this is a team game with france and turkey allied, england and russia allied and germany and austria allied with italy neutral.:-)

As part of the update, I think that a simple system for sorting the forum should be added. It would just be until someone puts in the very hard work of converting the forum completely to work as a fully features forum should.
My simple request is that when posting a thread you have to set a category for it. Those would be vague, but still sensible, possibly:
-> Misc (Other stuff, like conversations or forum games)
-> Feature/Bug
-> Games (organising new games, tournaments etc.)
-> Ingame (reporting suspected Multiple accounts etc, might not be needed once moderators are in - as long as players have the power to mail a moderator)
-> Private (any private messages you have)

These would appear across the top of the page as tabs, and you could then select what you were after.

I recently found my perspectives on Diplomacy expanding: Some forum threads taught me about threatening to give SCs to another player, and I've found more creative approaches for every stage of the game. Then I remembered the line from a recent popular video game: "Now you're thinking with portals!" Only now I'm thinking with psychology. Know another famous line from a game that applies to Diplomacy? I'm sure someone can draw from Mousetrap.

just wanted to ask people here if they had any ideas about changes to this site? i really like the layout and bold colours. its simple and clear- leaving the games themselves to be complex and difficult, just the way we like it. but i would like our win/draw/\loss ratio to be displayed next to our sign on names rather than points. Points and the hunger for them may be partly to blame for the high number of draws. win/loss ratio displayed next to our names might mean less games played but of better quality.
for example player A- 10 games played, 1 win,4 draws, 5 losses could be Player A (.3) (thats =1 win,half awarded for draws = 2 and zero for the losses divided by the number of games played to equal .3)
player B 10 games, 5 wins, 2 draws and 3 losses would be Player (.6)
player C 0wins,3 draws and 7 looses playerC(.15)
thats pretty simple i know and i havent really thought about any further implications of such a system. so
figlesquidge and ilk i know you like a bit of maths so please have a say about what would be a good system.

Please can we have a draw for the game Crazy9s ID 2496.

All three remaining players have agreed to a draw and should be making this public in this thread over the next 24 hours...

Thank you.

I have started a new game, anyone is welcome.
I have gone all-in, so the bet is 50 points.

I am looking for the creme de la creme, and I'm calling out
thewonderllama in particular. 50 points is the bet, and so the total, when collected, will be a healthy 350.

Thsi is Napoleonic Warfare, khavers and khaveras. Be intelligent, be devious, be your usual selves. I am hungry for a challenge- let the war begin, mein khavers and du khazers!

I note kestas is including a universal message tab in the next version so we can send a message to everyone in the game. I'm a little worried about this. I know in face to face games it's possible to make announcements to everyone, but does it happen that often? Is it good etiquette? Three-way and four-way huddles might be more complicated to code, but are a more accurate reflection of (how I imagine) face to face negotiations progress. But even those would cause me concern.

Why? Well the dynamic of the negotiating table is changed. It will be much harder now to question someone's sincerity and truthfulness, to sow seeds of doubt, and to play people off against each other. If you make an announcement to everyone, no-one is in any doubt that everyone has heard the same thing. If there is any duplicity about it, at least one of the other people who heard the announcement must be in on the duplicity ("I'm going to announce this, but don't worry, it's just a ploy"). It is going to be much harder to go cowboy and play people off against each other. To keep your options open about which way your loyalties will ultimately fall. If anyone has doubts about you, or even if they don't, but are just naturally cautious players, their retort to any assertion you make about the actions, motives and intentions of another player will be "well tell me in front of him." If you cannot think of a damn good excuse not to, you're in trouble.

Yes there will be things you can't share in front of everyone, obviously you don't want your enemies to know your alliance's plans. But there will be things which it is safe to disclose to your enemies and neutral parties, but can ruin an alliance. The sort of "cover your back" negotiations and manouvers good players use can kill trust as quickly as any tactical stab, if they are brought to light.

Misinformation will not be wiped out, but for a canny player there will soon be a powerful weapon he can use to verify what you purport to be the truth.

I'm sorry if that was a bit complicated to follow, I'm still thinking about it and trying to get my head around the implications, and trying to think of firm examples to illustrate my concern. But I'd like to know if anyone else thinks this could have a big effect on the way people negotiate and communicate. For players who claim sincerity and honesty is their greatest weapon, it could be either the best thing ever to happen to them, or it could kill their diplomacy careers..!

In http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2562, France has more than enough chances to win, but rather than winning, he is leaving other countries SC when it is his already and letting England take back his home SC while letting Russia gain in the Balkans. England is also moving in and out of France's SC when if he backstabbes him, England is most likely to win (Belgium, Holland, Brest, Kiel, Berlin)...It seems that either France is trying to get a 15 SC to stomething like 20 SC (Serbia, Rumania, Warsaw, Naples, Tunis) bump to get more points, or hes a multi accounter, anyhow, its defintely not a good attitude and I hate to be in this stupid game

When the option is implemented next month, how many of you will be looking forward to playing in winner takes all games, and who will be avoiding them like the plague? And will there be many of you who will happily play both options indiscriminately, or those who don't even look to see which they're playing?

Looks like a multi-accounter in this one as well. In the new version, are you planning to eliminate these worms?

this game is not for david and matt, but for the new people at dulles playing diplomacy.
http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2842

password is the name of the instrument I play with no spaces
************ <like that

Just joined up and there were no open games, so I started up a new one, no password. Hopefully some folks join up, I haven't played since High School and I'm looking forward to it.

Kestas, could you please take a look at the following game?
http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2589

In the spring, I set Portugal to move to Spain and Spain to move to Portugal; however, they attacked each other and simply held position. I understand that this would be a legal move in the board game and is a glitch - can you fix the moves? Thanks.

Is it having some problems again?

The game TWENTY ONE http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2582 is stuck on "due now." Also, I have notice very slow loading, as was note on the last post. Can we fix this please?

Along the top of the page we've all got used to the list of games (indeed I wonder just how many people can remember before that was here - or even the old chat system, that was horrible!).
At the moment a game appears if you haven't finalized (with a x) or have a new message (with an envolope), I think that you should get a little yellow ! and a game in the list if you haven't been on it scince it last processed. It wouldn't be at all hard to add, just a few small modifications here and there, and it would make using the site much simpler in my opinion - I know that there have been several times when I haven't noticed my game had cycled, and this would solve the problem.
Comments..?

It's Australia day, a nice occasion to recap on how 0.8 is going. But I'm going to include it inside of a thread so it doesn't take up too much room.

I've trolled through the games and compiled what I believe to be the results of the first round of the tournament. For each game I've given a link, whether the game was drawn or won outright, and the top three players from each game with the number of units and SCs they had at the end of the game (in the format username (# units/# SCs)). Please correct me if any of this is wrong.

TOgilvie, if you're alive and well and not buried under a mountain of non-phpdip related stuff, mind setting up round 2?

Okay, here goes...

Game 1:
http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2132
Game drawn.
SlkySmoothOtter (9/9)
Sirither (9/9)
Rait (8/9)
Note: james3838 withdrew from this game.

Game 2:
http://www.phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2149
Game drawn.
Mythago (12/14)
Gobbledydook (10/10)
wawlam59 (8/10)

Note: wawlam59 has since said that he won't have the time to play if the next round begins before February (see http://www.phpdiplomacy.net/index.php?viewthread=260432#260432). The last country to be eliminated was Russia, played by Ironclad, who had 3 SC at the time of his elimination.

Game 4:
http://www.phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2147
Game won.
stoni90 (19/19)
Chairman Mao (6/6)
Evilduck (5/5)


Game 5.1:
http://www.phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2144
Game won.
LucusVonLucus (18/18)
Signalseven (10/10)
TheMaster (6/6)

Game 6:
http://www.phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2136
Game won.
thewonderllama (17/18)
Darwyn (9/9)
Otto Von Bismark (6/7)

Game 7:
http://www.phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2151
Game won.
figlesquidge (18/18)
abab (12/12)
mightyrobot (4/4)

Whenever I have moved from Portugal or Mid Atlantic to Spain, I have automatically moved to the South Coast, whereas the North coast is often more useful. Is there a way of moving to the North coast (other than from Gascony) or is this a know issue, or indeed as it is intended to be?

http://phpdiplomacy.net/profile.php?uid=4454

check out this guy.

In NPT G2 (http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2720 - no press game) I've been dislodged from Portugal and wanted to retreat to Portugal (where there are no units and where no units attempted to go during last turn), but I can't.

So there is no way to convince phpD let me retreat where I can? :P

quick nooblike question. the DP points return to 100 when you finish your last active game and you have less than 100 DPs or whenever you finish any game and you have less than 100 DPs? if the latter i can see why people play so many games at once.

Yet another novelty...
Join 35-pointer!

ok after all the complaining and whining and ranting on the forums lately (I'm as guilty as anyone!) lets try and start another nice discussion thread, which may well morph into another elimination thread if it proves popular enough.

The theme is books, and particularly which books are the most relevant, educational and useful essential reading for any Diplomacy player with aspirations. I think The Prince and The Art of War are pretty much a given and likely to be unanimous choices (although in all honesty I have not read either!), but lets see what other obvious and off-the-wall suggestions you can come up with. As ever, don't just name a title (like I just did!), try and justify why it should be included in the list ahead of other candidates.

Hopefully some suggestions may well intrigue people so much that they actually go out and read the books, which can only be a good thing!

Joni Game "Armadillo," it needs two more players... the bet is 100, so please, medium rollers only (Rait, please stay out of this).

http://phpdiplomacy.net/board.php?gid=2822

Headache, headache..if you have an alliance who threaten you that if you do not move like he suggested, he would attack you... if you (England) join Germany and Italy agaisnt him(France) he would throw his dots to Italy while stopping you from getting any dots of him, or even worse, an alliance who is good at blaming, violence/extremism in words (always with a good reason) .

How should I deal with such kind of alliance?
I believe some of you must have similiar experiences. Are there any good suggestions? Thanks very much!!

basically the subject.
can you destory a unit in Civil Disorder by simply attacking it with one unit
or does it still take support?

Say you go through and select all of the movement options that you normally would, thus you completely specify your moves, but, you dont hit finalize, instead leave the page and just wait for the countdown to reach zero and enter the next phase of the game.

What happens?
are the order that you had, but didnt finalize, carried out?
do all of your units simply hold?

My friends and myself are long time Diplomacy players but are new to php. We trying to start a game and when I made the game I set a password. The issue is that when my friends cant find it, is there something special we need to do?

thank you for your time