[Suggestions] Diplomatic Currency

from Elemental Forums

Problem: Diplomacy doesn't feel fun. Diplomacy sounds as if it should require intelligence, intrigue, beguilement, etc; but it doesn't.  What it real boils down too is very simple abuse of the AI as it tries to fake interest in the world around itself. I enjoy it about as much as Frogboy enjoys tactical battles. 

Suggestion: Make is so you have diplomatic currency that can be spent as an either or scenario. I spend 10 diplomatic points and you either sign a trade treaty with me or your city gets 10% unrest for 10 turns.   I spend 30 diplomatic points and you either sign a trade treaty with me or your city gets 10% unrest for 30 turns. I spend 100 diplomatic points and you either sign a trade treaty with me or your city gets 10% unrest for the rest of the game. 

The rewards and consequences could scale and vary, but this would basically open up the AI actually having power to get you to sign treaties that are not necessarily in your best interest all because they have spent the time to become diplomatic instead of war focused. 

EWOM tried diplomatic currency, but it was completely a cheese tactic as I could care less how much currency the AI used in a deal with me, but they cared a lot if I put up a lot of points. My suggestion would make it so I actually cared because it is going to actually effect me.  

3,887 views 3 replies
Reply #1 from Elemental Forums Top

Yeah diplomatic currency seems a little underdeveloped.  Maybe could effect things like -

      -- Caravan efficiency, more peaceful trading civ

      -- Neutral hero costs

      -- Lose diplomatic currency for killing neutral heroes, sure to cause waves to kill heroic figures

      -- Perhaps some kind of bidding with currency on something.  Maybe like the guilds in Fall From Heaven/Civ with your vote weight being   weighted by the diplomatic currency.

 

Reply #2 from Elemental Forums Top

It already gives you special units, bonuses to diplomacy for having alot of it, and you can trade it for resources. I think just giving it a bigger bonus towards diplomacy would be a reasonable balance. 

Galactic Civilizations IV
Reply #3 from Elemental Forums Top

I dislike the entire concept of diplomatic capital, because it ruins immersion in the game. When using it, it reminds me, "Oh, this is just an AI, and I can use an artificial medium of exchange to exploit it to do something I want."

Keep diplomacy to gold, research, cities, units, etc., and I'd be much happier. Even bonuses/negatives to current relations would be fine. As it is, it feels too much like a game mechanic. I might think I'm actually talking to Relias for a moment. Then I see diplomatic capital, and it being just an AI in a game all comes back to me.