Why are city states considered worthless in multiplayer?

[Maniac]

I mean, becoming allies with a city state next to another player is, I assume, just begging for that city state to get conquered to deny you the bonus. But what's the problem with allying with a city state close to you, in a position you are able to defend?

I'm a Civ5 MP noob, for the record.

 

[SemperFi2382]

I mean, becoming allies with a city state next to another player is, I assume, just begging for that city state to get conquered to deny you the bonus. But what's the problem with allying with a city state close to you, in a position you are able to defend?

I'm a Civ5 MP noob, for the record.

For the most part, becoming allied with a city state is an "I win" button for those that have the capital. Add in vision, RoP, and Free resources on top of the bonuses and you get the idea.

 

[Maniac]

Are we on the same page? You're saying that city states are the opposite of worthless.

 

[PieceOfMind]

I'm not very experienced at civ5 (never even played mp in fact) so I'll take a stab in the dark. If it's anything like in civ4, the reasons for not pursuing some strategy are usually based on opportunity cost. I can only assume there is some other strategy that works far more reliably in mp.

I'm probably stating the obvious. Sorry if so.

 

[Tabarnak]

They are not worthless, they just can create an unbalanced environment. Some players may start very close to some of them and other players with nothing around. Guess who gonna have a free worker first?

They are usually easy to conquer, unless raising difficulty. But i personnally like them in mp games. They are rarely ''useless'' and they are fun. If i want to ally one of them, i must be sure that i can defend him properly. Cash is a lot more scarce in mp though.

 

[SemperFi2382]

Are we on the same page? You're saying that city states are the opposite of worthless.

Unbalanced game = no fun = worthless experience. It is just a game after all.

They are not worthless, they just can create an unbalanced environment. Some players may start very close to some of them and other players with nothing around. Guess who gonna have a free worker first?

To sum it up from someone other than myself.

 

[turingmachine]

It's not that they are worthless, it's that they are unused. MP players often choose not to include city-states because they introduce a large degree of randomness that can give certain players an unfair advantage.

 

[Tabarnak]

I forgot to mention barb quests(assuming barbs on).

For ''competition'' purpose, i agree that cs and barbs should be off. But for fun games with friends or FFAs, i think they just add fun. Sometimes you get unlucky, and sometimes you don't. You need to adjust, which is good for sharping skills.

What about eldorado or FOY? Lot worse in term of balance and we don't have a clue how to get rid of them.