Favourite country and why?

General discussions that don't fit in other forums can go here.
Forum rules
Feel free to discuss any topics here. Please use the Politics sub-forum for political conversations. While most topics will be allowed please be sure to be respectful and follow our normal site rules at http://www.webdiplomacy.net/rules.php.
Post Reply
Message
Author
335750162
Posts: 7
Joined: Tue Jan 29, 2019 9:30 pm
Karma: 11
Contact:

Favourite country and why?

#1 Post by 335750162 » Mon Dec 28, 2020 12:35 pm

Hello, I'm somewhat new to the game, and I'm wondering what reasons people have for being partial to a country in classic Diplomacy. I'm all ears for any reason anyone has, no matter how trivial.

Thanks, and I hope everyone had a merry Christmas. Here's to 2021!

frankiethefrank
Posts: 5
Joined: Sat Apr 18, 2020 11:11 am
Karma: 8
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#2 Post by frankiethefrank » Mon Dec 28, 2020 1:31 pm

I'm normally fairly excited to play England or Turkey. They feel less claustrophobic than the other countries, as you don't have to worry about people creeping up on you from behind.
3

President Eden
Posts: 6907
Joined: Fri Oct 20, 2017 2:11 pm
Location: possibly Britain
Karma: 9609
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#3 Post by President Eden » Mon Dec 28, 2020 9:55 pm

Austria in a live game, followed by Russia. Italy in a long-form game. A/R get the blood rushing like nothing else, and Italy can do basically anything it wants with the right diplomatic setup.
Germany is ok, it’s a LOT of work but it’s a strong country. E/F/T are a bit dull for my tastes but I’m glad somebody wants to play them ;)
3

User avatar
Bonatogether
Posts: 9075
Joined: Mon Mar 23, 2020 10:17 pm
Location: Canada
Karma: 4640
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#4 Post by Bonatogether » Mon Dec 28, 2020 10:19 pm

I like playing Germany and Italy, since they're more flexible, and then Russia, because it has the most interesting alliance options in the south.
1

Pinecone333
Posts: 49
Joined: Tue May 28, 2019 2:40 am
Karma: 36
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#5 Post by Pinecone333 » Mon Dec 28, 2020 10:49 pm

In press, I enjoy Germany, Austria, Russia, and to an extent Italy. All of them (especially the first three) need allies to survive, and who those allies are changes game-to-game. France pretty much always plays the same in Press; either get England to help you knock out Germany, or go after England. England and Turkey are not much better, as their options are pretty much restricted to "help France against Germany or vice versa" and "help Russia against Austria or vice versa," respectively. But Germany, Austria, Russia, and Italy all have WAY more options than that, and are often at the core of shifting geopolitical alliances throughout the game.

In gunboat, Turkey is nice because you can't die unless all three of your neighbors attack you. Austria is fun to play as a challenge, though not when you're betting big points (and not when Italy immediately moves to Trieste).
3

AnimalsCS
Posts: 32
Joined: Sun Apr 26, 2020 7:59 pm
Karma: 51
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#6 Post by AnimalsCS » Mon Dec 28, 2020 11:00 pm

Not sure if I would say Turkey is my favorite country, but I think it gets called boring quite often. In my opinion this is mostly due to a lack of creativity:

• Turkey has 3 very legitimate opening options, which is more than most countries, and choosing which is best for the diplomatic situation is interesting.

• Turkey has 3 neighbors and I believe they can all be useful alliance partners in the right circumstances. It can be a very interesting diplomatic puzzle to get each neighbor to fight because they believe you are their ally.

• Turkey has a highly defensible corner position, so even dire situations can be turned around with the right moves and diplomacy.

• Turkey can play as either a fleet power or an army power and has two paths to a solo: either pushing fleets through the mediterranean to get Spain and Portugal or pushing armies north to get Moscow, Warsaw, and possibly Munich.
1

jasnah
Posts: 507
Joined: Tue Jun 02, 2020 8:13 pm
Karma: 308
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#7 Post by jasnah » Tue Dec 29, 2020 8:11 pm

Gunboat only:

Italy = fun
Russia, England = fun but weak
Germany, Austria = straightforward, can be OK fun
France = boring and hard unless playing beginners, then boring and super easy
Turkey = WORST country, unplayable, likely to be set upon by all neighbours, near zero ability to influence the board in meaningful way, ban this country.
1

Crazy Anglican
Posts: 310
Joined: Fri Oct 06, 2017 12:04 am
Karma: 285
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#8 Post by Crazy Anglican » Wed Dec 30, 2020 2:08 am

I like Germany in full press, as it has legitimate issues to discuss with every other country. Tactically, I hate it and generally get trounced. The egotist in me likes be the center of attention though :-)
1

Aristocrat
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Jul 19, 2020 6:09 pm
Karma: 164
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#9 Post by Aristocrat » Wed Dec 30, 2020 3:16 am

Germany and Russia in press, as they have lots of flexibility and tend to dictate what happens on the board rather than vice versa.

England is my least favorite by far, as it is generally subject to the whims of France/Germany and to a lesser extent Russia. If Turkey gets ganged up on by Austria/Russia, at the very least they can try to bring Italy in to even things out; if England is facing a Sealion it is almost certainly dead unless you have some very savvy southern players who are willing to recognize and take advantage of the temporary weakness of France/Germany(/Russia).
1

Beneficial Insurance
Posts: 14
Joined: Thu Sep 17, 2020 7:50 pm
Karma: 26
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#10 Post by Beneficial Insurance » Wed Dec 30, 2020 6:02 am

My favourite country is Italy. This is mostly because it was the first country I ever played. Just the fact that being in the center of the board allows you to be relevant to everyone, and therefore recieve press a lot more than, say, Turkey.

Also, I have a hard on for naval powers.
3

Matticus13
Posts: 460
Joined: Wed Mar 20, 2019 2:21 am
Karma: 419
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#11 Post by Matticus13 » Wed Dec 30, 2020 6:23 am

Russia, Austria, and Germany are up near the top for press games. Each requires maximum effort diplomatically. I don't have a favorite really, but my *best* results usually involve England.
1

C66_Hardie
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Apr 02, 2020 11:18 am
Karma: 10
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#12 Post by C66_Hardie » Wed Dec 30, 2020 2:28 pm

France or Turkey for me. So long as you've got a non-agressive Italian neighbour (which you usually do, as they are normally too worried about Turkey and Austria), France is usually the turning country that get to pick whether to team up with Germany or England. Although it does all depend on who plays the other countries.
I have found that Turkey are incredibally difficult to break, and so from a defending/surviving point of view, Turkey are great
1

Sunstriker
Posts: 31
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2018 5:34 pm
Karma: 48
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#13 Post by Sunstriker » Wed Dec 30, 2020 3:19 pm

Germany and Austria. I like having my back to the wall, and being both force me to be properly engaged with the other players. I don't dislike playing anyone, but I always feel the most engaged with these 2 powers.

Plus - if you can get them going they're in a better position to take a shot at a solo run. Having their home centers right next to the home centers really helps ^.^
1

Johnny Big Horse
Gold Donator
Gold Donator
Posts: 416
Joined: Tue Aug 21, 2018 7:36 am
Karma: 443
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#14 Post by Johnny Big Horse » Wed Dec 30, 2020 9:37 pm

I am a lousy gunboat player, but I like England best in gunboat. It is hard to win, but I love convoying army after army into Germany. I love it.

Italy is fun in gunboat as well, as you are free to determine your game yourself, since nobody will attack you to start. Also, since Austria is so threatened in the first year, if you team with Austria, you have a good partner.

In full press, I like the west. I can always get someone to team with me.
1

teccles
Posts: 237
Joined: Mon Mar 25, 2019 8:10 pm
Karma: 285
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#15 Post by teccles » Wed Dec 30, 2020 9:59 pm

In full press, I find the Eastern powers more interesting than the Western ones (at least early on... later on anything can happen). The Western Triangle is usually pretty much a game of 'odd one out' - two powers gang up on the third, and you want to avoid being the third. Whereas in the East, you can have all sorts of exciting combinations, and alliances also take longer to become clear.

In gunboat, I dislike losing while feeling powerless. This mostly happens to Austria (when Italy attacks them), France (when everyone attacks them) and Turkey (when everyone attacks them).
1

Dejan0707
Posts: 118
Joined: Tue Jan 02, 2018 9:15 pm
Location: Dante's Inferno
Karma: 105
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#16 Post by Dejan0707 » Wed Dec 30, 2020 10:28 pm

England because od great defensive position and naval strength.

France because it is very versitile nation capable to dominate on seas east and west of the main stalemate line, but is also strong nation on land.

Russia because it is like glass cannon. If you play it well you have great chance ro win the game. If you play it wrong you will not take ages to be taken down like Turkey.
1

JuiceWRLD
Posts: 21
Joined: Sat Feb 09, 2019 1:39 am
Karma: 15
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#17 Post by JuiceWRLD » Thu Dec 31, 2020 5:08 am

I live for France. Good amount of supply centers off the bat, good opportunities alliance wise and in a nice position. Always happy when I get France.
1

User avatar
brainbomb
Posts: 21955
Joined: Fri Sep 29, 2017 3:20 pm
Karma: 9991
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#18 Post by brainbomb » Thu Dec 31, 2020 5:48 am

japan for the culture
1

Hellenic Riot
Gold Donator
Gold Donator
Posts: 2694
Joined: Tue Mar 21, 2017 10:28 pm
Location: Brighton, UK
Karma: 1333
Contact:

Re: Favourite country and why?

#19 Post by Hellenic Riot » Thu Dec 31, 2020 5:06 pm

Germany is the country I have the most fun with, it has such dynamism and so many viable options... Allying with France, with England, or with Russia are all very plausible strategies and can be somewhat disguised, and it's got strong offensive potential against all of them too... And then there's the less frequent but still plausible options like allying with Italy, or an alliance with Austria that involves actually working together instead of just agreeing to DMZ Boh/Tyl. It's very rare that two games of Germany will ever feel the same.

Of course if it's a tournament game or something very high stakes then Turkey and France are who I have the best results with, so I might prefer to draw those instead :razz:
3

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: greenfelder32 and 103 guests