Keeping allies till you don't need them (AoE2 HD on Steam, 2013)

When I first got AoE2 I'd sometimes do games in which I was allies with the AI civilizations. I'd then build a complete city, then declare war. It was a different sort of game, more like Civ IV. I can't seem to get this to work with the Steam version, though. Allies demand tribute then declare war on me. I assume it's an AI change. I guess I could just start with more resources so I can give the tributes and keep them happy, but I wanted to see if anyone had thoughts on how to get this to work.