29 June 2003
The problem with Diplomacy is describing it. Not only because of inherent subterfuge and long-term tactical considerations, but because it can be extended and modified with the use of variants. At heart, it’s a simple war game. Very simple. Each unit has equal strength, and all the units move at once on a map of Europe from the early 20th century. Your objective is to control a majority of the supply centres (special spaces, usually corresponding to major cities and countries), competing against six other players, and only one person can win. There’s more, of course, but that’s a basic summary.
Why is it so popular, then? Well, I could talk about some tactical complexities and the like, but it comes down to two points.
A lot of thinking has been done on the subject of Diplomacy, and I wouldn’t presume to sum it up here. If you want that, then the Diplomacy Archive and the Diplomatic Pouch are both excellent resources.
So I’ve decided to join a PBEM game. I’ve played PBEM before, although not a great deal, and definitely not as much as FtF. Once the last round of games petered out, I couldn’t find the energy to join any more, and FtF’s awkward to organise. This lack of energy is due in part to a rather draining and strife-ridden four-way draw, with particularly poor conduct from one country (you get used to referring to people as countries; for instance, ‘Russia is a bastard’ ). They did their best to bully everyone into letting them win, which is fair enough, although it didn’t work too well. When they realised that it wasn’t going to work and they were in fact going to be eliminated, they quit, leaving the GM looking for someone willing to take over a country on its last legs.
That’s the past. There’s always a great buzz when starting a new game, everyone full of ideas, wanting to scope out the opposition. Obviously interest waxes and wanes of the course of the several months, some times just throwing moves in without speaking to anyone, other times frantically diploming. Overall it’s good fun, though, and certainly it seems that way right now, after an evening spent weeding.
I don’t have a game yet; I’ve just joined the queue rather than actively seek one. Perhaps I’ll post about it, although with my email address linked to this domain, I probably won’t, except for perhaps
I like playing in the East the most. For some reason, although I’ve played as them all, England, France, and Germany don’t sit well with me. I’d much rather be involved in the Balkans, often the most contentious area on the board in the early stages, than mess about with Scandinavia and the Low Countries. Probably Turkey would be the ideal choice, as I played them in my first ever game and loved it. So secure for a beginner (or even a beginagainner) to get started with.
