Diplomacy
A brand new board game for the modern geopolitical world!
Diplomacy—it’s the board game you’ve been waiting for! The board game that brilliant deal makers and clever negotiators can play and WIN BIG against their archenemies! A lost and forgotten game now revived and refined for the modern world!
Diplomacy is for everyone! Diplomacy is exciting! And Diplomacy is fun, especially when all the cards are in your hands!
Components
1 fold-out board
2 plastic men (1 white, 1 black)
1 red die marked with ratios of 1:1, 3:1, 3:2, 4:1, 7:3, 9:1
2 standard dice
A deck of 100 cards
A deck of 50 Wild Cards
For those who like to play a long game, the Deluxe version of Diplomacy contains twice as many cards.
The players
Diplomacy is played by two teams. It is recommended, but not absolutely necessary, for each team to consist of the same number of players. In fact, the fewer the players, the more unified the team. On the other hand, a larger team can have the benefit of appearing more intimidating to its opponent.
A third non-aligned player, or mediator, is required to make sure that each team plays by the rules, to prevent any outbreaks of physical violence and, most importantly, to see that drinks and snacks are regularly replenished.
Diplomacy is ideally suited to real estate developers, used car salesmen, con artists and common grifters, lawyers and politicians with a history of breaking promises, lying, cheating and taking money from foreign agents. Players do not need any special communication or interpersonal skills although the uncanny ability to hoodwink, insult, threaten and deceive opponents can be advantageous.
Diplomacy is played best in exclusive settings such as luxury hotels and tropical island resorts, but any basement, abandoned warehouse or back alley will do if the former venue is out of reach.
A word of caution: Diplomacy is not a game for impatient, impetuous, immature, belligerent, or vindictive players and spoiled sports. Reckless thrill seekers are advised to stick to 5-Card Stud or Russian Roulette. Greed bags might find good old Monopoly more satisfying. In the case of serious grievances between players an old-fashioned duel might be a preferable choice.
The object of the game
Reminiscent of Europe’s 19th Century Golden Age of Diplomacy and figures like Metternich and Talleyrand, Diplomacy suggests a process of good faith negotiation to achieve a WIN-WIN solution and avoid war. The object of this updated version, however, is for one team to seize absolute control of their opponent’s assets and to make them surrender unconditionally. The team that ends up with all the cards in their hands is the WINNER!
There is really no strategy to playing this game. But if your team is losing with no foreseeable chance of regaining the advantage, you can flip the board over in a temper tantrum, storm out of the room, and complain that the whole game was rigged. You can also badmouth your opponent and declare yourself the WINNER regardless of the outcome.
Rules
Each of three players rolls a die to determine who is the mediator (lowest number), White Team (highest number) and Black Team (middle number). Should two players roll the same number, they roll again until there is a decisive result. It is up to each team to decide who will be its leader and in what order team members will move.
To determine the number of cards each team gets to start the game, White’s Leader rolls the red die. A roll of 1:1 means both teams start with 50 cards each. 3:1 means that White gets 75 cards, Black gets 25, and so on. That one team starts out with more cards than the other may seem unfair. However, there being no such thing as fairness or equality in real life, one team always has an advantage over the other.
(If you are already confused or find the rules too complicated, perhaps you should stick to easier games like UNO, Fish or Old Maid.)
White begins at GO, rolls the die and moves 1-6 squares in a clockwise direction unless instructed otherwise. Black does the same with both teams taking turns.
The game ends when one team has taken all of the opposing team’s cards or one team surrenders unconditionally.
The board
The board is set out like a Monopoly board with 40 marked squares.
Take or Give. According to the number on the square, each team gives or takes cards from the opposing team. Example: Take 2 means you get 2 cards from the other team; Give 5 means you give the other team 5 cards. If a team is short of cards, the game ends in defeat unless the opposing team grants a chance to run a debt that must be paid back later in the game. (This is where players can show their goodwill.)
Move Ahead / Back. Specifies the number of squares you may move forward or backward.
Wild Card. If you land on one of three corner squares, you draw a card from the pack in the middle of the board and follow the instructions.
Wild cards
If you draw the following, you take from your opponent the specified number of cards.
Bomb. Number of cards depends on the strategic importance of the target (oil wells, military installation, hospital, school, power plant, apartment block, etc.). Examples: Bomb Oil Well / Take 10 cards; Bomb Power Plant / Take 8 cards; Bomb School / Take 1 card.
Impose Blockade / Sanctions
Close Supply Chokepoint
Threaten Total Annihilation
Break Ceasefire / Violate Terms of Agreement. Logically, your team should have to give cards, but in today’s geopolitical world there is no such thing as fairness, honour or decency. And those who play dirty have the upper hand.
If you draw the following cards, you must follow the instructions:
Assassinate Negotiator. One member of the opposing team must leave the game. If your team assassinates the last player in the opposing team, your team WINS.
Ceasefire. This card is an opportunity for both teams to take a bathroom break, refreshments and fresh air, or work out a plan to rearm and improve the chances of victory.
Lose a Turn / Take another Turn
If you draw the following cards:
Declare War. You win.
Surrender. You lose.
Stalemate. Start a new game.
If you draw a Blank Wild Card, you can impose your own condition. Not only will this liven up the game, increase the stakes and possibly end the game with a resounding VICTORY, but it makes up for the fact that the designers of this game weren’t able to think up every possibility. After all, nothing’s perfect!
Diplomacy can be purchased at your local joke and trick shop.
Player reviews
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Diplomacy is a blast! More like playing war than making peace! Loved those Wild Cards! - Marco R.
⭐ A complete waste of time with players that are agreement incapable! - Sergei L.
⭐⭐⭐ Could be challenging if it weren’t so frustrating and essentially meaningless! - Mohammad G.
⭐⭐ Too many confusing rules. I hate games with rules! - Donald T.
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Any idiot can play this game! - Steve W.
👎Who needs Diplomacy when you can play Whack a Mole! – Benjamin N.
Agreement incapability sounds like an essential for this one. But maybe that's who you designed this for.
I love that the Iranian negotiating team isn't even willing to talk to the Americans. That would be such a waste of time.
"You can also badmouth your opponent and declare yourself the WINNER regardless of the outcome."
Now, THIS is a game I could love... But I think I'll stay with Uno or Cards Against Humanity.
Excellent post! Have you built a prototype board and card set yet? I could see a game company interested in it, especially with Donnie T's endorsement. LOL!