Psychology of Power and Greed

How a silly online game spotlights these human traits

Most of us have heard the name Genghis Khan; he drove fear into the hearts of many when he was the ruler of the Great Mongol Nation.

The Mongol Empire was the largest contiguous empire in history. The empire ruled during the 13th and 14th centuries.

Originating in present-day Mongolia in East Asia, the Mongol Empire at its height stretched from the Sea of Japan to parts of Eastern Europe, extending northward into parts of the Arctic. Wikipedia

He wasn’t the first person who wanted to conquer the world, and he may not be the last.

I play an online game called “Forge of Empires,” where you build a city and fight battles between guilds.

It’s similar to Medium in some ways.

The players are worldwide; we chat and exchange messages like Medium. Over time, you get to know some of the players' personalities even though I have never met them and know little about them.

While building and growing your city is an independent activity, the battleground is a group activity with other players. It is fascinating to observe the various human Psychology of my fellow players.

I would put the battleground players into one of three categories.

The Unifier

People who like to establish cooperation between their neighbors, where both parties share in increased rewards by working together.

Consider this the NATO of the game, working together for the benefit of the group.

The Neutral

Players who don’t generally attack their neighbors are not interested in establishing a co-op. They take a few provinces near their home base and stay neutral for the rest of the game.

The Aggressors

The aggressors are the Genghis Khan’s of gameplay. Like good old Genghis, they want to take over the world.

We know what happened to the Great Mongol Empire; it doesn’t exist.

Some people can’t learn the lessons of history.

I fall into the first category.

I will message my neighbors on the first day of the season to see if they would like to establish a co-op, which is mutually beneficial for both sides.

We establish the provinces we will “swap,” which means you own the province one day, and I own the province the next. That way, we both get the rewards when taking over the sector.

By planning this out, we can put buildings that lower our attrition during attacks, which is a bonus.

But all this requires coordination and working together.

I contacted “Shrimp Flavor Chips,” which is her screen name — my neighbor to the north. She was friendly and responded immediately. She is in the neutral camp.

She was not interested in a co-op, but she left me alone, and I left her alone.

Neutral can be nice.

My neighbor in the East, “Wawanesa,” reached out to me first. We established a friendly co-op and have worked together well the entire season.

I am in first place, and he is in second place. These results are from the mutually beneficial co-op.

Two of my neighbors fall into the Aggressor category. When I messaged them, there was total radio silence.

Which is what usually happens with the aggressors. They don’t respond, and the lack of communication creates confusion and misunderstandings.

Similar to what happens in life.

Despite their aggressive behavior, the two most aggressive guilds are currently in fourth and fifth place.

Aggressors like to use traps. Consider these land mines or improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in real life.

I never use them. They have a way of backfiring on the aggressor.

When you go to re-take a province, the land mines you laid now hurt you.

Just like in real life, the land mines kill your own people when you occupy the land taken.

Most players refrain from using the traps; it isn't good sportsmanship, and again, they can backfire.

They also use up large amounts of resources. Think military spending in real life.

But when you have the combination of a very aggressive guild, which is also a powerful guild, they can run the map.

And just like Gingus, that is the end of their empire. Once you own the map, there is nowhere else to go, and the season is over.

The aggressor has nothing more to gain.

Greed only works well in the short run, but Greed and Karma will adjust the scales.

While they have achieved first place, they shortchanged many possible rewards for themselves.

The aggressors feel a sense of power taking over others.

Much like some countries today.

War and conflicts continue around the world.

Even in my country, we spend $800 billion annually on the military.

I know we need defense, but I would love to see a world where we work together instead of against each other.

The possibilities to improve lives with 800 billion dollars are profound.

Working together is always the better choice.

But they never learn — both in Forge of Empires, the game, and the real world.

We might be better off if all the world's leaders were women.

I wrote a story about Claudia Sheinbaum potentially becoming the first President of Mexico. Link

But here is an interesting story from Carlyn Beccia that causes me some reservations about my premise.