Protectorates..What are they good for?!?

[Rayven1]

What are protectorates good for? I have both Egypt and Parthia as protectorates right now. I betrayed Egypt and attacked them thinking that Parthia, as my client state, would be forced into war considering included in a protectorate is an alliance with me. The Parthians refuse to enter the war. Even when I send diplomats to Parthia and ask them to attack the faction I am attacking they refuse. They won't give into any demands like tribute or regions and I'm left wondering what the point of protectorates are... They complain that "we will not become your slaves no matter how fine the words," when you ask them to become a protectorate and they have refused but when they do accept and become a protectorate they are not slaves at all but an independent state. This makes no sense...

"War gives the conqueror the right to impose on the vanquished any condition he sees fit" -- Julius Caesar

[Slug For A Butt]

Yup. I'm wondering the same thing as well, it seems that its just a slightly more dependable alliance that costs you money.

[bubbanator]

In the 1.2 patched, the protectorate making you lose money but was fixed (i think)

Either way, protectorates aren't good for much IMO. Unless you really need the money then just kill them.

[pezhetairoi]

protectorates are just...so you feel good about yourself, I guess. Nothing much. Protectorates aren't much use unless you happen to be the protectorate, which usually means that faction won't attack you unless you attack them, and you get a big big big injection of money into your economy to boot. Sweet. Accept becoming a protectorate if someone demands you do so in the start of the game; it will help you to no end, unless you already have zero cashflow problems, i.e. unless your name is Greece, Macedon, the Seleucids, or Egypt.

And remember to immediately cancel military access so he can't march past your forts or trample over your newly-sown wheatfields unless he's invading, just so you know.

[King of Atlantis]

The best way to us protectorates is to become one. If someone is about to wipe you out then become their protectorate and be safe. Sadly never been forced to do that in RTW.

[pezhetairoi]

...why sadly? It's just the normal facts of life that we;re just too good to be made protectorate! ^_^ I became a protectorate as Spain because the Gauls demanded it of me because they'd been defeated in 3 major battles in the passes trying to retake Numantia which I'd stormed. The reason why I accepted was because a)I wanted to see what it was like, and b) they offered me 6 (or was it 8?) turns of 3000d tribute.

'Oh well, you know Marcus, Gaul refused to make us their protectorate again.'
'Oh humbug! I don't know what we're lacking in. We've got half their provinces and they're defenceless... Oh well. Sun's setting, what say we go for a meal of stewed oxtail? I hear that little establishment on the Palatine hill next to the Pantheon is pretty good...'