Proposed DipCon Scoring System: A Sketch
By Jim Burgess
(From Diplomacy World #60)
Goals of the System:
1.
Reward Winning and Taking Risks to Try to Win
2.
Penalize the Largest Power in Large Draws for Failing to Play
3.
Credit to Small Survivors with Incentives to Keep Playing
Master Scoring System: Don't use averages of any kind, reward people for
playing as many games as possible. The total score is the simple sum of game
scores from all of the games played. If you must, count only three scores or
the three highest scores.
Game
Scoring System: Modified 100 Point System (100 points for a win, 50 points
for each player in a two way, 33 1/ 3 for each player in a three way, 25 for
a four way, 20 for a five way, 16 2/3 for a six way, and 14 2/7 for a seven
way ((leave the 2/7 in as a mark of shame...))
Modification 1: Subtract the difference between your supply center count and
the count of the smallest member of the draw from the "100 Point System"
score to get your score if you are a member of the draw.
Modification 2: Eliminated players get no points, but survivals get triple
their final supply center count as their score.
Example: England defeats and eliminates France and Germany while a
Russia/Turkey alliance defeats an Austria/Italy alliance. Italy is
eliminated as well (all three eliminated players get a zero score and are
properly chastised for abysmal play, especially on a strategic level).
Austria teams up with RT to set up a stalemate line at the usual place with
the final supply center counts and scores (four way draw):
AUSTRIA: 2 Supply Centers =25 -(2-2) =25 points
as a score. ENGLAND: 17 Supply Centers =25 -(17-2)
=10 points as a score. RUSSIA: 10 Supply Centers =25 -(10-2)
=17 points as a score. TURKEY: 5 Supply Centers =25 -(52)
=22 points as a score.
What? Unfair you say?? England and Russia have some pretty mighty incentives
to do something other than agree to this draw; however, if Austria can make
himself or herself absolutely essential to the stalemate line they might
have to do so. I argue that Austria is the "winner" if this· can be
accomplished and the game will be far better for the attempt
There are other draw possibilities though, let's look at them...here's
the three way where Austria agrees to the survival as an alternative to
being eliminated:
AUSTRIA: 2x3 =6points as a score. ENGLAND: 33 1/3 - (17-5) =21 1/3 points
as a score. RUSSIA: 33 1/3 -(10-5) = 28 1/3
points as a score. TURKEY: 33 1/3 -(5-5) =33 1/3
points
as
a score.
England doesn't like this result too much either. Diplomacy is the way out,
isn't it? We all can think of some options or England might just have to
veto draws for awhile until the other three powers decide to do something.
This is a cutthroat system and makes no apologies for it. It's time to get
serious about the idea of a national champion. The two way results
illustrate the more likely outcomes of this situation and the idea of this
system is that it encourages the big powers to prove their worth (ER two
way):
AUSTRIA: 2 x 3 = 6points as a score. ENGLAND: 50- (17-10) =43 points as a
score. RUSSIA: 50 -(10-10) =50 points as a score.
TURKEY: 5 x 3 =15 points as a score.
Eliminating Austria and Turkey in this situation helps England's score but
not Russia's, so if it is a locked up position where Austria and Turkey are
vulnerable to stabs they probably would agree to this draw, but the
temptation for Russia to stab them is not SO great that they have no chance
to survive. What about the win from this situation? Russia would stab if
there was some chance of getting the win over England, since the downside
risk is not too large as long as Russia can get all but a couple of the
centers. For example, the win is worth 100 points (to whichever power can
achieve it), but if Russia can get to 16 centers then England would get the
100 points, but Russia would get 48, only slightly less than the two way
result Of course, the incentive to go for the win in this kind of situation
would be stronger if England were not so close to victory (a more likely
occurrence). I strongly urge that some sort of system like this be used to
get around problems that I've observed in other scoring systems. I'd
appreciate feedback of any kind.