Realpolitik

Overview

World peace has broken out. At least that’s what all the papers say.

It’s a shame, really. You remember a time when oversight committees knew what to overlook, when black ops really were invisible, and a license to kill was worth more than the paper it wasn’t printed on. These days it’s all about brotherhood and the global economy, outsourcing and immigration, everybody’s fingers in everybody else’s pies for ever and ever, amen.

At least that’s what all the papers say. You know better, though.

You know that with the right political backing, or the right money in the right pockets, the resources you need can be ‘saved’ from the wrong parties. That the agendas your government needs to forward -- the people, places and events upon which your position in the world swings -- can be protected by any means.

And the agendas of your...competitors? The investigative reporter who’s asked the wrong questions? That third-world election that’s going to choose the wrong candidate? The location whose removal the future of your economy depends upon? They can all be fixed with a phone call, their poisonous influence neutralized by the simple activation of one of your many agents.

You know better. You know the power of politics divorced from mere ideology.

You know the meaning of Realpolitik.

Realpolitik is a fast-paced, tongue-in-cheek game of blackmail, backstabbing, and brinkmanship. Each player represents a dirty-tricks organization of a country, complete with their own funding and political clout. Each round, players draw an Agenda: a person, place or event that is of particular importance to their nation.

Player hire Agents to neutralize other country's Agendas (by smearing their good name, bribing the right officials, or simply kidnapping or killing the target) while protecting their own interests. The player who bests safeguards their own Agendas while removing their opponents, wins.

Realpolitik comes in a convenient storage envelope with:

105 cards: 25 Agents, 55 Actions, 20 Agendas, 5 Reference
1 instruction manual

To play, you'll need markers in two colors and a way to keep score (or markers in a third color).

Example of Play

Adam, Bradley, and Catherine are deep into a game of Realpolitik. Adam's ahead in points and so goes first during the Action phase, giving Bradley and Catherine a slight advantage since they'll be able to attack Adam after he's exhausted his resources... ♦

Several of Adam's agents were hunted last turn, and have been removed from the game, and he only has a few low-powered ones left, specifically Josephine Simoneaux, Elise Holloway, and Remi Traceflight. He's drawn the Trade Complex agenda this turn, which he'll need to protect.

He's decided to go after Bradley's Weapons Factory agenda. It's worth four points, which will put Bradley in the lead. By neutralizing it, Adam will gain the points instead. Unfortunately, since its value is 4, he'll need at least 4 points in an agent's skill in order to neutralize it.

Adam decides to have Josephine and Elise work in Tandem. He plays the card and activates both agents, then reveals that he'll be attempting to burn down the Weapons Factory using the Arson action.

Now, all the players get a chance to respond. Luckily, Bradley has the very clever Bruce Florez as one of his agents. Bruce has a 4 in Information Theory. Bradley plays the Mole card, and activates Bruce, revealing that Bruce has had an spy inside Adam's agency for months. The spy leaks information on the arson attempt to Bruce, allowing him to stop it.

Adam thinks for a bit. He's got a tough decision. He has a political action, Double Agent, that would allow him to stop Bruce's action and, if he chooses, take complete possession of the agent. The problem is that each action will cost him a point of political clout, and he's running low. Worse, his funding next turn will be directly based on his clout, so he'll have less money to hire agents he desperately needs.

Adam decides it's worth it. If he takes control of Florez, he'll have him to use next turn and won't need to hire new agents anyway. He plays the Double Agent card and pays two Political, revealing the Bruce has been working both sides and has decided to reveal himself, allow the Weapons Factory to burn, and then join Adam's side permenantly.

Bradley grumbles at this. He could try and prevent this by playing his Pulling Strings card, but that'd cost him three political, which he can't really afford. And he knows something Adam doesn't know...

Last turn, Bradley used his newly-safeguarded Cryptographic Breakthrough agenda to look at Catherine's hand. He knows she has something that could both help her, and knock down Adam. He gives Catherine a meaningful look, and then shrugs and tells Adam that he successfully neutralizes the Weapons Factory as it burns to the ground.

Adam's glee as he discards the Factory and takes his four points is short lived, however. Catherine smiles slyly and says that that while her organization understands Adam's actions, she rather afraid that her country's people do not. They see the attack on the Weapons Factory as an indication that Adam's country is out of control, and something really should be done about it

She plays the Casus Belli card as a reaction to Adam's action. She immediately neutralizes Adam's Trade Complex, which will net her three points.

Adam realizes that he just doesn't have the political clout to stop this, and looks desperately over at Bradley, who reveals that while he could pull strings to stop the attack, why on earth would he?

Adam is up four points, and Catherine is up three. It's now Bradley's turn, and he hopes with both Adam and Catherine down in political, he can pull off a little coup of his own...