How do Alliances Work?

[Bun]

I'll admit I'm new and stuck on the first human mission (that isn't the tutorial). The one where you're supposed to gain alliances and one of the kingdoms attacks you after you discover the others.

I apparently have an alliance with the other two, and even have my "request" set to alliance but... They don't seem to help in combat against the rogue kingdom, even if I open portals on them connecting the two.. This kingdom seems to destroy me, even on my day 656 save with 20k+ resources.

Maybe I'm just bad but... Help?

[Bun]

Also, the game mentions sending them gifts? How do you even do that?

[Bun]

Just an update, I pretty much took over the whole map, farmed resources before triggering event and just swarmed so I beat it but... Questions on diplomacy still kinda remain un-answered. Is Diplomacy only affecting how often they send gifts or somethign?

[DNLH]

That's weird when I played that map I was like a little kid trying to keep up with two adults, they wiped the enemy almost on their own.

Diplomacy in Driftland is currently an idea that a 4X/strategy game needs one, so it was added. Campaigns are scripted, so there's really no need for it there, and skirmishes are FFA, so even if you manage to ally someone it just means you have a temporary cease fire until you'll ultimately duke it out after you two wiped enemies out.

I'd love this aspect to be more fleshed out, but ultimately I'm not sure how well it would fit the game. I feel like scale is just too small to allow any proper diplomatic shenanigans and in the end peace never was an option. Maybe if there was some kind of mini-campaign option that would consist of going through couple of skirmishes with persistent AI players to see who captures most regions? That opens a whole can of its own worms, though.

Also, AFAIK, gifts mean that the request for resources will appear in diplomatic screen and you can send them by 'accepting offer'.

[Bun]

Awesome, thanks for the response on the gifts. Yeah, in that one they never even engaged the enemy, even after the enemy broke the alliance and declared war.

It definitely seems to be an afterthought (though not a negative one). Can definitely see scale being an issue to getting a good diplomacy system in though.

[DNLH]

I probably sounded quite negative while it wasn't my intention.

My fear is that it would require adding a whole 'pacifistic' layer of gameplay and the game could become unnecessarily bloated. The question is whether it's really needed? As shallow as the current diplomacy is, it fits the game loop. The 'non-violent' goals to win a game are even, imo, like signal for everyone else to band up on the leader, rather than actual victory conditions.

At its core Driftland is your usual RTS, a duel between war manufactories that spit out armies at each other. Heroes being out of your control just add some interesting volatility to the system, rather than altering it. I'm not even sure some deeper/additional mechanics can be added to it in a way that makes the game as competent as what it wants to be as it is currently.

I'm already wondering about how much the new DLC will alter the game. It will definitely be interesting thing to see.