From the zine:
http://uk.diplom.org/pouch/Zine/W1996A/ ... osits.html
I call it the "Slingshot Juggernaut" opening. Since I came up with it, it has been tried twice, both times with the result of a solo win for the Russian player after a gamelong alliance with the Turkish player (well, gamelong until the last move, of course). Now that I'm writing about it here, of course, I suppose it'll never work again.
Anyway, the two biggest problems for the juggernaut opening are convincing the other players that there is no juggernaut and determining what to do with the Russian fleet in Sevastopol. In the Slingshot, both problems are dealt with by a quick and efficient fake war.
At the beginning of the game, both Turkey and Russia claim to everyone (especially Austria) that they will be opening against each other while promising otherwise, and indeed, both do -- in a particular way. Russia sends Warsaw to Ukraine, Moscow to Sevastopol, and Sevastopol into Armenia, while Turkey sends Ankara to the Black Sea and Smyrna to Ankara. To the world, this looks like a total concentration of forces in the southeast.
These Spring 1901 moves are perhaps just a touch off-beat, but creative explanations to the Austrian are easy to come by. For example, Austria would be prepared for the Russian's grand "eastern attack strategy" with a plan like: "Okay, I've convinced the Turk to send his fleet to Constantinople to go out to sea, but my fleet will head south to make sure he has to guard Ankara while I build another fleet in Sevastopol and take the Black Sea."
After the initial moves, Russia also makes sure to occupy all of Austria's attention with his continual hand-wringing -- mad at the Turk for not sending the fleet west and now wondering whether to support Armenia or to use Sevastopol to assure the take of Rumania. Turkey, of course, is equally mad at Russia for the violation of the fictitious Armenia plank of the DMZ agreement. If Austria can be read well enough to assure a Russian Rumania, both Russia and Turkey plead with Austria for his support into Rumania.
In the end, Russia guesses wrong, supporting Ukraine to Rumania with the Sevastopol army (the bright spot being the failure of Bul-Rum), and the Turkish army enters Armenia with support from the Black Sea, dislodging the poor Russian fleet. And -- horror of horrors -- there are no retreats for the fleet. It is destroyed.
Claiming that he is giving up on the fleet idea, since it worked so poorly, Russia builds an army in Sevastopol.
While both Russia and Turkey make loud noises about their war, and while both enter into convoluted plans against each other with the Austrian, the Armenian army busies itself preparing for a convoy across the Black Sea and into the Balkans. Meanwhile, the Rumanian and Bulgarian armies are quietly deciding any support scheme to use against the Serbian defenses. Before the board knows what hit it, the juggernaut is through Austria. It is truly a joy to behold -- especially as Russia (I say, knowingly).]