Cuba-- End of Game Report
I'll go ahead and throw in my two cents about how this game went.
To start off, obviously it was key to seek out allies. I was in a unique position of choosing whether to try for a foothold in NA or SA, both of which were equally challenging to navigate. SA was populated with many experienced players, so I sought out a way into the diplomatic landscape there. Eventually, I worked out an understanding with Columbia and Amazon that would be vital for my success throughout the game. In NA, US and I were able to stay peaceful enough as I sought a foothold in Texas and Mexico.
As I began to be surrounded by allies, I was faced with a decision to make regarding what to do next. Unfortunately, before I was able to do anything, all of my allies began to turn in on me. I was screwed beyond repair. However, I somehow reworked Columbia and Amazon back onto my side and I was able to re-establish myself in the gulf of mexico.
Things stabilized for a while for me; US and I worked out a brief ceasefire as I helped move against Canada. However the imminent threat of Cypeg moving into NA was quite obvious. I began to work a potential new ally in discussing the possibility of stabbing Columbia with Oceania's help. In all honesty, as the board began to develop, I kept the disucssion about it open, yet never really considered doing it.
The potential for a draw neared. The major players (Oceania, Indo, US, Russia, Amazon, Columbia, and me) were sustaining themselves while the rest disappeared. You may note I included Amazon, Columbia, and myself although our center count was significantly diminished from the rest.
We began to realize our only hope was to stick together. We worked out stalemate lines, and eventually, we found one that was rock solid. If we kept up our ends, we could hold out indefinitely against the attacks of Indonesia, Oceania, and US. And we did. We must have held that line for 10-15 years without budging more than a territory or two. After an unfortunate NMR by myself, a crack appeared in only a single place in the line. It was recoverable, but that would be if we got there before Cypeg. But of course, he saw the chink in our armor and we were lost.
I looked and looked, but no other stalemate was holdable after we lost our line. So, I made the decision to try and better myself by turning on Columbia with the help of Oceania. It was a high probability that it would end up with me dead either way, but it was my only chance to survive. As SA dwindled, it became apparent we couldn't stop them and that someone would try for a solo. With all the NMRs happening, I figured a solo would happen eventually, so congrats to Cypeg! And well played to all the others, especially those who also invested a year of time into this thing!
Spartan