First of all, thank you Bryan for the very well run game. GM's are everything to having a good game.
The game started off pretty normal. Great talks with Austria and Turkey and Russia. Austria and I settled on Key Lepanto to attack Turkey. We exchanged many letters working out the details. Everyone in the region was very involved. I developed a good relationship with each power in the corner and looked for a way to get them all suspicious of one another. It worked out pretty well as Turkey went to ARM and Austria to RUM while I slid into TRI.
I talked a little to France and Germany....tossed around Central Alliance ideas and such..France and I agreed to just lave one another alone. I am not sure what happened over ENG but England jumped in there and I was happy as it guaranteed that I would not have to worry about France any time soon. Germany's NMR on the first turn was very critical as it put him behind early on and he was in recovery for several turns. This is what started that never ending F/G war.
My original orders for F01 were to continue with Key Lepanto but Turkey and I were really working well together. Russia was panicked and Austria was just playing the strategy we discussed. Getting Turkey and Austria working against Russia afforded me to stab my ally and go for 3 builds as Italy. The key being that there would be a ton of armies in place to for I/T alliance against Russia. Sorry Peter, I did want to do the Lepanto but what Turkey came up with was too good top pass up.
The next 2 years we took taking out the last of Austria, I think I was working with Russia here a little to get Austria out. Germany really smashed France in 03 and 04. We were the board leaders at the time. I sent two fleets west to try and get into MAO. I thought that if i could get MAO at this point I was going to solo. The west was SO disorganized with the NMRs and the missing fleets that I could take my time and wait for the invitation to bring the fleets over. France asked and I accepted and I got MAO. This was the crucial turn for me....with security in the west I could then push everything east. In one turn I grabbed WAR and VIE from Russia, BUL from Turkey and put France in MAR. Taking WAR from Russia was my mistake....that did not need to happen. He was frustrated about what was going on in the west and could see that I was on my way to wining so he offered to help me win. I should have left him alone and concentrated on Turkey and containing Germany.
It was 05 When France built F MAR and I think that was when trouble started. I was not happy with that so I attacked. I was flipping back and forth between France and Germany to keep that fire burning and it worked for a long time.
Russia recovered from my stab and was kicking me out of his lands and he got things worked out with Turkey and I was being beaten back pretty good. 07-08 I just hung out to see what would happen with F/G as France and I settled our differences and I was completely out of the MED. I went back to attacking the Turk, Brian was irate with the west and he offered to help me win with the promise that I see that he at least survived the game. I agreed to leave him with 2 or 3 centers because I thought I could still win and not have them.
It was 11 that I turned on France and went after the wide open Iberia. All his fleets were north and I got a good jump on him. I was snaking my way up though to Prussia to attack Russia and working with Germany again so I was left alone to take those crucial spots. Again F/G fighting allowed me free reign to move into some spots I should not have been allowed in to.
There was point where I had a 50/50 guess over how to attack WAR to win the game and picked wrong. I think that was in 12....it was before France let me into MAO i know that. I was stopped after guessing wrong and was ready to negotiate what the draw would be. Then I got into MAO which let me into MAR and maintain my hold on Iberia. That was pretty much the end of the game there.
Brian mentioned in his EOG that he fed me the plans everyone was making...a lot of them were obvious. But there were two orders that I HAD to know to get this one over, one was a single fleet move on the north...i do not remember the details and the other was how he was going to order one of his armies. Everything else he told me was inconsequential.
My style in this game was very different than usual, it was very self serving. I do not give out a lot of help in the way of supporting anyone into centers. I also kinda dictated what I was going to do and pressed people into helping me with the promise of future help that did not always come to fruition or if it did, it was not to the level they expected. But, no one punished me for that behavior. Thw war between F/G could not be settled and that is where I found my greatest advantage.
I regret a little stabbing Austria right out of the gate. That was harsh. I also felt bad for Turkey...those NMR's in the west hurt him very badly...the balance shifted so drastically that he was powerless to do anything about it. I did not hear much from England during the game...well during the game while he still had units on the board anyway.
Sorry if I skipped over anything...this was a LONG game and so much happened with the back and forth. I save e-mails for a game and this one was well over 650 e-mails....and that does not include the ones I sent. I really enjoyed working with each of you. It was a well fought game, one that I will not forget.
thanks,TimItaly 501