| Diplomacy Essay, Research Paper
Diplomacy is a strategic board game in which seven players compete for military control
of Europe. The rules are very simplistic, as everything has been diluted down to the bare
minimum. But the game itself is very complex, as it focusses on secret discussions
between players to make plans, deals, threats, and lies. This makes for a very exciting,
turbulent game. The Diplomacy Programming Project (DPP) aims to develop a complete
Diplomacy-playing software package. There are many difficulties to be overcome first,
though. Not only are seven-players games extremely complex, as seven different minds
control the progress of the game, but the simplicity of the rules mean that a human player
can easily gain a good mental grasp of a game position, so the computer cannot hope to
beat him by simple number crunching. Another obvious difficulty that the DPP faces is
the problem of diplomacy. Understanding what other players say, determining which
things are relevant, calculating what you should say, and translating that into prose are all
very tough problems in the field of Natural Language Processing. The first clear step is to
develop an artificial language to capture the variety of things which may need to be said
in the game of Diplomacy. The DPP has produced a “protocol” with this aim in mind.
Unfortunately, the protocol, as it stands, is unsatisfactory.
All warfare is based on deception. Therefore, when capable of attacking, feign
incapacity; when active in moving troops, feign inactivity. When near the enemy, make it
seem that you are far away; when far away, make it seem that you are near. Hold out
baits to lure the enemy. Strike the enemy when he is in disorder. Prepare against the
enemy when he is secure at all points. Avoid the enemy for the time being when he is
stronger. If your opponent is of choleric temper, try to irritate him. If he is arrogant, try to
encourage his egotism. If the enemy troops are well prepared after reorganization, try to
wear them down. If they are united, try to sow dissension among them. Attack the enemy
where he is unprepared, and appear where you are not expected. These are the keys to
victory for a strategist. It is not possible to formulate them in detail beforehand.
Strategy game based on the classic boardgame. It is set in imperial Europe before the
First World War. The player controls one of several countries (England, France, Italy,
Germany, Austro-Hungary, Russia and Turkey). Each attempts to secure the greatest
amount of resources and thorough a mixture of combat an diplomacy come out on top.
The beauty of the game of Diplomacy lies not in the tactics of the movement of the
pieces on the board, but in the fact that these movements are simulataneous, meaning
that the orders of all players are executed at the same time on each turn. Whose moves
succeed and whose fail are easily determined by the simple rules of the game which
permit and govern the combination of multiple units to strengthen (or weaken) any single
move or other action.
Backstabs? Yes, because regardless of what a player promises to do before the turn, what
he actually does is wholly determined by the secret orders he submits for his pieces.
Combining with other players to defeat a common foe, secretly arranging peace with the
enemy, and suddenly turning on your ally, who has trusted you and worked with you
since the first move, is all part of the game. All’s fair in love and war, so the saying goes,
and in Diplomacy, one is often simply a mask for the other.
—–
The standard game of Diplomacy is set in the Europe of the early 20th century, and is
played by seven players, each taking the part of one of the Great European Powers of that
age. Players order two types of units (armies and fleets) into combat against each other in
a war for control of Europe. This control is symbolized by ownership of “supply centers”
(or SC’s), of which there are 34 on the Diplomacy board. Control of a majority of supply
centers will bring a player victory.
Diplomacy is a strategic board game in which seven players compete for military control
of Europe. The rules are very simplistic, as everything has been diluted down to the bare
minimum. But the game itself is very complex, as it focusses on secret discussions
between players to make plans, deals, threats, and lies. This makes for a very exciting,
turbulent game. The Diplomacy Programming Project (DPP) aims to develop a complete
Diplomacy-playing software package. There are many difficulties to be overcome first,
though. Not only are seven-players games extremely complex, as seven different minds
control the progress of the game, but the simplicity of the rules mean that a human player
can easily gain a good mental grasp of a game position, so the computer cannot hope to
beat him by simple number crunching. Another obvious difficulty that the DPP faces is
the problem of diplomacy. Understanding what other players say, determining which
things are relevant, calculating what you should say, and translating that into prose are all
very tough problems in the field of Natural Language Processing. The first clear step is to
develop an artificial language to capture the variety of things which may need to be said
in the game of Diplomacy. The DPP has produced a “protocol” with this aim in mind.
Unfortunately, the protocol, as it stands, is unsatisfactory.
All warfare is based on deception. Therefore, when capable of attacking, feign
incapacity; when active in moving troops, feign inactivity. When near the enemy, make it
seem that you are far away; when far away, make it seem that you are near. Hold out
baits to lure the enemy. Strike the enemy when he is in disorder. Prepare against the
enemy when he is secure at all points. Avoid the enemy for the time being when he is
stronger. If your opponent is of choleric temper, try to irritate him. If he is arrogant, try to
encourage his egotism. If the enemy troops are well prepared after reorganization, try to
wear them down. If they are united, try to sow dissension among them. Attack the enemy
where he is unprepared, and appear where you are not expected. These are the keys to
victory for a strategist. It is not possible to formulate them in detail beforehand.
Strategy game based on the classic boardgame. It is set in imperial Europe before the
First World War. The player controls one of several countries (England, France, Italy,
Germany, Austro-Hungary, Russia and Turkey). Each attempts to secure the greatest
amount of resources and thorough a mixture of combat an diplomacy come out on top.
The beauty of the game of Diplomacy lies not in the tactics of the movement of the
pieces on the board, but in the fact that these movements are simulataneous, meaning
that the orders of all players are executed at the same time on each turn. Whose moves
succeed and whose fail are easily determined by the simple rules of the game which
permit and govern the combination of multiple units to strengthen (or weaken) any single
move or other action.
Backstabs? Yes, because regardless of what a player promises to do before the turn, what
he actually does is wholly determined by the secret orders he submits for his pieces.
Combining with other players to defeat a common foe, secretly arranging peace with the
enemy, and suddenly turning on your ally, who has trusted you and worked with you
since the first move, is all part of the game. All’s fair in love and war, so the saying goes,
and in Diplomacy, one is often simply a mask for the other.
—–
The standard game of Diplomacy is set in the Europe of the early 20th century, and is
played by seven players, each taking the part of one of the Great European Powers of that
age. Players order two types of units (armies and fleets) into combat against each other in
a war for control of Europe. This control is symbolized by ownership of “supply centers”
(or SC’s), of which there are 34 on the Diplomacy board. Control of a majority of supply
centers will bring a player victory.
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