So, first impressions - my god was this game bad. (Drew Austria in both live game attempts today. Such bad luck)
First off - I'm sick and tired of the rule that in gunboat Italy must do the Balkan gambit. Its absolutely stupid. Second - if you're gambit fails (as Italy's did here) then you ***absolutely*** must cut it off immediately. That you moved to Venice and then proceeded to keep attacking me was just boneheaded. A competent Turkey would have killed you in 1904 because of that.
Which brings me to Turkey. Why on earth would you not take Greece when I handed it to you on an open platter? I could have easily bounced you out of Serbia in the fall. I changed my orders last second to go for Gal. But the point stands - if Austria is handing you an A/T on such an open platter and Italy is completely out of position WHY NOT TAKE IT. With Italy and Russia's moves, you could've soloed by 1906-7 had you gone straight against Italy out of the gate. The army build in 1902 - huge mistake. You were playing far too cautious, almost as if you were imagining that you had dynamite in your hands when it was a plate of brownies. Second huge mistake - not taking Ionian in 1903. Again, golden platter that you turned down. Watching you this game was actually painful, since you had a solo handed to you in 1901 and you did everything in your power not to take it. Italy should've been dead had there been a halfway decent France and Turkey.
Other comments - poor play by Germany and Russia to CD when things weren't going there way. Poor play by England to completely abandon his homeland to France. Honestly England, had you fought France, things would've turned out differently (also, Y U no accept my support to Berlin?)
Let's see, that brings me to....1903. Oh dear. France, some of the tactics were suboptimal there. You seem a decent player, but could use some work. I would've dived in on Italy in spring 1904.
1904 brings up a lot of questions I had though. Turkey - why on earth would you ever even **consider** giving Italy Budapest? I handed it to you. This is where you should see that France is going to solo and you damn well race him to it. Not pussy out and lay back. Also, Italy I got into Munich, yes? Why dislodge me when you had no way of keeping Mun? Your two support holds and I stay in Munich and France doesn't solo. You take Munich and France takes the damn thing the next turn. Just poor, poor play.
The end of the game was just sloppy. As PW said in our mod chat (yes, you had quite the audience. They love to watch me get killed in gunboats) "That's not a line. That's some units near a line." I mean, Turkey what were you doing around Italy's home SC's! You were actively hindering a line from being formed. Italy, Germany was clearly going to cut Kiel's support on his last turn, so why didn't you cut Munich so Turkey could gain Berlin? Turkey, why didn't you ever have your draw vote up? The game should've been over a long time ago, but due to some of France's sloppy play ya'll managed to last a bit longer.