[AMF]

This back and forth gets to what my point was, albeit I obviously didn;t make it clearly.

I come at this game from the perspective of a student of political science. Let me use an analogy from international relations to get at why these two views (Geoschmo & Chane's) are not actually contradictory from a game-play POV.

There are a wide variety of different theories that explain how nations interact with each other in an anarchic environment (ie: an environment without an overarhcing authority to enforce laws and order). These theories range from the various realisms to things like various institutionalist, constructivist, and other approaches.

Goeschmo is espousing an essentially realist POV: it's a harsh world out there and you do what you have to do to survive. Chane seems to be espousing more of a institutionalist/neo-liberal view wherein cooperation can lead to greater benefit to all parties.

So, in the exact same way that nations act different in reality, so do our Empires in SE4. And (this is the key here) the real challenge comes when one "mode of behaviour" has to deal with another: a nation/space empire that works for cooperation and non-zero sum outcomes MUST always be cognizant and prepared for that nation/space empire that does not. Until just recently, the US has been at the forefront of a instutionalist power, in which it played a key role in creating, supporting, and legitimizing the postwar system of alliances and interlocking economies - and this was a non-zero sum effort. HOWEVER, that does NOT mean that they could afford to ignore those nations that act in a zero-sum manner (north korea, etc...).

And that is why players with very different approaches can still interact in the same game, and it makes it even more interesting when they do.

I generally play the same type of empire, one that practices a neo-liberal non-zero sum approach. But, my empires, alas, almost always live in a universe where there are aggressive empires that thrive on conflict and practice realpolitik. The greatest pleasure is the politics involved in dealing with these empires. So, when Geo and Chane are in the same game, they really are practicing two different value systems that must interact in a anarchic (hobbesian) universe - the trick is doing that in ways that remain within their approaches. It's a study in philosophical interaction.

Off my rant.

Alarik