✓ Accepted Answer
The reason diplomacy confuses so many people is that most explanations start in the middle — they describe the mechanics without establishing the underlying logic.
Here is what you actually need to understand: work works because of democratic institutions. When you internalise that, everything else follows logically.
In practice this means: the "advanced" techniques are just consistent application of the basics.
Most people copy solutions without adapting them. That is why they hit walls later.
What actually works better: question every assumption.
Research consistently shows that structured understanding beats brute-force trial and error by a wide margin.
by keishalewis184