RiskNES VI - WAR IS PEACE

[Symphony D.]

I thought it was inherently obvious that qoou and nwag3 have some sort of alliance

That was exactly my point.

But please, all of you help yourselves to healthy doses of alliances so that the game can move on to the final backstab showdown.

Totally your fault for picking 100% Domination.

 

[flyingchicken]

]Totally your fault for picking 100% Domination.

Yeaaah. Next game will be Capital Risk.

qoou and Niklas sitting up a tree, N-O-T-Y-E-T-S-E-N-D-I-N-G-O-R-D-E-R-S...

 

[Symphony D.]

Boooo! Missions!

 

[flyingchicken]

Methinks playing with missions lacks the exciting tension and eventual (but not too eventual) bang of Capital Risk.

 

[Symphony D.]

That's like saying a spy novel lacks tension because you don't quite know what's happening all the time.

 

[flyingchicken]

After contemplating a bit, I concede. Backstabbing can really take on new heights with hidden agendas (hmmm... that sounds awfully familiar...).

 

[Lord_Iggy]

Personally, I prefer the more 'pure' game of non-missions RISK. And Sym, really, consider all of the people working against you as a compliment- you're a very skilled and rational player, and they fear you for that. In that sense, it is very much a rational strategy to attack you.

 

[Symphony D.]

Personally, I prefer the more 'pure' game of non-missions RISK. And Sym, really, consider all of the people working against you as a compliment- you're a very skilled and rational player, and they fear you for that. In that sense, it is very much a rational strategy to attack you.

I would accept that line of argument if in executing such a rational strategy they had bothered to freaking stick to it and killed me already so I wouldn't have to try and understand such arbitrary and foolish decision making processes, but no, that's apparently too much to ask for. As such, I feel quite entitled to harp and complain about whimsical and truly bizarre decision making. I will continue to do so until people learn how to play Risk, even if just through such metagaming.

 

[Neverwonagame3]

I would accept that line of argument if in executing such a rational strategy they had bothered to freaking stick to it and killed me already so I wouldn't have to try and understand such arbitrary and foolish decision making processes, but no, that's apparently too much to ask for. As such, I feel quite entitled to harp and complain about whimsical and truly bizarre decision making. I will continue to do so until people learn how to play Risk, even if just through such metagaming.

1- In this context, what would you consider metagaming?

2-
i: You had sucessfully put the fear of Niklas into me after his troop deployments had moved up, and once I was in Africa Niklas PMed me a peace deal by which I stood still in Africa and let him destroy my forces there. I decided to stab in order to gain Africa.
ii: Niklas could argue that after what I did in Africa, his strategy was the best way to recover his posistion- if he attacked you directly, he would face the threat of a second coalition, whereas evidently he hasn't in North America. It could be argued he thought human-slaughter would stop your advance.

(Note: I do not actually consider the above arguments to be true, but it is an argument)
iii: qoou could argue that given Niklas's behaviour his reponse stuck to one

(Note: The above argument may or may not be true, as far as I know)

Anyway, all of us could argue that we failed to forsee you so easily reclaiming Asia and human-slaughter putting no effort on Turn 12 into stopping it.

 

[Symphony D.]

1- In this context, what would you consider metagaming?

"zomg player x is teh winzor skillaz, we must gang up and kill hims even thou his position no si teh impressivezs."

Anyway, all of us could argue that we failed to forsee you so easily reclaiming Asia and human-slaughter putting no effort on Turn 12 into stopping it.

I blame much of this game squarely on human-slaughter, from his total lack of attacking Niklas when he was weak, to his virtual turnover of Europe to qoou because he couldn't be assed to fight. And the conjecture in the quote is also your collective strategic failure of vision. I redirect to "until people learn to play Risk."

 

[Neverwonagame3]

Maybe somebody should PM human-slaughter and ask him to defend his record?

 

[Symphony D.]

I can just throw up the same "attacking Asia and not Africa is stupid" argument that nobody has yet refuted, among other things. Why waste his time?

A lot of people have not acted in strategically sound fashions. You can deny that if you want, or accuse me of being mean, but you're not going to change my mind, and I know I'm not the only one who thinks this way. I'll admit to being a bit bitter that my plans have gone poorer than I'd like because I have often assumed people would act rationally, and thus my vitriol, but I can also point out--and maintain--where others have gone wrong.

People aren't--or at least haven't been--playing this game with their thinking caps on. That's a simple fact. I'm not, as Iggy supposes, skilled. There is only so much skill to be had in a game such as this. People just aren't paying attention or thinking.

 

[Neverwonagame3]

If you remember them, can you name all the actions of mine that you believe to be strategic errors?

 

[Symphony D.]

Off the top of my head:

- Ignoring Africa for an extended period despite it being the weakest available target.
- Diverting forces in costly two-front campaigns (eg: Oceania and North America)
- Not focusing on a single strategic objective (see above).
- Not prioritizing targets even when in mortal peril (eg: vs. Simoom BDA).
- Repeatedly breaking potential ally trust for minimal to non-existent gain.
- Stating objective of strikes publicly (eg: first Argentina-New Zealand incursion).
- Placing forces haphazardly (eg: several instances of forces randomly in Peru, Congo, etc not being tac-moved).

There could be more.

 

[Neverwonagame3]

I'm not sure how much of the claimed errors is defensible, but:
-At the time of the two-front campaigns (costly was due to bad luck), I feared the potential power of enemies in North America, and more still in Asia (to be fair, after a strategic defeat in Central America) I conceded the North America issue). Focusing on those campaigns triggered my ignoring Africa.
-I wasn't sure if backstabbing was considered acceptable behaviour with the Argentina-New Zealand incursion.
-You might be right on placing forces haphazardly.

With the prioritising of targets when the BDA was an issue, I would consider my policies sound (even if they were done for unsound reasons)- the loss of Africa would have given me significantly less troops to fight the BDA.

 

[Symphony D.]

With the prioritising of targets when the BDA was an issue, I would consider my policies sound (even if they were done for unsound reasons)- the loss of Africa would have given me significantly less troops to fight the BDA.

Argentina. I also said I wasn't going to attack Africa, so you were clearly gambling that I would, whereas I had to date the most pristine reputation. Attacking Africa would also have denied you both continent bonuses, leaving you open to attack by qoou and Niklas, with only the two of them, rather than myself, standing to gain. I had no history of serious betrayal at that point, nor a motive to do so in that instance.

So, you can add another one to the list: failure to anticipate or read the motives of opponents.

 

[Neverwonagame3]

O.K- you're probably right.

 

[Niklas]

qoou and Niklas sitting up a tree, N-O-T-Y-E-T-S-E-N-D-I-N-G-O-R-D-E-R-S...

I know you want less diplomacy and more action, but I reserve the right to conduct the diplomacy I feel that I need before sending orders. You'll have them today, probably about the same time that you had them yesterday, perhaps a bit earlier.

 

[qoou]

I know you want less diplomacy and more action, but I reserve the right to conduct the diplomacy I feel that I need before sending orders. You'll have them today, probably about the same time that you had them yesterday, perhaps a bit earlier.

+1 (10char)

 

[flyingchicken]

Diplo-schmiplo!

Hurray, got orders now, update will be up next time I get online. Probably.