The above is obviously my perspective - trying to reflect my thinking at the time based on the rough notes I have. I'm going to try to respond below without being too argumentative - but I think it would be fair to say that how you engaged with little Italy between 1905-1909 obviously coloured how t...

Chapter 2 - The Path to East/West Stalemate 1904: Things are desperate, I am angry, Austria is unapologetic and all diplomatic bridges with them are burned to the ground. Rome falls and I need to find a centre someone to stay alive and enact some revenge. I engage in some desperate diplomacy to mend...

I think I'm going to break up my report into a few chapters based on the distinct phases of the game: Chapter 1 - Success to Tragedy in 3 years flat 1901: Heavy press with everyone other than England. Hit it off with Russia discussing wintergreen, Austria discussing AI, some central powers type disc...

To give others an idea of how high press this was - my messages archives contains 355 pages - even with cheese jokes and Austrovid public announcements excluded that is a lot of messages. If you filter messages by country it becomes: Russia - 129 pages (shows our diplomatic difficulties were not thr...

I'm putting together my AAR - but can't help but notice that if I had to nominate the two most important issues I wish I had done better with - it would be exactly the same two Russia nominated - Italy/Russia relationship and relationship with/influence with France (the latter of which I felt was so...

To add a little bit of colour to the above - VI/Austrovid's stab was a devastating one for me (look at the map in Autumn 1903 to appreciate the full horror - bits of Italy are covered in appropriate red blood!). You can't expect an Italian refugee clinging to Tunis/Greece/Naples to be overly generou...

I think everyone suspected that Germany both won on countback if we stopped there and could simply snipe enough centres from France at the end to have a clear lead. At least I (as Italy) and teccles (as Russia) held out some slim hope of changing that position if the game kept going - albeit very di...

A quick solo as Austria against the bots - appreciate there is real luck in some of the eastern powers moved - and it sounds like that is the real issue:

http://www.webdiplomacy.net/board.php?g ... #gamePanel

PS - also wanted to thank Durga for organising and Captainmeme for continuing to support the tournament subsequently. I appreciate large scale tournaments like this require a lot of time investment to organise.

Yes - congratulations to Brumark, and to each of the others who played this one! In advance of any detailed AARs, I will say it was easily the longest and most high press game I have been involved in, with the most switching of alliances, numerous beat down the board leader alliances, a few serious ...

Is there still a forced draw year rule in place?

Congratulations to the other finalists - ready to rumble as soon as everyone else is! I should also say - I played with quite a few others over the course of this tournament who would not be out of place in the final - appreciate all the effort lots of different players have put into this one (as we...

It was fun! I would normally be very keen to participate again - but right now I'm currently in two Online Diplomacy Championship Round 2 games with a view of trying to have an Aussie on the final board in that tournament (I think we have Osric as our other possibility there). But there are lots of ...

Appears not! Long way to go for England from here at 7 down

Subject to our friendly Tournament Director's thoughts - we could always try to kick off both games of the semi-final round together?

Congratulations to England on their 1st world cup - showed why you were the favourites and the number 1 ranked side! But heart goes out to the very brave Kiwis today. Scrapped for everything and a few moments that swung the game went against them - Taylor being given out, the deflection of Stokes ba...

Yep - full credit to England - you will be deserved victors here. Very disappointing for the Aussies to crumble like this (particularly in a World Cup which usually brings the best out of us) - but the English were a class above today.

In Smith and Starc we trust...

From an Australian - congratulations to our brothers across the ditch for beating India and getting through to the Cricket World Cup final tonight! Your team played amazing - and can only hope the Aussies do the same so we can see you there :)

Sorry missed one - that should have been: I think that means we are up to: ChippeRock - 133.7 Mr Green – 100 Vom Kriege – 100 diplomat554 – 100 VillageIdiot – 100 Balki Bartokomous - 100 Chluke - 100 dyager_nh – 69.4 swordsman3003 – 63.1 Napoleon of Oz – 59.8 osric_athanasius – 50.5 The Belgian Bull...