The game was another in the series of games where I took over a country that had not moved in 1901. This time it was Italy.
At the start of 1902 Austria and Turkey had both built fleets while England and Germany were allied against France having supported England into Belgium and had moved Army Munich to Bohemia in Fall 1901. Rather odd.
The next phase of the game saw Russia and Austria stab the Turks and the Germans in a rather incompetent display and the English walk over the Russians in the north leaving France and Germany to fight along the Munihc Ruhr line. I joined in the fray against Turkey landing an army in Syria (strange that I would think of that).
Working with the Austrians who took the lead into attacking the Russians at the end of the Turkish campaign and Italy moved West while the English also moved on the French but they were not as fast as the Italians
who turned the 'corner' having fleets in Mid and Portugal.
At this point the Austrians fell silent for a turn after a history of rather good communications so I shifted things east and made a deal with the English to DMZ the Mid and finish off the French. I caught the Austrians in an NMR swinging into Greece and Trieste with a back up in Tyrolia.
At this point the game was E-8, G5, F1, A8, T1, I11.
The Austrian was immediately replaced by a player. I tried to rework the alliance with him and asked him to remove the two Austrian fleets and I would swing around and continue as we were. Instead the Austrians removed two armies in the north (Silesia and Warsaw) and then wrote to me one of the odder messages saying that he wanted to continue the attack on Germany and still wanted to work with me. This made no sense since if he wanted to work with Italy he should have removed the fleets and kept the armies which could have piled into Germany, this is what I told him and the war continued.
Strategically the Austrians were able to kick Italy out of Turkey but in the process lost Austria proper and the Balkans to a series of very good tactical moves on Italy's part with a little help from the Turkish Pirate fleet in Rumania.
England made the hard decision to attack the Germans and Italy was able to grab Munich and help England push into Moscow and Warsaw.
Despite a few opportunities to remove the fleets in the south the Austrians held on to the fleets removing strength in the north/center all the time and building a little Turtle defense in Turkey/Sevas.
The final moves of the game were a rather interesting combination of diplomacy. The Austrians came to Italy and said that he was furious at the English because according to him the English were always lying to him. He then said that he would give Con to me if I would take Moscow and Warsaw from the English for 16-17-18. I then asked the English if they cared if I won the game and they said it was OK as long as he had 2/5th of the points. (13 centers) so I made a shfit of forces in Spring 09 putting armies in Silesia, Galicia, Ukriane with the Austrians in Sevastopol agreeing to support me to Moscow.
I wrote to the Austrians to remind them of the deal and off I went
taking Warsaw and Moscow, I was most annoyed when the Austrians did not move out of Constantinople and then wrote to me saying he did not know if I really was going to take Warsaw. Rather than the game ending I was at 17 for having not gotten Con.
I had taken the precaution to convoy Apulia to Syria for the second time since the Austrian replacement was being evasive and odd in his depictions of the communication.
The funnier part was that I explained this to the Austrian and he was hostile to me. Saying that I was punishing him because he was out of communication camping, but it was his orders not mine that screwed things up. In Spring 10 he again did not move out of Constantinople
but this time the vice grip was on as I forced Sevast and pumped another army into Syria with Syria going to Armenia.
So I turned around to the English and said he could walk into Warsaw and Moscow and I would take Con-Smy-Sev for the 16-17-18 centers.
The game was over and I got a message from the Austrian that I was being petty because I brought him down to 1 and gave the English back their centers. Further that he never wanted to play in a game with me again.
I guess I can handle it, but I sure wish people would remember that it is
a game and that we play to have fun and make it fun for others.