KaRei said:
I think that Mowers had in mind to remove sliders and replace them only with some sort of indicators that would show your situation in land.
By removing of direct control he ment that only your decisions (like in events) would form your DP. His idea was that the game would recognize your style of government.
I didn't know how to rewrite his idea to another form (more clear), so it is mostly recopied.
Thats exactly how I envisage it.
As countries evolve as does the magnetic north for "sliders". As countries are always changing due to technology and socially the magnetic north would always be changing regardless of whether you follow the same strategy.
As it happens bradius there are some very simple spectrum games which model this sort of problem in files that are 218K, (
http://www.volny.cz/tom-cat/dictator/eng/dictator.htm#stahovadlo ) so not terribly complex
My Concept
A solution needs to be kept relatively simple and to avoid constant vicky style micro management. A system that gives one basic historical tools and presents (perhaps in an abstract manner) historical problems. A system where various power blocks within your state compete for power between themselves and with you against a gradually evolving backdrop of social and technical change. The gameplay would be managing the changing situation and ensuring that the pace of change is neither to slow nor to fast to avoid "civil war" type scenarios. Indeed there will be times when you are unable to avoid "clashes" or make unpleasant calls. This then provides the internal context which provides a lense through which you associate and relate to other powers. Something that was sorely lacking to date.
I am suggesting we remove the ahistoric, unrealistic and rather tedious existing "internal dynamics" that exist in Eu2 and replace it with my alternative (or varient of) whilst ensuring that doesnt do the following
1) require more in game time to manage
2) Require constant micro management (ie its geared to big events)
Exact details
I would suggest that the gameplay driver is a combination of various proposals that can randomly develop put to the ruler by the various different social factions (each with their own political, religous, military, economic influence ratings) that invariably have a no win answer (each answer will change one or more factions political, military, religous and economic ratings in various combinations) creating tensions that will rise and fall against a backdrop of various issues such as:
1) Your economic development and rate of change (inculsive of trade patterns)
2) Cultural and governmental development and rate of change
3) Vassal and foreign relationship status
4) External/ internal religious development
5) Trade patterns
6) Technological development
7) Relative tension amoungst factions and/ or the ruler
8) Relative changes in military power
Thus we get the following sorts of events happening:
Guilds want greater control over trade, you dont. If you give the guilds what they want they are more loyal, support you militarily (oh yes the merchant class is key in this period to providing military funds and equipment) and will give you a larger proportion of the income.
The downside is that it will annoy other countries, restrict the flow of trade in the long term, restrict the flow of "technology", perhaps annoy the class called "petty nobles" and perhaps even cause an economic clash with another external power.
You have defined the "sliders" through your own actions. Whatever decision you make the effect will have a different outcome 100 years later because the "guilds" for technological reasons dont have so much power or the trade route concerned is much bigger than it was before or the "petty nobles" are now a key part of the military who you cant afford to annoy because you are at war etc etc
