Ironclad Games has kept Sins of a Solar Empire 2 fans well fed since the release of the space strategy sequel late last year, providing a frequent influx of updates and DLC. In the last twelve months, Ironclad has introduced features like new scenarios, population mechanics, better tutorials and improved debris visuals for prettier battle aftermaths. Now, a new update takes aim at one of the RTS' weakest areas of play, that trickiest of 4X systems to implement—diplomacy.
The Diplomatic Repercussions update aims to make negotiation a more interesting and viable path to victory. As Ironclad explains in a new video, at the heart of this overhaul is a significant AI rework. NPC factions have had their brains rewired to make them both smarter and friendlier than they were before. They're more likely to form alliances and forgive past transgressions, but also more tactically adept on the battlefield should diplomacy fail.
These changes tie into a substantial economy overhaul aimed at encouraging diplomatic approaches. To summarise, planets no longer generate resources by default, with resource production instead based upon population. Hence, if a planet's population takes a big hit through, say, you conquering it and killing everybody, it'll be a long time before that planet prospers financially again.
According to Ironclad, the goal here is to make war "economically ruinous", thereby making acquiring territory through diplomacy a more palatable option. That said, there's still plenty of ways for military minded players to exercise their fists. Orbital mining stations now provide much higher economic boosts than before, meaning that destroying and raiding these structures will make a much bigger dent on enemy finances
As for how you can exploit these changes diplomatically, the diplomacy menu now shows critical modifiers to your diplomatic offers, such as how likely a faction is to accept a proposal and what changes to research and relationship status it will have. In addition, players can trade influence points as a resource when making agreements, or use them to purchase intelligence that will shed light on a faction's progression status.
Elsewhere, the update adds several new quick-start options that let players begin the game with planets, fleets, and other bonuses. The research and tech-tree menus have been redesigned to reduce clutter and make them more readable. And Ironclad has livened up the galaxy by adding decorative orbital shuttles that ferry between planets. Fancy!
These changes should help address our resident galactic warlord Fraser Brown's main complaint about Sins 2, namely that diplomacy rarely felt meaningful. "I found the AI largely disinterested in engaging with the barebones system, even when I offered stupid amounts of cash and resources," he wrote in his Sins of a Solar Empire 2 review. He still thought it was a brilliant game by and large, however. "When it comes to pure war, nobody does it better."
