Ah, my thanks.

Advise on how to get "Normal" AI to have "Close" relations with you?

give them stuff, set up trade routes with them, have a strong military, have a similatr ethical alighnment, dont attack them or influence their planets


then wait!

Actually, giving them a bribe @ friendly along with the alliance proposal sometimes does the trick as well... Depends on your strength and the puter his interest as well though (such as a evil warmonger at close will not easilly ally with you when you have a poor miitary or are a good alligned researcher).

Also trading helps them like you.

Thank you guys!

The Drengen AI (at one notch above "normal") suffered a crushing defeat when the Iconians(?) allied with me (I had wanted the Altarians to) and I played "America after Pearl Harbor" and churned out battle cruisers (large hulled ships) with a lot of firepower, enginges, and no armor and raced over the map (the AI doesn't account for "Gigantic Galaxy" sizes well pre-1.1 beta patch), smashing the Drengin military and then following with troop-transports that could outrace anything the galaxy.

I was surprised how many planets I had to take before the Drengen surrendered to me. Now all that is left is to decide the Altarian's & Arcaen's fate -- as the Terrans and Iconians have allied with me. They're all "Friendly" to me -- I'll either win by alliance or my influence will make them hate me, at which point if they declare war, three people will jump on them.

This game is great.