by W. Elmer Hinton

Rule 1: The 1976 Rule book shall be used as in standard Diplomacy except as noted below.

Rule 2: Each player receives only his own orders adjudicated. He will also receive the adjudicated orders for any unit beginning in spaces which are home supply centers owned by that player, or in spaces containing AGENTS. He will also receive notification if a unit is unsuccessfully attacked (naturally he will know by dislodgement if a unit is successfully attacked.) Spaces open for retreat will not be listed. Units retreating into prohibited spaces are disbanded.

Rule 3: Each player, each winter, may build AGENTS. He may build one for each supply center owned; he need not build them at all, and may build any number up to that number of SC’s owned, maximum. He may build them on each open SC, on SC’s with friendly units, or all together on one SC. Unlike armies and fleets, AGENTS have no stacking limitation and no affect on regular units; for build purposes, as long as the home SC in question is owned by the builder, he may build AGENTS regardless of the occupancy or current build order for that space in terms of regular units.

Rule 4: AGENTS move in Spring and Fall to any adjacent land space as armies do. They may be convoyed normally by any fleet in holding or regular unit convoy (whether to the same destination or not). They may also ‘ride’ fleets, by entering the space which contains an adjacent fleet and remaining with it. Any fleet. No order need be given by the fleet commander to allow ‘rides’; only to allow ‘convoy’. The AGENT may disembark at any coastal space adjacent to the fleet in question. Since AGENT moves happen after regular movement, if the AGENTS move would be to embark a sea space with no longer a fleet in it, or to disembark at a land space no longer adjacent, the order merely fails.

Rule 5: AGENTS do not interact with each other for movement purposes. Their presence in a space allows their owner to see what order is given to the unit which started in that space that turn; this does not extend to the orders given foreign units also in that space or even to the existence of such other AGENTS (remember: unlimited stacking!). AGENTS do interact in other ways though.

Rule 6: Spy vs Spy: AGENTS may give up their right to report what is happening by engaging in other activities. (Of course you could always have one AGENT in a space for intelligence, and others doing other things). An AGENT may seek foreign agents in a space. If an AGENT does so and there is at least one agent of another power present, this fact will be discovered. The number of foreign agents discovered will be a minimum of one, otherwise one less than the number of AGENTS assigned this task. If more than one power is present, only the powers who have less than the number of AGENTS assigned will be listed with their number of units; others will be listed as merely present. For example; in Bohemia there are 7 England, 8 France, 3 Russia and 1 Turkey for AGENTS. England orders : AGENT Boh(6) “Spy”. He received this information : E, R, F, T present. Lets say he instead had ordered 6 AGENTS used (AGENT Boh(6)-Spy); he learns: Lt, 3R, F present.

“Assassination”: AGENTS may try to liquidate other agents by ordering assassination. This works exactly as Spy does, except that; 1) if the power has only one agent present when attacked, that agent will not be destroyed unless attacked by at least 3 AGENTS. and 2) only up to one less than the number attacking will be eliminated. (If the order above has been (AGENT Boh(6) assassinate) then the result would be reported as 1T/d/, 3R/d/, 5F/d/.) Assassinate does not double as ‘spy’ in that one doesn’t immediately know if one got them all; also those attacked only know that they are the victims of an attack only if they have more units present than AGENTS attacking them will their identity be known (i.e., Turkey and Russia would know that agents had been lost to assassins; but France would know that England gave the order).

The assassination order may be conditionally restricted only by nationality (that is, you may list who you will or will not assassinate; if so, no matter how many are present you will only learn of the presence of others. Above if England ordered (AGENT Boh(4)-Assassinate; except Russia) he would receive: 1T/d/, 3F/d/, R present; avoided).

Total attacks against each nationality are assessed, but only the number attacked by a power will be reported to that power. (And of course those owned AGENTS of your own, now eliminated).

Rule 7: Security: ARMIES or FLEETS may invoke “Security” if the army is in holding or the fleet is in holding or convoy. This empowers the secret police and military intelligence to combine and discover AGENTS of foreign powers. This acts like Assassinate under AGENTS, except that the total number discovered is limited to seven (Note on a fleet, if there are more than seven ‘riding’ they are automatically discovered). This 7 allotment will be distributed evenly. (For example if three powers with 2 or more are present, 2 each would be reported; if 5 countries were present, one each would be reported.)

Security order may be modified by stating ‘exceptions’ (whose units, if discovered will be reported, but will not be captured. The 7 total is divided by the others; the number ‘excepted’ will be reported to equal the others. Example, above, if France were also present but excepted, 2 of each of the three countries would be captured, and 2 of France reported.

Under security, the player must also order ‘deportation’ or ‘execution’ (the latter automatic if deportation isn’t ordered) on the following turn. ‘Deported’ AGENTS appear at their countries capital home SC (or any SC if unowned; or any space owned if no home Scs are owned). A player who has no units but still has some AGENTS due to this may still play them.

Executed agents are eliminated.

Rule 8: Agents are never eliminated due to SC loss nor can they be disbanded. If a player is eliminated, except for agents, he may only then disband his agents and leave the game.

Rule 9: Self defense; any unit (A/F) in holding or fleet in convoy that orders ‘security’ and is attacked in the regular turn, may not conduct security that turn. The security order is cut.