[SPOILERS] Dip4 Turkish Delight: scooter dies first

[scooter]

Diplo with Russia - Twinkletoes

Mos-Sev, eh? Not your best choice.

I had to make sure it looked like a full on stab.

Now I have Rowain & MJW telling me exactly what they plan to do next turn so I can figure out how to turn the tables on them.

After all my chats with both of them, this was the only way to sell it to them & get what we needed.

From first impressions, AH may be able to be denied a build. And I'm pretty sure that the Italian army in Austria is getting convoyed, rather than it being a stab.

Once I figure out a plan, I'll let you know.

TT

One correction - having actually woken up properly & seen the map, its clear Italy's army is heading to Serbia

Here's the situation.

Everyone now thinks I've stabbed you. It looks like you do too. Yet I haven't actually hurt you at all yet and I think Rowain has erred to the point where we can possibly leave him with no builds.

I will use my fleet to help you hold in BUL (don't think your fleet can move there - and if it could, no way I can make you trust me enough to leave a home SC undefended) so you get a build. He wants me to support him in there.

I support myself into RUM which means his RUM unit that attacks BUL is displaced. Italy holds in TRI or is perhaps bounced in SER and remains there anyway. IT could also bounce him in GRE I suppose which leaves Rowain in a real hole.

You knew this plan had risks, but believe me when I say that this was the best way to get the other two to spill their secrets to me and know where they are attacking next.

You may not trust me, but if I really wanted to stab you, do you really think I would do it now when you can target everything at me and let the others clean up? I'm not stupid. Now AH has been clumsy enough to let Italy into TRI freely because I told them I was stabbing you, Rowain is not expecting a swift reversal of fortunes.

TT

Just another thought - not sure if its possible again but its out there. If Italy lulls Austria into letting him into Serbia but actually holds in Tri, then you could take it with BUL and I support your fleet into BUL with my fleet and take RUM with my two armies - leading with the UKR one so I can't build in SEV.

I may have the unit math wrong, but it seems feasible. Again it may fall down on trust issues but it could net you two builds and really screw Rowain.

Up to you, but lets at least discuss this.

TT

(those all frantically came in one after another while I was sleeping and then away from my computer )

You did specifically say that you would order mos-ukr...

Interestingly, it worked amazingly well. MJW is gleefully prepared to stab Rowain.

Quick side conversation with Gaspar:

Do you buy this? That he thought his moves were expected by us? His initial mos-ukr message was early on. I'm on the fence

My gut instinct is that I don't buy it, no. But I'm sure emotion plays into it and Diplomacy is not the game for emotion. So probably the best plan here is that whatever we do, we leave ourselves least exposed if everyone is lying to us. R is still logistically the best ally, but a bad logistical ally is better than good logistical enemy.

So in sum - I dunno. I think maybe we just need to find the simplest way to make sure this doesn't work out too well for anyone and then reassess after the Fall moves.

Anyway, the table is set for things to work out okay, so I decided I'm just going to go with it. If TT is being honest with us, we still have a great shot at doing quite well here. Let's roll the dice. The main thing is I don't see any real gain in flipping TT off and ditching the plan, so might as well stick with my gut and see this out.

Twinkletoes,

Ok, I guess we should have clarified on what our exact moves were going to be before the turn resolution. We'll be more careful next time.

Looking forward to this turn, we definitely have options. I think the main priority should be ensuring Rowain doesn't get a build - he'll be done if we can do that. This plan suggestion of yours might just be able to work. MJW is more than willing to just sit in Tri (I threatened to throw things to you as planned, and that seemed to be convincing).

So, you're thinking something like:

Bul-Ser
Con-Bul
Ukr-Rum
Sev S Ukr-Rum
Bla S Con-Bul
Tri HLD

Like that?

Thanks,
scooter - Turkey

That is what I was thinking.

Italy will not bounce Rowain in Greece as he wants Tun, but by keeping Tri, Rowain will only break even.

TT

Hey scooter,

Just been speaking with MJW and he's on board with the plan too.

TT

WAIT WHAT.

You didn't tell him we're working together, did you? He only agreed to this because I insisted you stabbed me and I threatened to throw my centers to you if he didn't do what I wanted with his Trieste army.

Thanks,
scooter - Turkey

Also, MJW is going to order Tri-Vie rather than holding. I said fine whatever, as long as Rowain loses a center to MJW I'm content.

scooter,

In the end I had to tell him, the only way to get him to turn in the end was to tell him that I'm with you no matter what these moves and that if he wants to profit he should switch sides. He wasn't impressed by your threat tbh.

TT

I swear, what is it with these people and gleefully admitting what their plans are. I expected that nonsense from MJW (confirming Key Lepanto to me for no reason whatsoever), but I thought TT would at least have the sense to not give up our plans. MJW was doing exactly what I wanted him to do (or at least he's saying so). He doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut, so you don't trust him with more information than you're willing for him to repeat. If MJW has any sense at all, he'll now know my threat was completely empty, and he'll side with Rowain because he'll recognize that he's likely the third wheel in this division of Austria.

Awesome.

Just gonna stick to the plan and hope for the best.