Hi,
Does anyone know if other empires will ever want to be your vassal (this is AI)?
Does anyone know if other empires will ever want to be your vassal (this is AI)?
Do empires ever want to be your vassal?
- Thread starter Saluki.exe
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Had this happen to me in a recent game. A fellow determined exterminator empire (with whom I had a defensive pact) was being decimated by the unbidden, and offered to be my vassal. I think they need a very good relationship with you, and to under threat.
In a previous game (2.2.3) I was bordered by an AI that had massive stability problems and basically lost a system to rebellion each decade. The break-away "empires" along my border would usually ask to be my vassals within a few years.
Yes, an empire that used to be a bit big but got beaten by a swarm, suddenly asked to be my vassal.
But I demanded tribute instead and still got an OK.
Then they were still attacked, dragged me into a war.
But I demanded tribute instead and still got an OK.
Then they were still attacked, dragged me into a war.
All the time, I play as an inward perfection empire, and when my economy explodes and snowballs, I always get some similar ethic empire that wants to eat my crumbs.
Tributaries on the outskirts of your empire are hilarious fun too, because they aren't drawn into wars when you are attacked, but since they are hostile to your enemies, their borders are closed, often (in my experience of carefully positioning where my tributaries are) enemies will war dec me, and then be unable to attack anything, allowing me to crush them at my leisure.
I often get annoyed by empires that start out ignoring me, then as soon as I start growing and border friction increases they start insulting me non-stop, and then at some point (possibly due to me getting a better diplomatic rep through science as well as being more powerful) they suddenly start begging to be my vassal. After all those insults that I could do absolutely nothing against, I just want to reduce them to dust at that point. They had their chance, don't come crawling now.
But to answer the question, I get at least one empire asking to be my vassal every game. As stated above, it happens more often during the end-game crisis if they just happen to exist in the affected part of the galaxy. Although at that point the only thing I could possibly do for them is to allow them to settle a world in my empire if that were an option. By the time they ask, they've already lost half their empire and there's nothing I can do. The open borders are nice though.
Also, I recently had a criminal empire right next to me. After being forced to kick their branch office off my capital about a dozen times, they started asking to be my vassal. Firstly, I wonder if it's really appropriate for a criminal empire to be anyone's vassal, much like Marauder Empires they should just stay unaffiliated. Second, I wonder if a criminal empire vassal is disallowed from building branch offices in their master's empire. It would be truly annoying if they started building criminal branch offices all over my worlds and all I could do is declare war on my vassal. I think it's related to opinion though, so as long as they like you, they'll refrain from building in your worlds.
Completely unrelated, but how often does the end-game crisis actually ever win? I've played many games now where I just sit there, guarding my wormholes and the Preths never even make it to my borders. They make it through one, maybe two empires, then they get squashed by the Fallen empires. It's really boring really. I would love just strategically sacrificing my worlds while retreating to the L-Cluster with its single point of access and just let the end-game crisis take over the galaxy.
But to answer the question, I get at least one empire asking to be my vassal every game. As stated above, it happens more often during the end-game crisis if they just happen to exist in the affected part of the galaxy. Although at that point the only thing I could possibly do for them is to allow them to settle a world in my empire if that were an option. By the time they ask, they've already lost half their empire and there's nothing I can do. The open borders are nice though.
Also, I recently had a criminal empire right next to me. After being forced to kick their branch office off my capital about a dozen times, they started asking to be my vassal. Firstly, I wonder if it's really appropriate for a criminal empire to be anyone's vassal, much like Marauder Empires they should just stay unaffiliated. Second, I wonder if a criminal empire vassal is disallowed from building branch offices in their master's empire. It would be truly annoying if they started building criminal branch offices all over my worlds and all I could do is declare war on my vassal. I think it's related to opinion though, so as long as they like you, they'll refrain from building in your worlds.
Completely unrelated, but how often does the end-game crisis actually ever win? I've played many games now where I just sit there, guarding my wormholes and the Preths never even make it to my borders. They make it through one, maybe two empires, then they get squashed by the Fallen empires. It's really boring really. I would love just strategically sacrificing my worlds while retreating to the L-Cluster with its single point of access and just let the end-game crisis take over the galaxy.
It's happened before. Border friction seems to make it rare, but occasionally I wind up in a situation where I just barely border them and someone they hate borders me, and thus they try to make the enemy of their enemy into a friend.
if you are acutally a "good guy", really powerfull and there is a threat in the galaxy, yes, then they will beg for your "protection".... else you have to "convince" them (tbh, its quite dumb that you cant "scare" empires into submission.... but that may be just my enjoyment of playing... "less" goody 2 shoe empires)
I wish it was possible to "convince" a Fallen/Awakened empire to become your vassal. First, become powerful enough that they awaken (already in the game), then they gain a CB on you to bring you down a few notches, after which you beat them into submission and prove they waited too long. They become your vassal. Then maybe something similar to the decadence mechanic where about every 50 years they try again after building up their fleets.
Empires have to be fairly small, on an absolute level and on a relative level, before they'll consider asking you to be their overlord. You see it most with Early Space Age civilizations that finally develop FTL.
I had that happen with a race I had previously been in a 3-way pact with before I got into a federation with the 3rd party and they refused to allow this race in. They got beat up hard, and turned towards me and asked to be my protectorate.
I patted them on the shoulder and said hell yeah.
Edit: Just note, that this empire was weak in tech and fleet, but not economy or size. They had just had 2 bad wars, but still had around 30 stars. They were not really that small, at about 2/3 my size.
I patted them on the shoulder and said hell yeah.
Edit: Just note, that this empire was weak in tech and fleet, but not economy or size. They had just had 2 bad wars, but still had around 30 stars. They were not really that small, at about 2/3 my size.
Yes.
Most time it is my long time ally, who just happened to not gain much clain, maybe becouse someone drag him into countless vassalize wars.
More often if relation of power is like overhealming in our favour. It could happen that they got beaten, or that my empire just integrated subject, or just happened to discover this new empire later in the game.
Most time it is my long time ally, who just happened to not gain much clain, maybe becouse someone drag him into countless vassalize wars.
More often if relation of power is like overhealming in our favour. It could happen that they got beaten, or that my empire just integrated subject, or just happened to discover this new empire later in the game.
Yeah, in my case, my ally was weak because of lack of tech focus. He could only build corvettes when we were moving onto battleships, and he couldn't keep up with his enemies. What he needed was exactly what I could provide, a huge tech advantage.
Had a hivemind in my Federation once and another Federation member declared an Ideology war on an empire the hivemind hated as well. When the war was one, we voted the newly installed regime of said empire into the Federation, but the hivemind still hated them, so it immediately left.
A few days later, the hivemind asked me to take it as a vassal, due to the rather sizeable power difference.
That was a nice "we would rather bend the knee to someone we respect than stand side by side with someone we loathe"-moment
A few days later, the hivemind asked me to take it as a vassal, due to the rather sizeable power difference.
That was a nice "we would rather bend the knee to someone we respect than stand side by side with someone we loathe"-moment