I have seem some reviews for ACKS (Adventurer Conqueror King System) and specifically that it supports dominion-level games.
I'd like to play in something like that if I could find one that was interesting.

I have dabbled a little in that style using the Pendragon system but it was hard to find people interested.

Is RPoL supportive of such? Is there a better place for them?
Maybe someone knows of a site that is all about this style?
Is there a better system to use than ACKS?
Do games all end up as soul sucking spreadsheets?

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If by Dominion level games you mean managing the affairs of a kingdom / duchy etc I think you would find a receptive audience.  ACKS does not strike me as a good vehicle, unless what you want to do is play AS the king on a day to day or hour to hour basis.

If you want to play kingdom against kingdom as it were that is a different level of abstraction and at some point it will be a resource management game, which is to say a spreadsheet game, combined with diplomacy.  What you won't do is play as your king leading troops into battle guarded only by his royal companions and rolling to hit with his family sword.

At a high level of abstraction is Lords of the Earth where each turn is 1-5 years long.  It is a game of dynasties.

Take it down a notch and GURPS Mass Combat combined with Cities will give you want you need to manage a kingdom on a more seasonal basis with shorter time frames for campaign season.

I was thinking along the lines of "Tribal Wars 2" but without the "Pay to Win" aspect and of course the "Real Time" rushing.

I would even be interested in "being a minister" for the king/lord if that was an option.
I've seen several systems that support that.
For example "Hellfrost" for Savage Worlds has a supplement for managing an income-producing resource, whether that is a noble’s domain, a guild, a mercantile enterprise, a temple, a mercenary company, or even a school.

That could be fun, in my opinion.
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If you're looking for games currently being made/played on RPoL, you'd want to use the Strategy genre filter.  Most games that are designed like what you seem to want (kingdom vs kingdom, as otghand described it) are listed under that genre.

In reply to Godzfirefly (msg # 4):

I've reviewed the offerings. Did you have one specifically in mind?
Not the game name (since that may violate a rule) but the system that is being used, so I can see how it plays by example(s)?
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I've been pondering this type of thing for a while, and no doubt I'll be pondering it for a while longer yet.

I see no reason why Rpol can't host such a game.

I've fallen foul of the spreadsheet trap in a previous attempt. It's difficult to avoid, but I'm convinced it can be done with the right rules. However, spreadsheets and abstraction are opposite ends of a continuum. The only way to avoid spreadsheets is to make the game simple and abstract enough that you don't need them.

I'd be interested to see if a game could be devised that would include a variety of scales so that you could play nation vs nation, but could also 'zoom in' on the actions of a king, earl or knight and his retinue on the field, and also focus on role-play scenes of court intrigue. Is that the sort of thing you meant?

'Diplomacy' is a nation vs nation board game that can definitely be played on Rpol, but it may be a bit more abstract than you're looking for.

What exactly do you want to include/exclude?

This message was deleted by a moderator, as it was against the forum rules, at 18:53, Wed 24 Sept 2014.

GreenTongue, I would imagine you could use something relatively free-form such as The Window for this if you care mostly about the comparable strengths and weaknesses of each dominion or resource or unit. Keeping things simple and keeping down the book-keeping seem good criteria for success

In reply to icosahedron152 (msg # 6):

Well, what I'd really like is a game like "Hinterland" by Tilted Mill but played with other people.
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(having just Googled the Wikipedia article) Ah, so more of a city/nation building exercise than intrigue and conflict between existing nations, then.

My only interest in building would be for a knight/landowner to increase his manor holdings and hence his power base, so I don't think our ideas are on a parallel course, though there could be some overlap.

However, I think both could work on Rpol, you just need to find the right rules and the right players.

In reply to icosahedron152 (msg # 10):

"a knight/landowner to increase his manor holdings and hence his power base"

I think Pendragon has a good system for that (Lordly Domains). I've looked it over and it seems it would work well for what you describe but, "you just need to find the right players."
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This message was added to by the user at 23:37, Thu 25 Sept 2014.

Thanks. I bought the Pendragon core rules years ago, but I'm a fan of freebie indie rules these days, with pages I can count on my fingers - especially for PbP games, where rules-lite fast play is essential.

In reply to icosahedron152 (msg # 12):

Have you seen "King of Dragon Pass" ?
http://kingofdragonpass.wikia...._of_Dragon_Pass_Wiki

A game where the players are the advisers and could have real influence on the "King" could be very interesting.
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No, I hadn't seen King of Dragon Pass, but although it's based on Runequest, an old pen and paper RPG, this seems to be a computer game.

The sort of game I have in mind is one where the players are the lords or ladies of one or several kingdoms and by means of court intrigue and/or battlefield glory are attempting to increase their power and holdings to the point where they might influence the outcome of international wars, either by supporting their lord or by switching sides, and they might even become powerful enough to make a bid for the crown. The kings would probably have to be NPCs to avoid imbalance.

Such a game would probably need three linked rulesets - one for personal role-play in intrigue or personal combat, one for skirmish combat on a battlefield, and one for map level strategic conquest. There would also need to be some form of economic base to determine the number of followers and amount of cash available, but this would need to be abstract enough to avoid spreadsheet tracking.

It's a computer game based on a board game, which preceded Runequest (so it's probably more correct to say that Runequest is based on that).

In reply to icosahedron152 (msg # 14):

What about something like "Intrigue"?
http://www.boardgamequest.com/intrigue//

Would an online version be playable?
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In reply to icosahedron152 (msg # 14):

The problem with this is always time scale.  The three levels you want to play at happen at such different time scales that it will be hard to keep playable.

I think an online version of anything is possible, but card-based games are harder to convert than most.

Time is a major problem to be solved in a multi-focus game, certainly. Compromise would be essential - only playing out the most important of intrigues rather than playing out daily life at the personal scale, and keeping the strategic rules simple enough that you can pick up after perhaps several months of real time between map moves.

In reply to otghand (msg # 17):

An Echo Resounding by Kevin Crawford is an interesting take on domain management.
May be dependent on "playing out" some of the "Actions". Not sure, just reviewing.
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The guy who wrote Stars Without Number? I'll nose through a few reviews of that myself. Thanks. :)

For something in the Diplomacy vein, I'd recommend taking a look at FactionRPG avialable (playable but still in progress) at factionrpg.com.

Another option is Wrath of the Autarch: https://sites.google.com/site/frontiergamedesign505/
This uses a derivative of Fate to run a game where players control and develop a stronghold/settlement and compete against the GM who represents not only the world's threats but an imperial mega-power (led by the Autarch) seeking to reclaim the players' stronghold. Seasons entail developing the stronghold and undertaking more standard rpg-like missions with a stable of PC heroes (used in troupe play format). Missions involve a narrative phase, then a mini-game depending on the mission type and desired outcome.
This message was last edited by a moderator, as it was against the forum rules, at 16:33, Wed 15 Oct 2014.

In reply to atminn (msg # 21):

Wrath of the Autarch does sound interesting. Thanks for the link.
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If you are not dead set on fantasy setting and want to watch you players come up with elaborate conspiracy style death for eachother then you can try Paranoia as high clearance citizens. Even as high programmers.