How do you RP your MegaCorp?

[Quinzal]

Simply out of virtue of what it is, a MegaCorp doesn't really feel like it would have a lot of motivations beyond "We make money and eat natural resources", as evidenced by the few MegaCorp presets having bios that are slight variations on "Space Bezos bought out the government of [homeworld] and sought to exploit the resources and labor of foreign worlds so that he may one day take a 5-minute joyride into the Shroud".

I love MegaCorp gameplay, and one day aspire to have a playthrough culminating in me becoming a Galactic CEO, but I find it hard to get very far in a game because, if I can't RP, I can't immerse myself in the game. Call me a dork, but that's how I've always played Stellaris.

My best MegaCorp RP empire was something along the lines of 'after evolving on the ruined capital of a long-departed empire, this species became fascinated with alien relics, trading them as valuables and commodities until someone got the bright idea to leave the homeworld to look for more', but even that seemed a little meh.

So, what have you guys come up with?

 

[Aelisa]

I think they have good roleplay potential, but you kind of have to treat them like fanatic authoritarian or some of the other morally 'questionable' ethics/civics combinations. You're not necessarily playing as the good guys. You're playing as (varying degrees of) ruthless capitalists out to make Energy Credits. I really enjoy Gospel of the Masses and Criminal Heritage from an RP standpoint personally. Look to Star Wars for examples of the latter (like the Hutts), while the former is the best way to really spread your religion (while also making money). Arab traders of the Indian Ocean spring to mind for a historical example.

 

[Pancakelord]

I love MegaCorp gameplay

What do you specifically love about it? Genuine curiosity here.

Pulling from IRL the possibilities for corporations are:

• Dynastic Corporations (e.g. some of South Korea's Multinational Chaebol) - not really possible in vanilla.
• Cooperatives (essentially a corporate democracy) - not really possible in vanilla.
• Benevolent corporations (imagine all the PR crap put out by corporations was actually happening)
• Evil corporations (e.g. the colonial-era East India Trading Company) - the most common ones in stellaris (though I'd argue that current MCs aren't really good or evil, as you cant destroy ecosystems or bankrupt empires, manipulate markets etc, most bad things they do, normal empires can do too)

You can build themes around each - pro-machine, pro-spiritualist, pro-pmc/military etc. But fundamentally those are the 4 archetypes for MCs.

 

[Quinzal]

What do you specifically love about it? Genuine curiosity here.

Branch Offices have always felt like a pretty unique mechanic, but that might just be me. Having a small territory and using other empires to 'expand' seems like good fun.

 

[GloatingSwine]

The one I have that I'm happy with is Gospel of the Masses/Media Conglomerate. Televangelists took over the world, now they're taking over space and they need your donations.

 

[Bisur]

Weyland-Yutani... Building Better Worlds

Basically just roleplay as an Evil Corporation.

 

[Surimi]

I would think about the different meanings 'corporation' might have in an alien society.

One of my oldest custom empires (I first created them long before megacorps existed in the game) are the Okari Corporate Sector. They're peaceful sloths who formed a clan based society, and relied heavily on trade and intermarriage with neighbouring clans to survive. Okari "corporations" are outgrowths of their clan structures, and are essentially giant families, even if they're no longer all blood related. The empire itself is a confederation of all the recognized corporations (a trade league, in game terms). They aren't ruthless space capitalists out for money at any cost so much as a tribal confederation who see trade and exchange as the natural way to interact with other clans, settle disputes and carry out politics.

Just as a weird aside, for some reason whenever these guys show up as AI in my games they end up being one of the most successful AI empires. I have no idea why.

It's an alien society, so there's no reason a corporation has to look like an earth corporation. Even in game terms, it can be a subversive cult or a weirdly profit-focused religion.

 

[Farbros]

Intergalactic Human Conglomerate living at Standford Torus and ruled by Elon Musk

 

[Eled the Worm Tamer]

I have 2 corps I play with any frequency. The...[cough] "Universal Church of Eled" guided (they would say eled ) by the 'Eledest' and founded on the notion of my forum postings in various places being so radically popular that a planet spanning religion emulating my viewpoints becomes the dominant political force.

The other the Terran Trade Authority ( egalitarian fan Xenophiles) I see less as a megacorp and more as a squalling tumult of interdependent smaller concerns. I do things like rename factions to be subsidiaries, name habs, ringworld segments and notable planets for component concerns.

 

[FuzzyLogic]

When creating a MegaCorp, I usually try to stay away from the "greedy evil corporation" clichè, and try to aim for something else. This one I actually finished a game with, and it was one of my most entertaining Stellaris runs ever. The UTD is an alliance of independent trading posts whose main trade is providing repair facilities, fuel, supplies and entertainment for passing vessels. The UTD rarely if ever gets involved in the wider political game, and will provide their services whether you're a daring explorer, a keen scientist or an aspiring galactic conqueror... as long as you've got the credits, that is. Basically, they operate the gas stations and rest stops of the galaxy.

The only thing that kept my run with this corp from being absolutely perfect is the inability to bargain for open borders. Had I been able to charge others for moving through my territory, this Corp would have played exactly as I envisioned them.

 

[MateuszS]

I have 3 corporations; aside something like @FuzzyLogic's UTD (also xenophile void dwellers) there are:
- fan. spiritualist egalitarians with gospel of the masses and death cult
- fan, materialist authoritarians with mastercraft inc.
Basically polar opposites.

 

[Dragatus]

@Pancakelord I'd argue that the distinction between benevolent and evil megacorps in Stellaris doesn't really apply because we make that distinction through the lens of our own personal ethics. A better distinction would be between megacorps that are honest about their values and megacorps that are faking their values, either to keep their own populace in line or make it easier to deal with other empires. But that again doesn't work in Stellaris because everyone can see your ethics, so all we have is the genuine megacorp.

It might be funny though if we could have megacorps faking their ethics and we could play a pacifistic megacorporation pretending to be warlike to keep its Klingon population happy.

 

[Bezborg]

Gungai Galactic Consortium. Frogs.

Leader title is Boss, name is Nass. Planet Otoh Gunga.

Weak, thrifty, intelligent, non-adaptive.

They use droids for anything not research or trade related. Domestic servitude.

Ethics vary, depending on my mood. Frequently I take xenophobe so I can name a species Jar Jar and eat them like live-stock.

I alternate ascension paths too. Mostly 1 level of synthetic, cyborgs only. Sometimes hypno toads, brainwashing the galaxy into giving you money.

Always: single planet, ecumenopolis. Never more than one planet. The gigantic centre of galactic trade.

I modded the arcology districts for megacorp, and modded a special building, “great chamber of commerce”. Guess what it does.

That’s my rp

 

[metalosse]

Start with merchant guilds, and reform into a megacorp. This makes the RP much easier and you can adapt it.

 

[Eled the Worm Tamer]

Start with merchant guilds, and reform into a megacorp. This makes the RP much easier and you can adapt it.

Also far fewer other megacorps.

 

[Greykrest]

Surprised no one mentioned a golden megacorp RP opportunity: the merchant republic. Think renaissance Venice or Genoa.

I understand it's not a perfect one-to-one because those were still states ruled by political leaders rather than a CEO or board of directors, but you can name your ruler title whatever you want, and it's easy to roleplay as a benevolent or at least neutral party whose wealth comes from being an economic middleman or a fortuitous geographical position.

 

[drawar]

benevolent or at least neutral party

Think renaissance Venice or Genoa.

I live in peace on the quiet edge of the galaxy and I sell gold-priced alloys on the market to finance my deficit (origin ringworld + cybrex, techno cost * 5, luckily I was able to have a gaia and 2 relics world) or to buy favors...

I voted urgently for the resolution to fight against the two awakened empires, but I live in peace as a recluse. (Corporate Hedonism + fanatic xenophobe + pacifist )

Finally, I develop and prepare, but in fact, I am probably doomed ... with the crisis * 25 XD (I would have put thruster in my ringworlds and habitats to escape the galaxy by carrying some solar systems, but my engineers are apparently not competent enough for that.)
I am going to have to move soon, obviously, in good “Italian of a merchant republic”, I anarch by monetizing my intervention by the nomination in custodians...

I think other empires will understand how Byzantines and Latin states felt...

 

[Tamwin5]

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(originally made for a RP MP game, but could be played in single player. Just go for custodian, and sign lots of independence guarantees).

 

[Zenicetus]

Something I haven't tried yet but have thought about for RP value is Niven's "Pierson's Puppeteers" as a mercantile concept.

Puppeteers are cowardly but diplomatic, with an economy based on high-tech trade with other aliens. You'd probably play them Tall with lots of habitats instead of Wide expansionists. You'd have a major focus on tech research for both defense and RP reasons. They would also manipulate other races with espionage, but that's not working so well in the current game.

What would break the RP immersion is the need for a combat fleet for defense, because Puppeteers don't fight, they run. The leader is called "The Hindmost." Maybe that could be hand-waved as mercenaries or robots.

 

[Cry_Havok]

I do a lot of peaceful traders, f-xenophile pacifists who want to spread culture and commerce without war. See the galaxy with purpose, but that purpose is not violence.

I envision egalitarian megacorps as co-ops, where a dominant business/sector subsumed the state (like the military-industrial complex if militarist) and while the government works like a corporation, on the ground level it would feel like a normal nation-state

In my last game where I became a megacorp I rp that as the government restructuring itself in the model of a more successful nation to emulate its success (mechanically it was because it was easier to reform government than fight criminal branch offices)