6 Player Game on the Metaserver

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We had a 6 player game on the Metaserver last night.
We assigned countries by random... *we pick an aimal and then roll the dice in the corner taking our animal when it shows up.
As a result Italy was the A/I person.

The game started with a few interesting opening choices:
Russia when to Silesia as France went to Burgundy and the Channel
England went north (Norwegean and North Sea)
Turkey went full north (Bul-Bla-Arm) and was bounced in the Black
Italy went south to Apulia and naples and the Tyr
While Austria covered Trieste and no one went to Galicia.

The Early game evolved into an Aus-Turk alliance against Russia
while Germany and England worked on Russia and France and Italy was
put under the anti-machine crusade of Austria.

The middle game period entered when there was a series of stabs from the west with Germany going against Austria, only to lose Munich to the French and the English attacked him in the north, while Turkey stabbed the Austrians...and the Italians circled the wagons in Naples and Apulia trying in a futiile attempt to get Venice back which was not happening even if the Austrian had to sacrafice Budapest to do it.

Then the Turks and the Austrians reconciled at about the time the Germans and the french thought they were reconciled with the British. Surprise, England womps on them both as Russia and France die in the same turn.

The End game sees Germany being squeezed when Turkey stabs Austria again
and the Austrians have to remove 3. England is now surging to 16 centers and is looking to win the game with Austria's help when Turkey and Germany (now down to a single nomad unit in Warsaw) decide to try to go for a draw and see if England can be stopped. A series of a few orders and England is stopped in the center and rolled back in the south losing Spain and Marseilles
and the Turks get out to the Mid Altantic with clear blue to the North which compensates for the loss of StPete to the English in the East.
So a 4 way draw was looking real good when German has to go and the A/I takes over for the one center German unit in Warsaw. It of course moves out to the Ukrain to cut the support of Moscow which England slips into.

Not being able to vote a draw while the AI was alive, we agree to kill Germany (*all A'I's must DIE) and we do so and the game is voted a draw between England (16) Austria (7) and Turkey (11).

This was a classic 3 power end game problem where if the power in the middle (in this case Austria) is attacked/stabbed it has the ability to throw the game to the other party. While there was a stalemate line formed in the center the Russian front and the Atlantic front were in full flux which made the game more of a strategic balance of power stalemate rather than a hard core East-West line stalemate (Spain-Germany-Scandinavia- Stp in the west for 17 centers) Tunis-Italy-Austria-War-Mos in the East for 17 centers)

 

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I very much enjoyed this game as it was my first taste of a multiplayer diplomacy game.

I am also happy to report that the game was stable and lasted nearly 4 hours.

I don't know if I can play many 4 hour games though.

I was Turkey and responsible for the stabbing. Twice Edi was able to change my mind, but the damage was done and a three way draw was the result, although we nearly lost to England. Being a newbie, I haven't experienced many endgame strategies, and apparently my stab was ill timed.

I was having trouble playing turkey and operating in a large horseshoe around my ally austria. Not wanting to be the victim of a stab which would have completely gutted me, I chose to stab first. But I think it came too late in the game when only England/Aust/Turkey were left.

I think a private chat would really help newbies learn the game, since it is much easier to explain intentions when typing.

 

[VILenin]

Cool, a six person mp game! That's what Dippy's all about. And I love the anti-machine crusade against the ai. I'm definitely gonna have to steal that for something.

 

[Brasidas]

How might Turkey have expanded/helped to block England if it had not made the final stab against Austria?

Trudging through St. Petersburg and Scandinavia? The Med?

 

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How might Turkey have expanded/helped to block England if it had not made the final stab against Austria?

Trudging through St. Petersburg and Scandinavia? The Med?

The med actually. Had my fleets adjacent to france.

 

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future expansion in this game

There was no doubt that if played as a rock solid what use to be called a
'Karma League" alliance from the 1960;s ((people who would never ever stab))
that the English could have been rolled back and in fact wiped out.

The Turks were in the Mid Atlantic with nothing to stop them from beyond.
The English position in France was weak and with that the ability to roll around
and break the center was very possible.

It would have been a long drawn out fight, but in tactical theory it was do able.

HOWEVER< this is Diplomacy and here is the problem that faces ALL three way power situations... as the game would have gone on, the roles of Austria and England would be reversed. Now it would be within England's arsenal to threaten to throw the game to which ever one did not agree to a three way draw.

also if the game had gone on, with Turkey having stabbed Austria twice (or was i three times...may attacked once and stabbed twice) the inclination of the player mix might have made the alliance break down as it approached the 14-14-6 position in centers.

That is what I liked about this particular game in that we had a strategic and diplomatic stalemate rather than the rather boring salemate line or a tactical stalemate where one power is at 17 and everyone else has to hold the line or else.

Any, glad you liked the write up... and remember when in doubt.. kill the AI.

Edi

 

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Since we played another 6 players game tonight, I think it belongs here (otherwise, feel free to ask to move it). It was a really interresting (and long) game where the AI was Italy.

I won't try to explain every moves of the game, only mine, but it would be interresting if every player could write a little something about their moves.

First, me (Russia) and Germany had a strong alliance against England. He let me got Sweden and Norway, while I helped him to get control of the waters against England. Then, him and France were able to take english provinces so England died rather quickly, almost at the same time as Italy (AI).

During that time, in the South, I started rather aggressive, but soon Austria and Turkey allied against me and I lost two boats in the same turn, which really hurt me at the begining. So, I was losing all my south provinces when me, Turkey and Germany made a offensive alliance against Austria because he became too big. In that turn, he went from 8 units to 4, so he suffered greatly, but survived.

After that Italy and England were gone, I knew that Germany would be back soon from the English provinces, so even if I desperatly tried to have an alliance with him, he crushed me in the north, while I lost control in the South. So the two Superpowers France and England (11 SC each, I think), allied themselves and pushed over our new alliance (Russia-Turkey-Austria). I lasted a couple of turns with only one unit, before falling down because of Germany.

After, it would have been a question of time before Germany-France would win, but Germany backstabbed France and he became really big with 15-16 SC. But France-Austria-Turkey allied themselves and after a couple of years they all voted a draw because the end would've never came, and after a rather long game (4h) it has became pointless.