Negotiating Ceasfires

**Jamey** · March 01, 2008, 11:05 PM

I've gotten good at certain aspects of diplomacy with the AI, such as building and maintaining alliances. I can get a ceasefire with an enemy when I no longer have a land border with them.

I cannot, however, get a ceasefire with an enemy with whom I share a land border. This is true no matter how much the ceasefire should make sense to the AI. I can crush the enemy, besiege their last settlement, and then offer terms ranging from just a ceasefire to giving them 10s of thousands of denarii and several settlements. Regardless of what I offer or what position I put the enemy in, they give me the "ceasefire, what a joke!" response.

Does anyone have suggestions on how to get the AI to give a ceasefire? Occasionally they will offer one to me, but I cannot get the AI to agree with one which I offer.

It's gotten a bit frustrating, as I'm playing the Romans and I would like to keep the barbarians (Thrace in this case) on my border. I don't mind staying at war, except that it does funky things to other diplomacy (e.g. the AI is less likely to ally with me because I'm at war with several empires, even though I haven't fought a battle with these "enemies" in 20+ turns). I'd also like to make peace with Carthage as its remnants are intermixed with Numidia (For the foreseeable future, I'm happy to let them squabble while I ignore them and prepare for the imminent titanic clash with the Ptolemies).

**AqD** · March 02, 2008, 01:15 AM

maybe they hate u too much?

I always wonder if the core_attritubes would change over time, anyone knows?
________
ImReadyToCuMMM live

**AngryTitusPullo** · March 02, 2008, 01:21 AM

It depends on campaign difficulty too I think. In VH campaign there's almost no chance for warring factions to have ceasefire but on M campaign I usually found it's easy to get ceasefire even when bordering with the enemy.

**Jamey** · March 02, 2008, 11:11 AM

I think my campaign difficulty is Hard. That would explain it, I suppose. I guess I'll just have to sweep them off the map or ignore them.

I even tried cheating in a whole lot of money to see what it would take. 500,000 denarii didn't give me a ceasefire.

**phoebusapollon** · March 03, 2008, 08:37 AM

i think it helps if the enemy faction is actually at war with other factions at the same time - i just got the macedonians to be my protectorate -

they had three provinces left, one was being attacked by the thracians - i was besieging a second one and my diplomat went to negotiate with the third - to my surprise they accepted to be my protectorate - i was quite pleased as i have never had a protectorate before

**Jamey** · March 03, 2008, 11:22 AM

Originally Posted by phoebusapollon

i think it helps if the enemy faction is actually at war with other factions at the same time - i just got the macedonians to be my protectorate -

they had three provinces left, one was being attacked by the thracians - i was besieging a second one and my diplomat went to negotiate with the third - to my surprise they accepted to be my protectorate - i was quite pleased as i have never had a protectorate before

I've gotten protectorates on rare occasions when the AI offers me a ceasefire. I don't generally bother because the protectorate will always side with any other ally in a war - I just can't keep them. The only reliable protectorate I ever got was a landlocked Numidia (they couldn't ship diplomats to anyone else to for alliances...) when I was Carthage. I gave them all of the interior of Africa and let them deal with the rebels for me.

**Vectis** · March 26, 2008, 09:19 AM

I'm having a similar problem with Armenia. I'm playing as the Sarmartian faction and I have all but wiped them off the map. They only have one city left after I captured their capital and killed their King. Nevertheless every turn I ask for a ceasefire and am rejected. I want them there as a buffer against other Eastern Factions, who I don't want to fight at present. I am not playing on VH and have tried the money approach as well to no avail. Doesn't the AI know when its a good idea to accept peace?

**Mikail Mengsk** · March 26, 2008, 11:35 AM

Absolutely not!

But in the early phases of a war, sometimes the AI ask for a ceasefire :hmmm:

**Hesus de bodemloze** · March 26, 2008, 03:07 PM

if you want ceasefires you will pay up. all people love money.

**Mikail Mengsk** · March 26, 2008, 07:26 PM

AI usually refuses ANY offer, even if you pay them 50000 denarii, I tried it!

**Jamey** · March 27, 2008, 04:02 PM

Originally Posted by Mikail Mengsk

AI usually refuses ANY offer, even if you pay them 50000 denarii, I tried it!

What he said. I've tried cheating in 500,000 and making my offer that for a ceasefire and been flatly denied. It appears to be hardcoded for the AI to just say "No" to peace at times, even when peace would save them from immediate obliteration.

**Maximus Lazero** · March 28, 2008, 12:03 AM

The problem, on ANY difficulty as far as I can tell, is that the A.I. will ALWAYS attack you if they have a useable land border with you. That is to say, they can send troops overland through that border into your territory (mountains and rivers without crossings don't count).

My best/worse experience with this was playing as Bactria. I had allied with the Ptolemies in our mutual war against the Seleucid Empire (and later Armenia), and were driving them back from the east and west...when suddenly, having conquered half of Asia Minor and all of Palestine, the Egyptians stopped attacking. Then, as soon as I had a solid land border with them, the Ptolemies sent their armies against me...while STILL at war with the Seleucids. They paid dearly for this treachery later, but it just illustrates the point...

From the declaration of war, the A.I. will almost always refuse a ceasefire or end to hostilities of any kind. If they offer it to you, it's just so they can break it almost immediately (especially a protectorate). There are rare occasions in which your enemies will back down. Normally, I think this is when they are already a VERY inferior nation. But if they started out large or as something of a threat, expect them to mock your peace offers no matter what.

In some hilarious situations, having two or three territories left, and less than a full field army to fight your five, the enemy will offer a ceasefire...in exchange for a huge sum of gold and ALL of the territories that you won from them during the war. A rather amusing reversal from Civilization III...(I rested 2-3 cities from France after pwning them twice in 50 years

)

So..yeah...your best bet would be to let some territories rebel, then send a force/fort to guard them and make sure your now peaceful neighbors don't take them.

**Tiberius Tosi** · March 28, 2008, 11:48 AM

This is a pretty stupid suggestion but if you have a land border with someone that you want a cease-fire, make a ton of forts and occupy them and cut them off. I did this once with Germania with the Rhine River and they not once attacked any of my forts and I got them to get a cease-fire that lasted like 10 years until I got bored and decided to do hit and runs on them. I also did this with Numidia once, after I conquered Carthage I made about 50 forts protecting my coastal settlements, and they refused to attack my forts, however I never tried to get a cease-fire so I'm not sure if it will actually work every time or not.

Now if your not landlocked then just blockade all their ports for several to many turns and that usually forces them into a cease-fire.

Just a thought.

**Mikail Mengsk** · March 28, 2008, 12:34 PM

50 forts???? this is madness! (waiting for a "this is Spartaaaaaa!"

)

**Jamey** · March 30, 2008, 09:37 PM

Originally Posted by Maximus Lazero

The problem, on ANY difficulty as far as I can tell, is that the A.I. will ALWAYS attack you if they have a useable land border with you. That is to say, they can send troops overland through that border into your territory (mountains and rivers without crossings don't count).

While it is just a matter of time, you can coexist with a land border for many years. I've shared an alliance and a land border for 50+ years in games. My suggestions:

Fortify the border. The settlement should have a full stack in it, even if the troops are predominantly low end troops.
Give a multi-turn gift. The AI is surprisingly hesitant about breaking tribute agreements, even when you're only giving it 100 denarii per turn.
Protect your ports. Many alliances get broken when the AI sees an "undefended" port and decides to blockade it.
Don't send spies or assassins into friendly territory. Keep them either on your land or your enemies'.
Share enemies, especially if both of you have land borders. The AI really likes the enemy of its enemy.

Mind you, the above is not foolproof. Eventually, the AI will flip out and decide that it's time for a war.

As an example:
In my current Roman campaign (around 230 BC), I've been allied with the Germans since I first encountered them. We've shared a land border long enough for me to get Provincial barracks built in some of the border settlements. We've been perfectly peaceful. Recently, one of my pre-Marian gold chevron stacks got parked on that border. For some reason, the AI doesn't want to provoke me into bringing those units out of retirement. I think it's because that's the stack that conquered those chariot-driving maniacs in Britainnia.

**Solaris** · March 30, 2008, 07:27 PM

If you get offered a ceasefire by a faction (this usually only happens when they start the war), if you ask for money in return for the ceasefire, the AI are usually surprisingly susceptible to accept. I often wean figures of anything from 5,000 to 15,000 denarii out of the AI.

**Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus** · April 02, 2008, 03:18 PM

I get pretty annoyed by a cease fire offer every turn now, in which I will have to pay 100.000 or more, and give all provinces back I captured. In the beginning of my (Roman) campaign a Macedonian diplomat would come almost every turn too, negotiating a cease fire, mostly for free. If I accepted, some Macedonian army would immedeatly afterwards besiege one of my cities or an admiral would block a harbour. I click them away everytime they come up now, can't bother reading them anymore

**Mikail Mengsk** · April 02, 2008, 04:51 PM

hehe well, murder them! maybe it's the best thing to do with them

**Grythius Avalorius** · April 02, 2008, 06:05 PM

Madness? This is ATHENS! (just not the same...)

One trick Ive known to work is when the AI offers a ceasefire and wants money or settlements in return, click the button to negotiate the terms, elliminate the money and settlement request from thier box, and click to offer, and they almost always accept....now, they just attack you again in 4 turns, but its progress I think...

**Jamey** · April 02, 2008, 10:11 PM

Originally Posted by Grythius Avalorius

Madness? This is ATHENS! (just not the same...)

One trick Ive known to work is when the AI offers a ceasefire and wants money or settlements in return, click the button to negotiate the terms, elliminate the money and settlement request from thier box, and click to offer, and they almost always accept....now, they just attack you again in 4 turns, but its progress I think...

I've had luck getting the occasional Protectorate from when the AI offers a ceasefire. If I get annoyed with them constantly asking for a ceasefire while I'm busy wiping them out, I have no qualms about using my assassins' sharp knives to take care of their diplomats.

By the way, I just noticed this smiley, and it's even relevant: :sparta: