Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

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BobMcBob
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#21 Post by BobMcBob » Mon Nov 16, 2020 10:47 am

(I'm honestly curious as to the quality of my advice)
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Octavious
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#22 Post by Octavious » Mon Nov 16, 2020 11:01 am

To assertively avoid taking the initiative? It's an interesting approach, that's for sure. If I was feeling generous I'd say it manages to encapsulate the enigmatic and contradictory spirit of the game.
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#23 Post by BobMcBob » Mon Nov 16, 2020 11:21 am

Avoid taking too much initiative. Let the other plays chuck their initiatives around, especially if they're likely to align with yours. If they don't, then be assertive. Or maybe just, y'know, ignore me and listen to someone who knows what they're doing.
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#24 Post by Octavious » Mon Nov 16, 2020 11:25 am

Ah, I like that advice far less. "Avoid too much x" is always true, as too much of anything, by definition, is a suboptimal amount. But with its universal truth comes a fundamental lack of utility.
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#25 Post by BobMcBob » Mon Nov 16, 2020 12:19 pm

Well how about force the other players to take a significant portion of the initiative. Better?
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#26 Post by Octavious » Mon Nov 16, 2020 12:53 pm

Possibly... Assuming it's even possible to force someone to take initiative. Can you initiate someone else's initiation? On the basis that it's impossible to do what you suggest I wholeheartedly support the spirit of the proposal.

My indecision on this is final.
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#27 Post by TDOS » Fri Nov 20, 2020 5:14 pm

"Nobody plays Diplomacy because they're an honest saint. You're at a table of liars. Find every possible trick they could be playing on you, and learn to outmaneuver them all."
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New England Fire Squad
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#28 Post by New England Fire Squad » Sat Nov 21, 2020 4:11 am

TDOS wrote:
Fri Nov 20, 2020 5:14 pm
"Nobody plays Diplomacy because they're an honest saint. You're at a table of liars. Find every possible trick they could be playing on you, and learn to outmaneuver them all."
Stab em all
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#29 Post by hthefourth » Sun Nov 29, 2020 6:41 am

Octavious wrote:
Mon Nov 16, 2020 12:53 pm
Possibly... Assuming it's even possible to force someone to take initiative. Can you initiate someone else's initiation? On the basis that it's impossible to do what you suggest I wholeheartedly support the spirit of the proposal.

My indecision on this is final.
The early bird gets the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#30 Post by Octavious » Sun Nov 29, 2020 10:37 am

The birds in the bush suffer from low self esteem.

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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#31 Post by azcat1990 » Sun Nov 29, 2020 1:00 pm

“.., by universal custom, your enemy is never more polite than when he is planning or has planned your destruction.”
― James Clavell, Shōgun
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#32 Post by azcat1990 » Sun Nov 29, 2020 1:02 pm

“Hope clouds observation.”
― Frank Herbert, Dune
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#33 Post by Josef IV » Sun Nov 29, 2020 4:38 pm

I am a new player so I can say what (I think) helped me – the advice could be “Study Diplomacy”. Experience from games helps of course, but by just playing and playing, you can make the same errors over and over again.

Go out there, read the huge game journals by BrotherBored, listed to Captainmemes 10 hour video, browse through the editions of Diplomacy Briefing, turn on the DBN, etc. etc. The rules teach you how to move the pieces, these resources teach you how to think about the game.
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#34 Post by fourofswords » Sun Nov 29, 2020 8:24 pm

"A move that is certain to be executed is worth a dozen gambles". - fourofswords
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#35 Post by Octavious » Mon Nov 30, 2020 3:21 am

God doesn't play dice. Neither should you
-Albert Einstein on the virtues of Diplomacy
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#36 Post by Rhinos » Tue Dec 01, 2020 10:32 pm

This advice may seem like common sense, but it's followed less often than it should be.

"Win when you can, draw when you must, and survive by any means necessary."

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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#37 Post by David E. Cohen » Thu Dec 03, 2020 2:46 am

Play every game of Diplomacy as if it will be the last game of Diplomacy you will ever play.
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#38 Post by TheMadMonarch » Thu Dec 03, 2020 11:25 am

David E. Cohen wrote:
Thu Dec 03, 2020 2:46 am
Play every game of Diplomacy as if it will be the last game of Diplomacy you will ever play.
I would disagree. If it's your last game, you have no reputation to uphold, you can be a ruthless as you want. After a while, you'll get known as a mega-backstabber.
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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#39 Post by desdemona22 » Thu Dec 03, 2020 3:22 pm

I offer two more esoteric pieces of wisdom:
1) Play gunboat games if you are busy in real life (they take a lot less effort...)
2) Get creative and take chances with support moves if the opportunity presents itself, you can sometimes baffle an opponent when they are trying to bounce, turning the tides of the game (usually gunboat)

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Re: Best Piece of Diplomacy Advice

#40 Post by David E. Cohen » Thu Dec 03, 2020 6:29 pm

Macca573 wrote:
Thu Dec 03, 2020 11:25 am
David E. Cohen wrote:
Thu Dec 03, 2020 2:46 am
Play every game of Diplomacy as if it will be the last game of Diplomacy you will ever play.
I would disagree. If it's your last game, you have no reputation to uphold, you can be a ruthless as you want. After a while, you'll get known as a mega-backstabber.

I disagree with your disagreement. :lol: Its more about effort than anything else. Leave nothing in the tank. After all, one never knows if the second part of the statement might be true.

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