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Message from Russia to Turkey
> I'm more than happy to worry about him, so we don't lose to EF, is you
> can give me some space.
Jason,
Ugh. I got busy and ended up sending absolutely no press in this game for 2
days before the move. When I read this message a few hours before the
deadline, I wasn't clear whether you were turning away, or offering to if
we talked more. Given that Andy offered the support to Bul, and we didn't
have a specific agreement, I took his help. I don't know where that leaves
us, but let me know what you'd like to do.
--- Eric
Message from Russia to Italy
Andy,
Sorry again for the horrendous communication last season. The week got
suddenly very busy in meetings and after-work commitments. Still, I'm glad
we had the time earlier in the week to discuss the moves in such detail.
Obviously I should have gone ahead and covered Sev, because then Arm would
be perfectly safe. Not sure what your thinking is, but I was thinking Arm S
Bul-Bla, Ser-Bul (Gre/Rum support). There's a decent chance of grabbing Bla
with those moves.
I'm more worried about the north, where Ben is set up to convoy into Lvn or
Pru. Perhaps I should have taken your advice and walked into Ber, though
I'm not sure I could hold it if I did. As you say, I definitely need more
armies there.
I'm around a bit this weekend. I suspect Monday is going to be as hellish
as the last couple of days, so hopefully I won't annoy you too much with my
sporadic availability.
--- Eric
Message from Turkey to Russia
Well, I don't blame you for taking the support, but it looks like Andy
is clearly trying to throw the game to follow through on his threat.
Before Spring, I tried to send you a message telling yo uwhy you should
let me take out Andy, but unfortunately I choked on my own logic! :-)
Right now, though, England is breathing down your neck, and he'll
probably get more centers off you than you'll take from me over the next
few turns. So, my plan is thus: I'll head west against Andy while you
turn north, and we can prevent EF from running the table. Otherwise,
they'll be at 10-11 each against your 10, and I think you'll be
hard-pressed to hold a line.
jason
Message from Italy to Russia
Eric,
> Sorry again for the horrendous communication last season. The week got
> suddenly very busy in meetings and after-work commitments. Still, I'm glad
> we had the time earlier in the week to discuss the moves in such detail.
No problem it happens to all of us.
I am going to ask for an extension while I am on travel, as its pretty
important that we speak regularly, and I wont have great connectivity.
> Obviously I should have gone ahead and covered Sev, because then Arm would
> be perfectly safe. Not sure what your thinking is, but I was thinking Arm S
> Bul-Bla, Ser-Bul (Gre/Rum support). There's a decent chance of grabbing Bla
> with those moves.
Moreso, you CANNOT crack Turkey without an army on the back side...ie in
Armenia.
I agree....and I think we should do it. Send UKR - SEV now.
> I'm more worried about the north, where Ben is set up to convoy into Lvn or
> Pru. Perhaps I should have taken your advice and walked into Ber, though
> I'm not sure I could hold it if I did. As you say, I definitely need more
> armies there.
if you think he is going to convoy to LVN you need to take Berlin and
cover Munich. If not, Tyrolia needs to support Venice.
But I need to know ahead of time because it drastically affects my moves.
> I'm around a bit this weekend. I suspect Monday is going to be as hellish
> as the last couple of days, so hopefully I won't annoy you too much with my
> sporadic availability.
I worked 103 hours last week. And this week looks worse since I am
travelling the following week.
I understand.
Andy
Message from Russia to France
Erik,
Well, it's an interesting call. I'm certainly worried about Ben, as it
sounds like you are. He's actually in a decent position to move against
both of us. Actually, even if you get a build I'm not sure that's enough to
hold out against him. With a build in Lon, he can force both MAO and Eng
really quickly.
To be completely frank, the problem with moving against Andy is that Andy
is not just nicely not bothering me in the Balkans, he's keeping Jason
focused west as well. If I attack Andy, he probably retreats to Tyl, then
attacks me in coordination with Jason (as they were doing just two turns
ago). Hmm. The more I look at it the more Ben's position looks really good
to me.
So other than (or in addition to) getting you a build in the south, what
can we do to really put some pressure on Ben in the north?
--- Eric
Message from Russia to Italy
Andy,
What I have so far is a request from France to move Tyl-Tri and Ser-Gre to
pick up a quick build and try to sneak Gre, while getting him builds in the
north. That would indicate that he's thinking of Tys-Rom, and I'd guess Tun
S Lyo-Tys to cut support for Ven. If *that's* the case, then Ven S Tyl-Pie
might be interesting.
Ben is a hard read -- especially hard because I haven't been communicating
with him much recently. I'll try to find out whether he plans to protect
Ber, since that drives the whole choice of defense, as you point out.
In the south, Jason is clearly suing for peace with me. His moves were
obviously meant to be non-threatening, and he even told me he wanted to
cooperate in advance. But since I was unavailable, and because his message
was poorly written (meaning, hard to understand) I think I can influence
his moves. All his press to me focuses on the EF threat. That might be an
indication he's just trying to point me elsewhere, but if he's really
worried about them, then he probably will not team up with France in the
short term, so a 3-strength attack on Ion is unlikely. I'll try to find out
more about his thinking if I can.
103 hours? Yuck. I don't count mine that carefully, but it was busy. In two
weeks it gets even more fun, as we have to move out of our house for 2-ish
weeks while we have some major work done. That probably means no network
access from home. Just what this game needs -- me even more unavailable. :(
I'll probably ask for an extension during that time, but see what I can do
to get orders in from the office before heading home.
--- Eric
Message from Russia to Russia
Well, I'm pretty much an open book these days -- most of my thoughts are in
my presses. I think Ben really has excellent position, and may have a
better solo shot than I do at this point. Erik made a big mistake by
attacking Andy with ALL of his units. Ben moving to NAO and convoying to
Hol would be brutal, especially if I don't help Erik to a build.
I think my best shot at soloing remains other people getting pissed off.
I'll probably continue to press Turkey. I think one of two things will
happen in the north: EF will continue to cooperate, and Ben may even start
landing armies against me. In that case I may need to take centers from
Andy (agreed to by him or not) and help Erik. Or, Ben will attack Erik
(whether or not he attacks me) and I may be able to use that to get Erik's
help towards growth (e.g., Mun-Bur to support Erik may become necessary).
It's definitely interesting to hear Andy's and Tony's takes on the board.
I'm clearly much more disposed to hold back and wait than he is. I like to
wait and let other people get pissed off and look to help me rather than
forcing the issue, unless I know I have a clear upper hand (something that
probably works a lot better against lower ranked players). In this game I
think I've attacked or betrayed each of my neighbors before they did me
(excepting Jason's move to Arm in S01), but it appears I've still managed
to end up being the "best" friend each of them has by the end of their time
in the game. Unfortunately, that same slow pace may mean that I don't get
enough strength to hold my position.
The good news is that I'll be too busy to worry about it that much if
things do go bad for me. :)
--- Eric
Message from Russia to England
>I'm not going to spoil the surprise, Mr. Fat Cat JDPR. Look it up
>yourself, hot shot. ;o)
Hey, had a chance to look it back over. If Doug did the run just a month or
so earlier, I'dve been at 1688 (I soloe'd in my earliest-finishing VGFP
game, and was eliminated in the next two to knock off those 200 points).
Probably a good thing for my participation in future games that he didn't!
Also, I finally downloaded all of my mail and see that I missed your
message about Swe-Nwy with support. Sorry about that, though it probably
hurts me more than it does you (Nwy can still convoy to wherever Edi would
have been able to, but threatens me more). And as hinted, I'm not sure
whether you consider Mun/Sil to be "surrounding" Ber. From my point of
view, with Ber/Bal/Kie, I don't think it should. F Bal is quite nervous
making for me, especially with all those armies and fleets east of the Nth.
You wouldn't want to encourage me to help Erik pick up builds in the south,
would you? :)
For my part, as promised, I only have one army left in Scandinavia, and
I'll use it to protect StP. If you let Fin-StP succeed, then you can drop
all concern about me in Scandinavia. If I can try to dictate your moves,
I'd like to see Ska S Bal-Swe (so you know I'm not bouncing you),
Nwy-Nth-Hol, Nwg-NAO and Bar-Nwy. Kie can obviously support Nwy-Hol, but I
wouldn't expect you to tell me if you plan for it to. Completely secures
Scandinavia, and gives you a very strong position against Erik. While it
will take you two turns to actually hit Iberia, Erik will have no ability
to defend -- you'll be in MAO before he can get there. At that point, I
have every expectation that Andy will stop working with me (he's doing so
primarily to punish Erik at this point) and start trying to hold his
position. That should give you the time you need to set up for the other
side of a 2WD line, or even a solo shot of your own.
Let me know what you think.
--- Eric
Message from Russia to Italy
Andy,
>In the south, Jason is clearly suing for peace with me. His moves were
>obviously meant to be non-threatening, and he even told me he wanted to
>cooperate in advance. But since I was unavailable, and because his message
>was poorly written (meaning, hard to understand) I think I can influence
>his moves.
LOL! And then I write one just as confusing! I mean, he understood why I
made my attack despite him trying to sue for peace, so he's probably still
willing to cooperate (hence I can influence his moves).
--- Eric
Message from England to Russia
Eric -
It is marvelous to hear from you. I had quite despaired of anything but a RFE, based partly on your recent silence.
Yes, I would like to try for a 2WD, or, failing that, an English solo.
I will look over my options with your press in mind.
You are ordering FIN - STP sb MOS?
My concern about attacking France is, if you are too far advanced against Turkey, hmm. Anyway this fall I will still not be committed either way.
Ben
Message from England to Russia
Eric -
The Turkish centers are yours for the taking.
It would help me if your capture of them went *very* slowly, if you know
what I mean. Even took a backward step, in BUL, if you think it's safe.
The more room I have, the better for both of us, long term.
If you're interested, I could pass along a tip to Turkey, however you want
to set it up. If you're not, I completely understand - I think we're on the
same page here, just struggling to plod forward in a way that's not too
boring for the observers.
Ben
Message from Italy to Russia
> What I have so far is a request from France to move Tyl-Tri and Ser-Gre to
> pick up a quick build and try to sneak Gre, while getting him builds in the
> north. That would indicate that he's thinking of Tys-Rom, and I'd guess Tun
> S Lyo-Tys to cut support for Ven. If *that's* the case, then Ven S Tyl-Pie
> might be interesting.
No...if he is attacking from Piedmont I lose Venice and he bounces with
you in as he moves Mar - Pie
If you arent moving it to Munich, Tyrolia should support Venice.
> Ben is a hard read -- especially hard because I haven't been communicating
> with him much recently. I'll try to find out whether he plans to protect
> Ber, since that drives the whole choice of defense, as you point out.
Yes.
> In the south, Jason is clearly suing for peace with me. His moves were
> obviously meant to be non-threatening, and he even told me he wanted to
> cooperate in advance. But since I was unavailable, and because his message
> was poorly written (meaning, hard to understand) I think I can influence
> his moves. All his press to me focuses on the EF threat. That might be an
> indication he's just trying to point me elsewhere, but if he's really
> worried about them, then he probably will not team up with France in the
> short term, so a 3-strength attack on Ion is unlikely. I'll try to find out
> more about his thinking if I can.
I like the idea about getting to BLA and moving SER - BUL
but lets revisit it.
Andy
Message from England to Russia
Eric -
Ok, this summary is where my thoughts are right now. I think this covers &
pretty much replaces the last couple of notes I've sent you:
In order for me to go after France, which presumably you *want*, I will have
to move soon, if I am going to do it, so what I'm asking you to do this
phase will in all likelihood decide whether I take that step ever in this
game.
1. Order FIN - STP. You've already said you would. I would *prefer* it be
supported, but I won't ask you to tell me in advance.
2. Support VEN to hold. This is *the* *key*. If VEN falls to France then
forget it - it is EFR all the way. I will not be able to attack France, but
I will be able to build enough to make it impossible for him to attack me.
It will be boring with a capital B. I won't ask you to commit to me ahead
of time on this point - but if you don't do it, there will not be EF
conflict.
3. If you cough up BUL to Turkey it won't hurt. This one is not as
important as the other two.
Those are my thoughts right now.
You may have noticed by now - I will write bits and pieces of complete
thoughts - I worry if I wait until I have a cogent, articulable thought in
my brain, noone would ever hear from me. . .
Ben
Message from Italy to Russia
Ben...
> I hope this is not too late -
> I am writing Eric that I am *considering* attacking Erik but in all
> likelihood it will never happen if he does not support you in VEN.
>
This is excellent. I will tell him that he should support FIN - STP and
that will keep Sweden safe next year.
> I think you would not tell him a stab may be as early as this phase, but I
> write this note to discourage you, if you were planning on approaching him
> that way.
Not a chance, but its good to start thinking that way. Other people would
tell him.
Andy
Message from Italy to Russia
Well...I guess you know that I am talking to England, and that I am
trying to convince him to move on France.
I still think the move of Fin - Stp with support is the best move, just
in case he is lying to me.
Andy
Message from Italy to Russia
Eric,
I think I have the English moving away from you. You will lose Sweden, but
we knew that already, I think that STP is safe, but if I were you I would
support FIN - STP just to be safe.
I also think he will support BER in place, so if you could confirm you are
supporting VEN from TYR for me i would very much appreciate it. At least
for one turn to see if the English are blowing smoke up my ass.
So...Can I count on your support.
You have my support from SER - BUL
Andy
Message from France to Russia
Eric:
I can certainly appreciate your desire to keep Andy around; in your
position, I'd do the same, and at least you're being honest with me.
Better to have him occupying Jason (and, while you obviously can't admit
this, me) then collpasing and leaving Jason and I with more centers.
Nevertheless, I really need a build to do anything against Ben, so even if
you could be so bold as to not lend support to Venice, I'd appreciate it.
Otherwise, things could start getting real stagnant real soon -- Ben and I
will both be holding the line and unable to move off of it.
I've been trying to build a fleet in Bre for years but unable to justify
it. Ben's going to get Sweden this turn, but his growth will slow after
that, and he's going to have to keep himself extended to deal with you
effectively. If I can get one build and reduce Italy enough to pull other
fleets away from down South, maybe I can finally make a grab for Hol /
Lon.
Otherwise, I'd say your best bet is to defend St. Petersburg and deal with
Turkey sooner rather than later.
Erik
Message from Master to all
Players,
I'm extending the deadline due to a player's request.
Greg, GM
C2
Message from Germany to all
> I'm extending the deadline due to a player's request.>
This wasn't me. The last request I made was to have
the game reset to S1901M and it was refused.
I therefor no longer submit requests ;-)
Message from Italy to Russia
Eric...
Are you even going to talk to me at this point.
Andy
Message from Russia to Italy
> [paraphrase] Are you even going to talk to me this turn?
It doesn't look like it, does it? :(
I'm assuming that the deadline did get extended -- I don't see the
confirmation of a deadline change, nor a message that I'm late. Just Greg's
message that he was going to, so I assume I'm not late.
Just like last season, I dropped off the face of the earth.
Anyway, in skimming my mailbox for c2-related messages, I don't see anything
that would cause me to change what we were discussing. I'm entering orders to
support Ven, and the whole Bul-Bla, Ser-Bul move set we discussed earlier.
Let me know if there's a reason not to do so. I'll probably also order a "for
show" attack on Ber, while backing off to defend StP. I'm hoping that Ben
does go after Erik, but I'm not sure if it was Erik with a K or Eric with a C
that he was referring to in his message to you. :)
Again, apologies for the delay. Orders will be in shortly after sending this
message.
--- Eric
Message from Russia to England
Ben,
Now I'm the one that no one hears from until the last minute. :( The
extension was at my request, as no doubt guessed. I sent in the request
Monday, didn't get a chance to see if it was granted until this AM.
I'm rushing to get something out as I put in orders. From what I see from the
posts of yours I've skimmed, we're on the same page -- especially if you
actually attack Erik. :)
<Insert clever banter here.> :)
--- Eric
Message from Russia to France
Hey Erik,
I'm way behind on press -- the extension is on my behalf.
I've only had a chance to scan over the press, so I hope I'm not missing
anything. I think for this season I need to keep Andy happy. Next year I
don't see any reason why I can't jump him, but even going down two, if he and
Jason combine, I'm not seeing how I can hold any line, north or south.
I may well be overlooking something, as this assessment comes from about 2
minutes of scanning the board.
Sorry to be both so terse and so unhelpful.
--- Eric
Message from France to Russia
> I'm way behind on press -- the extension is on my behalf.
Hey, I understand. Believe me.
> I've only had a chance to scan over the press, so I hope I'm not missing
> anything. I think for this season I need to keep Andy happy. Next year I
> don't see any reason why I can't jump him, but even going down two, if
> he and
> Jason combine, I'm not seeing how I can hold any line, north or south.
>
I'm not asking you to jump him. I'm just asking you to let me jump him, in
Venice. All you have to do is use Tyrolia for something, anything, other
than supporting Venice. He's going to do your bidding regardless; he's too
hell-bent on proving a point to me to do otherwise. Letting me take Venice
won't cost you anything, and will give me a better shot at dealing with
Ben when the time comes.
Erik
Message from Italy to Russia
> It doesn't look like it, does it? :(
I just call them like I see them.
> I'm assuming that the deadline did get extended -- I don't see the
> confirmation of a deadline change, nor a message that I'm late. Just Greg's
> message that he was going to, so I assume I'm not late.
it did.
> Anyway, in skimming my mailbox for c2-related messages, I don't see anything
> that would cause me to change what we were discussing. I'm entering orders to
> support Ven, and the whole Bul-Bla, Ser-Bul move set we discussed earlier.
> Let me know if there's a reason not to do so. I'll probably also order a "for
> show" attack on Ber, while backing off to defend StP. I'm hoping that Ben
> does go after Erik, but I'm not sure if it was Erik with a K or Eric with a C
> that he was referring to in his message to you. :)
>
I am hoping I did a decent convincing job...but who knows...
Andy
Message from England to Russia
Eric -
My computer's been in the shop a day and a half - the timing of your
extension request was perfect.
> we're on the same page -- especially if you
> actually attack Erik. :)
If VEN falls to Erik, forget it. I hope you are giving the support. If you
are inclined permit the fall of VEN, let me know, so I can try harder to
persuade you.
> <Insert clever banter here.> :)
<Insert clever response.>
Ben
Message from England to all
Greetings all.
My computer's been at the shop for two days. I thought I'd be able to get
my orders in tonight at work but I haven't been able to do it yet. I will
take care of it in a few hours but it will surely be after the deadline.
I will gladly consider any correspondence I get *before* the deadline.
Mea culpa.
Ben
England: Fleet Baltic Sea SUPPORT Fleet Berlin
England: Fleet Barents Sea → Norway
England: Fleet Berlin HOLD
England: Army Kiel → Holland
England: Fleet North Sea → English Channel
England: Army Norway → Sweden
England: Fleet Norwegian Sea → North Atlantic Ocean
England: Fleet Skagerrak SUPPORT Army Norway → Sweden
France: Army Belgium → Ruhr
France: Army Burgundy → Munich (*bounce*)
France: Fleet Gulf of Lyon SUPPORT Army Tuscany
France: Army Piedmont → Venice (*bounce*)
France: Fleet Tunis → Ionian Sea
France: Army Tuscany SUPPORT Army Piedmont → Venice
France: Fleet Tyrrhenian Sea SUPPORT Fleet Tunis → Ionian Sea
Italy: Fleet Greece SUPPORT Russian Army Serbia → Bulgaria
Italy: Fleet Ionian Sea → Tunis (*bounce, dislodged*)
Italy: Fleet Naples SUPPORT Army Rome
Italy: Army Rome SUPPORT Army Venice
Italy: Army Venice SUPPORT Army Rome (*cut*)
Russia: Fleet Armenia SUPPORT Fleet Bulgaria (east coast) → Black Sea
Russia: Fleet Bulgaria (east coast) → Black Sea (*bounce*)
Russia: Army Finland → St Petersburg
Russia: Army Moscow SUPPORT Army Finland → St Petersburg
Russia: Army Munich → Berlin (*bounce*)
Russia: Army Rumania SUPPORT Army Serbia → Bulgaria
Russia: Army Serbia → Bulgaria (*bounce*)
Russia: Army Silesia SUPPORT Army Munich → Berlin
Russia: Army Tyrolia SUPPORT Italian Army Venice
Russia: Army Ukraine → Sevastopol
Turkey: Fleet Aegean Sea SUPPORT Army Constantinople → Bulgaria
Turkey: Fleet Ankara SUPPORT Fleet Black Sea
Turkey: Fleet Black Sea SUPPORT Army Constantinople → Bulgaria
Turkey: Army Constantinople → Bulgaria (*bounce*)
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