Hey all,

Well, the fat lady is singing, the cows have come home, and peace is celebrated throughout Europe. Good game, all. You were all the best kinds of players to have, cordial, punctual, and reliable (well, except for the Russian abandon...). I appreciate you all.

It was difficult not to comment on the game more than I did. I certainly tried to be careful in my press, and only point out things that were obvious to all. I hope I succeeded in that goal. But now that the game's over, I can share a couple thoughts. First, way back in the day I predicted (in my own mind) that Germany and Turkey would be the two powerhouses at games end. I still feel they were both very strong players, but they just got overwhelmed by the sheer number of troops France and England can muster.

Speaking of France and England, they formed an incredibly strong partnership. I think that's the power of alliances in Diplomacy. A tight knit pair of powers can almost always defeat any number of loosely allied, untrusting enemies. Still, I have to admit my suprise that England did not at some point stab France. Specifically in Fall 09. At that point, England could have easily claimed 4 french centers, with the rest of france essentially undefended, and quite possibly led to an English win. By that point of the game France and England were pretty solid, so I wondered if England was even considering a stab at that juncture.

Anyway, that's my EoG. I'd love to hear all of yours!

Housekeeping-wise, a few things.

1) I will NOT reveal draw votes, because it is against DC house rules, which I told you guys in the beginning that I was following for the blitz. I do encourage you guys to reveal them though.
2) The score, to the best of my knowledge, should be:

Austria     - 2 points

England    - 16 Points

France     - 15.9 Points
Germany  - 2 points
Italy         - 4.5 points
Russia      - 2 points
Turkey      - 4.9 points

Hope that helps! Thanks for playing!

John