- Total War: Warhammer 40,000 battle product owner Dave Petry says the series' diplomacy will be present but "in a different form"
- He says players need to manage relationships with local forces and planetary governors to balance their reputation, renown, and suspicion
- Players will deal with planetary representatives and will have to manage their attitude towards them
Creative Assembly has confirmed that Total War: Warhammer 40,000's diplomacy system will affect players' standing with planetary governors and local forces, so they'll need to strategically manage relationships.
TechRadar Gaming recently caught up with battle product owner Dave Petry and lead designer Joy Dey at Gamescom to chat about the upcoming turn-based strategy game and what players can expect from the next installment.
Alongside a discussion about how player customization was a "must-have" in Total War: Warhammer 40,000, Petry said that the diplomacy that's a defining feature of the Total War series will also exist, especially within the Imperium, and players will be required to manage relationships with local forces and planetary governors to balance their reputation, renown, and suspicion.
"When it comes to diplomacy in 40,000, I think the focus is that the Imperium itself is an absolutely monstrous bureaucratic nightmare, effectively, and all of the arms of the Imperium need to communicate and coordinate in some fashion between one another too," Petry explained.
"So although there are going to be some factions which are extremely belligerent and extremely difficult to get on with, when you're dealing with, say, the Imperium, there are local forces and allies there that you also need to work with and get on board and make sure you get to where you need to get to. Space Marines are obviously incredibly powerful."
The developer also touched on the Astra Militarum, the largest military force in the universe, and being supported by them "means a level of negotiation with the Imperium itself and the local forces that you're fighting around."
"In a different form, diplomacy will be present," Petry said. "But when it comes to dealing with outright belligerents, they're obviously tricky points to get through."
Players will also need to deal with planetary representatives, Dey added, so players will have to manage their attitude towards them.
"There will be things they would like you to do," Dey said. "There will be things that they don't like that you do."
Petry added, "Planetary governors can be problematic, and how you manage them as a Space Marine, or in a Space Marine chapter, is kind of down to you. But it will then affect your renown or your reputation with the Imperium, and those things might not always align, which should put you in some fun spots."
Total War: Warhammer 40,000 launches in 2027 for PS5, Xbox Series X, Series S, and PC.
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