Branch Office - Wars confusion

[Amaror]

Can anyone help me out here how branch offices and their related wargoal work?
In my recent game I had an annoying neighbor, lets call him criminal, plopping criminal branch offices down on my worlds. Very annoying. Then I suddenly got an invite to go to war over those offices from a neighbor of criminal. I had no relations with that neighbor, just an embassy, but certainly no alliance.
I was confused why he could call me into the war. Given that we were both the only neighbors of criminal, I assumed that criminal had branch offices in both our worlds and criminals neighbor was able to call me into the war as a way to rally the begrieved. You know, all the empires that the crimelord troubles get together to beat the shit out of him and close the offices.
We finished the war with everything occupied, but his planets and 100 war exhaustian. The peace comes through, but only the branch offices of the one who called me into the war got closed as a result. He even got a ton of system, all of which I had conquered.
Now I am confused.
If this "close branch office" war goal allows to call other begrieved empires into the war, why would it not close the offices in those empires as well. They worked for it, but get nothing? That's really weird.

 

[Kahldris]

Huh I haven't been in that specific situation, did you claim the systems you took?

 

[Amaror]

Huh I haven't been in that specific situation, did you claim the systems you took?

No, I didn't claim any systems. I thought that would be pointless, since it was a war to close branch offices, not to conquer. I did get one system out of it though. Don't really know why.

 

[Ludaire]

I imagine the issue is that the war goal only applies to the main attacker. Wars in Stellaris are a bit weird that way. Any allies called into a war can help fight and will acquire claims, but they don't gain any of the main war goal benefits. So the main attacker (the other empire) got to get rid of all the criminal syndicate's branch offices, but you didn't. This is probably an oversight rather than intended. You could try reporting it in the bug forum to see if it's something they'll look into and fix. It definitely feels like all victors should get those benefits with this war goal, not just the main person declaring war.

Also, you only get to keep systems you've claimed yourself when a war finishes. It doesn't matter what the war goal is; the only difference is that conquest war goals create less threat than other war goals, so people around you won't be as upset about you conquering. If your ally had those systems claimed, then they're the ones who are going to get them after victory.

 

[Kahldris]

No, I didn't claim any systems. I thought that would be pointless, since it was a war to close branch offices, not to conquer. I did get one system out of it though. Don't really know why.

Well that makes sense for him taking the systems then (ai must have decided to give you one system for some reason lol). And ya you are giving a reason to go for war with the branch.of so your probably right, that's probably why they were able to call ya in. That's my guess anyway.