no proof for the recipients that you are sending the same message to both parties

This is not yet a function on the site, but rest assured it is certainly on our development wishlist. If you or anyone you know is willing to write some code for the site, get in touch with the mod team and.....oh shoot I forgot the link to our dev page. But someone here will surely link it.

@goldfinger0303 I'm glad to hear it. I'm by no means an expert coder, but I would be interested in the project.

https://github.com/kestasjk/webDiplomacy - If you have further questions, feel free to message A_Tin_Can or email us at [email protected]

On several occasions where I had to convince someone I really send something to a third party in some extremely important matter I used screenshots, but it felt like cheating... so much.

Don't rely on screenshots. Mapu doctored screenshots in a game I played with him on VDip

With Chrome it takes about 10 seconds to change any text on a page to any other text. Now, it only exists like that on YOUR browser...but it looks perfectly legit in a screenshot.

Gold, that was some of the most fun I've had. Central and Song were so disgusted that you would say the things you did that they had no choice but to attack you.

http://puu.sh/hgubL/15b7620e12.png

You were such a pain that game. Had Catholica and UK not been metagaming the entire time, I had an excellent solo shot.

For reference, http://www.vdiplomacy.net/board.php?gameID=20816

https://s3.amazonaws.com/f5test/12-13-2014+1-20-46+AM.png

Goldfinger was Iran. I was trying to get Central, his patsy, to attack him. It worked after I sent this screenshot of Iran's messages to Central.

^Reasons why group chats would help

Fundamentally though every group chat is undermined by "so I'm gonna post this to group chat; it's bullshit here's what's real: XXXXX"

It's just not that fundamentally different. It's not the exact same, but I don't miss it.

Generally, of I want both you and an ally to know something, I tell the ally my message directly.... And for you I whisper the message in your mother's ear...

A similar missing feature is grey press, where you can send press without identifying yourself.

I find that one interesting because while standing in a group is a natural and common occurrence in F2F/boardgame play; Grey Press would be supremely difficult and I've never seen nor heard of it in F2F. It seems an artifact of Zine play; not that there's anything wrong with that.

I concur with the OP for the most part.

I will put in that there have been plenty of times that I'm glad that such a feature isn't available. It lends itself to the mystery of the game. I send press many times addressed "To France and England" for example. In such a case, I note that it is to both parties, but it does add that element of deception.

It could be that my first press is legitimately to both France and England, just as it is put, but I could easily alter one at a later date when players become lax in their scrutiny.

Diplomacy is entirely about playing both the player and the system available. In FtF play, players write false orders for other players, or they write genuine ones under permission of the original player. I've heard stories about players that snuck their hand into the orders box and threw away a players orders. People sometimes sneak a unit onto the board, and all manner of deception. War isn't about fair. We have our "Gentleman's Rules" as outlined in the rulebook to establish a framework for how to play the game, but beyond that, the rules encourage an "anything goes" mentality--hence the need for diplomatic negotiations.

For the record in case people are worried, every single F2F I've seen or attended disallows messing with orders that are in the Box. The Box is Sacred. That's some Richard Sharp shit there.

http://www.diplomacy-archive.com/resources/ftf/meta.htm
http://www.diplomacy-archive.com/resources/ftf/unethical.htm

Here is an explanation of the different types of press used on BOUNCED:
http://www.dipbounced.com/help/startgame.html
Scroll down to the Press sub-section of Game Options.

Apparently, we only implement white broadcast press (what we call public press) and white partial press with one recipient. We neither support grey press nor partial press with more than one recipient.

Elsewhere on their website, they mention something called black press which BOUNCED doesn't support.

Here is another URL which explains different types of press:
http://www.diplom.org/Email/judge/press.html

We have this feature on PlayDip and I've missed it on occasion here. But as someone suggested, you play within the framework you have. However primitive.

@Mapu, Song wasn't disgusted at Iran for it. He saw through the screen cap instantly but hyped it up to help get Central to stab Iran.
(Remember?)

You have two allies at the same time?

You have allies?

No, they have one joint target.

"Grey press" (i.e. anonymous posts) is available on vDip:
http://vdiplomacy.net/variants.php?variantID=50

It would be nice if some form of grey press could be incorporated (by default) in webDip as well. It is allowed to write and send anonymous messages in face-to-face games (or at least it's not forbidden :) ).

I'm not so sure I like the idea of multi-messaging. Part of the fun of Diplomacy is getting people to trust you. It's too easy to be trusting when you know that the same messages are going to two people. It's more fun to CONVINCE someone that the same messages are going to other people...or are they plotting against YOU?

That's why I don't understand why there are so many Gunboat games. Where's the fun in that?

Multi messaging could be made a once a year thing, only one multi-message per year so that if your "ally" says he spoke to " insert other country name here" but says he/she already used his multimessage in spring, you can still wonder if he/she is lying or not.

We also have anonymous public press at PlayDip. And Valis, sometimes I think I have an ally and I'm wrong. I know, how stupid of me. You can't kick me any harder than I do myself.

Gunboat is like Monopoly without money. Maybe not that sensible.

Mutli-country chat is something we've been talking about for a while. It's definitely on the todo list, but other features will probably come first.

I can imagine that one of your highest priorities would be getting rid of all those children drawing arrows on the maps with their crayons. Albeit that they do a wonderful job.

zaneparks: I love your profile comment:
"'Diplomacy is the art of telling people to go to hell [PLAYDiplomacy] in such a way that they ask for directions.' Winston Churchill"

Except no one asked for directions, so are you really a diplomat?

I am a diplomat. A somewhat mediocre diplomat, but I have fun. Actually winning appears to be too lofty, too elusive a goal. Having a bit of fun seems attainable at times. It's all a matter of setting goals and expectations low enough.