by Allan B Calhamer
These are the rules of an early prototype of what became Diplomacy.
1. The object of the game is to gain 18 military units on the board.
2. Each Power except England and Russia starts with 2 armies in its capital and 1 fleet in its navy base. England starts with 2 Fleets and 1 Army, all in London as London is both England’s capital and navy base. Russia starts with 2 armies in her capital and 1 fleet in each of her two navy bases (the Russian navy base in StP is on the south coast only).
3. A power may have any number of armies in its own capital and any number of fleets in its own navy base – however they are only worth a total of one when defending the capital/navy base. No more than one unit may exist in any other space. Multiple units in one space may not support one another, nor may more than one of them support the same unit outside that space.
4. An army may not enter its own capital if that space is occupied by one of that powers own fleets and a fleet may not enter its own navy base if that space is occupied by one of its own armies. However, this does not prevent the building of new units in their proper spaces.
5. New armies always start in the capital, new fleets always start in the navy base (Russia must specify which). If a Power loses its navy base it may not build any fleets until the navy base is recaptured. If a Power loses its capital, it should designate another home supply centre as its capital, though this status will automatically revert to the original capital if it is recovered.
6. The convoy rule in its modern form does not exist. If an army and a fleet of the same nationality are in the same space the army may be ordered to Board (“B”) the fleet and the fleet may be ordered to move that same season. A fleet may enter a coastal space occupied by an army provided that the army is ordered to Board the fleet that turn. Similarly an army may enter a coastal space occupied by a fleet provided it is also ordered to Board the fleet that turn. Once an army boards a fleet, neither can support the other and the army has no fighting power.
A fleet carrying an army may enter a coastal space. It may disembark the army into that coastal space provided that the fleet leaves the coastal space in question that move. If the fleet fails to leave the space then the army remains on board. A fleet carrying an army may receive support and any support offered to the army being carried is treated as support for the combined A/F.
7. The coastal crawl is permitted. Thus fleets may swap spaces provided different coasts are used (eg. F(Spa)nc-Por; F(Por)-Spa sc.)