Master Strategists - What Would You Do?

[jeffreyac]

OK - looking for advice on a situation that came up mid game in the last game I played. The game has been completed, but I'm curious on how others see the situation, if I could have done anything different...

My apologies in advance - I have no screenshot, so I'll try to make this as clear as I can without one...

The Greeks border my empire to the south, and I've fought a couple of wars with them by this point. Currently at peace, but there is plenty of bad blood between our empires. I'm currently at war with the Vikings, who are pressing my coasts from the south west. My furthest south city falls to a determined Viking rush... and then bad things happen! My culture is now gone from that area (lost the city), so the Greeks culture expands and completely swallow the city up - no tiles anywhere in the captured city's fat cross are Viking or mine, but all greek! Problem is, I can't get a open borders agreement with the greeks, so I can't enter their 'new territory' to counterattack and retake the city. The vikings are beaten back, but now I stare at my former city across a moat of Greek culture...

So, what would you do? DoW on the greeks, take back my city and any Greek cities that may be handy? Ignore it? Write it off? Hope that later in the game the culture will pop enough to get room to work?

I opted for the last choice, but several turns later the city was destroyed by someone else at was with the Vikings (they're just not popular this game, must be all the debate over the horned/unhorned helmets...)

Anyway, has anyone else been in a situation where the instant culture change from a city being captured resulted in a wierd situation? Was there something else I could have done to try and reclaim the city?

 

[Navarre]

An AP or UN resolution to "give back a city to his righteous owner" would have been handy. That's why I like to control these institutions whenever I can.

And if your city is important to you, just DoW on the Greeks. You say there's already a lot of bad blood between you, so I guess you don't care much about your relations with them.

For me, I just can't let my city in foreign hands. Whoever takes a city from me will give it back, and some of his while I'm at it, become my vassal, give me his daughters to be my slaves and give me a tribute forever and... You catch the idea. If someone happens to take and raze one of my cities, he will be eradicated from the face of earth. Don't mess with me you stupid AI !

 

[Devil Inside]

make peace with the vikings, wait about 10 turns, meanwhile building shock troops to supplement your standing "anti viking" army....and declare war on greece....once you are in a fight, there is no reason to sustain a loss.


what difficulty is it?

 

[Andraeianus I]

Diplomatically speaking: the Greeks and Vikings now have a reason to dislike eachother, don't they? Try to win the Vikings for you and attack the Greeks together!

 

[r_rolo1]

Two questions: the city in question is coastal? And if it is, what civ you are playing ( you didn't said it ) ? If the city is coastal and you're playing João II or Willem you can use their UU ( they carry troops and don't require OB ) . Besides that, if you really want the city , just Dow the greeks. Like it was said before, things between greece and you will not get better anyway...

 

[jeffreyac]

Sorry, I'm playing Willem, and the city is indeed coastal (and the difficulty is Noble, I believe; not super high at any rate) - I didn't realize the dutch UU ignored cultural borders - DOH! Had one sitting nearby, too - could have made a nice amphibious assault, and been done.

In retrospect, I think the advice to DoW on the greeks was probably best - I was already on a war footing, could have pushed them way back or wiped 'em out, and secured a good sized continent for myself. One of the things I need to work on - I tend to be more of a peacemonger in my games, only fighting if I'm forced to; I need to start looking for military opportunities earlier/more frequently in my games!

Thanks again for the input - I can't begin to express how much I've learned about the game and all the varied aspects by wandering through the forums here!

 

[Neo Guderian]

Just like Stalin said, " Violence solves every problem. No man, no problem." I tend to mop the floor with neighbors who won't behave when they become 'problems'.

 

[Collier20]

Forget about the city. The Vikings are not going to be able to hold on to it. Its going to flip, if not to you to the Greeks. I would continue to press the Vikings. If you break them you can always sue for your city back. Don't fight a two front war. Even if it is Alexander.

 

[Draknith]

As a "master strategist" I would never have allowed the Greeks to take the city in the first place... haha.

Probably in a case like this, I would have just DoW on the Greeks and continued to press the Vikings.

However, as r rolo1 pointed out, use the UU and take back the city.

 

[mboettcher]

I always run 10% culture slider when I'm a small, pressed nation bordering another country. It is bound to give you more resources and usually a couple of cities defect. Plus borders are a HUGE advantage in a defensive war.

 

[jackdog]

sounds like you are between strategies, you say you are a peace monger but have been at war a fair bit. If you didn't start the wars you are not keeping a close enough eye on power and relations. If you did but a otherwise playing e.g. city production etc, like a peace monger you are doomed to failure. It sounds like you had enough troops to take some land back, why pay for troops maintainance if you are not using them, take the land, take the continent or vassalise it and then you can go all peacefull and space race or something.

Thats my current strat on continents, early war, expand within economic tollerances take or at least take control of continent then space race with all those cities defending boarder costal ones and using all the internal ones to produce science buildings, science, cash, or cash buildings, only producing enough up to date troops to stop anyone DoW on you.

Occasioally circumstances do produce a situation like the one you describe but you should be a little more expectant of it so its no surprise when it happens, you can then have a plan to cope rathe than being left with, what the hell do I do now scenario.

 

[troytheface]

i say let them have the city, aim for fission and then nuke and paradrop on the greeks.