OBS-05 Diplomacy

[EnderAndrew]

Standard rules with the following variations and house rules:

 

1. The Alpha Variant is in effect. This should slightly speed gameplay by allowing you to shift home supply centers to the front of battles while also presenting new risks.

2. The Anonymity 3 Variant is also in effect. You will know which players are in the game, but you will not know which country they control. All press must go through me. Players may contact each other and promise alliances or moves, however other players will not know for a fact if the other player is controlling the nation they claim to be controlling.

3. Orders must be submitted by the deadline set. If no orders are recieved, all units hold.

4. If no orders are recieved for two turns in a row, the player will be ejected from the game. If you anticipate missing a deadline, submit tenative orders immediately or find a substitute player.

5. The GM will make an active effort to inform players of moves that are ambigious or flat-out illegal, however the onus ultimately is on the player to submit clear and valid orders.

6. All nations are required one piece of press per year before they are allowed builds. Again, this press release must go through me to maintain anonymity.

7. The first full year will be on a two-week per year schedule to allow for players to have plenty of time to establish diplomacy. Thusly Spring will be 6 days, Fall 6 days and Winter 2 days. After that, we will shift to one week per year. Thusly Spring will be 3 days, Fall 3 days, and Winter 1 day.

8. What happens in the game, stays in the game. Do not, under any circumstances whatsoever, carry a grudge from a betrayal game onto these forums. The anonymity variant should remove grudge factors to an extent.

 

GM: Ender

Email: enderandrew at gmail dot com.

 

Possible Players:

Archmonarch

Baley

Deraldin

jaguars4ever

metadigital

Servant of Eru

Skynet

 

I apologize this is over a day late. We had a false alarm yesterday and went into the hospital, but alas, no baby. We're having contractions every five minutes, which they said was the stipulation for comming into the hospital, but apparently not in our case. Grr.

 

Since death ninjas killed all of your units last turn, the world is now being taken over by a zombie army (and the occassional zombie fleets), you sick bastards.

 

Austria:

A Ser S A Gal-Rum

F Zar-Hold

A Gal-Rum

1 build

 

England:

A Yor-Bel

F NWG-Nwy

F NTH C A Yor-Bel

1 build

 

France:

A Gas-Spa

A Spa-Por

F Pic-Bel

2 builds

 

Germany:

A Ruh-Hol

F Den-Swe

A Kie-Den

2 builds

 

Italy:

F ION C A Apu-Tun

A Apu-Tun

A Ven-Tri - Illegal move as there is no Tri on this map!

1 build

 

Russia:

A Mos-War

F Sev-Rum

A Ukr S F Sev-Rum

F GOB-Swe

0 builds

 

Turkey:

A Bul-Gre (Alb)

F Ank-BLA

A Con-Bul

2 builds

 

I will update the map shortly. You have 2 days, (Tuesday 12:00 UTC) to get builds in. As a reminder, if you have not submitted a press release all year, you will not get any builds! Winter is your last chance, so get those press releases in!

 

Another reminder, we are using the Alpha Variant!

3. At the end of a fall season, if the Alpha unit is occupying a neutral or foreign SC, it takes control of the SC as usual. However, at the end of winter, this SC will be activated as an HSC and one of the player's old HSC's must be deactivated.

 

4. During that winter, the player must identify which HSC will be deactivated. Builds may take place in any of the HSC's, including the one to be deactivated, but not in the SC about to be activated. If no HSC is identified, the HSC is chosen alphabetically (but cannot be the newly created HSC). Builds, disbands and deactivations are all ordered simultaneously.

 

Starting Map:

Spring 1901

Fall 1901

 

Winter moves must be submitted by Tuesday September 13th, 12:00 UTC.

[Baley]

I always thought Rev was gonna start game 5...

[EnderAndrew]

He is welcome to start a new game. I grabbed the number 5 as there is a game 4 in the works and I haven't seen a post for game 5.

[Baley]

Aren't there other games we could play?

 

I mean 5 games of Diplomacy?

 

Aren't there other games on the same theme?

[EnderAndrew]

Game 1 is wrapped up in all but name. Game 4 isn't actually running yet.

 

I think I can handle being involved with 3 games at any given moment.

 

Right now I've got Game 2, which is fairly inactive, Game 3, and I'm up for another game. However, given that I split victory in the first game (or will officially on Tuesday), I'd like to step back from playing. I don't think the game will be fun if the same players have the same alliances, or if the same players tend to dominate. I'd like to GM instead of playing.

 

Have you looked over the variations I proposed?

[jaguars4ever]

This should be interesteing - consider me in. :cool:

[EnderAndrew]

What do you think of the proposed variant rules?

[jaguars4ever]

I think this has great potential Ender. And you've decided we won't be playing blind, right?

[EnderAndrew]

I think it hurts the diplomatic aspect to play blind. Anonymity offers a certain blind aspect, but it is not totally blind. You will see what orders are submitted for each country.

 

You could be controlling England, but tell Turkey that you're playing Austria and promise that Austria will move in a certain way.

 

Turkey will eventually see Austria's moves and if they differ from what you said, they might infer that you're not actually playing Austria, or they might infer that you lied about the moves you'd submit.

 

One of the nice things about this, is that it allows for nations to interact with all 6 other nations more. England might not have a reason to interact with Turkey normally, but by claiming that you control Russia, you might influence Turkey via diplomacy.

 

I'm also looking for possible small map variations such as adding Croatia. If I find something that isn't too drastic but noticibly improves the game I'll post it.

[jaguars4ever]

I look forward to it - but please, not another of those isometric maps. Gah.

[EnderAndrew]

No isometric maps, I promise. I like maps that are easy to read and yet look like a real map.

[Kaftan Barlast]

Wouldnt we be required to get new email adresses in order to truly play anonymously? And even then an evil " player could reveal himself or others?

[EnderAndrew]

There are variants that are completely anonymous. In this variant however, the players know which players are in the game, so you can communicate freely. However, I will not announce which player is really controlling which country.

 

The problem with a supposed completely anonymous game is that players shouldn't communicate at all, and it is far too easy for players to cheat.

[metadigital]

I, too, don't understand how you are going to control communications.

 

I am happy to play (and I won't cheat), but I need to know what the rules are so that I can walk along that line ...

[Archmonarch]

Im interested, depending upon my circumstances. For the moment, consider me a player. If something comes up, Ill let you know.

[Cantousent]

Sounds like fun. Sign me up for this one.

[Skynet]

Hm. I'll join if I'm not taking a slot away from somebody who hasn't played yet.

[EnderAndrew]

Here is how communication works. I will publish contact info for the seven players. Rather I will email each of you a list of email contacts for each other so a spambot doesn't get your email addresses from this thread.

 

You may contact each other freely all day long claiming to control whatever country you want to claim.

 

In reality, no one will really know who is controlling which country save for yourself. If you wish to release official press, then email it to me. If you posted in this thread as Germany, then everyone will know for a fact that you are playing Germany. So press has to go through me. But normal diplomacy you can do on your own.

[alanschu]

I think it relies a bit too much on the honor system.

 

What's to stop me from replying in the email with some code like "I have some good news regarding your mother. At last, she is now in recovery.

 

 

Or just flat out stating "I'm Germany" in an email?

 

I guess it is possible that no one truly "knows" if I'm germany.

 

At the same time, I think it would take the diplomacy out of diplomacy. I'd mass spam an email to 6 different people saying "I'm Germany, attack Austria" or something.

 

At which point I think you'd get a crazy, confused mess of moves where there's no real strategy to the game IMO. Just haphazard moves.

 

Has anyone ever played a game like this one?

[EnderAndrew]

You can tell people you are Germany all day long, whether you have Germany or not. People will believe you or not.

 

However, if you lie about controlling Germany and promise that Germany will move in a certain way, you will likely be discovered. That tactic may work in the early stages of the game, though I don't advise that you lie to everyone about what country you are actually playing, or you won't be left with any actual diplomatic ties.

 

Let's also say for instance that you are England, and that you contact Jags who is Germany. Jags tells you he is Russia, and you tell Jags that you are Germany. Uh-oh. He is immediately going to know.

 

It adds more mystery to the diplomacy aspect of the game, and makes tactics even more difficult with more unknown variables.

[Baley]

I agree with Skynet.

 

Since I am already playing in OBS 4...

[EnderAndrew]

We already have 8 interested players. Outstanding. They are:

 

Possible Players:

Alanschu

Archmonarch

Baley

Eldar

jaguars4ever

Kaftan Barlast

metadigital

Skynet

 

I will contact each of you privately. The first seven players to send me a prefered country list will be in. List the countries in the order you prefer them.

 

Once I have 7 players with country lists sent to me via email I will post a schedule for the first year.

 

Note, use my enderandrew at NOSPAM gmail dot com email address.

[EnderAndrew]

I am content to use the normal map, but I know Kaftan has been wanting a variant map for a while.

 

I present a minor variation to the main map. This was hard to read, so I colored it and cleaned it up a little bit. People are welcome to try and make it even more legible if they so like. All I have is Paint at the office.

 

Here are the significant map changes:

 

All units start as in the regular game, except Italy has F Rome and Austria has F Zara (then is no province Trieste).

 

a. Trieste is divided into Croatia, a minor province, and Zara the new Austrian supply centre.

 

b. The northern part of St. Petersburg becomes the province Archangel. This eliminates any North Coast/South Coast confusion.

 

c. A new province of Siberia is added, adjoining Arc, Mos and the new province of Persia, which also adjoins Sev, Arm and Syr.

 

d. North Africa is divided into Algeria, a minor province, and Morocco, a new neutral supply centre which touches Alg. WMS and SAO. Units may not move directly between Mor and Spa.

 

e. Ireland and Sicily become passable as minor provinces of England and Italy. All units may move directly between Ireland and Clyde, and Naples and Sicily, using a direct passage facility. This does not affect fleet movement between IRI and MAO, and ION and TYS.

 

f. Three new sea spaces, Bay of Biscay, South Atlantic and Southern Mediterranean are added. Only Spa SC is now accessible from MAO. WMS adjoins both MAO and SAO at the Straits of Gibraltar.

 

 

Whatever the majority wants as far as the map situation is, we'll go with. So please let me know if you want the standard map or this one. One of the advantages of this map is that Russia is more spread out (which may slow down the Russian juggernaught a bit) and that Austria has a small new buffer against Italy.

[jaguars4ever]

Very nice map.

 

It's legible, non-isometric, clear and concise, non-cluttered yet actually looks like a map....and most importantly comes in non-Kaftan-blinding colors! :D

 

(with the exception of maybe England - perhaps photoshop can lighten that up?)

 

 

 

Why can't Reveilled's maps be like that? <_<

[EnderAndrew]

Ascetics aside, do you like the actual changes to the map, such as adding Croatia?