Diplomatic Victory

[quasi glade]

Diplomatic Victory path:
A victory for civilizations that can be Suzerain many city-states while protecting them. Earns points for liberating captured settlements and returning them to their rightful founder, earns points for supporting weaker civilizations in wars against aggressive nations, loses points when the supported country loses settlements. Weaker nations are civilizations that have less than half the legacy points of their adversary. This victory isn't too easy, because you'll be spending influence points and possibly gold to support other nations, instead using them for your own which may hurt your progress towards other victory types if you're not careful. This victory type is the opposite of the military path, you're working as a protector of sovereignty, so capturing cities and keeping them for your own benefit will cost you points on this path.

[violet oyster]

There is probably a case to be made for adding diplo legacy paths. I think you'd need to add them to all ages for consistency but that wouldn't be too hard. Antiquity can be independent powers based, Explo can be about diplo between the old world and distant lands, Modern could be something ideology based (just not that boring world congress system from VI).

[bold plover]

I kinda hope they eventually have a step after Suzerain but before Integration, that persists between ages but is still separate from your own Civ, like "Colony".
They kinda behave like towns, and are vulnerable to some influence effect (Ideology?) unlike your conquered/established settlements

[quasi glade]

Maybe civs should compete for Suzerain status with diplomats like they did in Civ 6, so you fight in war and politics.

[quasi glade]

Maybe modern age can also have in game events like protecting sea trade routes between city-states from homelands and distant lands from foreign powers who would get gold, science or culture rewards for capturing them. Something like that could be pretty interesting, it would be like the US protecting "Freedom of Navigation" in the ocean. The ships could work like the treasure ships in exploration, but they'd spawn on coastal City-States or the city state's nearest friendly or neutral coastal city. Also for modern it could

[cyan fulcrum]

I’m kind of surprised it didn’t launch with a diplomatic victory path, considering how diplomacy was overhauled to be common between leaders and city states. They’d even be able to use the United Nations wonder as the modern “victory project/wonder” without it feeling too early.

Also given how heavily the Exploration Economy/Military legacy paths lean into colonization, it would be cool to have a legacy path that opposes that. Fits right in with Tecumseh too.

[vestal lark]

As long as there isn't another World Congress... I would like to see a diplomatic victory condition. Something like be allied with all or most other Leaders and build a UN project or something could work.