Client States

[minidude2014]

i im playing as capua and currently got rome as my client state i was wondering why dont rome still attack and take cities while being a client state

[Ovidius Empiricus]

Technically, that's a "protectorate," assuming you mean something you formed through diplomacy. A "client state" is a term used for a different feature in the game: basically, which units (and corresponding client-state barracks) a region has access to when it's a part of your own faction, in addition to effects on happiness and income (and on family members who shouldn't govern it), as distinct from annexation. It's also something I never do (thinking of Roman campaigns, not sure what Capua is like), since I want more money and don't need more "allied" skirmishers/cohorts/triarii than those I can recruit from Arretium, which starts out as a "client-state" and is the only one I have a use for. It's just overkill: you really don't need that much recruiting output and public order is much better handled other ways, so you're cutting into your income for no real benefit. If I'm not mistaken, it also takes longer to build all of that and proceed to citizenship in the later game, when you want named/numbered legions from the places you've already spent time building up as recruitment centers.

Anyway.... I'm not aware of any bugs like that associated with protectorates, so I bet part of it's just that the AI is generally not all that aggressive or competent. It might simply take some more time/money for Rome to pull things together (after you subjugated them apparently), in order to go on the offensive somewhere. Are they at war with any their current neighbors, and how powerful are those factions? Are there lots of intimidating stacks waiting for them, which the Romans can't defeat with their current forces?

There's a decent chance that if they want to attack anybody, it's still you. But pretty much they're still working on how to do it. Eventually, they'll almost certainly break the agreement, then start fighting with you again. Whatever happens, I doubt they'll be very helpful. If you tried to appease them with money or territories, that's going to cost you more than anything you're getting from them in the form of tributes. Honestly, I never even try. Just take control of Rome and reap all of the benefits. You'll get all of its income, instead of only a share, you could start recruiting there, and you won't have to keep an eye out for them constantly since you're not sure when they'll betray you (invariably they do, just like ordinary allies in adjacent regions).

EDIT: On second thought, I didn't think about this, even though it came up just the other day. If a faction has only one settlement left (e.g., Roma itself), the game automatically grants them a ceasefire with everyone else. I suppose that doesn't change the relationship with protectorates (or alliances), so you still have that, but they won't really do anything until they can actually declare war AND conquer another settlement within a single turn. Because if they have to spend a turn making rams or whatever to break through the city's walls, a ceasefire will have been declared again before they can actually invade. So, they'll almost certainly just sit there, because the AI rarely ever uses spies/ballistas/catapults to rush on a settlement immediately.

I guess it might also be that you didn't activate the script. But if everything else is working normally, that's not the problem.

[minidude2014]

ah okay its prob the script i do tend to forget about activating it sometimes thanks for your advice and rome does have roma arretium and a few other city but they kept attacking me so i forced into a protectorate by taken lower italy and messan syracuse etc and besieging all other cities but since then they wont attack they just brought all the armies to rome and they just stay there thank you for replying

[MacBlain]

This pdf fundamentally changed my experience of RTW, so I suggest it incessantly:

http://www.priomh.com/Random/RTWDiplomacy.pdf

Basically, diplomacy doesn't quite work in the natural, human way that many players might expect, and it's a little bit mysterious in terms of the feedback it gives you, but it does behave in a fairly consistent way and you can have fun and meaningful interactions with it once you start to get a feel for how it works.

I think a protectorate is just an ally with a more heavily-weighted relationship status in your favor. Players expect that protectorates are sort of incorporated into their empire and function as a limb of their own faction, but that's just not how the game is designed. Treat them with respect and guard your borders with them so they don't get tempted to attack you, and as they start to get back on their feet they should expand normally.

Think of a protectorate as a buffer. You have to station troops there, but you don't have to deal with the cost of open warfare so you can focus your resources elsewhere.