no theocracy, no policestate, protecting peaceful civs against Monty et al, and gifts to the weaker civs to help them develop.

Sometimes I make 'ethical' choices in my normal games too, but never at the cost of a significant advantage (just like a lot of countries in the real world, methinks). It's easy to be good when you've got the strongest armies and the most money; being utterly evil is often the most effective policy when you're struggling to compete.

 

[feldmarshall]

It is unethical to attack your ally, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't do it. What I like to do is see if they will gift me anything just before I declare war. Hey Isabella, can you spare 400 for poor old me? Only too happy to help a friend. Great, now I declare war on you!

Cheers.

you're evil

 

[Duraska]

Just play as the Romans. Then you're free to do anything you want, and you can call it "roleplaying."

Often times when I'm about to declare war on a weaker nation, I will demand that they give me all their gold as a tribute. Then I immediately declare war on them. This prevents them from upgrading their already horribly outdated units.

 

[KMadCandy]

What I like to do is see if they will gift me anything just before I declare war. Hey Isabella, can you spare 400 for poor old me? Only too happy to help a friend. Great, now I declare war on you!

you're evil

i figured everybody does that to have upgrade money hahaha! i know i do. i've never thought about it as evil, either. i think of it as "all's fair in love and war." oh did i forget to mention we're about to be at war? oopsies. it kinda does sound evil typed out that way i suppose. but wow, i thought we all did it, not in a justify it to myself "everybody does it so it's ok to do it" way but it just didn't occur to me that people don't do it!

to me it's a game, and it's completely separate from my character/personal beliefs /shrug. i love the mild-mannered grandma-type in the civanon ads. i forget what she says that totally cracks me up in the video, but her words on the webpage are "I've been attending CivAnon meetings for approximately 18 months now. Partly because I began to get a perverse thrill out of wiping out entire civilizations with atomic intercontinental ballistic weaponry, and partly because they serve cake at the meetings. I like to kill, that's true. But I like cake even more."

on the other hand, i do feel guilty when i have to, say, kill hatty, after she's been nice all game. such a cute pout when i have to deny her a request, and when she says "That's not very nice" i have to agree with her, but i can't be nice to everybody all the time, it's not called "Learning to be Nice" it's called "Civilization IV" silly girl. and when it's your turn to die, i have to kill you. and when gandhi gives me dirty looks, ouch. his dirty looks are the worst!!!

i love talking to the AI after i build a wonder, to see if they're all of a sudden rich and have any money i should take off their hands in a tech trade deal or something. so fun, knowing you beat them to a wonder and can often profit from their attempt at it. heck, i check their wallets every time anybody finishes a wonder. "cha-CHING!" do some consider that kind of opportunism unethical?

 

[Mercenary82]

Since I tend to ally with all the thugs anyway, Monty, Alex, Mehmed, etc. I never feel guilty about backstabing them.

 

[Strato]

Its easy to understand why people do feel some sort of ethical alignment if you will. Personally, I tend to go along with the idea of the ends justifying the means. However there can be exceptions. For instance in another game (Galactic Civilization II) I always go for the good guys, and typically the good ethical alignment choices, no matter how badly it damages my empire. I should add I will consider going for the ethical choices that crack me up when i read them, when colonising a planet.

Gameplay and style are unique to each individual, and its good to see that as a Civ community, it isn't necessarily filled with robotic like thoughts of attacking a weaker civ because you can, it does (scarily enough) seem to bring in some sort of human element. Hopefully this isn't the predisposition to intelligent AI, and soon robots take over the earth enslaving us all.

 

[druidravi]

I never have allies. All Ai's are my enemies . However I suck up to some AI's in the beginning when I am weak, biding for my time. Even becoming friendly with someone meanwhile, sharpening my sword behind their back for some .

 

[Rancid Sushi]

Eh? Did you say something about being unethical? Sorry, I couldn't hear you over the sound of my bombers destroying my enemy's food sources in order to starve his big, productive cities.

I'll consider being ethical after I have my spies sabotage all his hospitals.

 

[majk-iii]

If you're playing only to win, just backstab everybody... but if you're playing in a bit more of an "rpg-mode", in SP (kinda like myself), then yeah, i see how you might have qualms about things like war, whipping etc.
I play a lot of OCC's (although i'll hardly ever play them out) and i usually start up normally with whipping and all that... but a little while into the game i'll have a revolution, rename the capital and become a nice guy... it makes it really hard to win anything but a diplo-victory, but like i said; i hardly ever play out my games anyway.

 

[Bushface]

I flatter myself that in real life I do behave ethically, even altruistically sometimes. But when playing Civ I am aggressive, expansive, greedy and utterly treacherous. Turn to the Dark Side and win !
Let's hope that in the next expansion we can train assassins, incite revolts, and bribe armies. How very uncivilised.

 

[pkp]

I have never considered it unethical since the AI is just a bunch of math equations...


Actually I did feel bad once. Somebody that I was friendly with wanted me to help them in a war and I declined. They lost and for the rest of the game I had to look at that 0 next to their name. If I happened to run my mouse over it I would see this:

"friendly towards papakapp
+4 we care for our brothers and sisters of the faith
+3 you have wisely chosen your civics
+3 we appreciate the years you have supplies us with resources
+1 you shared your technological discoveries with us
+1 open borders
+2 years of peace
-1 you refused to help us during war time!"


rest in peace Mana Musa

 

[phoenix_sprite]

It's a game, people, no need to put your feelings in front of an AI

demand money to your neighbours and then send them to the grave!
captured a small city (size 2 to 5, without buildings you can use) that doesn't share your state religion or isn't placed on a strategic position? BURN IT!
At war? Change to Police State, Nationalism, Slavery, State Property and Theocracy!
Captured your enemy's holy city, BURN IT!
No Production? WHIP your way to the TOP!
You like being cruel to a bunch of numbers? Besiege cities and raze their improvements!
You live for war and domination? Declare war for FUN!

Of course...It's never wrong to have allies but don't get too attached.

 

[occam]

it is unethical to :
<snip>
- trade away techs you just got in a trade (copyrights!)

Copyrights? Falling under ethics? You don't own stock in the MPAA or RIAA, do you?

I think you meant "patents" anyway.

In either case, there is controversy over whether the current regime of intellectual property is ethical... or even well-thought-out.

- O

 

[Aseon]

Ask yourself this instead:

Is it ethical to allow your entire civilization and all the people in it to suffer defeat because you failed to act?

If a war means the difference between your people's lifestyle and culture living or dying, then you have a moral obligation, as the leader of that civilization, to do whatever is necessary to defend it. Even if that means a pre-emptive war.