How warmonger works, for people in a hurry

Overview

I have noticed that some complaints regarding Warmonger, often has a solution which is already in the game. I think simply by understanding the warmonger system, would “fix” a lot of warmonger problem for many players who feels it’s annoying.Players who posts about how bleh the warmonger is, mostly gets upset when they get lots of warmonger, without knowing why they got it. The warmonger system is very complex to understand to a 100%, and the game does not give players much help on it either. But there are a few easy basics that I feel all players would benefit from.Here is my list about “how to Warmonger”, for people in a hurry =)Update:This guide is obsolete since the last DLC.Warmonger is removed and doesn’t work this way anymore.This guide is ONLY valid if your base game version is earlier then 2019. And you don’t have the last DLC.

How warmonger works

• First, you gain warmonger points when you declare war, take or raze a city and when you end a war.
• The warmonger value which you gain when you make peace, is based on if you kept, razed or gave back cities that you conqured during the war. If you liberated any city and gave it back to its previous owner, it will REDUCE the value you get by making peace AND reduce your current warmonger points.
• Your warmonger points ticks down with 1 point every 2 turns. Even when you are at war.
• Your warmonger gets an increse towards each civ that you have met, when one civ complains about your warmongering.

  Some leaders will not care, like Alexander. He will never add warmonger to you, because he loves war. And some leaders will whine as soon as you do any fighting…even defending. Like Ghandi.

  Not all civs gives you the same warmonger.
  It depends on who they are, their relations to you and others. Plus all other effects a civ can have on warmonger. (leader ability, religion belief, dark/golden age, etc.)

• Each Era increase the base warmonger for X actions that increases or DECREASES your warmonger.
  Ancient era = No warmonger at all.
  Classic = Very little. Less then -10 for taking a capital, or raze cities.
  Each era increases the warmongers *Base* value.
  The expansions “Free City States” and warmonger

  When a city becomes a Free City state, then there are NO warmonger penalties for taking or razing it!

  The Warmonger BASE value

  This is how much you get for declaring war, taking a city, razing a city, etc. The base value gets increased or decreased depending on your current warmonger effects from the casus Belli you used. Or if you did not use a casus Belli, or someone declared war on you, then the warmonger “base value” will be the normal (highest) for that era.

  * Casus Belli

  Declaring war without casus Belli, gives you normal warmonger penelties for that era.
  Casus Belli are different ways to declare war that effects your warmonger penelties.

  For example “Liberation war” = you get 0 warmonger for declaring war against civ X and no penalties for liberating your own lost cities, City states that has been conqured or other civs cities that has been taken by civ X.
  Taking or razing any other city from Civ X with this casus, will give you larger warmonger pentalties.

  Simply check all kinds of casus belli that you can do. With the expansion, they are shown in grey if you can do them, but needs the specific reason to “unlock it”.

  – Razing cities.

  Razing cities gives the highest warmonger penalty, but depends on era, size of the city and what base value your war started with. The casus belli effects the penalty.

  – Liberating cities.

  When you liberate a city, which means you take it and choose “liberate” instead of “Take it” or “Raze it”, then you get a DECREASE in your current warmonger.
  How much depends on the era and if its a city state or a civ.

  Liberating cities is the best way to lower your warmonger!
  However, beware if its a city belonging to a civ thats “dead”. It will bring back that civ with all the reputation it had from the turn they died. If you where the one killing it, you get a big warmonger penalty from it!

  – If its a city state

  You “give” the city back to the old city state which becomes your ally.
  Liberating a city state is a great way to DECREASE your current warmonger value. The city state also becomes your ally.

  – If you bring back a civ that’s been destroyed

  The warmonger decrease is higher then from city states, but that civ comes back with its memories from before they got destroyed.

  Liberating any city also gives good points from certain civs. As high as +20 from Australia for example.

  There are alot of options to control your warmongering. Use em =).

  My last tip.
  Only civs who knows you, can hear about your warmongering.

  – History is written by the victors!

  
  If you get a high warmonger vs civ X, when its the -only- civ that you have met.
  And you destroy civ X *BEFORE* you meet any new civ…..whatever warmonger you’ve got, dies with that civ!

  Even if you had -200 warmonger….all new civs you meet will not know about it, because the penalty died with civ X.

  Hope this helps!
  –Kurnn