Congrats Max, great game. And thanks Chris, you are an outstanding GM.
I also agree - player of the game was Dirk. What a negotiator.
For sure I did start out with the best of intentions for this game, but my personal life overran with more drama than I could handle, so to all, especially our excellent GM, I apologize. I always do my best to aviod the dreaded NMR.
Anyway, I did start out the game writing to all, see who was up for what. A basic flip of the coin and an idea I always wanted to try was team up with France, knock out England first and take over the world - sorry about that Bruce, but you were definitely going to zap me if I did not isolate you and knock you out. You have a reputation as a tough player - so as a sign of respect I had to go for an early knockout. Nothing you could have done.
Unfortunately for me and my solo ambition, Max is a heck of a lot better player than I am. He basically whooped me (as Dirk and the rest of you consistenly pointed out) but I thought I could eventually take him out. Well, that did not work out so well for me, but I am glad to see Max did get a solo. I appreciate the rest of you and I am sorry I could not have really stayed with it better, but it was always interesting.
Jason