Confessions of a lapsed Diplomacy player

The guys meet Matt. He's selling Amby his Diplomacy board. Why? He doesn't play Dip anymore. The guys find out why and try to bring Matt back to the game. Plus a big Around the Grounds session.

Interview with Matt

• The guys welcome Matt, a lapsed Diplomacy player who is selling his board to Amby (0 mins 5 secs)
• Amby asks why Matt what’s going on (1 min 10 secs)
• Matt talks about how he’s turned more to Twilight Imperium as a Diplomacy engine substitute which is less “brutal” and more adaptable in gameplay (2 mins 15 secs)
• Matt talks about his interest in the game as a historian (3 mins 30 secs)
• Kaner reflects on his group of board game players and Diplomacy (6 mins)
• Matt discusses a couple of interesting Diplomacy gameplay moments (8 mins 50 secs)
• Amby raises the challenge of getting seven players actively involved who don’t disengage (11 mins 10 secs)
• Amby invites Matt and few friends to upcoming Brisbane face to face games. By the way apologies for a couple of minutes of loud kitchen background noise (12 mins 25 secs)
• Matt explains why he likes the purity of Diplomacy versus games with fiddly rules like Game of Thrones (13 mins 30 secs)
• They talk discussions strategies if you don’t have the perfect number of seven players before going onto discuss the game dynamics (16 mins)
• Amby starts wrapping up the discussions with Matt (19 mins)

Post-interview chat

• Kaner and Amby discuss the interview and hopefully they’ll have a few more face-to-face players who’ll come along to the Brisbane games (19 mins 30 secs)
• Amby discusses marketing speak and how its easier to keep an existing “consumer” or previous “consumer” of Diplomacy rather than try to land a new “consumer” and why Craig’s List may be a way to find Dip players who can’t find enough players for a game (21 mins 45 secs)
• They go onto discuss the issue of players disengaging and the purity of the game (22 mins 45 secs)
• The guys talk about the idea of a series for new players about the game (24 mins)

By the way, here's a photo of Amby's game that he bought (taken drunkenly on a Brisbane bus on the way home):

What the Dr Recommended

• Kaner and Amby bring back this older segment mispronouncing the top 25 players at vDip (25 mins 30 secs)

Around the grounds

Note: this was recorded 11 September 2019 - so the games have all moved on from when the guys discussed them.

• Amby gives an update on his USA! War of the Americas game at PlayDip and his recent experience being half stabbed. They discuss the different messaging system and draw request approach at PlayDip (30 mins)

• They move onto their vDip games, starting with Amby’s anonymous Divided States game which is now down to just 5 players (from an original 50 players). They go through the positions of each player to not give away who Amby is (33 mins 50 secs)

For full size map with detail go to the game map

• Next up is the Silent Europe Renovatio Europa game they’re both in (48 mins 20 secs)
• The guys grab another drink (by the way they’re still drinking the same) before moving onto the next Divided States game Amby is in: American Funboat (50 mins 50 secs)
• Then its Amby’s Google Translate game where he is about to die playing “Ron” Burgundy (54 mins 10 secs)
• Amby asks Kaner to read Ron Burgundy’s last message and whether he can work out what it means (56 mins 45 secs)
• Amby talks about the imgur page he created posting his Ron Burgundy memes (59 mins)
• They move onto their last game WW2 Global Boogooloo (59 mins 45 secs)

• Kaner starts talking about some games he’s involved in including a Fog of War 1898 game before starting to talk about the upcoming Cry God for Harry Europa Renovatio game (this has actually started since the podcast recording). He then talks about another new Europa game where some people have dropped out. Then it’s another Kaner Europa game which he describes as like stepping in dog shit. Amby has already been eliminated from this game (1 hr 2 mins)
• The guys start wrapping up (1 hr 7 mins)

Venue: Alba, Brisbane

Drinks of choice:

Kaner - 3 Bolt Pale Ale by Green Beacon Brewing, Brisbane, Australia

Amby - Juama Grenache, Shiraz and Mourvedre, Barossa Valley, Australia

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Thanks as always to Dr Dan aka "The General" for his rockin' intro tune.