Research Pact & How it binds Diplomacy

R3dKnight

Warlord
Joined
Nov 13, 2001
Messages
200
Location
Singapore
Research Pacts cannot be broken by the AI. Only the player can break it. So if you want a guarantee on your neighboring civ not invading you while you focus on peaceful expansion, always stockpile enough gold to enter research pacts with him.

What if he doesn't have enough? Lend him some cash. Ask for gold per turns in repayment at slightly lower amount total. Example. Lend him 100 gold and ask for 2 gold per turn is a fair deal to him.

This way you keep your border safe for 25 turns and get a free tech. Win-win situation. It felt like exploiting but I think it's a valid strategy to keep in mind if you want to play non-warring empire, this is a viable way. Because eventually they'll run out of land and start settling near your area, triggering 'border tension' hostility in the process.

I managed to do this when I get a random archipelago map. I played nice and spent gold trading research pacts with everyone. Nobody declared war with me so far in the 1700 AD and I got a tech lead with destroyers and mech. infantry. Now I can start being a jerk and pick them off one by one.
 
That's not always the case - in my current game Catherine declared war on me even though we had an active research pact.
 
they can still invade, despite a research pact. You'll get the tech when they declare war.
 
Don't know if you need to worry if you're playing archipelago. Even if they DOW on you, the AI is that useless you're not in any danger unless you build a city on the same island as one of theirs. But I think it's a good point to bear in mind for land-based maps.

In general, though, I've decided I have better uses for my gold, so I turn down every research pact. I don't really appreciate random techs anyway.
 
I managed to do this when I get a random archipelago map. I played nice and spent gold trading research pacts with everyone. Nobody declared war with me so far in the 1700 AD and I got a tech lead with destroyers and mech. infantry. Now I can start being a jerk and pick them off one by one.

A fine theory, but the real reason you avoided war was archipelago. Myself and others have gone through whole games with nary a war on archipelago without pacts.
 
they can still invade, despite a research pact. You'll get the tech when they declare war.
Do you always though? I know I've sometimes declared war and forgotten about a research agreement that was nearly complete; then I got the tech, but would you get it if you were say, halfway through it? What's the number of turns into an agreement needed for it to give you the tech despite a DoW?

SilverKnight
 
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