meatbalz Wrote:i don't agree with this. if you go back and read our message to them, it contained several things
1) we established a concrete agreement - we'd exchange info on meeting other civs
2) we gave them a good deal on the info exchange and made it clear this was designed to improve relations
3) we gave them info, telling them we hadn't met anyone
4) we not only told them an NAP was "something we're willing to start working towards" but also told them what we needed to make it happen
5) we repeatedly indicated a strong desire for peaceful relationships, even using the word ally
6) last but not least, remember i had specifically decided not to put any questions/ask any info in our message to see how forthcoming they'd be.
our 2 messages to each other were worlds apart. their tone is non-committal while ours is friendly. we give info, establish concrete agreements, and say what we need for future agreements to happen - their reply is light on information and again totally non-committal. we signed ours off asking if they were doing ok and making friendly overtures, they ended theirs with a (misquoted) conan line.
i'm not going to read too much into it at this stage, early diplo is delicate, but i don't agree their reply is a natural consequence of our message.
I won't be able to post today much because it's the drive back to Chicago, hopefully in time for the superbowl. I do have a couple of quick thoughts. I tend to agree more with MB regarding A4's message. I don't think it was rude, offensive, or provocative, but I do tend to believe that it was in a less friendly tone than I'd hope for. I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and let more messages go by before judging. So we'll see. This is what makes Pitboss fun!
Regarding the warrior not moving towards the capitol, I wouldn't offer that freely. The "coincidently" or "incidently" language doesn't seem strong. It feels like we're saying "see? we're okay. honest!" I tend to prefer simply stating that our warrior is moving away from their capitol. If we do it right, we're 1) "giving" them info on our warrior movement, 2) letting them know we're aware of their capitol defense situation, and 3) willingly choosing not to threaten them. I don't want to hold up the message going out so if I'm afk I trust you guys to word it right to sound friendly, but strong.