How do alliances work? What happens if I betray someone?

Conqora FAQ · updated 2026-10-16

Making an alliance

Right-click a player's land and choose Alliance. They have 20 seconds to accept. A refused or expired request can be sent again after 30 seconds.

What an alliance does

• Neither side can attack the other.
• You share vision (important with fog of war).
• Trade ships between your ports pay more.
• Trains to an ally's station pay the most of any train.
• Donations of troops and gold become possible.

Duration and renewal

An alliance lasts five minutes. The time left shows on the player card, and you get a warning in the feed 15 seconds before it ends. Renew it before it expires, or it simply lapses.

Betrayal

You can break an alliance at any time from the player's window. The cost is the traitor mark:

• For 30 seconds your defence is halved and your attacks move slower.
• Everyone sees the mark on your name.
• Other players remember: expect refused requests and a coordinated attack.

A nuke that kills an ally's troops or lands on their tiles breaks the alliance the same way.

Embargoes

An embargo stops trade with one player for five minutes, quietly. Use it to dent a rival's income without starting a war.

Donations

From an ally's window you can donate troops or gold (when the game allows it). Gold to the ally building SAMs against the nuke player, or troops to the one holding a border for you, often beats spending it yourself.

Target marking and quick chat

"Target" on a player marks them for all your allies. Quick chat sends short phrases and emojis. Together they make coordinated nuke strikes possible.

Good diplomacy

1. Ally the neighbour you are not fighting yet.
2. Renew early.
3. Betray only when the reward is the match.
4. Never be the obvious leader before you can win.

More: diplomacy guide.

The alliance timeline, second by second

Knowing the exact timers lets you plan around them:

The traitor mark halves your defence and slows your attacks to about 80% speed, and everyone sees it on your name. Thirty seconds sounds short, but with your defence halved, a neighbour who was waiting for that moment can take a lot of land.

Walkthrough: the two-front problem

You are at 18%, squeezed between a player at 20% in the west and a nation-heavy coast in the east. You can't fight both.

1. Pick the neighbour you are not fighting yet (the western player) and send the alliance.
2. While it holds, push east with your whole army. Lower or raise the ratio with Z/X and don't keep troops on the allied border.
3. Renew at the 15-second warning, not after. An expired alliance is an invitation, and your western border is empty.
4. Build ports. Trade ships between allied ports pay more, and a train to an ally's station pays the most of any train.
5. If the western ally comes under attack from a third player, donate gold or troops. A strong ally on your flank is cheaper than a second front.

Done well, you grow on one front while nobody touches your back.

Common mistakes

• Letting the alliance run out by accident. The player card shows the time left. Check it when you see the feed warning.
• Nuking near an ally. A hydrogen bomb's outer radius is 100 tiles. If the blast kills your ally's troops or lands on their tiles, the alliance breaks and you are the traitor, whether you meant it or not.
• Betraying for a few tiles. The traitor mark tells the whole lobby you can't be trusted. Expect refused requests for the rest of the match.
• Allying everyone. If every neighbour is an ally, you have nowhere to grow. Leave one border open for war.
• Being the biggest player with no allies. The leader with no friends is the one everyone marks as Target.

Beginner vs advanced

Beginners: ally one neighbour early, renew every time, and spend your army on the other side. It's the single biggest improvement most new players can make.

Advanced players: use alliances as timing tools. Know exactly when each pact ends, use embargoes to dent a rival's income without war, and coordinate strikes through Target marks and quick chat. In fog of war games, shared vision alone makes an alliance worth it.

Team games and modifiers

• Teams: teammates are permanent allies, the win line is 95% for the team, and trains to a teammate's station pay 25,000. Alliances with other teams still work and still expire.
• No alliances: the modifier removes them entirely, so it's every player for themselves.
• Donations may be switched off in some quick-game settings.

Playing with people you know? See playing with friends and how to set up a private lobby.

More questions

How do I betray an ally without the traitor penalty?

You can't. Breaking an alliance from the player's window, or hitting your ally's land or troops with a nuke, always gives you the traitor mark. The only clean way out is to let the alliance run out instead of renewing it: the game only marks you a traitor when you break the pact or your blast hits them. Many players read a missed renewal as a warning, so expect them to prepare.

How long does an alliance last?

Five minutes, renewable. A warning shows in the feed 15 seconds before it ends.

Can allies attack each other?

No. While the alliance holds, neither side can attack the other.

What does the traitor mark do?

For 30 seconds your defence is halved, your attacks are slower, and the mark is visible to everyone.

Can I chat with my ally?

Matches use quick chat phrases and emojis, not free text. "Target" marks a player for all your allies, which is enough to coordinate an attack.

More: diplomacy guide, coming back from behind.

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More answers in the Conqora FAQ and the guides. Updated 2026-10-16.