What motivates NP races (and indeed races that players control)? A few initial suggestions on the motivations and what affects them:
1) Greed
a) For planets, value based on ease of access, defensibility, suitability for colonization, bonuses and size.
b) For tech, value based on cost to develop tech, usefulness (e.g. ability to colonise nearby planets, weapons that are useful against feared empires see "Fear" below)
c) Money, honey (or goods that allow social control, see relevant thread)
d) Recognition of claims to planets. Recognition could be postive ("We think you own this") or negative ("We don't own this and will not dispute that you do."). Granting positive recognition automatically voids any negative recognition you previously gave to third-party empires. If you grab something that you granted either type of recognition to that empire gest mad at you since you said it wasn't yours and you're grabbing it. The
2) Fear
a) size of other civs military
b) closeness of OC and OC military
c) threats made by OC (and threats ignored by OC)*
d) potential issues (e.g. planets both civs want to colonise).
e) military activity against own empire*
f) unjustified military activity against other empires, because if they attack without provocation
they might attack you.*#
g) negative: help defending against more 3rd party civs.
h) negative: submitting to threats
3) Anger
a) military activity against own empire*
b) military activity against other empires 1st empire has positive allegiance to
c) military activity that defends other empires 1st empire has negative allegiance to.
d) unjustified military activity against other empires*#
e) threats made by other civ
Gratitude
a) military assistance in recent war
b) good trade relations
c) gifts of tech or money
How that look for a start? Basically we want a system that gives can generate a value for any condition we put in a diplomatic offer for any civilisation. If the value of the conditions is a net positive then the empire probably agrees.
* Including in more than one motivation
# depends on degree of empathy towards empire.
Diplomacy motivations.
Moderator: Oberlus