Europe 1615: Prelude to War

A Diplomacy variant by Matthew Medeiros

Early in the 17th century, Europe was embroiled in a political and religious war that historians have called the Thirty Years War, a war that culminated in a large number of casualties from battle, hunger, and disease. It has been described as a clash between the Protestant factions of Germany and the Austrian and German Catholics, yet from another perspective it has been viewed as the continuation of an age-old struggle of dominance between the kings of France, the princes of Germany, and the Habsburgs of Austria.

The Europe 1615 Diplomacy variant allows players to take the reigns of one of the great powers of the time most closely involved with the Thirty Years War which commenced in 1618: Austria, France, Spain, England, and Denmark/Sweden. For the purposes of this game, Denmark and Sweden are treated as in a permanent alliance and controlled by one player. The game begins in 1615, one year following the Treaty of Xanten. The interaction of these great powers with each other and with the minor German and Italian states, vassal states of the Ottoman Empire, and other minor states will define the course of the game. The variant adapts rules from Payola, and a distant game of diplomacy called Origins of World War 1 (and 2). Game is played on two levels: military and political. At the beginning of each year, players deploy influence factors (INFs) and initiate diplomatic attacks to secure religious and political control over the minor states. This can impact the military and economic affairs of the game, and victory points are assessed on both levels giving several possible paths to victory for each player.

As military operations of the time were characterized by the use of mercenary soldiers, the adaptation of Payola rules seemed suitable. Players will submit bribes to govern their own units, but restrictions are applied when bribes are submitted for foreign units. To round out the mechanics of this variant, the use of variable-valued supply centers is also incorporated to establish a degree of economic and strategic importance for the various regions on the board, use of ports to limit the activities of the fleets, and rules to take into account the situation of the Protestant-versus-Catholic conflict from the religious and political influence on the minor states. Victory is measure by the gain and loss of victory points (VPs) through various facets of the game (military and political objectives). Game runs for a time limit of 6 game years, with each game year defined by a politics phase, 3 movement/retreat phases, and a build phase.