is that sayign your not good either or that you would teach me how to better my skills at this game

It was the School of War, and it was run my djbent. It was a game that veterans and newbies played in and provided commentary for so that newbies could get better. If I am correct, she is taking a break from the site though, so I don't know what the situation is with SOW. Maybe someone that has more information could help you out.

Otherwise, just play more and if you get into a good game, once it ends you could see if some people on the forum could comment on it to possibly help you out. (though I must emphasize that the game needs to be finished)

yes of course. well i'm jsut gettign tired of all my percents getting worse

djbent is clearly overrated...

Its ok. You shouldn't worry about stats too much. Mine are pretty bad, but they were a lot worse not too long ago. Don't stress about it, just play the game for enjoyment. Plus games tend to be streaky (at least in my experience) where I do bad for a while and then I do good in a string of games. Basically, I don't think you should worry too much about it.

@hellalt: What does that have to do with anything?

heh, I was saying that I would like to play with people that aren't very good DJ. :P

touche hunter. haha =) well i sure am on a long bad streak.

If I remember correctly, it was Babak that started the School of War, at least the first time around.

In any case, don't feel bad about only having 2 wins. I've been playing here for a year and only have 3 wins recorded. And all three are CDs that I picked up with around 10+ centers that were in very nice positions. I have no wins from games I started in. I think I'm too happy to go for the draw rather than going for a solo.

one of my wins was when a live game crashed and the other i think was clean

DJEcc24 if you want a piece of advice I have two for you:
1. Don't get despaired. The difference between good and bad performance can be some very small details. Play more games. Practice makes expertise.
2. Use the following set of mind when playing. It's not that tactics don't matter but what's most important is to manipulate as many players as possible using the balance of powers debate.
I can't elaborate more now. I'm in a live gunboat :)

I don't know you playing style DJEcc24, but I do know djbent's and MadMarx's and some of the other top players here. The really successful players never shut up. They are constantly talking and constantly offering ideas. Because they are always engaged in a relationship with their advesaries, they are able to be flexible enough to bend to the changing conditions. I am not at their level because I usually don't have that much to say.

you see my problem i belive is i trust and i'm too nice for my own god =) if you all knew me in person i'm a big six foot four gentle giant

believe in trust but don't overdo it.

Also if you have a bit of time, read some of the articles that relate to whichever country you are playing at http://www.diplom.org/~diparch/resources/strategy.htm
Ultimately, as hellalt said, diplomacy is more important than tactics - but without fully understanding what your tactical options are (particularly in the opening moves) it can be difficult to know what you should be using your diplomatic skills to achieve.

i have played over 50 games and only won 3, but i sure as hell have picked up alot lately, especially how useful words are. and how to ignore the pain of the multiple knives coming out of my back

I think one of the biggest things that has helped me is analyzing the board from my opponents' perspectives. So, for instance, if I am England I might try to think through France's position and decide what would be the best way to defend if I am France. Once I've decided what France is going to do then I will input my moves for England.

I don't know if that will work for everyone but I am generally pretty good at figuring out what other people are going to do.

It also helps if you are good at building relationships with other players. The best on this site is probably MadMarx - he has an unbelievable silver tongue and it makes me so mad! =)

BESM taught me how to "pick" your ally. It's not just looking and judging and picking. You have to make them 'feel' like you've been picked. The personal touch always helps. I always make sure to have a 'diplomatic part', a 'personal touch' part and a 'strategic part' in all my press. Just enjoy the chit-chat between your fellow diplomats.

I used to play serious Diplomacy where I would try to analyze the other players and offer them strategies without thinking about whether they trust me or not. Don't even get me started about the time I lied to every other country because I made too many promises. I found that this does not work. Instead, just relax it.

If someone is a strategist then let him take the lead in that department. I love thinking of the perfect moves and offering to my allies. It's something I'm pretty good at too. If you do as they say and play along with their press then it turns out to be a fun game for them and for you. Remember to work with who you're dealing with. Remain the same person but don't say the same things when dealing with the different playing styles.

Like SpellofWheels said, "They are constantly talking and constantly offering ideas." Chat till their ears bleed. But don't come off as annoying, pesky, or even nosy. If there's something to talk about, talk about it. If there isn't, well, there's always something to talk about. There's one exception to this: when you're at war. I used to say to those I stabbed, "It's okay. We might be able to work together this year if you have any ideas on how that would work." I was afraid of being stabbed by my ally so I tried to keep all my options open. Yeah, that was daft of me. Instead, I found that my press with my enemy often led to my ally stabbing me! I often got wound up with promises I couldn't keep, and that's always a mess to clean up.

As for finishing the game for a win I've come up with only one way to do so--you have to get your armies ahead of the stalemate lines before you take the Supply Centers. It isn't so much progressive gain but the one big year where you're going to lock in the win. Either that, or just go big or go home and hope for the best.

This is my general assesment on how to play the game as I've learned lately. I can't say I'm all that good or am an expert on the game but I've done well lately. I hope this helps and I hope you already knew most of this stuff: it's pretty general.

Another idea is try and practise some Anc Med games, the only game i've won without any CD's helping me was on the Anc Med variation and i think that overall it is easier, not only tactically but diplomatically as there are less people to talk too and you can more easily prioritise who you want as an ally and where you want to make gains.

Your strategy will also depend on your starting country. Normally, Austria, Russia and Turkey have a 3 way battle for the east and England, France and Germany fight inthe west with Italy going either way. Try to get an ally on your side to gang up on the third country. You can usually blow them away pretty quick, then the 2 of you can turn on the rest of Europe.

If DJEcc24 and others are willing, would anyone want a Diplomacy game created where, as we play, people can offer advice and explanations in the public chat box? It might be super confusing and kind of annoying if someone explains your secret plan, but it'll be useful, I think. Or we could limit discussions to say, biyearly, and have people explain what's happened in that period. Anyone up for it? Say, 5 , 24 hour, WTA ?

I agree that building relationships is important, especially if you are like me and you're not as good at predicting the moves of others and strategy. Another reason I personally like to talk, is because the more I get others to talk the better I can guess if they are with me or against me. Such is the case with Jacob, I can often tell when he's about to stab me based on our press and if I have relationships built with others I can attempt to rally them against him before he stabs me, resulting in his bitterness! ;-)

I'm the type to react to the game, because I'm not as good at forcing my will on a game, though I think we each need to find our personal strengths and weaknesses and adjust our play to account for both. Things that work great for one person can be horrible ideas for another. It comes down to trial and error to figure out what works for you. Or not, I don't know, just thought I'd throw in a few cents for consideration.

I'd be up for that when one of my (probably too) many games ends Stukus.

iu'm up for it

http://www.webdiplomacy.net/board.php?gameID=26268

Game's here, and it starts in 10 days, so hopefully you'll end a game before that, Hellenic.

As mentioned, this game is to help people who may not be great and to discuss strategies as the game goes on. I'd like a mixture of old and new for that purpose, but join if you want to. The password is "kibbitz." I think yearly reports will be best. So every year, if each player could describe their actions and why (so long as it won't ruin their strategy too much), and other players can question them and ask why they did so-and-so. Hopefully it will be an educational game.

Sounds good, and i expect a few of my games will end by then, i don't play longer than 24 hours or 2 days max phases lol.

Bump

I'm in. I tried to do something like this earlier and didn't get enough response. I have med experience.

You should use performance enhancing drugs. Personally, when I started shooting up, my game went up at least 75%.

Hm, we have three people in the game so far. Come on, guys, it'll be fun!

Waiting for a game to end :P

Can I get in? As long s Joey doesn't stab me :-).

Well I can't guarantee no stabs, but please join. Password is kibbitz.

On the same topic, does anyone have particularly instructive games from their past that they can post? Here's one I just finished: http://www.webdiplomacy.net/board.php?gameID=24190

It was basically a race against a stalemate line. I took Munich on literally the last turn it would have been possible, and I only managed that by forcing him to disband units so he couldn't build an extra army. So exciting!

I'm in - will be fun to analyse

so we got enough soon?

5 out of 7.

Bump.

six out of seven now i belive

my suggestions for those that want to play better is 1) always defend. people lose when they overextend and not seal gaps in their offensive line. defense is the best offense. 2) i also agree with those that say to keep up communication, even with enemies and 3) decide on a plan of action and stick to it. too many players start something and then back out or change direction at which point theyve made an enemy in one country and then changed direction to attack elsewhere only to make a new enemy.

plus,MM, i know how much jacob wants to play a game against you and win and see you eliminated. its pretty funny how much it boils his blood :)

@Tru Ninja

"always defend. people lose when they overextend and not seal gaps in their offensive line. defense is the best offense."

I object to that statement. The trick is in having not to defend.