GAME MANUAL - Steam

HEARTS OF IRON DARKEST HOURNational RelationshipsDarkest Hour uses adiplomatic model thatassumes that each nation inthe world has a specific viewabout every other nation in theworld, and that any twonations are capable ofconducting at least some levelof diplomacy. The success orfailure of a diplomatic action,as well as the diplomaticoptions that may be available,will depend on the relationshipvalue that exists between thetwo nations.When you select a country inthe Diplomacy Folder, you willsee your current relationshipvalue with that nationdisplayed near the top of thescreen. This value indicatesgenerally how that nation“feels” about you and canrange between -200 (youdetest one another) and +200(you’re the best of friends).Although you cannot view anation’s relationship valueswith other nations in the world,these are tracked and willmodify the diplomatic activitiesbetween AI-controlled nations.Nations with similar governmenttypes will tend to be veryfriendly towards one another,as will nations who are jointmembers of an alliance.Your relationship with acountry will affect thediplomatic options available toyou and will also impact on thelikelihood of a proposal beingaccepted. Alliances areusually limited to nations thathave a very good relationship,at least at the time that thealliance is first formed, andtrade deals and negotiateddeals are far more likely to bemet with a favourableresponse if your nations areon friendly terms. Somediplomatic options arespecifically designed toimprove relationships betweennations, while others arealmost guaranteed to result ina worsening of this value. Inmost cases, a relationship willimprove when a diplomaticproposal is accepted, thusopening the door to furtherinteractions, and will worsen ifit is declined. The other factorthat affects internationalrelationships is each nation’sbelligerence.BelligerenceEvery nation has a belligerencevalue that is displayedbelow the relationship value.Think of this as a specialmeans used to measure andevaluate each nation’s actions.The more actively aggressiveyou are, the higher this valuewill become. Entering intowars without provocation,annexing countries, beingcaught red-handed whenattempting espionage, andsimilar activities will tend tomake other nations think ofyou as belligerent and adanger to their continuedsurvival. Freeing nations fromoppression or even justkeeping a low profile over asignificant period of time willtend to make nations think ofyou as being more friendlyand trustworthy. Each of theseactions or inactions will alteryour belligerence value andaffect your diplomacy.The most visible result of ahigh belligerence value is toexert a continuous downwardpressure on your relationshipvalues with other nations.Even your closest allies willbegin to view you with somedegree of suspicion,overcoming the normalbonuses that apply to thatrelationship. Neutral countrieswill tend to dislike you ratherintensely, and enemies willbecome committed to yourdestruction. If you allow yourbelligerence to reach epiclevels, you could even findthat the entire world suddenlybecomes obsessed with yourdestruction.A less obvious effect is that alimit is placed on democracieswhere they may not declarewar unless the “target” nationhas a sufficiently highbelligerence value and thedemocracy has a strongenough policy of intervention.These factors are weighted,meaning that the moredemocratic a nation is and theless it leans towards interventionism,the higher therequired belligerence value ofa target nation needs to be inorder for the democracy todeclare war.Other than going out of yourway to free nations that youhave already conquered, youcan reduce your own belligerencevalue by being on yourbest behaviour for a prolongedperiod of time. If you do thisfor long enough, theinternational community willslowly forgive and forget yourprevious transgressions andyour belligerence value willslowly decrease.75