Looking for Players for the Board Game "Diplomacy"
Greetings aficionados of negotiations, tactics, and backstabbery,
I am looking for 7 players in the RVA area who want to play the board game Diplomacy! This game is not for the faint of heart - if played to full completion, it takes roughly 6 hours, and it is full of treachery and deception. I would describe it as a cross between "Risk" and "Survivor" - half tactics, half negotiations and alliance formation. I am a long-time online player, and Diplomacy remains my favorite board game, although I have yet to play in person.
Because of how long it takes to play, this will be an all-day event on a weekend. If we have eight people including myself, then I will moderate the game instead of playing, but I will fill in as one of the players if necessary.
A brief description of the game - Diplomacy is set in early 1900s Europe with seven world powers: England, France, Germany, Italy, Austria, Russia, and Turkey. The game is split into two phases: the diplomatic phase and the orders phase, which happen one after another until the game ends. During the diplomatic phase, which lasts 15 minutes, players discuss privately with each other and form alliances and make promises to others about how they will command their units. During the orders phase, everyone sits at the game board and writes down, secretly, what moves they are going to make with their units. All negotiations are non-binding, so a player can make a promise to an ally during negotiations and then do something completely different when it comes time to write their orders. All players move simultaneously - moves are written down secretly during the orders phase and all are revealed all at once and resolved on the game board. Alliances are known to form and break and reform - "backstabs" frequently occur where someone who you thought was your ally writes orders to attack you. The game can end in two ways - a "solo" or a "draw". A solo happens when one player controls more than half the board and wins. A draw occurs when all players who have not been eliminated agree to tie the game, with fewer players in the draw being a better outcome for those remaining.
The rules can be found here, if you want to know more details: https://diplom.org/~diparch/resources/rulebooks/2000AH4th.pdf .
This is a game that you might not want to play with your friends or loved ones, so I recommend not bringing anyone else unless you have a rock-solid relationship. This game is known to ruin friendships because of the treachery involved.
The venue is to-be-determined. I belong to a local makerspace, so we will likely play there. I cannot host at my apartment because it is too small - if you have a larger area with multiple rooms that you'd be able to host in, you will receive priority. The exact date is also to-be-determined but will occur on a weekend and begin in the morning. You will likely be eliminated before the game ends and can choose to leave at that point, but you can stick around to see what transpires as long as you don't interfere.
There will be prizes for the winners. I'm thinking of something like a pot of candy split between however many players are in the draw at the end of the game (or the whole thing to a player who solos).
Once we have agreed upon a time to play that works for everyone, please be ready to honor your commitment and stick around for the whole thing, because it is no fun when a player has to leave prematurely. That being said, if something comes up I might be able to fill in for someone, and barring that there are options for how to continue when a player has to leave mid-game.
I don't expect this post to gain a lot of traction, but if it does I will select people based on how good a fit I think they are for this game. I won't just choose extroverts! I'm an introvert myself. I want a diverse group of people, in terms of personality. So please message me or comment with some info about yourself, as well as your availability in the coming weekends. But I will waitlist anyone who wants to join. Priority will be given to anyone who has played the game before or could host.
I'm looking forward to meeting you, and remember to watch your back!
