Oliver, how is your advice here different than what AR did? In January AR and their allies were based in 76 and 77. They attacked the #1 and #2 alliances to move into 66. They attacked the #9 alliance then to move into 67 (but are admittedly a minority there). Both moves were towards the core, and right now the gains are being consolidated.
Is your advice to just be at war with everyone? That does not seem to be working out so well for the Hive, which is sinking like a rock. My question from several weeks ago has gone unanswered: 67 users alone will not win the world, so what is the Hive's plan?
That said, in my experience the core is overrated. Not a single wonder was built in a core ocean in Delta. If the leaders prepare enough, you can reach a similar city density in non-rim oceans.
Oh come on Zuul... I was talking to a single player. Why extrapolate that for an entire alliance.
Either way, when you say AR attacks alliances and had their players move towards the core as a form of expansion, you are stretching the truth a bit. You may have attacked some of the smaller alliances to take their cities in oceans to further your movement northwestward as an alliance. However, AR's primary form of expansion has been to merge with questionable alliances and then eat their players internally as they become inactive. That is why most of your top players have low fighter stats. It is because AR has not gone to war with anyone. You have taken in players as a whole with little regard to their value and when to opportunity was there to internalize, your top players took the cities which would help them expand in the NW direction. I'm not commenting on the validity of that strategy as I have seen many alliances use this strategy. I am just stating how AR got to be where it currently is.
I am not saying to go to war with everyone, but go to war with SOMEONE. In the past AR has picked on the bottom feeders knowing they could pressure them into either joining or not being able to defend their cities. I would like to see you guys go after an alliance that is unwilling to budge just from you pressuring them. One that actually hits back. Not one that will just roll over.
Not all alliances are expanding towards the core. Look at the most recent large move that was made since the last Sink/Swim. Antimatter took in most players from Oracle and pushed their expansion southward. No they really have only 2 choices. Either go East and hit AR or go north and hit us. Their choice up until this point has been pretty obvious, but I wonder what will happen when they tire of not being able to take a city from a Hive active player. Everyone has inactives, but you cant win a war by just doing that.