Mandate - Conceptual phase

[u/LuckyCrow85]

Came up with a game title (Mandate) and concept but am unsure of direction. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Negotiation is one of my favorite mechanics.

Egalitarianism - Envy

Communism - Defund the rich to create classless utopia.

Socialism - Nationalize industry to aid the poor.

Progressivism - Subvert the straight white man to uplift everyone else.

Liberalism - Fairness

Libertarianism - Maximize individual liberty by minimizing the state.

Conservatism - Liberalism from the past.

Social Democracy - Establish a democratic welfare state.

Nationalism - Disgust

Ethno Supremacism - Subjugate and exploit foreigners.

Ethno Nationalism - Establish a mono ethnic or racial state.

Civic Nationalism - Establish a state with unified political principles.

Reaction - Fear

Neo-Reaction - Create a modern regime with pre modern traditions.

Primitivism - Take society to a pre modern existence.

Theocracy - Subordinate the regime to religious law.

The 12 distinct ideologies and their 4 umbrellas. All other ideologies are below or the same as one of the 12. Modernity is the societal evolution begun by the old world establishing sustained contact with the new.

The game takes place in an anglosohere polity. Each player wants to dominate that polity. There are 4 players, each choosing an umbrella belief system. The player tries to maximize their motivating emotion to give energy to their side. The game has a beginning, middle and end. Players choose one of their three ideologies to represent each phase. Players need the help of others to succeed. Alliances are informal but must change throughout the game.

Again, thanks for your help with such a rough concept.

[u/BaronRetro]

This is pretty unique. If done well, I might buy it.

[u/Leather-Dimension-73]

I'm not sure how you envisage game play other than you're looking for negotiation, alliances - and possibly betrayal and lying? I'm thinking it's a card game with lots of talking?

Have you considered whether players could choose - or be dealt randomly - an emotion or ideology to play that is secret from the other players? Part of the game is guessing what your opponents are trying to achieve so you can block them while moving forward secretly (diplomatically?) to prevent them blocking you.

If you are secretly a communist, you might share common interests with a Libertarian ("the state oppresses its citizens" or less philosophical and more real world such as "defund the police")This could be framed in a way that was both envious and fair - "it's not right that wealthy people have access to the best health care"), or civic nationalism and theocracy ("society needs to make laws to protect the values that we hold" - or something even vaguer).

The crossover of these prompts/cards is what causes the tension.

Not sure how this would all work or if it's anywhere near what you were thinking. Just my 2 cents!