How to persuade races to join my alliance and or federation ?

[Washout]

I have a hard time making friends in the galaxy, my way of war is to conquer anyone who ever declaires war on me. So the locals are a bit scared.
So how do I force them into my alliance ?

[Paladin]

You can't really force them to join. However, the apparent key to befriending people is continued cooperation.

Last game I played, my friend was laughing at how the whole galaxy hated me, and for no reason... so I looked into some of the races around us, and he had engaged in trades for resources with them, each that takes what, 30 years of time?

Those minor treaties and tributes build up a degree of trust with the AI that got him on their good side.

[Washout]

how about liberating them from there corrupt goverments

[Hurodrik]

Currently, I find diplomacy is very much dependent on Ethos, so empires that have an ethos opposed to yours are less likely to join. But being powerful helps. I find that if I start to become too big I tend to receive Federation invitations nonstop from everyone and their mother after a while. I haven't tried inviting people to my federation yet on Heinlein, but I'd assume it would work the same way. Having mutual threats really helps in my experience.

[Hurodrik]

Originally posted by Paladin:

Those minor treaties and tributes build up a degree of trust with the AI that got him on their good side.

That's true. Setting up non agression pacts, for example, which don't cost any influence to maintain is a good way to build up trust.