Political Intrigue?

[Tinker Gnome]

I always hear this term used in different threads. What I want to know is what exactly is Political Intrigue?

 

[Prince of Happiness]

What I want to know is what exactly is Political Intrigue?

Intriguing politics.

[cynicism]It means sitting around a table talking about what you're going to do to X's (resources/henchmen/loved ones), and then talk to Y to do it for you, then talk about that. After that you wait for everyone else to talk their way through the same cycle until the DM's attention is back to you and you repeat your previous steps. After the game's over, you slap each other on the backs about what great roleplayers you are.[/cynicism]

Seriously, political intrigue is going to add a whole hell of a lot for you to work with as a DM, as PCs acquire influence and resources. Do you think the entrenched power structure or other powers are going to let just any snot-nosed brats rock the boat? Helllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll no! But...they're powerful snot-nosed brats with lots of money and goons. How do you chip away at that, while keeping yourself safe? Ah, that's where the intrigue comes in, as everyone tries to do as much as possible while letting as few as possible know about it.

Edited to add: Err, the above paragraph means I think it's great.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

DnD-style novels aren't much help here. Usually there's some plot involving a magic item. (Hmmm... I can trick Lord X into stealing this item for me. Heh heh.)

 

[RodneyThompson]

Wheels within wheels, my friend. If you know the meaning of that expression, that's what political intrigue is.

For me, it simply means that there is an element to your campaign that involves the social and political ramifications of your actions. It means that there are architects of complicated plots who weigh strength not only in martial terms but also in terms of both social skills and clout. It's not what monster you kill, but who you know. If you take my meaning.

 

[irdeggman]

Try the Birthright novels.

Of all the settings that one had the most intrigue, due to the domain level of play involved.

Backstabbing, assassinations, plots to overthrow the ruler - that is politcal intrige.

 

[William Ronald]

Try the Birthright novels.

Of all the settings that one had the most intrigue, due to the domain level of play involved.

Backstabbing, assassinations, plots to overthrow the ruler - that is politcal intrige.

This is in part correct. However, political intrigue can also involve characters trying to rise to prominence, and influence the movers and shakers in different countries. A topic that is related to political intrigue is diplomacy.

I would recommend some viewing of Babylon 5 on videotape, as there was a great deal of during the series. Different people will have different agendas, and a wise or skillful person can influence policies -- even if they are not directly running a country. Diplomacy and political intrigue can go together. A good scenario might be for PCs to try to influence a foreign ruler, while contending with plots from their own countrymen and some of the ruler's own subjects.

 

[MoogleEmpMog]

Political intrigue is when Mayor Arnsoff of the PCs home city of Geldburg hires them to investigate a plot between Malachai, Archbishop of Geldburg and Halbarad, Duke of Eastmark, to unseat King Reginald IX "The Just" of Lenoria.

Political intrigue is when Duke Halbarad is actually the king's most faithful servant and Archbishop Malachai is a loyal man of the cloth, and Mayor Arnsoff secretly wants to undermine their power to fuel the revolutionary party he is a closet adherent of.

Political intrigue in D&D is when King Reginald is actually a rakshasa, carefully manipulating the revolutionaries and the old nobility behind the scenes to weaken both groups and seize control of Lenoria.

Political intrigue in D&D is when Archbishop Malachai is being guided by a being he believes is an avatar of Pelor, but is actually a disguised Glabrezu working to bring down the rakshasa king, giving the Tanari an edge in the Blood War.

Political intrigue in D&D is when the PCs have to choose between enlightening one faction or another as to the real nature of their apparent ruler, or, alternately, to free the soul of the real King Reginald from its infernal prison so that with their help he can drive out demons and devils alike, bring down the plotters, reclaim his rightful throne, and give all of his rescuers duchies of their own.

Of course, that's a very simple scenario.

In a full-blown political intrigue game, all of these events would be taking place at the same time as the dwarven emperor of Kazak Arsuf, to whom all the minor kingdoms are nominally aligned, is holding a confernece in Lenoria with the lords of the elven and hobgoblin nomad kingdoms in an alliance against the human and orcish barbarians who threaten the alliance. Every faction hates every other faction but reluctantly works together, at least on the surface. And every faction has as complicated an internal struggle as Lenoria. And then there's the "mad" wizard Thandrialtos, who prophecies an aberration invasion from the Far Realms and is busily forming an undead army to oppose it, with the unspoken approval of Kazak Arsuf but without the knowledge of the alliance. Did we mention that his undead are taken from the ancestral burial grounds of the barbarians, hence their hostility to the dwarves? Or that Kazak Arsuf supports him because it has secretly lost 40% of its underground civilization to ilithids and beholders allied with the Far Realms? Or that even the demons and devils actually want to seal off the world to protect themselves from the portal opening beneath it?

Now, in four words or less, tell me whose side the PCs are expected to be on.

Answer in spoiler text below:

Spoiler

None of the above.

That's political intrigue in a D&D game.

 

[Prince of Happiness]

MoogleEmpMog:

I. Want. Play.

 

[coyote6]

Do be careful with the layers of intrigue; too many, and the players may just say, "$#(*& it! Kill them all, and take all their stuff!"

Or maybe that's just my group.

 

[MoogleEmpMog]

MoogleEmpMog:

I. Want. Play.

Ah, that's not an actual campaign. I just threw it together for explanatory purposes.


The most expansive political intrigue game I've ever run (or played in) is based somewhat off the console tactics RPG Final Fantasy Tactics.

Basically, the PCs are part of the royal secret police (the Black Sheep Knights) in the aftermath of the major war depicted in that game.

The king is a former assassin, spy and saboteur who schemed his way into power, then married the princess to secure his position. He assassinated the Grand Duke he allegedly served and framed his chief rival for leadership, but actually saved the latter's life by faking his execution. He took advantage of a separate plot to off the opposing side's leaders and consolidated power by appealing to the merchant class, but since taking the throne he's repealed his concessions to the merchants and established himself and the elected house of parliament with absolute central authority. He's isolating merchant, noble and peasant interests to keep them at each others throats. He's (unintentionally) driving his beloved wife insane with fear and loathing because she's discovering the depths of his plots. He's a criminal mastermind whose managed, by his cunning, his ruthlessness and his skill, to achieve total power over a nation.

He's also the good guy, the PCs' boss, and the last, best hope for his people.

If he fails to maintain his dictatorial power, foreign interests, the church, the rival nobles, the merchants, and proto-communist revolutionaries will tear the kingdom apart. And then one faction or another will probably unleash the army of nigh-invincible demons waiting to enslave all their souls.

Fortunately, every one of these factions hates every other faction almost as much as they hate the king. The PCs' job is to take advantage of that fact.

The Ivalice campaign is going well, so far. No spells to bog down battle, plenty of scheming and double-crossing, and some very fun fights - a Romandan agent battle 'killed' two PCs and the survivors barely managed to drag them out - good thing I'm using a "no combat deaths" houserule. Actually, that's come up several times.


However, a campaign of this complexity can be hell to run; I honestly wouldn't try it without a group of players I was very familiar with, and I probably wouldn't work from scratch on it. Using the already convoluted FFT base helped to set the tone, especially since two of the players had played the game and knew the strange, sordid backstory already.

EDIT: Aggh... non-linear posting kills me again. Fixed the left-out stuff.