195 - Forum Diplomacy Steel Rex

[Drogo]

GI ----> BL


Excellent!

My proposal is that we declare one another allies and then initiate a trade wherein there will be a code (the key to be listed here) communicating our preferred targets and we can go from there as a start.

i.e
14 food for 1 gold = attack GI
15 food for 1 gold = attack BL
16 food for 1 gold = declare all kingdoms allies and start a peace and love commune in Amberland

Of course none of those three specific options might be ideal

ST

[HeadHoncho]

GN-BL

Great Lord of Everything Between Land and Stars,

We are grateful for your response and confirm a non-aggression pact through the end of next summer [i.e. end-of-T25]. Good hunting, great Lord!

Best,
Bottlenose, for the Gnomes

[Drogo]

GI ----> WA

If it helps at all we can vacate Zarathon one month early for every time you are able to raise our King's influence (spell 481) with your mystical powers.

[Vulkar]

DW-BL

Lord of the Skies,

I'm grateful for your assurance that your Dragons are only passing through. Should you ever need some goats to feed your dragons just let me know as I'd be happy to assist.

King Oban

[Vulkar]

DW-GN

Bottlenose of the Gnome,

Had you advised us of the visit to the Mountains by your patrol I would have been most pleased to personally offer my hospitality to your heroes in the great halls of Hammerhold, alas I understand the discretion most adventurers prefer to exercise when travelling. Of course, such notification might have precluded a surprise encounter between our parties who are both on the same quest.

Although I'm grateful for your thoughtful offer for a high council bid I wish to decline as I have the means to raise issues myself. Moreover, I'm keenly interested in procuring whatever artifacts we may locate within the mountains. Our legs are short and we're not able to cover a great deal of ground, thus recovering what we may in our own territory is a priority strategic objective.

Despite my reasonable desire to pursue artifacts unfettered in my own region I'd propose a solution I hope you agree is fair. I propose that we both investigate the encounter and whoever is able to secure the artifact first has the rights to it. If, as you say, the artifact is of limited value to my kingdom, then I will negotiate a fair price for it, though would ask that I be permitted to retain the artifact until early summer so as to meet certain strategic objectives. Is that fair?

King Oban

[Vulkar]

My proposal is that we declare one another allies and then initiate a trade wherein there will be a code (the key to be listed here) communicating our preferred targets and we can go from there as a start.

I think that's a clever idea for communicating in secret, however one of the intentions of this particular game was to preclude secret communications and to encourage more of an open contest in a role-playing setting. Although I suggested this format, and HeadHoncho got this going, this is an experiment and I don't mean to dictate the specific do's and dont's, however a code for the purposes of secret collaboration very much defeats the purpose of the forum-only diplomacy. You may as well just communicate via private messaging.

[Drogo]

GI ----> DW

Maybe small Dwarf king don't like idea because Rock Head Giant find smart way to tell Black Dragon King he want to attack Dwarf Lord in Secret without Dwarf King knowing.

Oh, wait....


















Nevermind we say that, shhh!

[HeadHoncho]

GN-DW

Great King Oban,

I appreciate both the thoughtfulness and the goodwill present in your proposal. Knowing your goals, I believe I can make an acceptable counter-proposal.

1) I exclusively explore this sighting while you decline to do so and move away, and we both of course decline to harm each other.

2) This very month, I trade the Underworld a minor covert artifact I currently own, a dagger that helps with assassinations against a mythical creature called a Demon Prince who has not been sighted in our lands, but also helps a bit with general assassinations.

3) The Underworld would then trade the dagger to you the following month. You could hold onto that artifact until the end of mid-autumn [i.e. end-of-T15], and then you would trade it back to the Underworld in late autumn.

4) And I may then opt to buy the dagger back from the Underworld (with a fee for his brokering services as Dwarves and Gnomes cannot trade directly), or I may sell it to the Underworld for him to keep, in exchange for certain other considerations from him.

5) This way, you are guaranteed assistance (rather than merely have a chance at assistance) toward your strategic objectives, and I obtain the artifact I seek.

As a deal sweetener, if you are unable to secure another artifact by end-of-summer [i.e. end-of-T13], in exchange for a reasonable fee in order to compensate us for my King's time and the identity of an artifact that I am more reluctant to reveal, I would also arrange the loan of another artifact to you.

Would this be acceptable to you, Great King Oban?

Best,
Bottlenose, for the Gnomes

[Drogo]

But seriously, certainly happy to abide by the group preferred rules.

In full disclosure what I had in mind was a bit more comprehensive than I listed. Using 215 orders I would suggest each of two kingdoms send food to one another in an amount denoting a 1st target option, a 2nd target option and a suggested turn # for the attack. All this could be communicated by one 215 order each. One could make an argument that it is a form of in-game messaging but am happy to do it or not as the community decries.

[HeadHoncho]

OOC: I think it's a clever idea that I appreciated, which is why I didn't mention anything before, but I'm happy to defer to Vulkar as this is his brainchild, and/or the rest of the community if they have any strong feelings about it.