Diplomacy Zine -- EP #205 Chapter Seven From: Eric_S_Klien@cup.portal.com Date: Mon, 15 Oct 1990 03:32:50 +0000 Issue #205 of ELECTRONIC PROTOCOL: ************************************************************************ The Democrats have supported the President's plan to have a new gasoline tax under which the government will take $50 billion from motorists such as yourself. This will create jobs. See, if you were allowed to keep the money, you wouldn't create jobs with it. You'd just throw it into the bushes or something. But the government will spend it, thereby creating jobs. In this case, the government will spend the $50 billion on a major road-repair program, including several million dollars for highway construction signs that say: CONGRESSMAN ROBERT "BOB" LUNGER and the United States Department of Trans- portation are pleased to announce that for the next 86.8 miles there will be federal traffic cones all over the place and hundreds of friends and relatives of a contractor who contributed to the campaign of ROBERT "BOB" LUNGER standing around with red flags and directing traffic so casually that they may occasionally wave your car right into an oncoming tractor-trailer loaded with propane gas, so we regret the inconvenience. ************************************************************************ Chapter One contains: BLITZKRIEG and PASSCHENDAELE And is published by uunet!cti1!rlister or rlister@cti.com/Russ Lister Chapter Two contains: REPUBLIC, BORODINO, JACAL, VERSAILLES, DRESDEN, and KHAN And is published by sinhaa@mcmaster.ca/Anand Sinha Chapter Three contains: DAWN PATROL, BERLIN, EL ALAMEIN, SQUALANE, UNGAWE, BRUSILOV OFFENSIVE, CULLODEN, GANDALF'S REVENGE, GOODBYE BLUE SKY And is published by cwekx@htikub5.bitnet/Constantijn Wekx Chapter Four contains: OZARK, DEADLY DAGGERS, YORKTOWN, MONTREUIL-SUR-MER, FIRE WHEN READY And is published by dm8sstaf@miamiu.bitnet/Douglas M. MacFarlane Chapter Five contains: BORDEL, ERIS, MASADA, and YALTA And is published by jjcarette@watami.waterloo.edu/David Gibbs Chapter Six contains: TOKUGAWA, BERLIN WALL, HIROSHIMA, GENGHIS KHAN, SEA LION, VIOLENT PEACE And is published by ps9zrhmc@miamiu.bitnet/Peter Sweeney Chapter Seven contains: HELM'S DEEP, GROUND ZERO, BAGHDAD, AUSTERLITZ, ??, KING'S GAMBIT, GET SOME, DEF CON 5, THUNDERDOME, DRAGONS, BLACK OCTOBER ------------- Chapter Seven ------------- No games in this issue. Publisher comments: Quote is from Dave Barry, "A Taxing Proposal" submitted by ingram@u.washington.edu/Doug Ingram Since I just published issues recently, I will let my game reports and quiz answers build up for another week before publishing them. ELECTRONIC PROTOCOL AND PROTOCOL STATISTICS By Eric Klien I decided to make a list of my games, so I wouldn't duplicate game names. The amount of used game names is starting to exceed my available memory space. The only duplication I found is the latest gamestart in my postal zine, but that was because I was taking in an orphan game from another zine. So we are responsible for no game name duplications! I don't know how long we will be able to come up with new game names though. Suggestions are always welcome. We have now completed 41 games. This means we are running 42 games which is a record. Please look at the following list of games and see if I have listed any games that have ended as still running. This is a definite possibility, so please double check my list! It is interesting how much faster electronic games go than postal games. My oldest running electronic game is game #9 which is about to enter the year 1918 and this is with numerous game delays due to e-mail problems. (Although we still have all the original players.) Meanwhile my oldest postal game is game #1 which is in the year 1907. Electronic games: #1 BUNKER HILL - COMPLETED #2 GALLIPOLI - COMPLETED #3 PANZER - COMPLETED #4 MAELSTROM - COMPLETED #5 RED STORM - COMPLETED #6 PEARL HARBOR - COMPLETED #7 D-DAY - COMPLETED #8 NAVARONE - COMPLETED #9 BLITZKRIEG #10 OPERATION OVERLORD - COMPLETED #11 GETTYSBURG - COMPLETED #12 DRAGONSLAYER - COMPLETED #13 DOUGHBOY - COMPLETED #14 BISMARCK - COMPLETED #15 HMS HOOD - COMPLETED #16 COLD WAR - COMPLETED #17 JACAL - GUNBOAT GAME #18 TANNENBURG - COMPLETED #19 VERDUN - COMPLETED GUNBOAT GAME #20 TRENCHFOOT - COMPLETED #21 ENTENTE - COMPLETED 1914 GAME #22 MULHOUSE - COMPLETED BLIND GAME #23 DAWN PATROL #24 RATATOSK - COMPLETED #25 BUSHIDO - COMPLETED #26 HUGO - COMPLETED #27 VERSAILLES - COMPLETED GUNBOAT GAME #28 JUGGERNAUGHT - COMPLETED #29 TOKUGAWA #30 PETAIN - COMPLETED #31 DUNKIRK - COMPLETED #32 BERLIN #33 CONSTITUTION - COMPLETED GUNBOAT GAME #34 BIG WILLIE - COMPLETED BLIND GAME #35 FIRE WHEN READY #36 MANHATTAN - COMPLETED GUNBOAT GAME #37 DREADNOUGHT - COMPLETED #38 RED STORM RISING - COMPLETED CLASSIC GAME *NEED GAME REPORT* #39 HOHENZOLLERN - COMPLETED #40 COMRADES IN ARMS - COMPLETED 1914 GAME #41 EL ALAMEIN #42 SNIKKEL - COMPLETED #43 SNIKKEL-2 1990L - COMPLETED #44 OZARK #45 SQUALANE #46 NICKEL - COMPLETED BLIND GAME #47 GROUND ZERO #48 DEADLY DAGGERS #49 DRESDEN - GUNBOAT GAME #50 CAPTAIN CAVEMAN - COMPLETED DUTCH GAME #51 UNGAWE - 10 PLAYER VARIANT #52 YALTA #53 ARCHANGEL - COMPLETED WARP SPEED GAME #54 YORKTOWN #55 BORDEL - ULTIMATE SHAMBLES #56 MASADA - GUNBOAT GAME #57 HELM'S DEEP #58 BERLIN WALL #59 MONTREUIL-SUR-MER #60 KHAN #61 HIROSHIMA #62 ERIS - ULTIMATE SHAMBLES #63 GENGHIS KHAN - WARP DIPLOMACY #64 SEA LION - BLIND DIPLOMACY #65 PASSCHENDAELE #66 VIOLENT PEACE #67 BORODINO #68 BRUSILOV OFFENSIVE - BLIND DIPLOMACY #69 ARNHEM - COMPLETED NO PRESS GUNBOAT #77 ZULU - COMPLETED #70 BLACK OCTOBER #71 AUSTERLITZ #72 CULLODEN - GUNBOAT GAME *GM Needs to send me country assignments* #73 GANDALF'S REVENGE #74 REPUBLIC - SLOW WARP #75 DRAGONS #76 THUNDERDOME #78 BAGHDAD #79 GOODBYE BLUE SKY - GUNBOAT GAME #80 DEF CON 5 - WARP #81 GET SOME #82 KING'S GAMBIT - NO PRESS GUNBOAT #83 ?? *Just started this, GM has had no time to select name* Postal games: #1 CONQUEST #2 NORMADY #3 THE MAGINOT LINE - GUNBOAT GAME #4 JUTLAND #5 MUSTARD GAS SOUFFLE #6 FIREFALL #7 PATROL #8 HAPSBURG #9 TANNENBERG Here is a list of the amount of players we have from various countries. We recently lost our last Ireland player, so we are currently representing 14 different countries. We have 47 Non U.S. players out of 225, for about a 20% representation. Our most unusual representation is the 7 players from The Netherlands. We had almost twice this many until our dutch game recently ended. An amazing amount of people from such a small country! Iceland, Israel, Germany, Australia, and New Zealand have been recent sources of new players. Australia #84 #161 #207 #228 Canada #11 #30 #37 #39 #48 #62 #91 #112 #124 #136 #167 #170 Denmark #102 England #45 #60 #68 #71 #172 #181 Finland #40 France #46 #175 #176 #177 #178 Germany #75 #152 #182 #224 Iceland #218 Ireland - Vacant Israel #212 The Netherlands #42 #96 #118 #155 #184 #195 #221 New Zealand #232 Sweden #36 #168 Switzerland #41 Gamestart information --------------------- 2 e-mail gamestarts in 1988 = 2 gamestarts 32 e-mail plus 5 postal gamestarts in 1989 = 37 gamestarts (8 were variant gamestarts) 49 e-mail plus 4 postal gamestarts in 1990 = 53 gamestarts I haven't calculated the amount of variant gamestarts this year, but the percentage has increased over the previous year. Note that I have already exceeded my goal of one gamestart per week! We still have plenty of time to hit 70 gamestarts for the year. Eric Klien The following was submitted by loeb@geocub.greco-prog.fr/Daniel Loeb: DIPLOMACY PROGRAMMING PROJECT UPDATE ------ OCTOBER 9, 1990 1) Eric Klien is organizing the following game: NO PRESS GUNBOAT WITH NO RESTRICTIONS waiting list: 2 creatures, need 5 more. In this variant, players are not restricted to the human race. Note that this is the only game in the electronic protocol open to computer programs. If you can put a computer program together quickly, please contact Eric and tell him when you think you can have it ready. Note also that this game is "no press". That means there is going to be no diplomacy. The program you write can be a simple one which does not attempt to talk to the other players. In fact, your program will have no idea which players are programs and which are humans. 2) Ken Lowe has been talking to me quite a bit on ideas for his computer program, but he hasn't really started writing yet. The next few items sample our conversation: Me: How is your Diplomat program coming along? Ken: Not well. I sat down and worked out a number of the data structures I would need, but came to the realization that the program is going to have to have a whole heck of a lot of smarts to be any kind of player at all. The first stumbling block I'm coming up to is figuring out a way to represent the board such that fronts can be recognized. Me: As far as detecting "fronts" that is a real problem. I suggest two possible solutions: A) Have the program play out its "short-term" strategy on the Diplomacy board, but have it look at a smaller corresponding board for its "middle-term" strategy. The correspondence between the two boards might be as follows: ENG England 3/6 Lon,Lpl,Edi,Wal,Cly,Yor MAO Mid-Atlantic 2/5 MAO,Spa,Por,NAO,Iri NSC North Scand. 2/5 Nwy,StP(nc),Bar,Nth,Nwg SSC South Scand. 3/7 Swe,StP(sc),Fin,Bal,Bot,Ska,Den NFR North France 3/7 Bre,Par,Gas,Pic,Bel,Bur,Eng WME West Med 1/5 Mar,GOL,Wes,NAf,Pie CME Central Med 3/6 TyS,Ion,Tun,Nap,Rom,Tus EME Eastern Med 3/7 Aeg,Eas,Smy,Syr,Aeg,Bul(sc),Gre BLA Black Sea 5/7 Bla,Ank,Arm,Bul(ec),Rum,Sev,Con AUS Austria 3/5 Vie,Bud,Gal,Boh,Ser ADR Adriatic 3/6 Tri,Apu,Adr,Trl,Alb,Ven WGE West Germany 4/6 Hol,Kie,Mun,Ruh,Ber,Hel CRU Central Russia 2/6 Sil,Pru,Lvn,War,Ukr,Mos With the obvious adjacencies.... B) Have the program fill an array containing the distance between every 2 adjacency provinces (size n x n). This array can be filled in n^2 time. The program can then use this array to help it move "in the right direction". 3) Ken asks: In your earlier statements you said you wanted to know "what powers your diplomat can play (if not all) and whether it can play against itself". I submit that a larger question is whether it can play against an arbitrary opponent! It's easy to anticipate what an instance of yourself might do or recognize; programming for an unknown opponent will be a nightmare. I answer: Obviously, the unknown opponent is the objective. I take that for granted. Of course, any new opponent would be wise to be unstandable by any existing diplomat. Thus, the first person to write a diplomat doesn't have to worry to much about "possible" opponents. Rather it is the others who will adapt to him if that is possible. By asking if a program could play itself, I meant if it used certain files by name. And thus 2 invocations of the same program would interfere with each other. 4) Ken Asks: Rhetorical question: Once you've got something that recognizes fronts, how do you try to convince a brain-damaged ally that your strategy is going to work? How do you recognize what a, possibly intelligent, ally is trying to propose? I answer: How do you convince a stupid human ally for that matter. For one matter, you can use the THK command to generate a whole set of likely results. Presumably, a program should be able to tell when the advise it received would have been useful, and then try to puppet? 5) The protocol file keeps on making tiny changes. Please demand a copy if you don't have it, or if you are about to start writting your program. 6) The rest of this file consist of the rules to diplomacy and how they are interpretted by my program, and a list of bugs and features I will work out in the near future: ***FILE: dipl.bugs BUGS bicoastal units don't occupy whole province convoy is disrupted even when beleagured garrison rule might save it impossibility to waive build (WVE) (can lead to hang) possibility of CD flag being "unset" (or kill flag) units can exchange places if either or both is convoyed FUTURE FEATURES 2-6 player diplomacy variant preference list DIAS / nonDIAS options (DIS) short game variant (END season) automatic diplomacy period cut off and automatic CD flag set multiSEND public documents allow synonym tables no required nationality replacement players CD removals following farthest unit rules NRS (not right season) error message instead of HUH when appropriate SUM(mary) command - to receive a summary of moves submitted so far NOW command used during first turn as well ***FILE: rules (* rules ** Diplomat Interface 1.0alpha ** Copyright 1990, Loeb. ** ** (Diplomacy is a trademark of the Avalon Hill Game Company, ** Baltimore) *) The following file consists of the rules to Diplomacy in the left hand column and in the right, comments on their applicability to the "Diplomacy Interface" (DI). Rules that are handled by DI are referenced by the name of the object devoted to its enforcement, or by the name of a datatype followed by a colon and the name of the relevant constructors. Rules that are not applicable or are a consequence of another rule are referenced by []. Rules that are not yet enforced by DI are referenced by <Future Expansion> or <Bug> depending on the nature of the ommision. Rules that are enforced by the DPP protocol are reference by the names of the relevant protocol commands in braces. Rules that are interpretted differently by DI are explained in parenthesis. Numbered examples are accompanied by an explanation rather than the above system of references. THE RULES OF DIPLOMACY COMMENTS I. PLAYERS AND COUNTRIES Diplomacy is best played by 7 players, though <Future Expansion> as few as two may play. (must be 7) Each player represents one countries of the Great Powers of Europe in the programs years just prior to World War I: Austria-Hungary, England, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, and Turkey. Each is independent of the other. At the <Future Expansion> start of the game, the players choose which Great (done manually) Power each will represent. Ties will be broken by {HLO} drawing lots. This is the only element of chance in the game. II. OBJECT OF THE GAME As soon as one Great Power controls 18 supply victory, gameover centers, it is said to have "gained control of Europe," and the player representing that Great Power is the winner. Players may terminate the draw, draw2, over, game by mutual agreement before a winner is draws determined, {DRW} in which case all players who still <Future Expansion> have pieces on the board share equally in a draw. (non-DIAS) III. SHORT GAME Since gaining control of 36 supply centers <Future Expansion> takes a long time, players may agree beforehand to (full game only) stop the game at a certain time. Players may agree to regard the player who has the most pieces at that time as the winner. IV. DIPLOMACY 1. Combinations and agreements among the [] players may affect the course of the game a great deal. These are determined during the diplomacy period which takes place before each move. This <Future Expansion> period lasts 30 minutes before the first move and (no automatic 15 minutes before each move thereafter. These (...time limit) periods may end sooner or later if all players {YGO, NGO, TME, SLP} agree at the time. 2. During diplomacy periods, a player may say {SND, SNT, FRM} anything he wishes. Usually, the players go off send into another room or off to a corner in twos and threes. <Future Expansion> They try to keep the content of their [] conversations secret. They may try to overhear the conversations of others. The conversations usually consist of bargaining {ALY,PCE,SRY,IFF,PTT} or joint military planning, but they may include {DMZ,DST,_DO,_NO,FOR, {WHT,HOW,CTE} such things as exchanging information, denouncing, {XDO,XNO} threatening, {DWR,EXP,SRY} spreading rumors, and so forth. {DFM} Public <Future Expansion> announcements may be made and documents may be written and made public or not, as the players see fit. Stored or computerized information may be (Each diplomat program read assuming legal access to that information and (will be checked mail messages both real and electronic may be (manually to ensure faked. The exception to this rule is in (it does not access communication and with the administrator. No (information illegally) messages to the game administrator may be faked, nor can stored or computerized information be examined with express permission. The rules do [] not bind a player to anything he says; deciding whom to trust as situations arise is part of the game. V. UNDERLYING ECONOMIC STRUCTURE OF THE GAME (SUPPLY CENTERS) Certain provinces on the board, 34 in all, are scs designated as "supply centers." Supply centers are marked with a black dot. Each of these provinces [] produces supplies sufficient to keep an army or fleet in being. A country may have only as many armies and fleets on the board as it controls supply centers. Consequently, there may never be more than 34 armies and fleets (hereafter called "units") on the board at one time. A country gains or loses units in accordance with the number of supply centers it controls. VI. THE BOARD AND SET 1. THE BOARD. The physical features shown on [] the board, except for the coastlines, are purely decorative. The countries are set off by heavy, solid, black lines. The Great Powers are also cut into "provinces" by landprovs light, solid, black lines. The smaller countries are each one "province." The seas are divided into "bodies of water" by light, seaprovs solid, black lines. Each province or body of water is a "space". provs 2. UNITS. "Armies" are denoted by square blocks PIECE: army, fleet and represent control of a province by military forces. "Fleets" are denoted by long blocks and represent control of a body of water or a coastal province by warships or their associated land forces. The set contains 112 Markers: 8 for armies [] and 8 for fleets for each Great Power. If any Great Power grows until it runs out of markers of either kind, some other country will probably have been eliminated from the game, and its markers may be used by the growing Great Power. 3. STARTING POSITION. At the start of the game init_table'stat each Great Power, except Russia, controls three sc_home sc_owned supply centers and has three units. Russia controls four supply centers and has four units. update These units begin play, one in each home supply units, makeunit center, in the following positions (where A means army and F means fleet): England (Dark Blue): F London F Edinburgh A Liverpool Germany (Black): A Berlin A Munich F Kiel Russia (White): A Moscow A Warsaw F Sevastapol F St.Petersburg (South Coast) Turkey (Yellow): A Constantinople A Smyrna F Ankara Austria-Hungary (Red): A Vienna A Budapest F Trieste Italy (Green): A Rome A Venice F Naples France (Light Blue): A Paris A Marseilles F Brest The twelve remaining supply centers are not init_table's occupied at the start of the game. VII. THE MOVE ORDER AND THE MECHANICS OF WRITING ORDERS 1. MOVEMENT. Only one unit may be in a space at [] a time. On each move each Great Power may order (All units must be all its units, or some, or none of them. (ordered) A unit may be ordered to do only one thing on submit each move: an army may be ordered to move, hold, {MTO,CTO,HLD,SUP,CNV} or support; a fleet may be ordered to move, hold, ORDER: TO,SUP1,SUP2, support, or convoy. CONVOY,CONVOYED An army may move to any adjacent province okfor, neighbors unless this move causes it to conflict with findwinner another unit, under the rule that no two units may occupy the same space at the same time. A fleet okfor, neighbors may move to any body of water or coastal province which is adjacent to its current location, unless findwinner this move causes it to conflict with another unit. When a fleet is in a coastal province, the neighbors warships are assumed to be at any point along the coast of that province. The fleet may move to an adjacent coastal province only if it is adjacent along the coastline, so that vessels could move down the coast to that province; for example, a fleet may move from Rome to Tuscany or Rome to Naples, but not from Rome to Venice, because these two provinces, although adjacent and both coastal, are adjacent only along an inland boundary, not along a coastline. Units may not move to islands, except those [] which have names such as in England, nor to Switzerland, nor to any location not specifically named on the playing board. 2. ATTACK. A move order, correctly given, will [] sometimes in these rules be called an attack upon the space to which the unit has been ordered to move. 3. MOVEMENT IN CERTAIN UNUSUAL POSITIONS ON THE BOARD a. KIEL AND CONSTANTINOPLE. By virtue of the neighbors waterways through these provinces, fleets may enter them along one coast, and, on another move, leave from the other coast. Armies may also pass into and out of these provinces, freely bridging these waterways. Note that this does not mean that pieces may jump over these spaces. b. PROVINCES HAVING TWO COASTS (Bulgaria, okfor, neighbors Spain, and St. Petersburg). A fleet entering one of these provinces enters along one coast and may then move only to a space adjacent to that coast; it nevertheless occupies the entire province. <Bug> (it doesn't!!) If a fleet is ordered to one of these provinces and (the coast must always it is possible for the fleet to move to either coast, (be specified) the order must specify which coast, or the fleet does not move. A fleet which may move to one of these coastalexceptions provinces may "support" an action in that province (the coast is *NOT* (see section IX, THE SUPPORT ORDER) without regard (specified by the to the separation of the coastline. Thus, because (supporting unit... a fleet in Marseilles may move to Spain, although (only by the moving only to the south coast, it may nevertheless (unit) support an action anywhere in Spain, even if that action is an order to a fleet to move to, or to hold in Spain (north coast). It should be clear that the converse is not okfor true: a fleet in Spain (north coast) cannot support an action in or into Marseilles, because it cannot move to Marseilles at all in a single move. c. SWEDEN AND DENMARK. An army or fleet may neighbors move from Sweden to Denmark, or vice versa, A fleet moving from the Baltic Sea to the Skaggerak or vice versa must first move to Sweden or Denmark. The common border with Denmark does not separate the coast of Sweden into two coastlines; and Denmark does not border on Berlin. 4. MECHANICS OF WRITING ORDERS. Each player {SUB} writes his "orders" on a slip of paper, (each diplomat (submits his orders (using SUB.) usually keeping them a secret, [] and these orders to the armies and fleets are all reinit, print_unit, exposed at once. print_turn, print_out, print_note Each player reads his orders while the others check [] to be sure that he is reading what he actually wrote. An illegal order is not followed, and the unit so {THK} ordered simply stands in its place. A mistaken (Bad orders are order, if legal, must be followed. An order which (reported at submission admits of two meanings is not followed. A badly (time. Those this written order, which nevertheless can have only (rule never comes up.) one meaning, must be followed. 5. GAMESMASTER. If sufficient persons are (The DI serves this available, it may be found convenient to have an role) eighth person, a "Gamesmaster," who could collect the orders submit, {SUB} and read them, reinit, print_* adjudicating the resulting situations and making evalmoves rulings when necessary. His role should be strictly neutral; [] he could also keep time for the diplomacy periods. <Future expansion> He could keep a running tally of ownership of supply sc_owned, update_sc centers. 6. DATES. Orders for the first move are dated SEASON: spring, summer, "Spring 1901"; for the second, "Fall 1901"; for fall, autumn, the third, "Spring 1902"; and so on. winter adv_season (First year is 101) 7. FORMAT. In each set of orders, the space {SUB} each unit is in is written first, (for example AMY WAR) followed by its order. {HLD,MTO,SUP,CTO,CNV, {RTO,BLD,REM,DSB} It is convenient to make a list of your {NOW} units and their spaces for easy reference during reinit conferences and then to write your orders on the same list. The first three letters of any space (nth:north coast or sea will almost always form an unambiguous (sth:south coast abbreviation, except for spaces beginning with (est:east coast "Nor." In this rulebook, the following (nwg:norwegian sea abbreviations will be used: North Sea, Nth; (nao:north atlantic Norwegian Sea, Nrg; North Atlantic, NAt; North (tys:tyrrhenian sea Africa, NAf. (mao:mid-atlantic (stp:saint petersburg) VIII. CONFLICTS If two or more units are ordered to the same findwinner space, none of them may move. If a unit is not ordered to move, or is prevented from moving, and other units are ordered to its space, those units may not move. If two units are ordered, each to findbounce the space the other occupies, neither may move. These three situations are called "stand-offs." findwinner, findbounce, Like the other rules governing conflicts, these supports, numsup rules apply whether the units involved are armies or fleets, which are essentially equal in power and different only in the spaces to which they may move. These rules also apply (with two minor exceptions noted in IX.3 and the note to IX.6), whether the units involved belong to the same or different Great Powers. IX. THE SUPPORT ORDER 1. ORDERING SUPPORT. A unit may give up its move SUP1 in order to support another unit trying to hold or enter a space. SUP2 This space must be one to which the preview, okfor supporting unit could have moved if not opposed by other units, with one exception in the case of a coastalexceptions fleet bordering a space with two coasts supporting a second fleet onto a coast that the first fleet cannot move into. The space which is the [] destination of the action being supported must be adjacent to the space in which the supporting unit is located, and must be suitable for an army or fleet, whichever the supporting unit may be. To order a support, it is necessary to write the {SUP} location of the supporting piece, the word "supports" or its equivalent, and both the <Future Expansion> location and destination of the piece receiving (nationality must support. The letter "S" may be used to mean (ALWAYS be specified) supports. Thus, A Tyr -> Mun, A Bur S A Tyr -> Mun; or for units of another country, A Sil S RUSSIAN A War -> Pru. Fleets may support armies [] and vice versa; but, as implied above, a fleet may not give support into an inland province, nor into a coastal province not adjacent along the same coast, and an army may not give support into a body of water, because it cannot move there, even if unopposed. 2. EFFECT OF SUPPORT. A unit moves with the findbounce, findwinner, strength of itself and all its valid supports. supports, numsup, Unless it is opposed by a unit equally well or addsup, findsupport better supported, it may make its move, the rules under CONFLICTS notwithstanding. Equally supported units which conflict in the situations described in Section VIII, CONFLICTS, follow those rules. A unit which otherwise would have remained in the space attacked by a better supported unit is dislodged and must retreat or be disbanded. 3. SELF-DISLODGMENT PROHIBITED. One exception dislodgesup, mentioned in Section VIII, CONFLICTS, is that an findwinner, order to move into a space occupied by another findbounce unit of the same country may not succeed if the second unit fails to leave that space. The order findwinner would still be valid for other purposes, however, such as standing off an equally well or less well supported attack on the same space by units of other countries. Similarly, an order by one mine, findwinner, country which supports an attack by another dislodgesup, findbounce country against a space occupied by one of the first country's units does not permit a move dislodging that unit, but may be valid for other purposes. findwinner @ux(Example 1.) ENGLAND: @ux(F Den->Kie), @ux(F 1) Findbounce detects Nth->Den), F Hel S F Nth->Den. RUSSIA: @ux(A the bounce in KIE Ber->Kie), F Bal.S S F Ska->Den, @ux(F Ska->Den). 2) Findwinner marks: Underlined moves fail. England cannot dislodge his intruders = [DEN,SKA] own unit, but his supported attack on Denmark is strs = [1,1] sufficient to stand off the supported Russian max_str = 1 attack on the same space. contenders= [DEN,SKA] All bounce since length contenders > 1 @ux(Example 2.) FRANCE: A Bur Holds. GERMANY: 1) Findwinner bounces @ux(A Mun->Bur), A Kie S AUSTRIAN A Boh->Mun. MUN in BUR and calls AUSTRIA: @ux(A Boh->Mun). The German support for itself recursively for the Austrian unit does not enable it to advance so BUR as to dislodge a German Unit. 2) Findwinner marks: intruders = [BOH] strs = [1] max_str = 1 contenders= [BOH] u1 = Army Mun s1 = 0 u2 = Army Boh whose u1 = Ger numsupby GER u2 = 1 s2 = 1 - 1 = 0 Result is a bounce Note, however, that if Austria had supported its ... attack on Munich with one of its own units, say s2 = 2 - 1 = 1 AUSTRIA: A Tyr S A Boh->Mun, then the German unit Result is a dislodge in Munich would have been dislodged and forced to retreat. 4. SELF-STANDOFF. While a country may not dislodge findwinner its own units, it can stand itself off by ordering two equally well supported attacks on the same space. However, if one of the attacks has more support than the other, it will succeed. @ux(Example 3.) AUSTRIA: A Ser->Bud, @ux(A Findwinner for BUD Vie->Bud). RUSSIA: A Gal S AUSTRIAN A Ser->Bud. intruders = [SER,VIE] The Austrian move A Ser->Bud succeeds due to the strs = [2,1] Russian support. It would not succeed if there max_str = 2 were an Austrian army already in Budapest. Note contenders= Army Ser that the move succeeds whether the support is from flag=false (Bud empty) a foreign unit as illustrated or from a unit of Contenders is of the same country. size 1 so Vie fails. 5. BELEAGUERED GARRISON. Since dislodgement occurs findwinner only when another piece enters the space in question, as indicated in IX. 2., above, it follows that if two equally well supported units attack the same space, thus standing each other off, a unit already in that space is not dislodged. @ux(Example 4.) AUSTRIA: A Ser Holds. RUSSIA: Findwinner for SER @ux(A Rum->Ser), A Bud S A Rum->Ser. TURKEY: @ux(A intruders = [RUM,BUL] Bul->Ser), A Gre S A Bul->Ser. Note that nothing strs = [2,2] happens to the Austrian Army. max_str = 2 contenders= [RUM,BUL] u1 = Army Ser contenders is of size 2 so they bounce If it had tried to give support, however, its support [] would have been cut by either or both of the two attacks. 6. HOLDING AND RECEIVING SUPPORT. A unit not findsupport ordered to move (i.e., one that is ordered to hold, ordered to convoy, ordered to support, or not ordered at all) may receive support in holding. A unit ordered to move may receive support only for its attempted movement. It may not be supported in place in the event that its attempted move fails. Thus, A Mun Holds, A Boh S A Mun is valid, but if A Mun->Ber, then A Boh S A Mun is not valid because A Mun was ordered to move. Note that a unit need not be next to a unit it is [] supporting; it must be next to the space into which it is giving support and it must be able to move to that space if unopposed by other units. Support cannot be convoyed. A player may not, by nonconvoyedcuts, an attack, cut support being given by one of his convoyedcuts, own units (see X, CUTTING SUPPORT). dislodgesup 7. DISLODGMENT OF A PIECE PARTICIPATING IN A STANDOFF. It follows from the above rules that, [] where two or more equally well supported units are ordered to the same space, neither may move, even though one of them has been dislodged by a supported attack on the same move. However, if two findbounce, units are ordered to the same space, and one of findwinner them is dislodged by a unit coming from that space, the other unit may move. @ux(Example 5.) TURKEY: A Bul->Rum. RUSSIA: A Findbounce resolves Rum->Bul, A Ser S A Rum->Bul, A Sev->Rum. Again, Army BUL versus RUM. underlined moves fail. The Turkish A Bul is RUM is marked as dislodged. The Russian A Sev, even though ordered "FAILED" (not BOUNCE) to the same space as the Turkish A Bul, and thus is not nevertheless moves because A Bul was dislodged by considered as an an attack from that space (i.e., both the Turkish intruders into RUM A Bul and the Russian A Sev are ordered to for the resolution Rumania, but since the Russian Army moving from of Army SEV Rumania is able to dislodge the Turkish A Bul, the Russian A Sev is then able to move into Rumania). @ux(Example 6.) TURKEY: @ux(A Bul->Rum), F Bla S A Exactly as above Bul->Rum. RUSSIA: A Rum->Bul, A Gre S A Rum->Bul, A Ser S A Rum->Bul, A Sev->Rum. Even though it has support, the dislodged Turkish unit was dislodged by a unit coming from Rumania. Note that in each example above, if Russia had not report, battles ordered A Sev->Rum, Rumania would have been vacant for purposes of another unit's retreat because Rumania was not vacant due to a standoff. It may be said that a dislodged unit has no effect [] on the space its attacker came from. X. CUTTING SUPPORT If a unit ordered to support in a given space is nonconvoyedcuts, attacked from a space different from the one into convoyedcuts which it is giving support, or is dislodged by an attack from any space, dislodgesup including the one into which it is giving support, then its support is "cut". The unit that was to have received that support then remsup does not receive it. @ux(Example 7.) GERMANY: @ux(A Pru->War), @ux(A 1) Findsupports adds Sil S A Pru->War). RUSSIA: A War Holds, @ux(A SIL to PRU's list Boh->Sil). The Support of the army in Silesia is 2) Nonconvoyedcuts cut by an attack from Bohemia. removes that support 3) Findwinner now bounces PRU and BOH @ux(Example 8.) GERMANY: A Pru->War, A Sil S A 1) Findsupports adds Pru->War. RUSSIA: @ux(A War->Sil). The German SIL to PRU's list support is not cut by the attack from Warsaw 2) Nonconvoyedcuts because that is the space into which support is detects that SIL is being given. supporting an attack on WAR, and therefore does nothing. 3) Dislodgesup fails as WAR is unsupported 4) Findwinner for SIL bounces WAR and calls findwiner for WAR 5) Findwinner for WAR dislodges Army Warsaw @ux(Example 9.) GERMANY: @ux(A Ber->Pru), @ux(A 1&2) same as above Sil S A Ber->Pru). RUSSIA: A Pru->Sil, A War S A 3) Dislodgesup Pru->Sil, @ux(F Bal->Pru). Here, the German army dislodges SIL and in Silesia is dislodged by the Russian army coming removes support for BER from Prussia. The support of the Silesian army is 4) findwinner for PRU thus cut and the German A Ber can only standoff bounces BER and BAL the Russian F Bal. @ux(Example 10.) GERMANY: A Ber Holda, @ux(A 1-5) similar to ex. 8 Mun->Sil). RUSSIA: @ux(A Pru->Ber), @ux(A Sil S A 6) Findwinner for SIL Pru->Ber), A Boh->Mun, A Tyr S A Boh->Mun. Note after bouncing MUN here that the German army in Munich is dislodged calls findwinner for by a Russian Attack, but that it is still able to MUN which bounces BOH cut the support of the Russian A Sil and thus prevent the Russian A Pru from entering Berlin. XI. RETREATS After all the orders have been read, the conflicts {MBE} resolved, and the moves made, any dislodged unit MUSTRETREAT, makes its retreat. It must move to a space to setchoices, reinit, which it could ordinarilt move if unopposed by retreat other units; that is, to an adjacent space suitable to an army or fleet, as the case may be. The unit may not retreat, however, to any space which is occupied, nor to the space its attacker came from, nor to a space which was left vacant due to a standoff on the move. If no place is available for retreat, the dislodged unit is "disbanded"; that is, its marker is removed from the board. 1. WRITING RETREATS. If two or more units must (even if there is 1) retreat after a move, the retreats are written {RTO} down immediately by the players concerned, without diplomacy, process, {NOP} and simultaneously exposed, as with movement orders. reinit, print_*, ... 2. OTHER RETREAT RULES. A player may choose to {DSB} disband a unit rather than retreat it. If two or evalmoves more units may retreat only to the same space, they are all disbanded, unless only one of the units is ordered to retreat and the others are ordered to be disbanded. In that case, the one unit ordered to retreat may do so. If two or more units are ordered to retreat to the same space, they are all disbanded. If a player fails to order default a retreat when necessary, the unit is disbanded. Retreats may neither be convoyed nor supported. [] XII. THE CONVOY ORDER 1. CONVOYING AN ARMY ACROSS A BODY OF WATER. A preview fleet in a body of water may convoy an army from any province on the coast of that body to any other province on the coast of that body. To do this, the army must be ordered to the intended {CTO, VIA} province CONVOYED <Future Expansion> (along with a (specification of the (convoy route including (nationalities) and the fleet must be ordered to convoy it. {CNV}, CONVOY, checkconvoyed The letter "C" may be used to mean "convoys". (CNV) The order to the fleet must give both the location <Future Expansion> and the destination of the army being convoyed. (and nationality) The orders must specify the same destination or findsupports the army may not move. Thus: A Lon->Bel, F Nth C A Lon->Bel. Foreign armies may also be convoyed: for (always required) clarity the player may wish to indicate the foreign nationality, as F Nth C ENGLISH A Lon->Bel. A fleet may not convoy more than one army during [] one move. 2. CONVOYING AN ARMY ACROSS SEVERAL BODIES OF [] WATER. If two or more fleets control adjacent bodies of water, an army may be convoyed through all these bodies of water on one move. Thus, ENGLAND A Lon->Tun, F Eng.C C A Lon->Tun, F M.At C A Lon->Tun; FRANCE F W.Med C ENGLISH A Lon->Tun. 3. DISRUPTING A CONVOY. If a fleet ordered to dislodgedconvoys, convoy is dislodged during the move, the army to disruptconvoys be convoyed remains in its original province and has no effect on the province to which it was <Bug> offered. An attack on a convoying fleet which does (Convoy is disrupted not dislodge it does not affect the convoy. (even when beleagured (garrison rule might (save it.) @ux(Example 11). FRANCE: @ux(A Spa->Nap), F GoL C 1) Findsupport A Spa->Nap, @ux(F Tyn.S C A Spa->Nap). ITALY: F finds that this is a Ion.S->Tyn.S, F Tun.S F Ion.S->Tyn.S. The fleet in valid convoy Tyn is dislodged; consequently, the army does not 2) Dislodgedconvoys move from Spain to Naples. marks SPA as "MAYBENOCONVOY" 3) Disruptconvoys marks SPA as disrupted and removes all of its supports if any 4. AMBIGUOUS CONVOY ROUTES. If the orders as (Ambiguity is written permit more than one route by which the (Impossible) convoyed army could proceed from its source to its destination, the order is not void on account of this ambiguity; but if any of the possible routes are destroyed by dislodgment of a fleet, the army may not move. @ux(Example 12). ENGLAND: @ux(A Lon->Bel), @ux(F [] Eng.C C A Lon->Bel), F Nth C A Lon->Bel; FRANCE: F Bre->Eng.C, F Iri.S S F Bre->Eng.C. The order to F Nth would normally succeed, but since F Eng.C, which was dislodged on the move, was also ordered to convoy, the convoy is disrupted and A Lon fails to move. If F Eng.C has not been dislodged, the convoy would have succeeded.*** 5. A CONVOYED ATTACK DOES NOT PROTECT THE convoyedcuts CONVOYING FLEETS. If a convoyed army attacks a fleet which is supporting a which which is attacking one of the convoying fleets, that support is not cut. @ux(Example 13). FRANCE: @ux(A Spa->Nap), F GoL C 1-2) same as Ex. 11 A Spa->Nap, @ux(F Tyn.S C A Spa->Nap); ITALY: F 3) convoyedcuts Ion.S->Tyn.S, F Nap S F Ion.S->Tyn.S. Without ignores Army Spa this rule, France could argue that the army cut since its convoy is the support of the fleet in Naples, thus marked "MAYBENOCONVOY" protecting the convoying fleet from dislodgement, 4) Disruptconvoys marks while Italy could argue that dislodgment of the SPA as disrupted and fleet disrupted the convoy so that the army could moves its supports if not arrive at Naples to cut the support. any Continued in next issue... ****************************************************************************** To join in the fun, send your name, home address, home and work phone numbers, and country preferences to Eric_S_Klien@cup.portal.com. ****************************************************************************** Up