This guide covers the Diplomacy system in The King’s Campaign, describing how it affects nations, what things affect diplomacy, and the actions you can take, with some additional information about vassals and how to interact with them
Diplomatic Relations
The diplomacy system in The King’s Campaign centres around Diplomatic Relations
All nations have Diplomatic Relations with each other nation
In the Diplomacy window, accessed by the Chancellor adviser on the world map, your diplomatic relations are shown as a value with ranges from -100 to 100 above the nation’s portrait at the bottom of Diplomacy window – with additional information shown for the currently selected nation in the main window.
Nations will declare war if diplomatic relations become too negative
Nations will declare peace once diplomatic relations become postive
The nation portraits in the diplomacy window show an icon if you are at war (crossed swords) or at peace. You can also see these icons on cities and armies on the world map, so you can tell at a glance who you are at war with.
Diplomatic relations can be affected by diplomatic actions you take or by who you attack or attacks you – not just the nation you interact with, but other nations too based on their alliances
Diplomatic Actions with other Nations
There are a number of diplomatic actions with other nations such as declaring war or suing for peace, and forging alliances of different types. These actions are found in the Diplomacy window, accessed by clicking on the Chancellor adviser on the world map, and then by clicking on the portrait of the nation you with to interact with
War
You can declare war upon any nation, however it will affect your relations with other nations depending on their alliances
Your vassal lords will begin attacking the cities of the nation with which you are at war
The lords of the nation you have declared war upon will begin attacking your nation’s cities
Peace
You can sue for peace at a cost, putting an end to hostilities, and it may affect your relations with other nations depending on their alliances
Your vassal lords will stop attacking the cities of the nation with which you are now at peace
The lords of the nation you have are at peace with will stop attacking your nation’s cities
White Peace
You call for a cease fire, putting an end to hostilities, but it may affect your standing with your own lords
Your vassal lords will stop attacking the cities of the nation with which you are now at peace
The lords of the nation you have are at peace with will stop attacking your nation’s cities
Military Alliance
There are a number of benefits to forming a Military Alliance with another nation
– Their armies may respond to a Call-to-Arms attack flags
– Allows your army to train units at their city
– You can add their nearby army as an ally for attack and defense battles
Defensive Alliance
There are a number of benefits to forming a Defensive Alliance with another nation
– Their armies may respond to a Call-to-Arms defense flags
– Allows your army to heal units at their city
– You can add their nearby army as an ally for defense battles
Trade Alliance
Your nations open up trade between your cities and you will get extra trade income based on how many cities there are in that nation
Diplomatic Actions with other Nations’ Lords
Sometimes you may not want to directly declare war or peace due to negative ramifications with other nations, so you might want to nudge a nation towards war or peace by influencing some of their lords
The actions available to you with other nations’ lords Send Gift, Hostile Intrigue, and Gift Territory
Send Gift
Send a gift of silver in an attempt to improve diplomatic relations
This may be useful if you want to push the nation closer towards suing for peace, without suing for peace yourself
Hostile Intrigue
Use silver to spread gossip and misinformation in an attempt to sabotage diplomatic relations
This may be useful if you want to push the nation closer towards declaring war, without declairing war yourself
Gift Territory
Gift one of your towns or hamlets to another Lord
This may be useful when an ally has lost a city and you re-capture it, you could give it back to them to improve relations and help maintain a buffer between you and more hostile nations
Diplomatic Actions with your Vassals
There are a number of actions you can take with your vassals in the Diplomacy window that focus on gifting or demanding silver or towns
Send Gift
Send a gift of silver
This can improve your vassals view of you
Gift Territory
Gift one of your towns or hamlets to another Lord
Giving one of your towns to a vassal will increase the chances of them creating armies andcan provide a buffer between you and your enemies
Demand Silver
The chosen lord will give you silver from their treasury, reduces standing with all lords
If your treasury is running low, you could demand one of your vassals give you silver, but it could sour their view of you
Demand Town
Select a town that lord will give to you, reduces standing with all lords
If you need a particular town, or are running out of cities, then you could demand one of your vassals give you one of their towns, but it could sour their view of you
Vassal Stances
There are three stances you can set for your vassals that dictate their behaviour, they are Passive, Serve, and Free
You can access them by clicking on one of your lords in the Diplomacy window which is opened by clicking the Chancellor adviser on the world map
Passive
This lord will not produce any armies and instead focus solely on developing their cities.
This is useful if you don’t want your vassals attacking so that you may do the attacking yourself.
Serve
This lord will produce armies at their cities and await your call to arms.
This is useful if you want to direct where your vassals send their armies.
Free
This lord is free to do whatever they choose.
This is useful if you don’t want to manage where your vassals attack, but still want them to try to capture territory
Call to Arms
You can direct the armies of your vassals and your allies, to some extent, by placing a Call-to-Arms flag on the world map
To place a Call-To-Arms flag, double click on an area of the world map where you want the flag, you will then be prompted if you want to Defend or Attack the area. There is a small cost in silver to place the flag.
Defend the Area
Vassals with the Serve stance or nations with whom you have formed a Defensive Alliance may send armies to this flag
Armies sent to this location will wait in the area until attacked
This is useful for intercepting attacking armies or having an ally nearby that you can call upon when defending a city
Attack the Area
Vassals with the Serve stance or nations with whom you have formed a Military Alliance may send armies to this flag
Armies sent to this location search for the nearest city they are at war with and attack them
This is useful for having your vassals or allies capture cities, weakening the city’s defenses so you can attack yourself later, or having an ally nearby that you can call upon when attacking a city
