RPGs focused on negotiations?

[Magnificate]

Are there such RPGs? I'm looking for something where the protagonist is some sort of an envoy, diplomat or negotiatior and his goals are meant to be achieved via non-leathal means.

 

[Filthy Sauce]

Its sort of an arpg, but you might try 'Inquisitor'

 

[Siveon]

Age of Decadence.

The upcoming No Truce with the Furies also seems to be right up your alley.

 

[Magnificate]

Its sort of an arpg, but you might try 'Inquisitor'

I'll see it.

Age of Decadence.

I've tried it already, but in this case it's not the thing I'm looking for. AoD is too unfocused, while there are questlines dealing with negotiations they ultimately don't matter.

 

[Deleted member 7219]

Tyranny.

 

[pippin]

It's not that good, or at least not as good or unique as it premise originally promised, but Unrest is based upon conversational skills.

 

[Kalin]

Its sort of an arpg, but you might try 'Inquisitor'

I'll see it.

Age of Decadence.

I've tried it already, but in this case it's not the thing I'm looking for. AoD is too unfocused, while there are questlines dealing with negotiations they ultimately don't matter.

It sounds like you missed out. There are a lot of negotiations to engage in as a diplomatic character, more so than in any other crpg I've played. It is particularly common if you play as a merchant or praetor, but even in other factions you can broker alliances between the power players, provided your relevant stats and skills are high enough, of course. In the end, you can significantly alter the political landscape and typically land yourself a nice position in whatever regime you guide to dominance.

 

[Darth Roxor]

robust negotiations in aod aka go to the quest guy and press the option with the [persuasion] tag

significantly alter the political landscape aka get a token ending slide

 

[SCO]

Geneforge series.

Although, really, i wouldn't call rpgs 'work for a faction and try not to piss of the others' negotiation per-se, that is what you'll get on most rpgs that give even a fig leaf at faction system interactions beyond 'here is a group, hostile/neutral/ally'.

 

[Neanderthal]

Ultima 6.

 

[makiavelli747]

Dead state

 

[SausageInYourFace]

Not technically an RPG but I enjoyed the negotiations in Larian's Dragon Commander a lot. You are a ruler and have to appease different allied races with various different stances on political issues. You hear the opinions of your various advisors and then make a political decision. Not really negotiations actually, because the beliefs of most people are static - though you can on occasion change someones mind, such as your spouses after a political marriage. Depending on your decisions your standing with these races change which usually has consequences - e.g. not being able to raise a lot of troops from a race you pissed off.

Man, that game was underrated, I really hope it'll get a sequel one day.

 

[IncendiaryDevice]

Are there such RPGs? I'm looking for something where the protagonist is some sort of an envoy, diplomat or negotiatior and his goals are meant to be achieved via non-leathal means.

You'll have to elaborate more.

I can imagine such a thing being possible in a strategy game, as the game will be designed around having some form of diplomacy to govern strategy, but for an RPG I'm not entirely sure how you can negotiate with a wild Wyvern jumping out a hedge and eating you to death. Games like Dragon Age: Origins (and any faction-based game really, such as the afore mentioned Geneforge) have it so that you negotiate with sects towards some greater goal, but the format of the game will still be killing things for exp. How do you expect exp to function in your imagined game? Exp for avoiding combat? If so, wouldn't combat itself be a fail state?

What games have you played which mark some kind of example of what you mean?

If you've just invented a desire without experience, how are you imagining the game playing out?

 

[JarlFrank]

Arcanum has some cool negotiation quests, and unlike AoD it doesn't show you which dialogue options are the best ones.
Persuasion master quest in Arcanum is glorious.

 

[Ranarama]

Tyranny.

By rights Tyranny *should have been* a contender for this. But you can't negotiate jack shit. Technically speaking you're told you're an envoy and investigator, but the game is a series of combat encounters.

 

[CyberWhale]

Shin Megami Tensei?

 

[anvi]

You guys like such boring things.

 

[oscar]

Unrest is largely this and it's quite well-done with serious C&C.

 

[Magnificate]

It sounds like you missed out. [...] It is particularly common if you play as a merchant or praetor, but even in other factions you can broker alliances between the power players, provided your relevant stats and skills are high enough, of course.

Yes, I've played as Praetor, but in the end the game funneled me to the Temple just as it did with other classes. My services as Praetor weren't important in the end, because the choices in the ending overshadowed them.

You'll have to elaborate more.

OK, I'll use some made-up examples. The game I want to play is called The Versailles Envoy, takes place in 1919, wherein I play as some guy from the French delegation seeking to inflict maximum punishment to Germany, or perhaps I play as some German diplomat who seeks to gain recognition and avoid the dictate. To that end the character gathers information, prepares his arguments, seeks out and gains access to VIPs and attempts to convince them. There are various endings, each with different map of post-war Europe. All that can be transplanted to fantasy or sci-fi settings.

How do you expect exp to function in your imagined game?

Irrelevant. I mean, I wouldn't mind if the character sheet would be reduced to some Background Traits chosen at the start of the game.

 

[JarlFrank]

It sounds like you missed out. [...] It is particularly common if you play as a merchant or praetor, but even in other factions you can broker alliances between the power players, provided your relevant stats and skills are high enough, of course.

Yes, I've played as Praetor, but in the end the game funneled me to the Temple just as it did with other classes. My services as Praetor weren't important in the end, because the choices in the ending overshadowed them.

You'll have to elaborate more.

OK, I'll use some made-up examples. The game I want to play is called The Versailles Envoy, takes place in 1919, wherein I play as some guy from the French delegation seeking to inflict maximum punishment to Germany, or perhaps I play as some German diplomat who seeks to gain recognition and avoid the dictate. To that end the character gathers information, prepares his arguments, seeks out and gains access to VIPs and attempts to convince them. There are various endings, each with different map of post-war Europe. All that can be transplanted to fantasy or sci-fi settings.

How do you expect exp to function in your imagined game?

Irrelevant. I mean, I wouldn't mind if the character sheet would be reduced to some Background Traits chosen at the start of the game.

That sounds more like some kind of adventure game than RPG, to be honest. You'd be more likely to find what you seek in that genre.

I haven't played it but read some stuff on the Codex about a game that might fit your ticket: some 90s DOS game called KGB

 

[Kalin]

KGB isn't like that at all, nor are the Geneforge games. Closest you get is Age of Decadence.

 

[Comte]

King of Dragon Pass

 

[ragnor]

Maybe Chris Crawfords games might suit your needs, like Trust&Betrayal or Balance of Power. They are not RPGs but from what i read about them they might be what you are looking for.

 

[Sordid MCA/Prosper Hybryd]

Depression Quest

 

[Siobhan]

Kind of interesting to see what some people want in their games. My job involves some minor negotiations once in a while, and that is already enough of a turn-off that I'd never want to see it as a core component of a game. It also strikes me as something that no game will do well until strong AI and language technology make some significant leaps. Unless you just want some kind of scripted, abstracted system like the hacking mini-game in Deus Ex or, well, most implementations of small-scale turn-based combat. But then you'd just have a tactics game with a negotiation-skin.