The Nature of Alliances

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Over my years of playing Diplomacy I've found there to be a few types of players I encounter when it comes to alliances

1. The Best Friend: This is the player that once allied with somebody they are allied to the bitter end. Backstabbing is foriegn to this player, they would prefer to end the game at the point that their "alliance" has "won". Betray this player and he or she will dedicate the rest of the game to taking you out no matter what it costs him or her.

2. The Backstabber: This is the guy or gal you can trust as far as you can throw them. While nessecity may dictate trusting them for a turn or two, one must always watch their back around this player. The Backstabber generally assumes everyone else has as black a heart as he or she, and therefore is better suited emotionally to handle setbacks (betrayals) ... as they are expected.

3. The Lapdog: Often The Best Friend falls into this catagory ... This player tends to be the one to go to when you need to get something done ... without risking your own precious resources. Easily manipulated the lapdog generally ends up overextending him or herself and smashed to pieces

4. The Manipulator (also known as the PuppetMaster): This player is the opposite of The Lapdog and often has a Best Friend player , a Lapdog player or a combination of both in his or her pocket for most of the game. The Manipulator loves to get his or her "friends" to take the risky actions .... and is usually the first to capitalize on his or her allies troubles.

Feel free to add onto the list!

 

[november]

5. The Propagandists This player attempts to hypnotize his opponents into believing that back is white and red is green. His usual speel is to whine and complain about how screwed he is and how little he can effect the games outcome. When effective, his opponents won't bother to count his score as the game progresses--until too late.

A lot depends on the venue. In the anonymous web, players may take on roles that they otherwise wouldn't if they were playing with same people all the time, like in a club or clan.

 

[PJL]

5. The Propagandists This player attempts to hypnotize his opponents into believing that back is white and red is green. His usual speel is to whine and complain about how screwed he is and how little he can effect the games outcome. When effective, his opponents won't bother to count his score as the game progresses--until too late.

I can see Barnius being right at home being this type of player. Years of EU2 playing has honed his skills to perfection!
:rofl: :rofl:

 

[Auspend]

6.) The Nuisance: This is the guy that you go for first, but can't quite wipe out. He's left with just one or two units left wandering around Europe wrecking everyone's plans, and will often hire out his services to anyone who enjoys making chaos as much as he.

btw, I personally like to be a combination of 4 and 5.

 

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7. The Wheeler and Dealer -- This type of player excels in situations where he or she has a unit or two next door to a raging conflict. Often making promises he or she can't keep to BOTH sides (I'll support you here, you give me this, and we'll do that) in the conflict, the wheeler and dealer is pretty much the Ferengi of Diplomacy. You can almost be certain when negotating with the Wheeler and Dealer that you are getting the worse end of the bargain.

 

[Moltke]

8.) The bigot who hates a particular country and his entire goal is to annihilate whomever is controlling said nation. Usually Russia is the victim of this chap in my experience.

 

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9)The Zealot ... This is a player of strong beliefs ... and whoe to the player that makes an action that injures the Zealot's sense of what's right. The Zealot will make that player pay .... the Zealot doesn't play to win .... the Zealot plays to enforce his or her sense of right and wrong on every player in the game. The Zealot's alliances are not about victory ... they are about retribution ... making other player's pay for the wrong's the Zealot perceives those players to have done. One thing you can be sure of ... as long as the Zealot has one supply centre left he or she will work towards the destruction of any who have trangressed his or her code of honour.

 

[David E. Cohen]

What about the player who will be any or all of the above, often simultaneously to different players, in order to win?

 

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10. Cohenite? :rofl:

But keep going guys - I'm rather enjoying this list (Having met a few of these)

 

[David E. Cohen]

Thank you.

10. Cohenite? :rofl:

But keep going guys - I'm rather enjoying this list (Having met a few of these)

 

[Moltke]

11.) Beggar - The Beggar shows no shame in asking for a one sided favor. Ususally a first timer (though not always) who doesn't understand the finer points of diplomacy. (i.e. Nothing is free...) The Beggar makes for easy prey.

 

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12) The Admiral: This is the guy that whines and whines at the start that he absolutely MUST play England with Italy being his second choice. No matter what Power he plays you can be REST assured this player will spend most of the game building as big a navy as possible. This is the player that brags for half the game about his superior navy stretched halfway across the map ... and then loses half his or her supply centres in one turn because he or she neglected to build enough armies.
The key to getting the Admiral to do one's bidding is simple ... constantly compliment his navy. Better yet offer to "protect" his supply centre's while his navy is away ... (and then crush him). =)

 

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13) The Professor - Nobody plays a game as brilliantly as the professor, at least, according to the Professor. The professor is quick to offer you "the only smart way" to order your troops this turn, and yet they always seem to benefit him, often at the expense of your own position. But to question then "betrays your ignorance about the game" and dire predictions are made that you "simply do not understand the game". The professor hates to be questioned, and pointing out things that appear to be inconsistencies such as "If you stab France NOW, you can wipe him out of the game and you will win" made just a few moments before "France is perfectly poised to completely wipe you out of the game right NOW if you do not stab him" (Clarification: When, for example, you border no French units nor supply centers, nor do the French border any of yours!) are met with "disgust at your incompetence".


I have found that, even when the professor IS right, players still are reluctant to listen to him or work with him, as their personal annoyance biases their strategic vision.

 

[Evans]

14. The entrepreneur- will make an alliance and stay faithful to it until it serves no useful purpose, but not neccessarily being followed up by a backstab. Tries to play other nations against eachother and profit from the distractions, however if outnumbered will hold on as tenaciously as possible - the sort of Jack of all trades and mix and match of almost all above that I strive to be Especially as Russia or Austria (and i've never been anyone but bloody Russia or Austria :rofl:!)

 

[Olaus Petrus]

15. Last man standing
This type of player doesn't accept a minor setback. He is willing to risk his whole game to keep strategic positions he wants to keep, even when there's no point of doing so. He is the "German army won't retreat from Stalingrad" -type of player. Minor conflicts with this kind of player usually grow to big wars of annihilation and it ends only when you or him are completly wiped out. Even if all players ally against him he will keep fighting, because he wont accept defeat and when he realize that he is going to lose he will fight as long as he can and try to cause as much damage to others as he could. If you are allied with this sort of player and betray him he takes it as personal insult and will attack against you as soon he can.

 

[Mettermrck]

What do you call the nice guy who doesn't bother anyone in the beginning, makes deals, acquires more centers, until he's suddenly the most powerful guy in the game and the remainder gang up on, simply because he was nice and built up quietly? Not that this has ever happened to me. Nice Guy, then.

 

[Evans]

What do you call the nice guy who doesn't bother anyone in the beginning, makes deals, acquires more centers, until he's suddenly the most powerful guy in the game and the remainder gang up on, simply because he was nice and built up quietly? Not that this has ever happened to me. Nice Guy, then.

You call him a sane italy player.

 

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Germany often finds itself in that position as well. =)

 

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16. The Machine

This player doesnt speak a word. He sits sliently and doesnt bother speaking to other players. However, on the board he pulls off moves that will "wow 'em" all and is frighteningly effecient at his conquest. However, this uncompassionate player often finds him or herself the "Evil force that must be stopped!" and is the propagandist's best weapon against other players.

 

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17. The Nationalist
this guy has to play as a specific nation and if he doesn't get to he will fight to the bitter end for the nation that he wanted to be forgeting completelyt about his own nation