I've played a lot of Diplomacy in my day, and quite a bit via e-mail, and I must say that I was a bit disappointed in myself. I just have too much stuff going on to dedicate myself to the game. Usually I write and diplome until my fingers are sore. But not this time, and it showed.
But that is not to take anything away from Turkey or the other players who played and moved very well. Ian Bond intimated that he read some of my rather ancient playing guides and damn, I knew someday that would come and bite me in the rear. I hope not, but if one looked closely I'm sure you'd find I favor nailing the French when playing England.
The game started out fairly normally, with France moving to Picardy. As you may expect, my diplomacy with Germany, France, Russia, and Italy was where I concerned myself. Early on I negotiated for Belgium but France and I both went after it and bounced--I was hoping to get off to a quick start in this game.
The first year's builds stuck me as a bad omen when France built two fleets. Germany built two armies, and although this usually pleases England, I was fearful that Germany and France had worked out an early "I'll go by land and you go by sea" arrangement.
My fears of France's naval building caused me to seek out Germany as an ally. My feelers were warmly received and I powered into the Channel and dropped an army into Wales in order to deal with the French. This turned out to be an exceedingly poor move in hindsight. Germany grabbed Belgium for himself and moved his fleet to the Skag, sending off alarm bells in my head, which I promptly ignored and ordered an unsucessful attack on Brest.
I was hoping that Russia could keep my German "allies" in check if he turned out to be a back stabber. I felt that I should trust Germany. Having moved into the Channel, I also got the feeling that I had committed myself and needed to push through with my moves. Usually I can achieve sucess by orchestrating moves by other players. Here, I started to get lazy and didn't diplome very much at all. The results were predictable: Germany stabbed me by taking the North Sea and then convoying an army into England.
At this point, like any good diplomacy player, I had to survive and punish whomever stabbed me. It is important that no one directly benefit from stabbing one's power. So I scrambled to build an anti-German coalition. Russia participated at my urging, which probably saved me, because he was able to pick off German centers and offset German gains. It helped immensely that Germany also attacked France.
Germany basically bit off more than he could chew and his attack in the West went nowhere. But it doomed France and myself to years of fighting Germany while matters in the East proceeded in a Turkish fashion. I moved my pieces poorly, losing a year of time in mopping up the German army stranded in England and also diplomed poorly, spending too little time talking to the other players. I have a new girlfriend and what can I say?
Once Germany was beaten back, I would have liked to have given a go at some kind of Western alliance to at least achieve a draw in this game, which was reasonable. However, this entailed working with Germany, who, despite his anti-Turkish words, continued to move and build in an aggressive fashion towards me and France. Germany was still trifling with France when the Turk was well into double-digits in centers in 1911. What Germany was hoping to achieve at that point is a mystery. Ian's EOG statement is a bit misleading in that he makes it out to be my fault that no western pact rose up to fight Turkey. Checking e-mail traffic from this game (always save everything boys) and turn records tell a different story. I explicitly offered to sit back and do nothing, I also offered to do whatever Germany wanted, yet Germany continued to swim against the current. I think Russia's EOG is in agreement here.
By the time Germany got serious about forming a Western pact it was too late, especially mentally. I called for Turkish solo victories a couple of times and was disappointed that they weren't accepted. I accepted Turkish victory when Germany didn't get on board and took perverse delight in grabbing a couple of centers in the final turn to finish with more centers than any of the other losers.
I know it is self-serving, but I lay a lot of the "blame" for Turkey's win at Germany's feet. His tactical skill was great and he negotiated ruthlessly but fairly (never any bad blood between anyone in this game that I detected)--yet he continued to be hostile in the West when it was vital that he turn his attention to the East. In Russia's EOG statement he commended Germany for emptying out his country and going on an all out attack. Of course the all-out attack was in the wrong direction and the result of Germany's boldness, if it can be called that, was to make Turkey's win inevitable. The failure to get into anti-Turkish mode until the last minute crushed my spirit, no doubt.
I liked the fact that people in this game stabbed and were a little bit nasty and dishonest--it made the game fun, so don't anyone (especially Ian Bond--Germany) take my EOG the wrong way. I'm jsut reminded by Germany of how sometimes it is important to hang back a little, resisting the temptation to take a loose center in order to profit more in the long run. I'm also reminded of why I like being a middle rather than an edge power. Sometimes I was a real spectator, and that was the best I could do.
The Russian EOG asked why I didn't attack Germany sooner. The answer is that I still hoped someone sometime would get a stalemate line going. When it was clear that none would be formed I decided to grab a couple of centers just to be petty. When it was clear that Germany would not play ball against Turkey, Russia, France, and I (maybe the old Russia) decided to try and eliminate Germany as fast as we could and form our own stalemate line. But that was wishful thinking since we neither talked nor planned nor played very hard.
First of all, congratulations to Ruairidh and thanks to Mikko for a great game. Ian, I wish we could've buried the hatchet earlier. Scott, I wish it could've worked out better between us.
1901
>Turkey and Austria started fighting already, as Turkey drove Austria out of
>Rumania. Growth was modest, France took Iberia, England took Norway, Russia
>got Sweden, Germany got Denmark and Holland and Italy took Tunis. Turkey
>had a good start, gaining both Bulgaria and Rumania.
I decided to open very cautiously, sending overtures of peace to all three of my neighbors. Maybe it was a mistake, but I tried to play Germany and England off of each other, knowing that I had the key vote in what happens in the West.
1902
>Turkey grew stronger, occupying Sevastopol in the Fall. Germany managed to
>take Belgium and attacked France strongly.
I got attacked from all three sides in 1902. Let me tell you, that isn't fun. It took some quick maneuvering just to survive through 1904.
1903
>Only build was for Russia, who took Berlin from Germany. Germany balanced
>that taking Edinburgh. Austria-Hungary and Turkey fought together against
>Russia.
Germany tried to get me into the fight in England, but I had decided that I had to push Germany back. Really, that was the death knell for the Western defense. None of us could trust each other after 1903.
1904
>Germany moved from Edinburgh to Liverpool and regained Berlin.
>Austria-Hungary attacked Italy, but didn't manage to take Venice. Russian
>front didn't quite function.
I just tried to move Germany out of my territory. Germany and I really just didn't get along the rest of the game.
1905
>Austria screwed up a bit, taking Venice in Spring but leaving it in the
>Fall. Turkey stabbed Austria, trying to take Budapest and taking Greece.
>Germany took Sweden from Russia, Russia took Norway from England.
All I was looking to do was get Germany out of France. I kept telling him that we could still work together against the obvious threat of Turkey if he would only leave French soil. That was pretty much the story for the rest of the game.
I took over an Italy mercy pos w/ 3 centers, expanded briefly to 4 in an axis w/ Vienna, but then A-H seemed to lose the will to go on. New Russia went into the alliance w/ Turkey, instead of joining a coalition against.
Once A-H crumbled, and Rus sided w/ Turkey, it was a slow death for Italy. Not to indulge in self-congratulations, but I thought Italy did acceptably inlasting until the end.
I got into this game in a pretty bad position and pretty much did what I could to survive. My basic strategy was to make whatever peace I could with Turkey in order to hang on to what I had and pick up scraps wherever I could get them. Hopefully the Turk would be stopped somewhere in the Med and he would (worst case) bog down for a draw or (best case) divert too much an allow me to stab him ruthlessly. Unfortunately Turkey did not screw up and backstabbed me at the optimal time and rolled over my country. I was thinking of moving to UKR that critical season but decided to gamble that Turkey would buy my "willing to come in second" BS and hold off for another year. (Note: if in future games anybody on this board hears me say that I'm willing to come in second, kindly forget this EOG statement) I think that the rest of the board should have been united against Turkey far earlier than they were. For some reason the Ger, Fra, Eng squabble lasted far too long if it ever ended at all. I certainly didn't help the situation when I stormed into Germany but at that point the only way I could feel secure was to amass as much power where I could trust it which was in Moscow.
A few player specific notes:
Turkey: Nicely played. I think you could have just killed me off right away instead of letting me back in only to kill me later, but who am I to quarrel with a solo victor. I probably should have moved into UKR when you stabbed me and made some excuse but by that time my lies were wearing a bit thin...
England: This is the first game I played in for a long time in which England and Russial didn't get into a cat fight over Scandanavia. I have always thought that the optimal solution to Scandanavia was for England to let Russia have it provided that Nor is occupied by an army. I never saw the logic in putting a unit in Norway that takes two unit to defend unless England is totally intent on attacking Russia. Question, there were a couple of times you could have convoyed into Hol or Den or otherwised really nailed Germany. Why didn't you seize that opportunity?
Germany: I like your style. I have NEVER seen somebody empty out his country and attack with such abandon. You almost pulled it off. A bit of restraint probably would have been in order towards the end. When you attacked France after claiming to set up a stop Turkey alliance I figured that there would never be any united front unless you were destroyed so I barreled in hoping that I could build up before Turkey stabbed me, it probably gave Turkey the game but like you, I would rather take a chance at greatness than pray for a draw.
>1901
>Turkey and Austria started fighting already, as Turkey drove Austria out of
>Rumania. Growth was modest, France took Iberia, England took Norway, Russia
>got Sweden, Germany got Denmark and Holland and Italy took Tunis. Turkey
>had a good start, gaining both Bulgaria and Rumania.
It's hard remembering this so far back but here goes. I made an honest mistake and sent my prelim orders (I like to get them in early) to all players alerting everyone to my plan to attack Russia. I made the decision to stick with these moves and attempt to gain virtue with my neighbours by my honesty (and brass neck). Naturally Austria warmed to the idea while Russia was extremely wary. I had rough plans for the Fall which could mean an assault on Austria with Russia or vice versa. However there was only ever going to be one neighbour that was going to trust me and Austria and I duly designed our moves to give us both two centres and make it appear as if we were at war. I'm not sure how much people we sold on that and I'd appreciate your feedback. Anyway Fall1901 I thought it looked good for Austria and Turkey to take Russia by storm.
1902
>Turkey grew stronger, occupying Sevastopol in the Fall. Germany managed to
>take Belgium and attacked France strongly.
This went quite smoothly. Russia lost Sevastapol and Galica.
1903
>Only build was for Russia, who took Berlin from Germany. Germany balanced
>that taking Edinburgh. Austria-Hungary and Turkey fought together against
>Russia.
I can't quite remember what my grand design was at this stage but I remember being slightly disappointed that Russian gains in the north had meant he had troops to spare to keep Austria and I at bay and our attentions turned to Italy.
1904
>Germany moved from Edinburgh to Liverpool and regained Berlin.
>Austria-Hungary attacked Italy, but didn't manage to take Venice. Russian
>front didn't quite function.
I momentarily occupied Greece (making sure it stayed out of Italian hands) and duly left in the fall when the danger had passed. By now I had a firm plan of stabbing Austria but needed him to get his units out of the way first it was now a matter of timing. The slow and awkward progress of our Italian campaign worked in my favour here as he added my troops to the fray while my troops manned the Russian front in Galica.
1905
>Austria screwed up a bit, taking Venice in Spring but leaving it in the
>Fall. Turkey stabbed Austria, trying to take Budapest and taking Greece.
>Germany took Sweden from Russia, Russia took Norway from England.
1906
>Turkey took Moscow this turn, but suffered a small defeat in the
>Mediterranean. France and Germany fought hard on the French ground.
I was at risk hear of biting off more than I could chew and was a little lucky to get away with it my stab against Austria occurred while I was still heavily involved in fighting off the Russians. The timing was as good as I could hope for and I made my gains of Greece and Moscow with the Austrians and Russians in no position to counter attack without losing elsewhere.
1907
>Russia regained Moscow, but lost Warsaw. Turkey also exchanged Greece and
>Serbia with Austria. Austria managed to take Munich and Germany balanced
>that by taking Belgium. Russia took Sweden.
This was a period of consolidation for me and I'd realised I couldn't fight Russia and Austria together for long. I decided to offer Russia an olive branch and return Warsaw as a sweetener. Russia agreed.
1908
>Heavy troubles for Austria: in the Spring, Turkey moved to Vienna, Budapest
>and Greece. Austria also lost Munich. Russia took Warsaw back.
With the Russian deal in the bag I moved as much as I could against Austria. Having troops as far round as Warsaw (and not worried about defending anything beyond keeping a unit in Sevastapol) meant I was able to bearing a lot of force to bear and results were guaranteed.
1909
>Austria lost their last home center, but took Venice. Russia took Munich,
>but Germany took Brest from France.
1910
>Austria-Hungary was finally eliminated. Turkey also took Warsaw. Russia
>continued to consume Germany by taking Berlin, while Germany continued
>balancing that by taking Paris.
After 1908 I'd edged into a small lead and after eliminating Austria I'd moved further ahead. My nearest rivals were Germany, who had his hands full with France, and my new but vulnerable ally Russia. The decision to stab Russia so soon was based on that and the fact that with so many armies in Austria it was the only outlet they had and I could still advance against Italy. In fact I was getting quite confidant of victory now, certainly of being there for any draw, due to the lack of any other power of comparable size
1911
>Turkish strength kept growing: Moscow, Munich and Rome were added to the
>Ottoman Empire this turn. Russia took Kiel from Germany, but this turn
>Germans weren't able to balance by taking a French center.
By now all diplomacy had ceased and my only concern was not to get caught at a stalemate line. Still I was confident that even if all the powers united against me I could win. In the centre I could hold my position, with the loss of Berlin, but I had a large naval advantage I envisaged being able to push fleets through the straights of Gibraltar and into the Atlantic. Once this happened I felt sure I could make up my 18 centres.
1912
>During the Fall, defences were down so Turkey was able to take St.
>Petersburg - Naples was already doomed to fall into Turkish hands.
I didn't expect to win this turn and thanks for the mercifully swift end go to Germany for allowing me to take St Petersburg.
I put my victory down partly to a well played opening by myself, more than a little lucky but I was quite pleased how I managed to get the most out of early gaff, and partly down to the fact that no dominate power emerged from the west to block or defeat me, I reached 7 centres in 1905 and no other power ever had more than 6. I did feel bad about stabbing Austria as we had worked so well together through those early years. If we'd been different powers, say Turkey and Russia, I'd have been keen to keep the alliance going but I couldn't see how we could both grow with a stab becoming inevitable - sorry Austria. I have less reservations about the stab on Russia though as by then I was making a dash for glory and could see that my first win was within sight.
I'd like to just conclude by saying that it's incredible to think that this game has been going on for so long and all that time Mikko has done a fantastic job of keeping us to deadlines and moving the game along at a decent pace. Thanks to all of you for taking part, I've thoroughly enjoyed my first solo win.