PINCER - maybe a way to solve your numbers problem?

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Hannibal
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PINCER - maybe a way to solve your numbers problem?

Post by Hannibal » Thu Sep 28, 2006 11:19 am

Hi folks!

I just popped in to check that my old favourite Kaomaris was still alive and kicking. I see that you can get 6 or 7 keen to play but not 9 or 10.

So, inevitably, I had an idea .... I think I could drum up new players/triallists if I had time, but for now a different idea:

If 5 of you are keen to scratch the itch and get playing .... how about a game where five of you take TWO positions each ?!

Unlike in "Duel", this "Pincer" variant would still have a huge role for diplomacy and interaction. You don't want to fight or be open on all your borders, so you gotta negotiate naps and temporary alliances on some of your borders, just as the other players need to do. In fact, the diplomacy might be doubly complex and interesting ...

I think you'd have to say "No shared victories, only one winner", otherwise it would be too tempting to beat the system by agreeing to win together then each sacrifice one of their two positions, leaving one position each and a shared win. No, much more fun to say one winner only, just for this variant?

That would seriously add to the diplomacy ... You need to nap to avoid fighting on all borders, and to avoid being ganged up on, but you need SHORTER naps, so that you can switch alliance later, since you can't win together with someone else, so you need to take him down sooner or later! ... So I think there would be a lot MORE diplomacy and angles, both at the start AND at mid-game, when alliances need to be re-considered for the final push!

And, since only one guy can win, there should surely be a shared understanding that naps are only short-term contracts between eventual enemies, not professions of eternal loyalty; should be much more fun and light-hearted when you KNOW each napper is only in the nap for himself, a game.

I can see diplomacy where someone promises that they'll go berserk and risky with one of their two positions, in return for peace in his rear; so the other guy likes that deal, but sets the nap short, maybe renewable, in case the first guy doesn't go berserk among the other 3, or, even worse, goes berserk and SUCCEEDS! Hey, maybe you need VERY good strategy and diplomacy to emerge from the first half intact, but not so powerful as to be the High Poppy and have no leverage for naps in the second half .... I suspect the eventual winner would nearly always be someone who was lying 2nd, 3rd or 4th at the mid-point of the game... Now that's diplomacy!


OK, "Duel" was a variant for max tactics with no diplomacy. This "Pincer" is a variant for when you have only five players, and has max diplomacy.

Do NOT simply compare this with the ideal 10-player-game, pls. I still regard that as ideal. These are variants to fill in the time between proper 10-player games, OK? "Pincer" a version for when you have 5 players and are tired of waiting for the waitlist to fill?

Hey, I like the idea so much that I'd be happy to play it or to GM it and write commentary.

Any questions? ... or comments? ... or interest?

Han
Last edited by Hannibal on Sat Sep 30, 2006 9:56 am, edited 1 time in total.
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korexus
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Post by korexus » Fri Sep 29, 2006 6:22 pm

I think this sort of game has been played before, there's no reason why it shouldn't work.

The clan system seems to have broken down, so the only issue I can see - that of two clanmates having a very strong position - wouldn't be too bad right now...

It would run easily too. I already made the necessary changes to play multiple positions for Duel.


Chris.
With Great Power comes Great Irritability

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