The Waterloo Opening
Posted: Sun Sep 08, 2019 3:43 pm
One of the most famous battles in History, the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 heralded the end of an era and the start of another, marked by further revolution, industrialization and massive changes in all aspects of society. As the decisive stage of Napoleon's "Hundred Days", the quiet Belgian town won worldwide fame.
A century later, the fields of Belgium would be the ground for another Hundred Days, this time as part of the Great War. France and England, the mortal enemies of yore, joined forces to push through the German lines towards victory in 1918.
Inspired by this past of conflict and cooperation, I would like to present an unusual Anglo-French opening, putting the Entente Cordiale on a furious swirl against Germany right away in 1901. The opening starts simple in Spring 1901:
France:
F Bre-ENG
A Par-Bur
A Mar-Spa
England:
F Edi-NRG
F Lon-NTH
A Lvp-Wal
Link to image: https://imgur.com/mXcFI6d
As far as I can tell, neither of these openings have been properly named. The English opening is a Welsh variation of the Northern Opening, and doesn't really make sense by itself. The French opening is a variation of the Manche Opening, being somewhat similar to the English Maginot (A Mar S A Par-Bur, F Bre-ENG). When writing to Germany, England should declare a primary interest against Russia in Scandinavia (a bounce in Sweden would greatly benefit this opening), while France states their intent to hit England hard and grab Belgium with a supported attack.
The lingering question is how exactly sending a French fleet to the English Channel can be of any mutual advantage to England, especially if the idea is to attack Germany. Well, here's where our alliance's secret, seemingly innocuous weapon - the army in Wales - comes to bear in Fall 1901:
France:
F ENG C A Wal-Bel
A Bur-Mun
A Spa-Por
England:
F NRG-Nwy
F NTH-HEL
A Wal-Bel
Link to image: https://imgur.com/lrbyeQC
As England seizes Norway and Belgium while advancing onto Heligoland Bight, France captures Portugal, cooks Spain for the next year, and grabs Munich for a massive headstart against the Kaiser. As with every Diplomacy opening, this set of moves depends on the right context and diplomatic footwork - France must strongly stress to Germany its intentions of using the French fleet to support the army in Burgundy to Belgium, cleaning up the unsupported conquest of Belgium by the convoyed English army, and Munich by the lonely French army.
With two builds each and advanced positions against a (likely) 4-center Germany, the Entente Cordiale can radically up the tempo of the game and solve the Western Triangle as soon as 1903 if lucky. For the truly devious, England can also send F NTH to Denmark instead (the "Waterloo Whirlwind" variation), especially if in league with a Russian fleet intending to bypass Sweden in order to enter the Baltic Sea. Fun fact: it's the only possible way for England to get three builds in 1901.
Next time you get either England or France to play and you find a friendly diplomat on the other side of the Channel, try pulling up the Waterloo - at the very least you will laugh at everyone's reactions on that fancy Welsh convoy.
A century later, the fields of Belgium would be the ground for another Hundred Days, this time as part of the Great War. France and England, the mortal enemies of yore, joined forces to push through the German lines towards victory in 1918.
Inspired by this past of conflict and cooperation, I would like to present an unusual Anglo-French opening, putting the Entente Cordiale on a furious swirl against Germany right away in 1901. The opening starts simple in Spring 1901:
France:
F Bre-ENG
A Par-Bur
A Mar-Spa
England:
F Edi-NRG
F Lon-NTH
A Lvp-Wal
Link to image: https://imgur.com/mXcFI6d
As far as I can tell, neither of these openings have been properly named. The English opening is a Welsh variation of the Northern Opening, and doesn't really make sense by itself. The French opening is a variation of the Manche Opening, being somewhat similar to the English Maginot (A Mar S A Par-Bur, F Bre-ENG). When writing to Germany, England should declare a primary interest against Russia in Scandinavia (a bounce in Sweden would greatly benefit this opening), while France states their intent to hit England hard and grab Belgium with a supported attack.
The lingering question is how exactly sending a French fleet to the English Channel can be of any mutual advantage to England, especially if the idea is to attack Germany. Well, here's where our alliance's secret, seemingly innocuous weapon - the army in Wales - comes to bear in Fall 1901:
France:
F ENG C A Wal-Bel
A Bur-Mun
A Spa-Por
England:
F NRG-Nwy
F NTH-HEL
A Wal-Bel
Link to image: https://imgur.com/lrbyeQC
As England seizes Norway and Belgium while advancing onto Heligoland Bight, France captures Portugal, cooks Spain for the next year, and grabs Munich for a massive headstart against the Kaiser. As with every Diplomacy opening, this set of moves depends on the right context and diplomatic footwork - France must strongly stress to Germany its intentions of using the French fleet to support the army in Burgundy to Belgium, cleaning up the unsupported conquest of Belgium by the convoyed English army, and Munich by the lonely French army.
With two builds each and advanced positions against a (likely) 4-center Germany, the Entente Cordiale can radically up the tempo of the game and solve the Western Triangle as soon as 1903 if lucky. For the truly devious, England can also send F NTH to Denmark instead (the "Waterloo Whirlwind" variation), especially if in league with a Russian fleet intending to bypass Sweden in order to enter the Baltic Sea. Fun fact: it's the only possible way for England to get three builds in 1901.
Next time you get either England or France to play and you find a friendly diplomat on the other side of the Channel, try pulling up the Waterloo - at the very least you will laugh at everyone's reactions on that fancy Welsh convoy.