# New Diplomacy **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 23, 2002, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279 "2002-11-23T00:59:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 12
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2003, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/221 "2003-02-06T23:26:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Abe Babe \* > \*\*Interesting turn. In the west, y’all got some talking to do. > \*\* Yeah, cause things are cut and dry in the East. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![White\_Lightning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@White\_Lightning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/White_Lightning)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2003, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/222 "2003-02-06T23:39:51Z")
Is it me or was this year extremely evenly balanced? Every Power has gained (net) either 1 or 2 centers, and only 1 center changed hands from W01 to W02 (Den). Somethin’s got to give! ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2003, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/223 "2003-02-06T23:43:18Z")
I’ve never seen so many bounces in 2 moves before. ---
**Author:** ![Abe\_Babe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3ab097/32.png) [@Abe\_Babe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abe_Babe)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2003, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/224 "2003-02-07T01:16:02Z")
And no quarter given in the battles. No retreats, just destruction. ---
**Author:** ![White\_Lightning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@White\_Lightning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/White_Lightning)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2003, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/225 "2003-02-07T05:17:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by \*\*JayLa \*\*\* > OK, it’s not a guarantee, but I think it would be more than just a 50/50 guess. But I don’t know what’s been going on behind the scenes, so I’m probably missing something. There’s also something I haven’t been able to figure out from the rules that applies, but I’ll wait to ask it until after your deadline just in case. Here’s my thinking. **JC** has three units to attack two centers. Piedmont and GOL can attack Mar (along with WES-Spa to cut support), or WES and GOL can attack Spain (along with Pie-Mar to cut support). It takes 4 units to guarantee stopping this attack: mutual support between F Mar and A Spa, A Gas S F Mar, F MAO S A Spa (which is how I ordered those four units this past turn). Either way he chooses to attack, I stop it with that defense. IF I know ahead of time whether he will attack Mar or Spa, I can free up one unit. Mar and Spa support each other either way, and Gas can support whichever center he attacks. That frees up F MAO (potentially if he’s attacking Spain I can use MAO to support and free up Gas, but that’s not too relevant.) I just realized that my thinking about Brest had been wrong. I realized that if they work together and my only defense is Paris, I can’t win. They just support an attack on Brest and they take it. Any other set of orders (ENG-Bre, Pic-Par; or ENG H, Pic-Par) gives me a chance to keep both. And if I have Par and MAO to defend the north, they can’t win. A Par S F MAO-Bre beats any attack. So I was wrong. I only had to win the 50/50 against Italy to successfully defend my centers. Luckily it didn’t come to that, as Germany was as good as his word and backed off, so I was free to go all-out in my defense against Italy. I hope this wasn’t too much, sometimes I get lost in the details. But you had mentioned you were interested in the tactics here, **JayLa** , and goodness knows I love to talk about myself. So, you said you had a rules question? ---
**Author:** ![jessicala](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/eb9ed0/32.png) [@jessicala](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jessicala)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2003, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/226 "2003-02-07T18:44:51Z")
Someone else kindly answered the rules question for me, so I’m good. As for Italy vs France in the south, wouldn’t it be more likely that Italy would throw two units against Mar and only one against Spa? (Assuming that Italy has hostile intentions toward France.) Italy holding Mar means France can’t bottle up Italy’s armies and it also removes one center where France could build. Spain, on the other hand, would be surrounded on three sides by French units and doesn’t seem to help an Italian land advance as much. ---
**Author:** ![White\_Lightning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@White\_Lightning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/White_Lightning)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2003, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/227 "2003-02-07T20:13:01Z")
The lovely thing about this game is that whenever there are factors like that to take into account, those factors are two-edged. If he thinks I think he thinks it’s smarter to go for Marseilles, maybe he’ll go for Spain thinking I’ll defend Marseilles. But what if I think he thinks I think he thinks that? Then I defend Spain. In terms of specifics: the main thing to keep in mind is that this is a Fall turn. After this movement turn, Winter adjustments occur. If I lose a center to Italy, I have to destroy one unit. It’s a good point you make, that if he takes Spain, I retreat to Por and I have F MAO, A Por, A Gas, and F Mar bordering Spain, but one of those units has to get disbanded in my Winter turn, and Italy himself gets a build, with which he’ll be able to defend Spa. In other words, I think it’s a lot closer to 50/50 than you might think. It’s clearly not a _random_ chance (there is no luck in this game), and there are issues to consider (my potential to retake Spain, the tactical benefits of holding Mar) when weighing the decision, but you’ve got to know that your opponent is most likely aware of all the same issues and is weighing them as well. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2003, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/228 "2003-02-08T23:22:03Z")
We’ve got an updated Webpage. Let me know if you guys see anything awry. ---
**Author:** ![ppg\_shg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f19dbf/32.png) [@ppg\_shg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ppg_shg)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/229 "2003-02-10T18:57:00Z")
I was just noticing that I only have 5 SCs. However, by my own count, I should have 10. Hey, wait a minute, these brownies sure taste funny… ---
**Author:** ![Wikkit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c0e974/32.png) [@Wikkit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wikkit)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/230 "2003-02-10T19:27:26Z")
I have a rules question: when can you disband? Does the unit have to be displaced/surplus first, or can you disband at will? ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/231 "2003-02-10T19:36:49Z")
No, a unit may only be disbanded if it is dislodged. Then it may retreat off the board. Otherwise the only means of disbanding a unit is to have more units than supply centers during a winter turn. Not recommended. ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/232 "2003-02-10T20:18:54Z")
Don’t worry about it, **Wikkit**. Your Turkish neighbor will be happy to help you disband as many units as you would like. ---
**Author:** ![garius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e19b73/32.png) [@garius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garius)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/233 "2003-02-10T21:12:12Z")
As would your turkish neighbour in the newbie game **Shibb** If he’s honest… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Wikkit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c0e974/32.png) [@Wikkit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wikkit)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/234 "2003-02-10T23:28:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ShibbOleth \* > \*\*Don’t worry about it, **Wikkit**. Your Turkish neighbor will be happy to help you disband as many units as you would like. \*\* Are you implying that asking my questions here instead of in the other other thread isn’t as sneaky as I’d hoped? ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2003, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/235 "2003-02-10T23:39:04Z")
There’s a lot of cross fertilisation in these threads, in case you hadn’t noticed. To be fair, I’m never quite certain which Dip thread I’m opening. See my Turkish neighbor’s response above as testimony.\* \ ***Garius** is Turkey to my Austria in Dip 1092 ---
**Author:** ![garius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e19b73/32.png) [@garius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garius)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2003, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/236 "2003-02-11T10:58:42Z")
I’d agree with **Shibb** about the cross fertilisation - i’m keeping up with all the dip threads not just the newbie one. Well…trying to anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Abe\_Babe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3ab097/32.png) [@Abe\_Babe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abe_Babe)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2003, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/237 "2003-02-11T15:51:09Z")
Due to the continuing stooooooory of 1099, and to let you all get valentines for each other, there will be an extension of the deadline for orders to 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February. I have orders from several of you already. If they’re all in by tonight, I’ll adjudicate then, unless someone tells me not to. Also, in general, unless I am ready to install RP on my work computer, adjudications will be in the evening, so I’ll probably make orders due at 5:00 or so. I could get up earlier in the morning, but I barely have time to catch ‘Saved by the Bell’ before work as it is. That Screech is just so funny. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2003, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/238 "2003-02-11T23:47:14Z")
I for one will be thrilled at 5PM deadlines. Such is the life of a bartender. PS - Are we waiting until 5PM, or what? I’m OK going with the current moves, but if someone spoke up and wants more time I’d like a heads up so I can dip and adjust orders if need be. ---
**Author:** ![White\_Lightning](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@White\_Lightning](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/White_Lightning)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2003, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/239 "2003-02-12T00:12:17Z")
I asked for a delay last night. I don’t think I’ve even submitted a preliminary set of orders. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Abe\_Babe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3ab097/32.png) [@Abe\_Babe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Abe_Babe)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2003, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279/240 "2003-02-13T03:50:34Z")
Geez, WL, is the other game causing headaches or something? Adjudication has been sent out. One retreat is necessary. Fall orders will be due monday at 5 p.m., for Omni, 'cause Sunday is such a big night for bartenders and all. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279.md?page=11) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-diplomacy/138279.md?page=13)