Guide: Diplomacy

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Diplomacy is very important in the galaxy and therefore therefore this guide will cover the different forms of relationship which you can share with another colonist.

*'''Non-Aggression Pact (NAP)''' - This is the most basic treaty which prevents two colonists attacking each other. It means that if one of the parties have a ship or colony on Red Alert and the other flies into that sector, then there is no battle initiated. However, if one of you attempts to beam goods from each other, a battle is still initiated. If a Peace Treaty is signed between the same colonists, it automatically cancels the Non-Aggression Pact. It is possible to sign a secret Non-Aggression Pact so that no other colonists can see it.

*'''Peace Treaty (PT)''' - This is a stronger treaty than the NAP, but cannot be made "secret" to other colonists. It also means that if one of the parties have a ship or colony on Red Alert and the other flies into that sector, then there is no battle initiated. However, if one of you attempts to beam goods from each other, a battle is still initiated. A Peace Treaty is necessary to sign a Trade Agreement or a Military Alliance.

*'''Trade Agreement (TA)''' - To sign one of these one must already have a Peace Treaty signed. This treaty means that both parties can beam goods from each other without causing a battle. Also, Beam Protection Points no longer prevent the other colonist beaming away your goods since there is meant to be a strong bond of trust between the two. Therefore, be very careful about signing one of these in case they are a pirate who would abuse the treaty and be able to steal all of your goods without even a battle.

*'''Military Alliance (MA)''' - To sign one of these one must already have a Peace Treaty signed. This treaty means that both parties will automatically protect each other by attacking the aggressor so long as the aggressor is a non-treatied party. Without a Trade Agreement, beaming goods from each other does cause a battle.

*'''Ceasefire''' - Two warring colonists can sign a Ceasefire at any time. This is essentially a Non-Aggression Pact preventing both parties from attacking each other, although beaming from each other still causes a battle.

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There is such a thing as "Treaty Abuse" which is frowned upon in the galaxy. For example, using a Trade Agreement to beam away someone's goods or using a NAP or Peace Treaty to move a fleet into a sector without a battle and then drop the treaty and shooting. If you were to do this then no-one could trust you again and it is very likely that your alliance will kick you out or if you are independent that no alliance would trust you enough to offer you a place so in short I strongly recommend that you do not do this.
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Even with one of the above treaties, do not assume that it means you can enter the other colonist's orbit. It is courteous to '''<u>always ask permission before entering someone's orbit as otherwise it could be taken the wrong way and lead to problems.</u>'''<br>

The following diplomatic relationships are not treaties, but are methods of showing your support or criticism of the actions of another colonist.

*'''Solidarity''' - You can use this to show support for another colonist and/or increase their External Reputation. Each point of diplomatic influence used increases external reputation by 1 each tick.

*'''Criticism''' - You can use this to show dislike for another colonist and their actions. For every 1 Criticism declared, they lose 1 External Reputation per cycle. Be very careful with Criticism though as it could lead to War or you being counter-Criticised by that colonist and their friends.

*'''Denunciation''' - This is a slightly more complicated relationship. Anyone can denounce someone else for cancelling a treaty in the past. When you attempt to denounce someone, you get a long list of all the past treaties which have been cancelled and you can select one of these as a reason for your denouncement. Be careful and make sure that you select the right broken treaty. Denunciation reduces the External Reputation of the colonist who broke the treaty by 2 for each 1 influence you Denounce them by. Again, if you do this to someone it might cause a War.

*'''Condemnation of Aggression''' - You can use this to show your disagreement with a colonist for declaring war on another colonist. You will have to select which particular war you are condemning from a long list of current galactic wars. Be careful as condemning someone's war could lead to them declaring war on you.

*'''War''' - Anyone can declare war on anyone else so long as they do not share a treaty. Obviously, the recipient of the war declaration doesn't have a choice to accept or reject it! War means that even if a ship is set to '''Yellow Alert''', it will react as if it were set to '''Red Alert''' if the enemy enters the sector. It also reduces the External Reputation loss of destroying ships and buildings of that colonist.

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To access your Diplomatic status and sign/cancel treaties use your "<u>Communication</u>" panel and then select "<u>Diplomacy</u>".

External Reputation does not have a specific function, but it is an indication to other colonists how friendly or unfriendly they are. This is just an indication though and it can be distorted by mass criticism by someone who disliked them over something which happened a long time ago! External Reputation can be anywhere between -100,000 and 100,000. You will need positive External Reputation to have any "diplomatic influence" which allows you to declare Solidarity, Criticism, Denunciation or Condemnation.

To end, I would like to warn you that most wars are started from a disagreement on Main Chat so try not to annoy colonists or insult them!

May your colonies enjoy peace and prosperity.

<font size=1>Note: This guide originates from the '''Starfleet Academy Training Channel''' SCN 1720</font>