IMO, orcs and goblins can't be converted by any other way but fear
Donut is a two-sided god, he can create life and be a very nice guy, but he can be very cruel to his enemies and worshipers of his enemies
Oh, and what diplomatic victory are you talking about? Does it include hiring a cold-blooded maniac and making him even stronger then he was to let him kill much more effectively? If you want to be a good god then GET RID OF THAT VAMPIRE or stop pretending
Was it diplomatic to butcher a shitload of orcs and turning them into fungus zombies? No one proposed to convert them, nor by force nor by persuasion
Was it diplomatic to kill Justicars?
It's perfectly fine to use fear to force worshipers of wrong gods to think again for their own good (Else we'll need to kill them..)
It was not diplomatic to kill a bunch of Justicars. One does not play a entire game of Civ on one path either. does this mean you always have to go for the domination victory?
Laskus is an Evil unit, but having one follower be Evil in nature does not an evil god make. Laskus being a vampire does not make us evil. In fact, I don't remember him ever drinking blood, nor any sign of him burning in the sunlight. It's possible we cured him of vampirism and "gifted" him with lycanthropy. Remember we admonished him for infecting Mahers followers, not because we cared for Maher himself, not because we thought they would go his way, but because it was an assholish thing to do.
We don't convert by force. We've been quite adamant about that since the begining of the game. We convert our followers with flashy displays and a peaceful-ish life, by offering them what they want, not by threatening to take what they need.
We do not shirk from war. But having a strong military does not make you not diplomatic. Our military is defensive, and Laskus has thus far been put to use
saving lives. We don't convert by force. I oppose any movement to do so with the utmost of my ability.
If the goblins or orcs wish to come into our worship we will gladly recieve them. But it will be their own choice. After that first town, we don't ask for followers, we assume they will come to us. We're forming a center culture here, one that will continue to draw men and women from far away lands to see our wonders. We will become a shining beacon of freedom, equality, and innovation. Eccumenism is one of our main tenants, even.
We do not convert by force. To do so would be to tarnish everything we've done up to this point. Every good action we've made, wether to our followers or to others. I doubt many gods, even good gods, have helped followers of other gods without any promise of return. If we do so, our reputation will spread like wildfire. By simply
not asking them to convert, we will recive more conversions from all over. Let our village grow to a city, then a metropolis.
We've played a hundred games with the intent to kill, destroy, and conquer. Let's play one with the intent to grow, create, and liberate.