| DC 211: GM EoG - former.trout (Jun 16, 2009, 9:09 pm) |
Just to be fair to everyone - the brilliant use of Rule 8 was at Matt's suggestion. I had vaguely considered it - but it was at Matt's urging that it was put into action. I can't really take credit for it - I'm not that smart. =)
Apologies for not getting an EOG out. Time and tides, as they say...
Thanks for the game, all.
Trout
On Tue, Jun 16, 2009 at 10:34 AM, Adam Martin-Schwarze <smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com ([email]smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com[/email])> wrote:
Well, I think we’ve gotten just about all the scattered player EoGs that are going to roll in, especially with Lytton and Trout moving into new phases with life (or at least with DC). So, now it’s the GM's turn to share reflections.
I said this in my end of game announcement, but it bears repeating: the seven of you made this game easy to GM. There were a few scattered NMRs, it is true; however, for the most part, I could rely on having all orders in my inbox on time. Thank you for you dedication and your high level of play.
This game has led me to a hypothesis, and I can argue both sides.
H0: while amusing and distracting, seismic rules don’t really change the game.
The logic is Nathan Bedford Forrest’s: “I got there firstest with the mostest men.” It seems to me that Diplomacy follows the same principle, and in DC 211, the wisdom still applied. Once they established their alliance, EF always pointed eastward with concentrated force, while the AR alliance – which at one point outnumbered the EF – had scattered eastern remnants that did not arrive at the front until too late. Occasionally, I would squint at the board and say, “if I transfer the pieces onto a standard board, is this position really any different?” Generally, the answer was: not too much.
A couple of you stated or inferred that Turkey was able to slow his demise with his seismics (1906? Really?). I have myself mused whether the existence of seismic rules sped or slowed the erosion of AR territory. It’s hard to tell. While I suspect there was no great change, I would guess things were slower (though, to be fair, the game would likely have ended in a draw without the Seismics, and you cannot get much slower than that).
There were no rogue units behind enemy lines in this game (though that French fleet in Ionian likely was about to become one). And inversely, there was some ferocious amassing of force both in Berlin and Rome. Failed 5:5 attacks! Predictable for the variant, I suppose, but it always staggered my imagination. So, in this one-game sample size, the seismic rules appear to have favored a plodding and methodical crushing advance. But maybe that was just Matt’s style of play permeating the board… or the even balance of alliances. (Then again, maybe players divided evenly in fear of being on the wrong side of a seismics power imbalance).
On the other side of the argument, I think it is clear that the seismic rules potently influenced the game. In a standard game, this game would have, should have, and most certainly in some parallel universe did end with a four-way draw astraddle the StP-Tunis stalemate line. But shifting borders meant that the position could not actually stalemate.
Plus, I did observe some nice streamlining strategies using seismics. In Fall 1901, a lot of alliances used seismics to create safe zones (splitting Brest from the Channel; Belgium from the North Sea; and Trieste from the Adriatic). Also, for awhile, Mike and Steve tried to coordinate seismics one front at a time in order to provide a push. I was surprised not to see more of that. (Steve’s hope to encircle an AR sanctuary had less success).
I never did see anybody submit a mischief seismic (for example, what if Russia had tried “Iri/NAt split; MAt/Lvp join”? Surely that could have created trouble between EF? I’m thinking to make seismics anonymous in my next game in order to promote more mischief). Nobody tried to isolate a territory and reconnect it (for example, landing a fleet in Syria, isolating it in OUT, and then reattaching it to MAt). And I didn’t see EF try to help out Turkey via seismics in exchange for his ongoing seismics.
Still, in the end, I believe the human and strategic elements of the game far outweighed the cute rules modifications. It’s certainly hard to ferret out the effects of the one from the other. And those elements were? In my opinion:
(1) The Austrian stab of Italy. I found it interesting that Mike was unabashed about his stab of Greg, because (along with #2), I think this is where he lost the game (though to be fair, it could also have produced a win… one must gamble if one wants victory). Without the stab, outnumbered in troops and seismics, EF loses. Games often boil down to major gambles like this. I’m sure both Mike and Greg are sorry that this had to be the gamble.
(2) Miscommunications and Steve. Specifically, there was the German misorder in S1905 that eliminated the Kaiser from the game. It’s all the difference between HOL and HEL. But as the order clearly said HEL, there was nothing I could do. Also, there was the Abbott and Costello routine whereby Steve attacked Denmark and Mike supported him to hold. It cost them Berlin and arguably the game. Steve might have fared very well in this game but for these two costly blunders, but we’ll never know.
(3) No navies. There were a few decisions in this game that confused me. For instance, on the last seismic, why didn’t Matt order “Gre/Tri split; Ser/Ion join”? It would have carved Gre/Bul/Con off from the rest of Austria’s territory and made easy, easy pickings. The position around GoL was secure enough to allow for it. For that matter, somewhere along the line, I thought Mike should connect Tus/Spa, close the strait, and (at least termporarily) lock those French fleets in Tys/GoL. Russia’s S1906 Seismic also baffled me. I know Steve was trying to protect against “StP/Nwy split; Swe/Bar join” (which would’ve created a strait that funneled English fleets into Barents). The better move was “StP/Swe split; Fin/Nwy join”, which provides Russian counterpressure on Norway and forces England to re-open the road to Barents before making progress.
But I digress. My point was going to be about the games second biggest strategic decision (next to Mike’s stab of Greg). I’m talking about Steve’s decision in W1906 to build an army in Moscow instead of a fleet. Trout had just connected Moscow to GoB (which I thought was also a mistake), and Steve now had the chance to build a fleet in Moscow to help counteract that pesky English fleet locked in GoB/Bal. For the next two game years, that English fleet would operate alone in those chilly waters unhampered by Russia and unaided by other English fleets. Worse, after W1906 and for the rest of the game, Russia got absolutely pounded by England’s fleets. Difference maker? Yeah. Navies: they’re a good thing.
Matt’s EoG leads me to ponder more openly: does Seismic Dip augment the influence of fleets? Armies can never float on water, but fleets can always go to land – provided that the land has a coast. But with so many borders, I suspect it is easier to connect land to water than to keep it high and dry and coast-less. In Standard Dip, fleets are restricted by the existing coastline and various bottlenecks, but Seismic Dip unbinds the fleets. Regardless of whether fleets are more powerful in the variant, the EF fleet strategy was a master stroke in this game.
(4) Guile. As is common in Dip, one ‘weak’ player creates a dynamic. Guile’s opening year featured unconventional moves and unproductive seismics resulting in no builds. He became a target (much like me in my first ever game of Diplomacy when I let Italy convince me that Greece was an Italian center in 1901 and not Austrian… I died quickly). When a player operates like this, neighbors are left with two courses of action. The more common is what Trout and Matt did – gobble up the centers for oenself. The less common is what Steve did in modified form, and it is a course I prefer to advocate (even if I don’t always do it): take the newbie under your wing. First of all, it tends to lead to strong alliances with good future prospects for stabbing (because they don’t know not to trust me, in spite of that long rusty blood-encrusted dagger in my hand); I have a near-solo and a shared board top to show for this strategy. Second, at least as importantly, it gives the new player a positive experience of the game and teaches them a hell of a lot about how to play the game. And we do want people to come back. So, there’s a little moralizing for you… though it’s easy to argue that Matt and Trout won this game because they abused the German position, and it’s certainly hard to argue with success.
Okay. On to a couple closing thoughts. There were some brilliant seismics. No doubt Trout’s use of Rule 8 to switch his fleet from the Skagerrak coast of Sweden to the Baltic coast was a total and devastating triumph. A++. I also liked Greg’s decision (while in NAf) to connect NAf to Portugal, thus delaying the inevitable French ouster. I didn’t see that one coming. There were many other good moves, but those are the ones that come to mind.
I am not ready to give up on isthmus rules yet, but they appeared to confuse. Most often, they were simply overlooked, and straits were created when they were not intended (or vice versa). I will have to work harder on educating players about isthmus options in the next game, because I think the game is better with them than without.
I look forward to GMing all of you again in another game of seismic. I really enjoyed this one.
Adam
[Reply] |
| DC 211: GM EoG - AceRimmer (Jun 16, 2009, 11:34 am) |
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Well, I think we’ve gotten just about all the scattered player EoGs that are going to roll in, especially with Lytton and Trout moving into new phases with life (or at least with DC). So, now it’s the GM's turn to share reflections.
I said this in my end of game announcement, but it bears repeating: the seven of you made this game easy to GM. There were a few scattered NMRs, it is true; however, for the most part, I could rely on having all orders in my inbox on time. Thank you for you dedication and your high level of play.
This game has led me to a hypothesis, and I can argue both sides.
H0: while amusing and distracting, seismic rules don’t really change the game.
The logic is Nathan Bedford Forrest’s: “I got there firstest with the mostest men.†It seems to me that Diplomacy follows the same principle, and in DC 211, the wisdom still applied. Once they established their alliance, EF always pointed eastward with concentrated force, while the AR alliance – which at one point outnumbered the EF – had scattered eastern remnants that did not arrive at the front until too late. Occasionally, I would squint at the board and say, “if I transfer the pieces onto a standard board, is this position really any different?†Generally, the answer was: not too much.
A couple of you stated or inferred that Turkey was able to slow his demise with his seismics (1906? Really?). I have myself mused whether the existence of seismic rules sped or slowed the erosion of AR territory. It’s hard to tell. While I suspect there was no great change, I would guess things were slower (though, to be fair, the game would likely have ended in a draw without the Seismics, and you cannot get much slower than that).
There were no rogue units behind enemy lines in this game (though that French fleet in Ionian likely was about to become one). And inversely, there was some ferocious amassing of force both in Berlin and Rome. Failed 5:5 attacks! Predictable for the variant, I suppose, but it always staggered my imagination. So, in this one-game sample size, the seismic rules appear to have favored a plodding and methodical crushing advance. But maybe that was just Matt’s style of play permeating the board… or the even balance of alliances. (Then again, maybe players divided evenly in fear of being on the wrong side of a seismics power imbalance).
On the other side of the argument, I think it is clear that the seismic rules potently influenced the game. In a standard game, this game would have, should have, and most certainly in some parallel universe did end with a four-way draw astraddle the StP-Tunis stalemate line. But shifting borders meant that the position could not actually stalemate.
Plus, I did observe some nice streamlining strategies using seismics. In Fall 1901, a lot of alliances used seismics to create safe zones (splitting Brest from the Channel; Belgium from the North Sea; and Trieste from the Adriatic). Also, for awhile, Mike and Steve tried to coordinate seismics one front at a time in order to provide a push. I was surprised not to see more of that. (Steve’s hope to encircle an AR sanctuary had less success).
I never did see anybody submit a mischief seismic (for example, what if Russia had tried “Iri/NAt split; MAt/Lvp join� Surely that could have created trouble between EF? I’m thinking to make seismics anonymous in my next game in order to promote more mischief). Nobody tried to isolate a territory and reconnect it (for example, landing a fleet in Syria, isolating it in OUT, and then reattaching it to MAt). And I didn’t see EF try to help out Turkey via seismics in exchange for his ongoing seismics.
Still, in the end, I believe the human and strategic elements of the game far outweighed the cute rules modifications. It’s certainly hard to ferret out the effects of the one from the other. And those elements were? In my opinion:
(1) The Austrian stab of Italy. I found it interesting that Mike was unabashed about his stab of Greg, because (along with #2), I think this is where he lost the game (though to be fair, it could also have produced a win… one must gamble if one wants victory). Without the stab, outnumbered in troops and seismics, EF loses. Games often boil down to major gambles like this. I’m sure both Mike and Greg are sorry that this had to be the gamble.
(2) Miscommunications and Steve. Specifically, there was the German misorder in S1905 that eliminated the Kaiser from the game. It’s all the difference between HOL and HEL. But as the order clearly said HEL, there was nothing I could do. Also, there was the Abbott and Costello routine whereby Steve attacked Denmark and Mike supported him to hold. It cost them Berlin and arguably the game. Steve might have fared very well in this game but for these two costly blunders, but we’ll never know.
(3) No navies. There were a few decisions in this game that confused me. For instance, on the last seismic, why didn’t Matt order “Gre/Tri split; Ser/Ion joinâ€? It would have carved Gre/Bul/Con off from the rest of Austria’s territory and made easy, easy pickings. The position around GoL was secure enough to allow for it. For that matter, somewhere along the line, I thought Mike should connect Tus/Spa, close the strait, and (at least termporarily) lock those French fleets in Tys/GoL. Russia’s S1906 Seismic also baffled me. I know Steve was trying to protect against “StP/Nwy split; Swe/Bar join†(which would’ve created a strait that funneled English fleets into Barents). The better move was “StP/Swe split; Fin/Nwy joinâ€, which provides Russian counterpressure on Norway and forces England to re-open the road to Barents before making progress.
But I digress. My point was going to be about the games second biggest strategic decision (next to Mike’s stab of Greg). I’m talking about Steve’s decision in W1906 to build an army in Moscow instead of a fleet. Trout had just connected Moscow to GoB (which I thought was also a mistake), and Steve now had the chance to build a fleet in Moscow to help counteract that pesky English fleet locked in GoB/Bal. For the next two game years, that English fleet would operate alone in those chilly waters unhampered by Russia and unaided by other English fleets. Worse, after W1906 and for the rest of the game, Russia got absolutely pounded by England’s fleets. Difference maker? Yeah. Navies: they’re a good thing.
Matt’s EoG leads me to ponder more openly: does Seismic Dip augment the influence of fleets? Armies can never float on water, but fleets can always go to land – provided that the land has a coast. But with so many borders, I suspect it is easier to connect land to water than to keep it high and dry and coast-less. In Standard Dip, fleets are restricted by the existing coastline and various bottlenecks, but Seismic Dip unbinds the fleets. Regardless of whether fleets are more powerful in the variant, the EF fleet strategy was a master stroke in this game.
(4) Guile. As is common in Dip, one ‘weak’ player creates a dynamic. Guile’s opening year featured unconventional moves and unproductive seismics resulting in no builds. He became a target (much like me in my first ever game of Diplomacy when I let Italy convince me that Greece was an Italian center in 1901 and not Austrian… I died quickly). When a player operates like this, neighbors are left with two courses of action. The more common is what Trout and Matt did – gobble up the centers for oenself. The less common is what Steve did in modified form, and it is a course I prefer to advocate (even if I don’t always do it): take the newbie under your wing. First of all, it tends to lead to strong alliances with good future prospects for stabbing (because they don’t know not to trust me, in spite of that long rusty blood-encrusted dagger in my hand); I have a near-solo and a shared board top to show for this strategy. Second, at least as importantly, it gives the new player a positive experience of the game and teaches them a hell of a lot about how to play the game. And we do want people to come back. So, there’s a little moralizing for you… though it’s easy to argue that Matt and Trout won this game because they abused the German position, and it’s certainly hard to argue with success.
Okay. On to a couple closing thoughts. There were some brilliant seismics. No doubt Trout’s use of Rule 8 to switch his fleet from the Skagerrak coast of Sweden to the Baltic coast was a total and devastating triumph. A++. I also liked Greg’s decision (while in NAf) to connect NAf to Portugal, thus delaying the inevitable French ouster. I didn’t see that one coming. There were many other good moves, but those are the ones that come to mind.
I am not ready to give up on isthmus rules yet, but they appeared to confuse. Most often, they were simply overlooked, and straits were created when they were not intended (or vice versa). I will have to work harder on educating players about isthmus options in the next game, because I think the game is better with them than without.
I look forward to GMing all of you again in another game of seismic. I really enjoyed this one.
Adam[Reply] |
| DC 211: GM EoG (dc211) former.trout Jun 16, 09:09 pm |
Just to be fair to everyone - the brilliant use of Rule 8 was at Matt's suggestion. I had vaguely considered it - but it was at Matt's urging that it was put into action. I can't really take credit for it - I'm not that smart. =)
Apologies for not getting an EOG out. Time and tides, as they say...
Thanks for the game, all.
Trout
On Tue, Jun 16, 2009 at 10:34 AM, Adam Martin-Schwarze <smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com ([email]smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com[/email])> wrote:
Well, I think we’ve gotten just about all the scattered player EoGs that are going to roll in, especially with Lytton and Trout moving into new phases with life (or at least with DC). So, now it’s the GM's turn to share reflections.
I said this in my end of game announcement, but it bears repeating: the seven of you made this game easy to GM. There were a few scattered NMRs, it is true; however, for the most part, I could rely on having all orders in my inbox on time. Thank you for you dedication and your high level of play.
This game has led me to a hypothesis, and I can argue both sides.
H0: while amusing and distracting, seismic rules don’t really change the game.
The logic is Nathan Bedford Forrest’s: “I got there firstest with the mostest men.” It seems to me that Diplomacy follows the same principle, and in DC 211, the wisdom still applied. Once they established their alliance, EF always pointed eastward with concentrated force, while the AR alliance – which at one point outnumbered the EF – had scattered eastern remnants that did not arrive at the front until too late. Occasionally, I would squint at the board and say, “if I transfer the pieces onto a standard board, is this position really any different?” Generally, the answer was: not too much.
A couple of you stated or inferred that Turkey was able to slow his demise with his seismics (1906? Really?). I have myself mused whether the existence of seismic rules sped or slowed the erosion of AR territory. It’s hard to tell. While I suspect there was no great change, I would guess things were slower (though, to be fair, the game would likely have ended in a draw without the Seismics, and you cannot get much slower than that).
There were no rogue units behind enemy lines in this game (though that French fleet in Ionian likely was about to become one). And inversely, there was some ferocious amassing of force both in Berlin and Rome. Failed 5:5 attacks! Predictable for the variant, I suppose, but it always staggered my imagination. So, in this one-game sample size, the seismic rules appear to have favored a plodding and methodical crushing advance. But maybe that was just Matt’s style of play permeating the board… or the even balance of alliances. (Then again, maybe players divided evenly in fear of being on the wrong side of a seismics power imbalance).
On the other side of the argument, I think it is clear that the seismic rules potently influenced the game. In a standard game, this game would have, should have, and most certainly in some parallel universe did end with a four-way draw astraddle the StP-Tunis stalemate line. But shifting borders meant that the position could not actually stalemate.
Plus, I did observe some nice streamlining strategies using seismics. In Fall 1901, a lot of alliances used seismics to create safe zones (splitting Brest from the Channel; Belgium from the North Sea; and Trieste from the Adriatic). Also, for awhile, Mike and Steve tried to coordinate seismics one front at a time in order to provide a push. I was surprised not to see more of that. (Steve’s hope to encircle an AR sanctuary had less success).
I never did see anybody submit a mischief seismic (for example, what if Russia had tried “Iri/NAt split; MAt/Lvp join”? Surely that could have created trouble between EF? I’m thinking to make seismics anonymous in my next game in order to promote more mischief). Nobody tried to isolate a territory and reconnect it (for example, landing a fleet in Syria, isolating it in OUT, and then reattaching it to MAt). And I didn’t see EF try to help out Turkey via seismics in exchange for his ongoing seismics.
Still, in the end, I believe the human and strategic elements of the game far outweighed the cute rules modifications. It’s certainly hard to ferret out the effects of the one from the other. And those elements were? In my opinion:
(1) The Austrian stab of Italy. I found it interesting that Mike was unabashed about his stab of Greg, because (along with #2), I think this is where he lost the game (though to be fair, it could also have produced a win… one must gamble if one wants victory). Without the stab, outnumbered in troops and seismics, EF loses. Games often boil down to major gambles like this. I’m sure both Mike and Greg are sorry that this had to be the gamble.
(2) Miscommunications and Steve. Specifically, there was the German misorder in S1905 that eliminated the Kaiser from the game. It’s all the difference between HOL and HEL. But as the order clearly said HEL, there was nothing I could do. Also, there was the Abbott and Costello routine whereby Steve attacked Denmark and Mike supported him to hold. It cost them Berlin and arguably the game. Steve might have fared very well in this game but for these two costly blunders, but we’ll never know.
(3) No navies. There were a few decisions in this game that confused me. For instance, on the last seismic, why didn’t Matt order “Gre/Tri split; Ser/Ion join”? It would have carved Gre/Bul/Con off from the rest of Austria’s territory and made easy, easy pickings. The position around GoL was secure enough to allow for it. For that matter, somewhere along the line, I thought Mike should connect Tus/Spa, close the strait, and (at least termporarily) lock those French fleets in Tys/GoL. Russia’s S1906 Seismic also baffled me. I know Steve was trying to protect against “StP/Nwy split; Swe/Bar join” (which would’ve created a strait that funneled English fleets into Barents). The better move was “StP/Swe split; Fin/Nwy join”, which provides Russian counterpressure on Norway and forces England to re-open the road to Barents before making progress.
But I digress. My point was going to be about the games second biggest strategic decision (next to Mike’s stab of Greg). I’m talking about Steve’s decision in W1906 to build an army in Moscow instead of a fleet. Trout had just connected Moscow to GoB (which I thought was also a mistake), and Steve now had the chance to build a fleet in Moscow to help counteract that pesky English fleet locked in GoB/Bal. For the next two game years, that English fleet would operate alone in those chilly waters unhampered by Russia and unaided by other English fleets. Worse, after W1906 and for the rest of the game, Russia got absolutely pounded by England’s fleets. Difference maker? Yeah. Navies: they’re a good thing.
Matt’s EoG leads me to ponder more openly: does Seismic Dip augment the influence of fleets? Armies can never float on water, but fleets can always go to land – provided that the land has a coast. But with so many borders, I suspect it is easier to connect land to water than to keep it high and dry and coast-less. In Standard Dip, fleets are restricted by the existing coastline and various bottlenecks, but Seismic Dip unbinds the fleets. Regardless of whether fleets are more powerful in the variant, the EF fleet strategy was a master stroke in this game.
(4) Guile. As is common in Dip, one ‘weak’ player creates a dynamic. Guile’s opening year featured unconventional moves and unproductive seismics resulting in no builds. He became a target (much like me in my first ever game of Diplomacy when I let Italy convince me that Greece was an Italian center in 1901 and not Austrian… I died quickly). When a player operates like this, neighbors are left with two courses of action. The more common is what Trout and Matt did – gobble up the centers for oenself. The less common is what Steve did in modified form, and it is a course I prefer to advocate (even if I don’t always do it): take the newbie under your wing. First of all, it tends to lead to strong alliances with good future prospects for stabbing (because they don’t know not to trust me, in spite of that long rusty blood-encrusted dagger in my hand); I have a near-solo and a shared board top to show for this strategy. Second, at least as importantly, it gives the new player a positive experience of the game and teaches them a hell of a lot about how to play the game. And we do want people to come back. So, there’s a little moralizing for you… though it’s easy to argue that Matt and Trout won this game because they abused the German position, and it’s certainly hard to argue with success.
Okay. On to a couple closing thoughts. There were some brilliant seismics. No doubt Trout’s use of Rule 8 to switch his fleet from the Skagerrak coast of Sweden to the Baltic coast was a total and devastating triumph. A++. I also liked Greg’s decision (while in NAf) to connect NAf to Portugal, thus delaying the inevitable French ouster. I didn’t see that one coming. There were many other good moves, but those are the ones that come to mind.
I am not ready to give up on isthmus rules yet, but they appeared to confuse. Most often, they were simply overlooked, and straits were created when they were not intended (or vice versa). I will have to work harder on educating players about isthmus options in the next game, because I think the game is better with them than without.
I look forward to GMing all of you again in another game of seismic. I really enjoyed this one.
Adam
|
| DC 211 Turkish EOG - MDemagogue (Jun 05, 2009, 11:11 pm) |
I guess I should post one of these too.
I probably never stood a chance as a replacement player when alliances had ample time to firm up. That seems to bear out what Austria has said, and the play in the game up until I was eliminated. I don't think my playing was anything to be desired/imitated, but I'll comfort myself in the fact that Austria and Russia did not win after they dissembled me.
I found the seismic phase to be useful primarily in defensive orientation, as I never got far enough off the ground to launch any serious offensive actions, and I think I did that rather effectively.[Reply] |
| dc211 france eog - MattTheLesser (Jun 05, 2009, 6:29 pm) |
First off I'd just like to say thanks to everyone for this game as it
was one of the most enjoyable games I've had yet - much better than my
early elimination in my previous seismic game!
I don't remember too many specifics from the beginning of the game, but
I do recall making the typical non-aggression agreement with Italy and
also aligning quickly with Trout's England due to Germany's lack of
communication and some questionable early moves (F Kie Hold in S01?).
Germany faced attack from both sides and fell quickly, after which I
headed for the Med since Italy had broken our non-aggression agreement
anyways. This is where the game got interesting and where the most
significant diplomacy came into play as an interesting dialog developed
between Austria and I. Mike and I made a loose agreement to squeeze out
Italy and then each turn north, with me hitting England and Austria
hitting Russia. However, Mike, saying he took the first plunge by
stabbing Italy, insisted I go first. Now I had initially agreed to this
because I didn't understand the extent of Austria's and Russia's
relationship; I thought it was a simple non-aggression pact, but it soon
became clear that it was a full on alliance.
Thus the big decision came in Fall 1908 when I had the chance for a good
stab of England with a convoy to Liverpool. However, ultimately I
didn't do it because I couldn't risk Austria not turning on Russia and
facing a 2 on 1 (3 on 1 until England was out), mainly because 2
seismics against 1 is such a huge advantage.
That said, looking back I remember thinking that stabbing would either
lead to a solo or a loss to an AR, and that not stabbing would lead to a
4-way. Now, looking back, if I had known the possible outcomes, the
decision wouldn't have been tough at all! And I should have realized
that our fleet advantage would be the difference. As Adam said at one
point after Trout and I implemented this strategy, Trout and I realized
that planting fleets in inland lakes and using our seismics to expand
them as much as possible was the best way to go because they couldn't be
cut, and boy did it work.
But of course Mike and Steve didn't make it easy, and I thoroughly
enjoyed the fight that ensued, especially since we came out on top! 
A couple notes on the game play: As was noted at the beginning of the
game, this game was different than previous seismic games in that the
seismics were submitted after the publication of the movement results.
Personally I like this better than submitting seismics with orders, as
there is less guess-work involved (some would say less strategy; I would
say different strategy, but no less). As for the next game I am in for
sure, and would love to do standard again or a different map, although
preferably not a huge one (Abberation or Modern is about as big as I
would go).
Again thanks to all and especially to Adam as I know GMing seismic must
take quite a bit more time than other games.
Until those faults open again,
Matt[Reply] |
| DC 211: Austrian EOG - offdisc (Jun 05, 2009, 11:30 am) |
I will get the ball rolling:
DC211: The Day the Earth Broke Open!
=======================================
EOG for Austria:
400 saved messages over 8 months of play; that is about average for my games, but most of those messages were between me and one other player -- less diplomacy than normal, but alliances were formed fairly quickly which accounts for that.
My game looked to be a breeze from Day 1 when I received an email from Eduardo (Turkey) asking about rules for Seismic. I smiled broadly as I realized that I'd have free reign over the Southern half of the board. Then the clouds rolled in as he backed out and was replaced by Mark. But as I said to Trout before Spring 1901: "This game will probably boil down to the more "active" Diplomacy players" meaning me, Trout, Steve, and Matt. How good was that prediction? Excuse me while I step out to buy a few hundred Lottery tickets!
Realizing that Turkey would be a non-factor in this game, I tried to set up an RAI alliance before Spring 1901. Gregory and Steve jumped on board immediately. Now we all now Pengers reputation , so Italy and I began talks on our own to cover a Russian stab. Those talks continued on right up until the day I stabbed Italy in Fall 1906. The time was right and I needed the builds -- no hard feelings GB! We will work together again, I am sure!
The basic strategy of RAI was to eliminate Turkey quickly and force our way North through Germany and keep control of the Med. I believe we accomplished all those goals, except the "quickly" for Turkey. 1906 elimination? What? Steve and I spent much too long taking Turkey out when we should have been holding back the English.
The final struggle in the Med was one of the most exciting strategic battles I have ever had in a Diplomacy game. Thank you for the good fight Matt! My one thought throughout the entire battle was "if only I had *1* more seismic to use"; the battle was that close, an extra seismic for either of us and it would have been over. Well played!
A short EOG because one alliances were set, the strategies never varied. Overall, though, if we had not incurred a couple of mis-cues in orders, we would have been in a 4-way tie. So the strategy seems fine; the execution needs more work.
Thanks all for a lively Seismic game, and thanks to Adam for being a generous and patient GM. Seismic is now my favorite 7-person Dip variant (favorite is 2-player Duel!) and I look forward to the next game.
Mike Hoffman---------
"Shared Pain is lessened, Shared Joy is increased" --- Spider Robinson
"Whenever some act of wondrous power must be performed, Michael is sent" --- Pope Saint Gregory the Great[Reply] |
| DC 211: GAME OVER - The Day the Earth Stood Still - deathblade_penguin (May 22, 2009, 3:59 am) |
Russia.
Adam - I really enjoyed the game. I think you are an excellent GM.
I honestly believe that Austria and I could have beaten France - England has I not made that terrible stuff up a few seasons ago but not checking any of my moves or emails and submitting blindly. Either way the game was locked.
I'll write more AFTER i'm done with my reports.
Stephen Lytton
Knight of the Alliance
Moderator of www.diplomaticcorp.com
Date: Wed, 20 May 2009 16:29:54 -0700
From: smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com
Subject: DC 211: GAME OVER - The Day the Earth Stood Still
To: irocktilldeath(at)yahoo.com; mrh(at)panix.com; matthew.kremer(at)yale.edu; stevelytton(at)hotmail.com; mdemagogue(at)gmail.com; dc211(at)diplomaticcorp.com; gbimmerle(at)gmail.com; former.trout(at)gmail.com
CC: mike(at)fuzzylogicllc.net
I now have draw votes from all four surviving players. DC 211 Terrorform is declared a 2-way draw between Matt and Trout. Mike and Steve survive. Greg, Guile, and Mark, um, don't.
I invite all 7 players to write EOGs. If necessary, I will get out my gold-ink pen and fine stationery to hand-engrave invitations, because (especially as this is my first game GMing seismic) I really would like to know all of your experiences. Somewhere in there, I will also write a GM's EOG.
At the end of his concession, Mike declared with a lot of exclamation points "Until the next Seismic game!!!!" That should not be too far into the future. I will take a short time to revise the Seismic rules (hopefully incorporating brilliant, incisive comments from your EOGs), and then I will advertise for another game. I would like your advice on a map/scenario. Did you like it with Standard? Would you prefer more players (i.e. more chaos)? Is there a different map (say Modern, or Aberration, or Five Italies, or World War IV -- NOT)? Do you think it would work better in a game with early expansion or with nations starting cheek-to-jowl? You get the idea.
Thank you all for making this first experience with seismic so easy to GM. You're an excellent septet of players.
Adam
Find car news, reviews and more Looking to change your car this year?[Reply] |
| DC 211: GAME OVER - The Day the Earth Stood Still - AceRimmer (May 20, 2009, 6:30 pm) |
I now have draw votes from all four surviving players. DC 211 Terrorform is declared a 2-way draw between Matt and Trout. Mike and Steve survive. Greg, Guile, and Mark, um, don't.
I invite all 7 players to write EOGs. If necessary, I will get out my gold-ink pen and fine stationery to hand-engrave invitations, because (especially as this is my first game GMing seismic) I really would like to know all of your experiences. Somewhere in there, I will also write a GM's EOG.
At the end of his concession, Mike declared with a lot of exclamation points "Until the next Seismic game!!!!" That should not be too far into the future. I will take a short time to revise the Seismic rules (hopefully incorporating brilliant, incisive comments from your EOGs), and then I will advertise for another game. I would like your advice on a map/scenario. Did you like it with Standard? Would you prefer more players (i.e. more chaos)? Is there a different map (say Modern, or Aberration, or Five Italies, or World War IV -- NOT)? Do you think it would work better in a game with early expansion or with nations starting cheek-to-jowl? You get the idea.
Thank you all for making this first experience with seismic so easy to GM. You're an excellent septet of players.
Adam[Reply] |
| DC 211: GAME OVER - The Day the Earth Stood Still (dc211) deathblade_penguin May 22, 03:59 am |
Russia.
Adam - I really enjoyed the game. I think you are an excellent GM.
I honestly believe that Austria and I could have beaten France - England has I not made that terrible stuff up a few seasons ago but not checking any of my moves or emails and submitting blindly. Either way the game was locked.
I'll write more AFTER i'm done with my reports.
Stephen Lytton
Knight of the Alliance
Moderator of www.diplomaticcorp.com
Date: Wed, 20 May 2009 16:29:54 -0700
From: smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com
Subject: DC 211: GAME OVER - The Day the Earth Stood Still
To: irocktilldeath(at)yahoo.com; mrh(at)panix.com; matthew.kremer(at)yale.edu; stevelytton(at)hotmail.com; mdemagogue(at)gmail.com; dc211(at)diplomaticcorp.com; gbimmerle(at)gmail.com; former.trout(at)gmail.com
CC: mike(at)fuzzylogicllc.net
I now have draw votes from all four surviving players. DC 211 Terrorform is declared a 2-way draw between Matt and Trout. Mike and Steve survive. Greg, Guile, and Mark, um, don't.
I invite all 7 players to write EOGs. If necessary, I will get out my gold-ink pen and fine stationery to hand-engrave invitations, because (especially as this is my first game GMing seismic) I really would like to know all of your experiences. Somewhere in there, I will also write a GM's EOG.
At the end of his concession, Mike declared with a lot of exclamation points "Until the next Seismic game!!!!" That should not be too far into the future. I will take a short time to revise the Seismic rules (hopefully incorporating brilliant, incisive comments from your EOGs), and then I will advertise for another game. I would like your advice on a map/scenario. Did you like it with Standard? Would you prefer more players (i.e. more chaos)? Is there a different map (say Modern, or Aberration, or Five Italies, or World War IV -- NOT)? Do you think it would work better in a game with early expansion or with nations starting cheek-to-jowl? You get the idea.
Thank you all for making this first experience with seismic so easy to GM. You're an excellent septet of players.
Adam
Find car news, reviews and more Looking to change your car this year? |
| DC 211: S1912S - AceRimmer (May 14, 2009, 11:33 am) |
Curiously, I believe this is the first time that Galicia has been involved in a seismic order. That leaves the Unaltered List as (I think): Syria, Clyde, Liverpool, Wales, Yorkshire, Paris, and… Budapest. [I would have to go back and check, but I think London was the target of a bounced order early on].
Regarding this season's orders, a couple have me scratching my head, but I won’t explain, as I do not wish to influence future events.
Russia successfully safeguards his Turkish dominions... for one season, at least. But that allows England to open a door unimpeded. "Hmmm, I'll peek behind the door labeled GALICIA". And, speaking of doors, Austria opens the back door to Tunis. While France shuts the door on his homeland by giving Burgundy a glimpse of coastline.
We will now take a long pause. Monday, June 1st at 10:00 CST.
Austria:
Split NAf/WMe, Join Tun/Spa
[Note: canal in NAf disappears]
England:
Split Ukr/Rum - Join Gal/Sev
France:
Tyl and Mar split, GoL and Bur connect
Russia:
Connect Aeg-emed. Split Smy and Ion[Reply] |
| DC 211: S1912R - AceRimmer (May 13, 2009, 9:48 am) |
The Austrian fleet in Ionian retreats to Spain.
Seismic orders due tomorrow at 15:00 GMT. I won't be updating the map on the diplomaticcorp web site to reflect the retreat between now and then.[Reply] |
| DC 211: S1912 - AceRimmer (May 12, 2009, 2:48 pm) |
The fewer units that move, the easier this game is to adjudicate. So, let me give you the bullet-point version:
- England: A Edi-Nwy & A Nwy-Den
- France: A Spa-Rom & F Rom-Ion
- Austria: F Ion retreats
- All other units sit still
The tricky part is keeping track of all the supports and cut supports and seeing that F GoL cuts support from Apu and that the fleet in Ionian can retreat to Spain if it wants. Which reminds me:
Austrian F Ionian Sea may retreat to Adriatic Sea, Aegean Sea, Eastern Mediterranean, Greece, Smyrna, Spain, or OTB.
I'll need a retreat from Austria by tomorrow at 10:00 CST. S1912 seismics will be due on Thursday at 10:00 CST. Then, we will wait. Between Austria and Russia, we will have absentees from the 16th through the 30th (excepting the 21st, but that wouldn't leave time for retreats, seismics, and builds...). Therefore, we will not have F1912 until Monday, June 1st (I'd do Tuesday, but I have a doctor's appointment). After such a long break, I will expect - nay demand - to see lots of stabs.
Austria:
A Tyl -> Bur (*Bounces 1:1 with A Hol-Bur*)
A Tri -> Tyl (*Fails to A Tyl*)
A Pie S Tri -> Tyl
A Boh -> Ber (*Fails 1:3 to A Ber*)
A Nap -> Rom (*Fails 1:3 to A Spa-Rom*)
F Apu S Ion (*Cut*)
F Ion S Nap -> Rom (*Dislodged*)
A Alb S Apu
A Ven S Tri -> Tyl
England:
A Edi -> Nwy
A Nwy -> Swe
F Stp Support Sev
F Gob Support Sev
A Sev Support Mos -> Hell (*Void – No Handbasket*)
F Bal -> War (*Fails to A War*)
A Den Support Ber
A Ber Support Mar -> Tyl (*Cut*)
France:
A Kie – Hol (*Fails to A Bur*)
A Hol – Bur (*Bounces 1:1 with A Hol-Bur*)
A Mun S A Ber
A Mar – Tyl (*Fails to A Tyl*)
F GoL – Apu (*Fails to F Apu*)
F Rom - Ion
F WMe S F Rom - Ion
A Spa - Rom
A Tus S F Spa - Rom
F Tys S A Spa - Rom
F MAt Hold
Russia:
Mos - sev (*Fails 3:3 to A Sev*)
ukr s mos - sev
rum s mos - sev
war – mos (*Fails to A Mos*)
pru – war (*Fails to A War*)[Reply] |
| DC 211: W1911 - AceRimmer (May 08, 2009, 10:27 am) |
| Russia disbands F EMe. England waves at his build. So, S1912 comes a-cropper this Tuesday at 1000 CST. [Reply] |
| DC 211: The Map - AceRimmer (May 06, 2009, 11:09 am) |
| *Sheepish embarrassment* [Reply] |
| DC 211: F1911 Seismics - AceRimmer (May 06, 2009, 10:18 am) |
England and Russia bounce, as I suspect they each knew they would. Now, England must provide a build order. Russia must provide a disband. Please get those in by tomorrow.
Interesting goings on in the South, though. Austria decides to bring the French homeland more into the fray, connecting Burgundy to Tyrolia. France, on the other hand, forces me to significantly redraw the map. I've been thinking I might have to do this -- shrink Por/Spa/NAf/Tun in order that I could create more space for the Italian brouhaha. So, not only have Tunis and NAf been sucked into Iberia, but the Spain-Rome land bridge has descended southward. And why? So that Gulf of Lyon might shake hands with Apulia. The French strategy in the south is looking a lot like the English strategy in the north -- park two fleets in an inland sea and keep expanding the coastline... ah, but unlike the Russians, the Austrian enemy actually has fleets in the south to answer the French challenge.
Spring 1912 will be on Tuesday next.
Austria:
Split Swi/Mar, join Tyl/Bur
England:
split Gob/War and join Bal/Mos (*Bounces with Russian Order*)
France:
split Rom and Ven, connect GoL and Apu
Russia:
Connect War to SEV, Split Mos and goB (*Bounces with English Order*)[Reply] |
| DC 211: F1911 - AceRimmer (May 04, 2009, 10:57 am) |
Well, only four units moved, but if you've watched 'Shawshank Redemption' lately, you know that nothing more is needed... over time. Four units move -- none retreat. We're all set for the F1911 seismics. Consider those orders due on Wednesday at the usual time (10:00 CST). Meanwhile, I've taken the liberty of raising the British flag over Sevastopol, where in their heavily Russian accent, the natives are singing, "God save our gracious Trout, long live our noble Trout, God save the Trout...". By Thursday, we'll need an English build order and a Russian disband.
Austria:
A Boh S Tyl
A Tyl S Boh (*Cut*)
A Pie S Tyl
A Tri -> Alb
A Gre -> Tri
F Apu S Ion
F Ion S Nap -> Rom
A Nap -> Rom (*Fails 3:4 to F Rom*)
A Ven S Nap -> Rom
England:
A Sevastopol Support Sweden -> St Petersburg
A Norway Support Sevastopol
F Gulf Of Bothnia Support Sevastopol
F Baltic Sea -> Warsaw (*Fails 1:1 to A War*)
F Sweden -> St Petersburg
A Denmark Support Berlin (*Cut*)
A Berlin Support Denmark
A Edinburgh Support Norway
France:
A Kie – Den (*Fail 1:1 to A Den*)
A Hol S A Ber
A Mun S A Ber
A Gas - Spa via MAt
F MAt C A Gas - Spa
F WMe S A Gas - Spa
F Rom S A Gas – Spa (*Cut*)
F Tys S F Rom
F GoL S F Rom
A Tus S F Rom
A Mar – Tyl (*Fails 1:3 to A Tyl*)
Russia:
Mos – Sev (*Fails 3:3 to A Sev*)
Ukr S Mos - sev
Rum s Mos - sev
pru – war (*Fails to A War*)
war – mos (*Fails to A Mos*)
eme s ion
In the Winter, Builds will be (not including any retreats off the board):
SC Builds/Disbands
Austria 9
England 9 +1
France 11
Russia 5 -1[Reply] |
| DC 211: S1911 Seismics - AceRimmer (Apr 27, 2009, 11:45 am) |
Well, isn't that always the way. You go through all the work of editing the map and then your computer crashes. Nerts!
All four seismics succeed. Russia shifts the Baltic coastline. England reintroduces Munich onto the field of play. France cuts off Piedmont from Rome, but Austria counters by cutting off Western Med! In the process, Venice and Spain become part of the equation. The Fall approacheth. Deadline: Thursday at the usual time. Let's shake and bake.
Austria:
Split Rom / Wme, Join Ion / Spa
England:
Split Holland/Switzerland - Join Munich/Berlin
France:
Split Pie and Rom, connect GoL and Ven
Russia:
Split Bal-Mos, Connect War and GoB[Reply] |
| DC 211: S1911 - deathblade_penguin (Apr 23, 2009, 8:33 pm) |
Dear Russia
Please remember to change your orders after talking to Austria
Thanks
Austria
(sorry Mike)
Stephen Lytton
Knight of the Alliance
Moderator of www.diplomaticcorp.com
Date: Thu, 23 Apr 2009 09:06:38 -0700
From: smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com
Subject: DC 211: S1911
To: irocktilldeath(at)yahoo.com; mrh(at)panix.com; matthew.kremer(at)yale.edu; stevelytton(at)hotmail.com; mdemagogue(at)gmail.com; dc211(at)diplomaticcorp.com; gbimmerle(at)gmail.com; former.trout(at)gmail.com
Note to Austria and Russia: if you are going to insist on being allies, please have the common decency to get your crap in order. Really. F EMe-Ion plus F Ion C A Gre-Rom... you could have suffered a broken convoy with that Keystone Cops routine, and then wouldn't all those supports of Gre-Rom have looked silly! As it is, France plays defense, and the only movements in the South are behind the lines. [It still seems strange to me to type "Fails 5:5 to F Rom"... A ten-unit logjam!].
English fleets continue to pummel the Russian Coast. A navy! A navy! Lytton's kingdom for a navy! The Russian army in Sevastopol retreats the only place it can: Rumania.
My apologies for the recent two-day delay, but with your permission, I am going to ask for S1911 seismics *tomorrow* afternoon (1400 CST / 1900 GMT). If that's too soon, I'll postpone until Monday and improvise, but I'm hoping to wrench the game back onto schedule and have F1911 on Tuesday per usual.
Austria:
A Gre -> Rom (*Fails 5:5 to F Rom*)
F Ion C Gre -> Rom
F Apu S Gre -> Rom
A Nap S Gre -> Rom
A Pie S Gre -> Rom
A Ven S Gre -> Rom
A Vie -> Boh
A Tyl S Vie -> Boh (*Cut*)
A Tri S Tyl
England:
A St Petersburg -> Sevastopol
F Gulf of Bothnia Support Stp -> Sev
F Baltic Sea -> Moscow (*Fails 1:1 to A Mos*)
A Denmark Support Berlin
A Berlin Support Denmark
F Sweden Support Edi -> Nwy
A Edinburgh -> Norway
A Liverpool -> Edinburgh
France:
A Mun S A Hol
A Hol S A Ber
A Kie S A Den
A Par - Gas
F Bre - MAt
A Mar – Tyl (*Fails 1:2 to A Tyl*)
F Rom Hold
F Wes S F Rom
A Tus S F Rom
F Tys S F Rom
F GoL S F Rom
Russia:
A Sev – Nwy (*Fails 1:2 to A Edi-Nwy*; *Dislodged 1:2 by A StP-Sev*)
A Mos – Sev (*Fails 1:2 to A StP-Sev*)
A War - Ukr
A Lvn - War
A Pru S A Lvn - War
F Eas – Ion (*Fails 1:1 to F Ion*)
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| DC 211: S1911 - AceRimmer (Apr 23, 2009, 11:07 am) |
Note to Austria and Russia: if you are going to insist on being allies, please have the common decency to get your crap in order. Really. F EMe-Ion plus F Ion C A Gre-Rom... you could have suffered a broken convoy with that Keystone Cops routine, and then wouldn't all those supports of Gre-Rom have looked silly! As it is, France plays defense, and the only movements in the South are behind the lines. [It still seems strange to me to type "Fails 5:5 to F Rom"... A ten-unit logjam!].
English fleets continue to pummel the Russian Coast. A navy! A navy! Lytton's kingdom for a navy! The Russian army in Sevastopol retreats the only place it can: Rumania.
My apologies for the recent two-day delay, but with your permission, I am going to ask for S1911 seismics *tomorrow* afternoon (1400 CST / 1900 GMT). If that's too soon, I'll postpone until Monday and improvise, but I'm hoping to wrench the game back onto schedule and have F1911 on Tuesday per usual.
Austria:
A Gre -> Rom (*Fails 5:5 to F Rom*)
F Ion C Gre -> Rom
F Apu S Gre -> Rom
A Nap S Gre -> Rom
A Pie S Gre -> Rom
A Ven S Gre -> Rom
A Vie -> Boh
A Tyl S Vie -> Boh (*Cut*)
A Tri S Tyl
England:
A St Petersburg -> Sevastopol
F Gulf of Bothnia Support Stp -> Sev
F Baltic Sea -> Moscow (*Fails 1:1 to A Mos*)
A Denmark Support Berlin
A Berlin Support Denmark
F Sweden Support Edi -> Nwy
A Edinburgh -> Norway
A Liverpool -> Edinburgh
France:
A Mun S A Hol
A Hol S A Ber
A Kie S A Den
A Par - Gas
F Bre - MAt
A Mar – Tyl (*Fails 1:2 to A Tyl*)
F Rom Hold
F Wes S F Rom
A Tus S F Rom
F Tys S F Rom
F GoL S F Rom
Russia:
A Sev – Nwy (*Fails 1:2 to A Edi-Nwy*; *Dislodged 1:2 by A StP-Sev*)
A Mos – Sev (*Fails 1:2 to A StP-Sev*)
A War - Ukr
A Lvn - War
A Pru S A Lvn - War
F Eas – Ion (*Fails 1:1 to F Ion*)[Reply] |
| DC 211: S1911 (dc211) deathblade_penguin Apr 23, 08:33 pm |
Dear Russia
Please remember to change your orders after talking to Austria
Thanks
Austria
(sorry Mike)
Stephen Lytton
Knight of the Alliance
Moderator of www.diplomaticcorp.com
Date: Thu, 23 Apr 2009 09:06:38 -0700
From: smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com
Subject: DC 211: S1911
To: irocktilldeath(at)yahoo.com; mrh(at)panix.com; matthew.kremer(at)yale.edu; stevelytton(at)hotmail.com; mdemagogue(at)gmail.com; dc211(at)diplomaticcorp.com; gbimmerle(at)gmail.com; former.trout(at)gmail.com
Note to Austria and Russia: if you are going to insist on being allies, please have the common decency to get your crap in order. Really. F EMe-Ion plus F Ion C A Gre-Rom... you could have suffered a broken convoy with that Keystone Cops routine, and then wouldn't all those supports of Gre-Rom have looked silly! As it is, France plays defense, and the only movements in the South are behind the lines. [It still seems strange to me to type "Fails 5:5 to F Rom"... A ten-unit logjam!].
English fleets continue to pummel the Russian Coast. A navy! A navy! Lytton's kingdom for a navy! The Russian army in Sevastopol retreats the only place it can: Rumania.
My apologies for the recent two-day delay, but with your permission, I am going to ask for S1911 seismics *tomorrow* afternoon (1400 CST / 1900 GMT). If that's too soon, I'll postpone until Monday and improvise, but I'm hoping to wrench the game back onto schedule and have F1911 on Tuesday per usual.
Austria:
A Gre -> Rom (*Fails 5:5 to F Rom*)
F Ion C Gre -> Rom
F Apu S Gre -> Rom
A Nap S Gre -> Rom
A Pie S Gre -> Rom
A Ven S Gre -> Rom
A Vie -> Boh
A Tyl S Vie -> Boh (*Cut*)
A Tri S Tyl
England:
A St Petersburg -> Sevastopol
F Gulf of Bothnia Support Stp -> Sev
F Baltic Sea -> Moscow (*Fails 1:1 to A Mos*)
A Denmark Support Berlin
A Berlin Support Denmark
F Sweden Support Edi -> Nwy
A Edinburgh -> Norway
A Liverpool -> Edinburgh
France:
A Mun S A Hol
A Hol S A Ber
A Kie S A Den
A Par - Gas
F Bre - MAt
A Mar – Tyl (*Fails 1:2 to A Tyl*)
F Rom Hold
F Wes S F Rom
A Tus S F Rom
F Tys S F Rom
F GoL S F Rom
Russia:
A Sev – Nwy (*Fails 1:2 to A Edi-Nwy*; *Dislodged 1:2 by A StP-Sev*)
A Mos – Sev (*Fails 1:2 to A StP-Sev*)
A War - Ukr
A Lvn - War
A Pru S A Lvn - War
F Eas – Ion (*Fails 1:1 to F Ion*)
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| DC 211: W1910 - AceRimmer (Apr 17, 2009, 1:01 pm) |
Sorry for the delay. Blame Trout. In fact, let's all gang up on him, shall we? I know Lytton's with me. Whaddya say, men! Forward!!!
England:
build A Edinburgh and A Liverpool
France:
Build F Bre, A Par
Russia:
drop BOh and FIN please
S1911 will be due on Tuesday.[Reply] |
| DC 211: F1910 Seismics - deathblade_penguin (Apr 16, 2009, 11:32 pm) |
Boo Hiss.... That Damm Frenchman going for his solo.
Stephen Lytton
Knight of the Alliance
Moderator of www.diplomaticcorp.com
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 2009 06:46:25 -0700
From: smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com
Subject: DC 211: F1910 Seismics
To: irocktilldeath(at)yahoo.com; mrh(at)panix.com; matthew.kremer(at)yale.edu; stevelytton(at)hotmail.com; mdemagogue(at)gmail.com; dc211(at)diplomaticcorp.com; gbimmerle(at)gmail.com; former.trout(at)gmail.com
There was a draw vote. Four ballots were cast. Unanimity was not achieved. Peace did not break out.
Again, two seismics bounced. And two succeeded. Clearly, the battle front has shifted from Berlin to Russia. Sevastopol grows in influence. Moscow diminishes. Expect more fireworks on Tuesday. In the interim, I need two builds each from England and France. I need two disbands from Russia. Due tomorrow.
Meanwhile, I received a few comments about overtaxed personal lives. I could stretch out deadlines to help, but I suspect that regularity may better benefit my players. Therefore, eat more fiber. And I intend to continue with a one game year per two weeks cycle. Contact me if you would like otherwise.
Austria:
Split Ven/Pie, join Tri/Rom (*Bounces with French Order*)
England:
Split Mos/Stp - Join Gob/Sev
France:
Split Pie and Rom, connect GoL and Ven (*Bounces with Austrian Order*)
Russia:
Connect SEV to Nwy; Split StP and Out of Board
Find car news, reviews and more Looking to change your car this year?[Reply] |
| DC 211: F1910 Seismics - AceRimmer (Apr 16, 2009, 8:47 am) |
There was a draw vote. Four ballots were cast. Unanimity was not achieved. Peace did not break out.
Again, two seismics bounced. And two succeeded. Clearly, the battle front has shifted from Berlin to Russia. Sevastopol grows in influence. Moscow diminishes. Expect more fireworks on Tuesday. In the interim, I need two builds each from England and France. I need two disbands from Russia. Due tomorrow.
Meanwhile, I received a few comments about overtaxed personal lives. I could stretch out deadlines to help, but I suspect that regularity may better benefit my players. Therefore, eat more fiber. And I intend to continue with a one game year per two weeks cycle. Contact me if you would like otherwise.
Austria:
Split Ven/Pie, join Tri/Rom (*Bounces with French Order*)
England:
Split Mos/Stp - Join Gob/Sev
France:
Split Pie and Rom, connect GoL and Ven (*Bounces with Austrian Order*)
Russia:
Connect SEV to Nwy; Split StP and Out of Board[Reply] |
| DC 211: F1910 Seismics (dc211) deathblade_penguin Apr 16, 11:32 pm |
Boo Hiss.... That Damm Frenchman going for his solo.
Stephen Lytton
Knight of the Alliance
Moderator of www.diplomaticcorp.com
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 2009 06:46:25 -0700
From: smegdwarf(at)yahoo.com
Subject: DC 211: F1910 Seismics
To: irocktilldeath(at)yahoo.com; mrh(at)panix.com; matthew.kremer(at)yale.edu; stevelytton(at)hotmail.com; mdemagogue(at)gmail.com; dc211(at)diplomaticcorp.com; gbimmerle(at)gmail.com; former.trout(at)gmail.com
There was a draw vote. Four ballots were cast. Unanimity was not achieved. Peace did not break out.
Again, two seismics bounced. And two succeeded. Clearly, the battle front has shifted from Berlin to Russia. Sevastopol grows in influence. Moscow diminishes. Expect more fireworks on Tuesday. In the interim, I need two builds each from England and France. I need two disbands from Russia. Due tomorrow.
Meanwhile, I received a few comments about overtaxed personal lives. I could stretch out deadlines to help, but I suspect that regularity may better benefit my players. Therefore, eat more fiber. And I intend to continue with a one game year per two weeks cycle. Contact me if you would like otherwise.
Austria:
Split Ven/Pie, join Tri/Rom (*Bounces with French Order*)
England:
Split Mos/Stp - Join Gob/Sev
France:
Split Pie and Rom, connect GoL and Ven (*Bounces with Austrian Order*)
Russia:
Connect SEV to Nwy; Split StP and Out of Board
Find car news, reviews and more Looking to change your car this year? |
| DC 211: Flamingo Sighting - AceRimmer (Apr 14, 2009, 10:59 am) |
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“I’ve got to admit it – I’ve flamingoed up.†“You what?†“It's like a cock-up, only much, much bigger.†– Red Dwarf, “Parallel Universeâ€
So, you’re wondering, who hid a fluffy pink flamingo amidst his orders? Well, I can’t say for sure, but a memo was missed, or wires crossed, or dastardly underhanded undermining was undertaken… but while Russia ordered a supported procession of armies from Bohemia to Berlin to Denmark, Austria ordered Tyrolia to support Berlin… to hold. Consequence? The English are in Berlin.
Consequently, the big 5:5 in Rome – which I expected would be the lead story – falls to page 2. And the English capture of StP was so foregone as to be buried in the classifieds section next to the really easy crossword puzzle.
The Russian Army in St. Petersburg may retreat to Finland or OTB
The Russian Army in Berlin may retreat to Prussia or OTB
I have taken the liberty of adjudicating both retreats as not disbanding, but Mr. Lytton can correct me if he prefers otherwise (deadline: tomorrow at 1000 CST / 1500 GMT). The F1910 Seismic is on Thursday. Adjustments on Friday from everybody but Austria. I will treat all seismics and adjustments as final unless otherwise marked and may adjudicate early!
Austria:
F Ion -> Rom (*Fails 5:5 to F Rom*)
A Nap S Ion -> Rom
F Apu S Ion -> Rom A Pie S Ion -> Rom A Ven S Ion -> Rom A Tyl S Ber (*Void*)
A Vie Hold
A Tri Hold
A Gre Hold
England:
A Norway -> St Petersburg
F Sweden Support Nwy -> Stp
F Gulf of Bothnia Support Nwy -> Stp
F Baltic Sea -> Moscow (*Fails 1:2 to A Mos*)
A Ruhr -> Berlin
A Denmark Support Ruhr -> Berlin
France:
A Spa - Mar
F Rom Hold
F GoL S F Rom
A Tus S F Rom
F Tys S F Rom
F Wes S F Rom
A Mun S A Hol
A Hol S A Ruh - Ber
A Kie S A Den
Russia:
ber-den (*Fails 2:2 to a Den H*; *Dislodged 3:2 by A Ruh-Ber*)
lvn s ber - den
eme – ion (*Fails to F Ion*)
stp – swe (*Fails 1:1 to F Swe*; *Dislodged 3:1 by A Nwy-StP*)
sev s a mos
Mos wishes it could support a livonia to hold (*Wish fails*)
boh – ber (*Fails 2:3 to A Ruh-Ber*)
war s boh - ber
In the Winter, Builds will be (not including any retreats off the board):
SC
Builds/Disbands
Austria
9
England
8
+2
France
11
+2
Russia
6
-2[Reply] |
| DC 211: S1910 Seismics - AceRimmer (Apr 09, 2009, 10:41 am) |
France and Russia cross paths... but since topology does not allow me to cross borders, and am going to disallow there attempt to cross paths. The French and Russia orders bounce. Meanwhile, in the South, Austria re-opens the mountain passes - Tyrolia reconnects to Marseilles, and the Swiss lose their Mediterranean beachfront property. And in the North, England shifts the focus by undoing one of last season's seismics - Bothnia and St. Pete's reunite.
Fall 1910 will befall you on Tuesday. Good luck, gentlemen.
Austria:
Split Swi/GoL, Join Tyl/Mars
England:
Split Moscow/Sweden - Join Gulf of Bothnia/St Petersburg
France:
Wes and Ion split, Rom and OUT connect; canal in Rom (*Bounces with Russian order*)
Russia:
Split Wme/edge, Join Ion/Mat (*Bounces with French order*)[Reply] |
| DC 211: Fiasco in Italy - AceRimmer (Apr 07, 2009, 11:01 am) |
It's Spring 1910, and while the north remains locked, French units swarm to their chosen destinations in the south. The Tuscan Division of the Austrian army is crushed liked a sack of tomatoes, and Rome falls while the departing Austrian army slips into the highlands of Naples. Still, the region remains packed with doughty (or is that doughy?) Austrian soldiers, ready to carry on the resistance.
There is only one dislodged unit. Army Tuscany with no available retreats is atomized. So, S1910 Seismics will be due on Thursday.
Austria:
A Tyl S Ber
A Pie -> Rom (*Fails 1:2 to F Wes-Rom*)
A Ven -> Rom (*Fails 1:2 to F Wes-Rom*)
A Rom -> Nap
A Tus Hold (*Dislodged 2:1 by A Mar-Tus*; *Disbanded*)
F Ion -> Apu
F Tri -> Ion
A Gre -> Tri
A Con -> Gre
[No order received for A Vie]
England:
A Norway -> St Petersburg (*Fails 1:1 to A StP*)
F Gulf of Bothnia -> Moscow (*Fails 2:2 to A Mos*)
F Sweden Support Gob -> Mos (*Cut*)
F Baltic Sea Support Gob -> Mos
A Ruhr -> Berlin (*Fails 2:4 to A Ber*)
A Denmark Support Ruhr -> Ber (*Cut*)
France:
A Mar - Tus
F GoL C A Mar - Tus
F Tys S A Mar - Tus
F Wes - Rom
A Spa S F Wes - Rom
F MAt - Wes
A Mun S A Hol
A Hol S A Ruh - Ber
A Kie S A Den
Russia:
A stp – swe (*Fails 1:1 to F Swe*)
a mos s a stp – swe (*Cut*)
a sev s a mos
a lvn – den (*Fails 1:2 to A Den*)
a war s a ber
a ber s a lvn – den (*Cut*)
a boh s a ber
f smy - eme[Reply] |
| DC 211: W1909 - AceRimmer (Apr 03, 2009, 2:20 pm) |
Such nice manners from the Russian. Such a very nice boy.
S1910 (is it 1910 already?) is on Tuesday.
On a side note, I am pondering starting another seismic game in a month or so (i.e. could be longer), but I would welcome feedback on rules, deadlines, frequency of seismics, isthmus rules, good maps to play, your desire to play seismic again... anything you feel like talking about.
Austria:
Austria will build F Tri
France:
waive it
Russia:
Build A Sev, please sir[Reply] |
| DC 211: F1909 Seismics - AceRimmer (Apr 02, 2009, 12:34 pm) |
The focus of attention shifts from one European capital (Berlin) to another (Moscow). Three of four submitted seismics impact the Kremlin. More amazingly, they all succeed. Meanwhile, in the south, France reverses last Spring’s seismic and rejoins Rome to the Gulf of Lyon. Watch those isthmi, gentlemen! An unusual one was created but remained unmentioned in orders: France had the opportunity to involve water on the Rome/Tuscany border. Now, what he would’ve accomplished by creating a strait or a canal through Rome, I don’t know. But the choice was there.
Austria, France, and Russia owe me builds tomorrow at the usual time.
Austria:
Split Mos/OTB, join Sev / Stp
England:
Please split Livonia/Moscow, Join Baltic Sea/Warsaw
France:
split Pie and Tus, join Rom and GoL
Russia:
Mos - swe connect, GOB and StP separate[Reply] |
