How exactly is this game even a little more strategic really? The best you can do is raid lakes continually.

As even with the most basic garrison in my cities, I could destroy entire alliances at my walls without breaking a sweat.

And, once refuging takes its course over the next couple of weeks and even the most powerful of alliances are crushed out due to hunger. Even the combined forces of the most powerful alliances in the game wouldn't be able to break a garrisoned city of a high prestige player.