Diplomaticcorp Newsletter – August 2009

For those of you paying attention, I’m going to number this newsletter IXII, in honor of Steve who numbered his newsletters in no particular sequence whatsoever.

Believe it or not, this newsletter is important. Why the urgency this time around? As many of you have heard, dc has undergone some major changes this year. The most notable is that Steve Lytton, the guy who started it all, has after 10 years of service to diplomaticcorp, retired from his position as Moderator.

“Are you serious?? Can this be true??” I hear you say…

Yes. I’m serious, and it is true. Steve started dc way back in the year 2000, with the likes of Tony, Felix, Salim, David, Dan, and Jon. (see the About Us page, online.) Since then Steve’s dedication to the site has been matched by no other. He is known to every GM as the guy that would badger them incessantly to keep their games moving, and he was known to players as the deathblade penguin, the flightless bird, the outstanding diplomat who has alone, achieved the rank of the Order of the Alliance – the highest rank ever achieved by a dc player. Steve’s efforts to first of all create our wonderful club – and then grow it into something great are truly remarkable.

With such a major change like this, it's hard for anyone to fathom what the impact will be on dc, and it would have been much more bearable if not for also losing another dc legend/Moderator the previous month - our own Sanford Odonnell, aka Former Trout! We all know Trout is famous for running 10 games at a time flawlessly, and doing about 75% of the data entry on the website - training new GMs on how to use the tools we have, cleaning up the game pages, and keeping everything here in top top shape. Trout's tech-savvy approach to diplomaticcorp has lead to the extensive, accurate, and data-rich environment we have here today. From the game stats, to the the Companion Knights, to the Light Brigade, to the vast swathes of information he has tabulated in the DipWiki, no words can sum up Trout's contributions to dc over the last couple years.

Fortunately like all things involving change, this is not an end, but a transition. I can remember clear back in the day when Steve and Tony invited me to join them at the helm of dc. It was truly an honor, and something I never thought would be possible. Well today I'm pleased to extend this same offer to Garry Bledsoe, and even more ecstatic that he has accepted the position! Joining our team, Garry is officially a moderator of Diplomaticcorp - here to help lead the club into the coming years. Garry has been a friend of mine for a long time, predating our play here at dc when we were at another club. Since dragging him over for dc96 - Return of the Fog, Garry has been a major advocate of improving game quality, reducing NMR's, and putting in place mechanisms for keeping games moving. His efforts are sure to be appreciated by all!

Now what better way to get started as a Moderator, than by winning the Winter Blitz! That's right, with not a single solo previously, Garry has swept the WB09 with back-to-back wins in dc233 and dc246. Congratulations are due for Garry's dominating triumph, and also to Dan, winner of the Top Round 1, and Nigel, winner of the Top Round 2 for solos of their own. Prizes for the Best Stab and Best Press are currently being voted upon. Be sure to follow in the WB thread of the forum for further info.

With the Winter Blitz wrapping up, it's time to look forward to our next little tournament - this one much smaller - the DC Invitational. Going on its fourth year, this little tourney was designed to bring together the best of the best in a quaint format featuring only 1 or 2 boards. This is a qualifier tournament, where players are selected based on some fairly random criteria set forth by Steve back in 2006. Things like - Top Rated, Top New Player, Winner of the WB, and Winner of the DCI. This year we're adding a few categories including Most Promising New GM, Top Light Brigade, Top Companion Knight, and Best Survivor. Invites have gone out tonight - watch the DCI forum for further info!

On a rather unrelated matter, I have to ask - what is it about France that they perform so badly here at dc? See online, under Statistics - in 158 Standard games played, France has managed the fewest Solos of anyone save for Italy, at only 6 total wins - and is not making up for it with Draws either. Traditionally supposed to be a powerhouse alongside Germany and Russia - for having easy 5-center starts, and access to both the northern and southern waters - why is it that France is doing so mediocre overall?

This has been a hectic year for our community, with so much going on and all these changes. Standard games are launching about every 10 days, and 3 variants are currently up on the Open Games board. I'd like to thank all of you for your efforts in making dc such a lively place. Everything anyone does here is completely voluntary, so to everyone who's stepped up to help with a tournament, run a game, or take on a replacement role, your efforts are appreciated, and they make dc a great place for Diplomacy. If you have ideas on ways to improve the club, be sure to post online, or use the anonymous feedback form. If you'd like to take on a more active role - whether your preference is to update statistics, create variants, document strategies, publicize our community, or anything else - any way in which you want to help, be sure to let Garry or msyelf know.

Thank you,
-mike
Order of the Garter
www.diplomaticcorp.com