Wishlist: Capitulation

[LDiCesare]

Originally Posted by Zapmeister

1. I mentioned that the division algorithm would be based on dominion and the proximity of forces. This means that an unassisted invader, present in force on the capitulator's border, will receive the lion's share of the spoils.

I think Micah is right. A big dominion would give an allied neighbor lots of free territory he wouldn't have seized otherwise. Also, LA Ermor having huge forces would get more territory than a lone SC or a scout, which may be right for the scout but wrong for the SC.
You would also have to take into account Province Defense. I've seen some PD40+ provinces (sometimes thanks to events), which would be hard to crack and would slow down progression of enemy troops.

2. More importantly, conquests are rarely completed in full by a single invader. When the defender diverts his forces to the main front, opportunistic third parties swoop on the newly-undefended borders and can wind up taking more spoils than the nation that earned them. Because of this, I think that a capitulation mechanism could actually make for a fairer division of spoils in many cases.

I disagree. Third parties will take some territory but PD may change that, as third parties are likely to have their main armies engaged somewhere else to begin with.

Rather than use complex algorithms to split the territory, just turning everything into independents would probably fit the bill, with the caveat that province defense should be converted into independent troops, since indeps don't have PD.