War the card game?

how can you dont know "War" ?? I thought it was very popular around the world!
But maybe you know by its other name: Risk.

def. diplomacy... war... or RISK is by luck of a dice roll! diploacy shows strategy!

Ah, yes Risk! It was my love of the concept of that game, but frustration with all the luck involved that caused me to look into Diplomacy. I love Diplomacy and I think it is a superior game, but when playing a board game with my friends Risk is more enjoyable simply because it is much less complicated

Yes, I'm familiar with Risk.

Diplomacy is a much better game, imo, mostly because it doesn't involve dice and cards. But, Risk is better for a more casual night of gaming.

Also, in what country is it called "War"?

Diplomacy is the better game, by far.
I have never heard of it called War, btw. I am guessing that War is an online version perhaps?

Diplomacy is a better game, but difficult to play in person I think, owing to the need for secret talking between players.
Risk wins the offline play any day as far as being quicker, and it isn't all luck.

Axis & Allies anyone?

It is called War in my country (Brazil) and it is one of the most popular boardgames over here and have several variants like "War II" and "War: Roman Empire".
Diplomacy, instead, is not well known here.

You can use the board from risk to play diplomacy just divide the seas

What about all the sc's?

Also, I have a copy of Risk, but I can never get anyone to sit down and play

Diplomacy is superior in every way other than ease. RISK is good for a casual night.
Oh, and real life diplomacy games are fantastic. There are few things more entertaining than just stabbing a guy who is twice your size and threats to use physical "diplomacy" and you just laughing at him.

As for the secret negotiations Deimos, that is a major aspect that is sadly lacking in online diplomacy. You go into separate rooms of the house to talk in private. People have enough respect to leave the room when you ask (but not enough to not wait at the door trying to hear what you are saying). This also adds another layer of pressure, as if Russia sees England and Turkey talking, and talking for a long time, he knows that he needs help. It's great. No game beats a personal Diplomacy game!

@Deimos,

I am a fan of A&A as well, but I would say that's even more involved than diplomacy. Takes a lot longer and there are many more rules. Although luck is also a part of A&A, I feel that there a lot more things you can do to put the odds in your favor than in RISK (and let's face it, irl luck does play a part in war).

re: Risk. That game boils down to cashing in the extra armies cards at the right time... in order to consume other players to get their cards... with which to cash in on even more armies... ad finatum. The game is won by the by the player best trying to emulate Sherman's March to the Sea. A sometimes fun but ultimately repetitive experience.

re: Axis & Allies. I remember this game being much more entertaining in my youth. Also a game of consistent repetition where pretty much any successful opening revolves around a German blitz on Russia towards Moscow, and a Japanese recreation of Pearl Harbor. Accomplishing these feats pretty much ensures an Axis win, and failure means an Axis loss. I would credit Axis & Allies, however, as perhaps the creative force behind Attack!, a far superior game. Or Supremacy, a game I'm not sure I ever want to talk about again.

re: War, the card game. A kind of boredom packed into a deck of cards you never thought possible. I would sooner play 52-card Pickup, and at least have the satisfaction of having accomplished something.

re: Diplomacy. A game that separates the good from the lucky. No random elements make it a wonderful exercise in tactics and social skills that few, if any, board games can match. It's biggest hang up is that it required 7 like-minded people with similar availability. However, sites like this one eliminate that worry. So three cheers for the internet, which deliver to me Diplomacy and porn (two of my favorite food groups)!

Dip is better.

Axis & Allies is biased to have a historical outcome. which means it is fun to play if you're trying to alter the history.

Risk is not short whe played in person, it can go on and on and... I don't think i will ever play it again. (Risk 2210 and Lord of the Rings risk avoid this by having limits to the number of turns, and while being superior games to normal Risk they are inferior to seeral other board games)

Twilight Imperium is a game which hasn't been mentioned. It is like Axis & Allies in several mechanics, but set in space, with settlement of new planets, variable victory conditions, and controling Mecatol Rex (King of the planets) being the main objectives.

Potentially the best, longest, worst game i've ever played.

Define 'fun'...

I realy do have a problem with risk. It uses some creepy machnics, like the rule with the continents (the one who gets North America basicly wins). It also uses too many dice rolls. I dont have a problem with games with a bit of randomness, but not that much.
Diplomacy is a great game to play online, but I cant even imagion how it is played face to face. I once thought of Dip as a complecsed version of Chess, as it has no randomness and you can plan forword easly.
Another game I like is memoir 44. The best thing in it are all the detials, both historical and visual, and the replayubilty. And if you fill it is simple, try adding one of the expansions or the campaign book.

Risk is nice because it can be played with a casual group of just 3 or 4 people; the dice rolls make it essentially a gambling game mixed with a war game. it's more "fun" if you're not looking for the rich strategic experience of diplomacy; more variable due to the variety of house rules and variants that can be played with the basic board or any of the published alternatives.

that said, diplomacy is a far better game strategically, if you can get a dedicated playgroup together. I frequently can't find seven people all free for a 5- or 10-hour stretch.

@MercuryEnigma, duly noted - I'll try my best to find a group willing to play Diplomacy in person some time

Emperor Ming: I have Attack!, but have only played it once, some years ago with a total of three people. Do you like the game?

For me Axis and Allies is almost as enjoyable as playing Diplomacy. Conquest of the Empire comes in third and Risk is a distant fourth.....

I always liked Castle Risk more than regular Risk. Risk was my first "wargame", such that it is, so there is a fond place in my heart for it.

Diplomacy is better, IMO.

Attack! is the best abstract WWII game I've played. I don't like Axis & Allies. I think Attack! does a much better job although I feel you need the expansion with the Pacific map, the naval pieces, and the government types.

Conquest of the Empire and Shogun (Samurai Swords in later editions) were fun games as well.

Anyone have any old Avalon Hill games with the hex maps, tiny counters with 7 or 8 numeric values on them, and horribly set up 50 page tiny print rule books with "Rule 4.3.2.7a"? Good times!

grumbledook, are you thinking of Panzer Blitz? That was a terribly broken game.

I never played Panzer Blitz. There were a couple of Napoleonic games by AH that were quite confusing. I'm thinking of one based on the Leipzig campaign... don't remember what it was called. The Napoleonic/Civil War quadrigames by SPI were much easier - in fact they were the first proper wargames I played.

I just played Up Front this past weekend (Squad Leader card game). The close combat rules are three columns long. It took me 10 minutes to figure out how to do it, my friend promptly charged his one guy, died, and lost the game. Classic!

I had some strategic games from AH that were crazy as well. Guns of August - corps level WWI. The counters only had Attack-Defense-Movement ratings, but when you get a stack of 3 units plus trench counter in every hex, plus the artillery units that may or may not be at the front, the 20 hex long or so Western Front got pretty packed. There were probably 100+ counters in France/Belgium alone, nevermind the other fronts.

What the hell was Avalon Hill thinking in those days?

It depends on how much time I have. Diplomacy is much better but it's hard to find enough time. Risk was my favorite game until I foudn Diplomacy. Now it floats down at my #20 or so.

i'd prefer chess, if there were no nerd people who study chess as if it were maths.
of course diplomacy better than risk, and as i don't have friends in the real world, risk has no adventage for me.
so, i join emperor ming with 3 cheers to internet who deliver to me chess, diplomacy, porn and other similar perversions

Guns of August was crazy. I preferred the less historically accurate, but far more playable AH games. Waterloo could be a lot of fun. Anyone ever get to play much of Kingmaker? It had a good deal of Diplomacy like aspects to it, set during the Wars of the Roses.