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These pages contain rules, maps, articles and general web pages for over 170 Diplomacy variants.

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Davis (Fred C. Davis, Jr.)
This is a slightly modified version of the standard game. The game takes place on a modified standard map that includes one additional supply center and several new provinces.
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: [ gif ]

Deluge (Tim Sharrock) and Deluge II (Tim Sharrock and Stephen Agar)
A variant that takes place on the standard map, except that due to some cataclysm the world's sea level is rising. Every winter, certain provinces are submurged and become sea spaces. Modified rules apply, including Army/Fleet rules are used, along with several rules that describe now the map is modified by the deluge.

Democracy (Dean Gordon and Jeff Serandos)
Standard Diplomacy map and rules apply. What differs is that all builds for all powers (including builds for the initial setup at the start of the game) are done by vote rather than by an individual power's choice.

Diadokhoi (Jean-Marc Zaninetti)
Here's something different -- a Machiavelli variant. The game is a six-player variant which takes place in the time following the death of Alexander the Great. The rules are extensive as they involve many of the aspects that make Machiavelli more complex than Diplomacy.

Diplomacy (original 1958 version of standard Diplomacy) (Allan Calhamer)
(See 1958.)

Diplomacy for Less Than Seven Players (Allan Calhamer)
Rules for playing Diplomacy on a standard map with less than the full complement of seven players. Taken from the pre-1971 Rulebook.

Diplomacy Royale (John Pitre)
This variant can be used with any map. The rules have been heavily modified to include blood lines, royal families, marriages, binding agreements, titles, and more.

Diplomacy: The Gathering I and II (Stephen Agar)
A variant on the standard game wherein each power receives 20 "power cards" (such as Sail on Land, Utter Destruction, Turn to Stone) which affect the use and abilities of various units. DTG II is a slightly revised version of DTG I

Diplomatic Diplomacy (Martin Janta-Polczynski)
This variant can be used with any map. Standard rules apply, except that any group of powers which is both a majority in number of powers and that controls a majority of the supply centers may vote to not recognize a change in ownership due to the capture of a supply center.

Diplomyopia (Colin Hemming)
Reminiscent of the Blind variant, but considerably more involved, this was the first hidden-movement variant played in the UK. The standard rules are augmented by rules governing what kind of information about movements is given to players based on the orders.
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: Any

Discplomacy
(See Octarine.)

Double Diplomacy (Melle Koning)
This variant uses the standard map, but each of the seven players controls two powers, and each power is controled by two players. Standard Diplomacy rules apply except for a couple of special rules that describe how orders are adjudicated since each unit receives two sets of orders which may conflict.

Downfall XIII (Iain Bowen)
A seven-player variant that takes place in Middle Earth, the world of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. This variant uses a new map and substantially modified rules (such as numerous special units, special locations, multiplicity rules where multiple units can merge into more powerful units or divide back to separate units, The Ring).
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: [ gif ]

Egypt (Geoff Tonks)
This variant is identical to the standard game but is played on a modified map that extends the Southeast corner of the map from Tunis to Syria by adding Libya, Egypt, the Suez Canal and the Red Sea (which connects to Mid and North Atlantic Oceans). The idea is to strengthen Italy a bit and to give Turkey more flexibilty.
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: [ Extend the standard map with this map fragment gif ]

Empire (Vincent Mous)
This ten-player variant takes place on a map consisting of North and Central America with a bit of South America as well. The standard Diplomacy Rules apply, along with a few canals and waterways that allow "inland" fleet movements.

English Civil War IIa (Stephen Agar)
A two-player variant set in the English Civil War, which takes place on a new map. The rules have numerous modifications from the standard rules, such as three movement seasons, influence points, leader units, and several other differences.
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: [ gif ]

Erratic Diplomacy (Martin Janta-Polczynski)
This variant can be played with any map. The game starts out with the standard Diplomacy rules but at any stage in the game players may propose modifications to the rules which are then voted on by all the players.
  • Rules (at the Box Frenzy site)
  • Maps: Any

European Diplomacy (Michael Zmolek)
This 11-player variant includes the seven powers from the standard game as well as Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, and Spain. The variant is the first step towards the creation of a forthcoming global variant. The game takes place on a map similar in coverage to the standard map, but more detailed with quite a few more provinces. Modified standard rules apply.

Excalibur (Kenneth Clark)
A seven-player variant set in the year 450 A.D., which takes place on a new map. This game uses rules that are considerably modified from the standard rules.
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: [ gif ]

Exchange Diplomacy (Bruce Duewer)
A variant that combines ideas from the Payola and Bourse variants. Each player is an investor, trying to win the game by getting the largest stake in the winning power or coalition of powers in the Payola game which is going on.

Factional Diplomacy (Martin Kennedy)
This is a rule-based variant designed to be played with any map. The variant allows for domestic factional rivalry to affect diplomacy and (in some cases) game play. The idea is to add further spice and subtlety to diplomatic interplay in a manner that reflects realistic political considerations without adding too much complexity.

Fall of Rome (Christopher Hunt)
A seven-player variant, which takes place on a standard map minus the canal in Kiel, making it a two-coast provice. Some new rules are in effect, forbidding convoys but allowing conversion of fleets to armies and vice-versa, and a "Spring raid" rule, as well as a few others.
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: Standard map modified as described above

Far East I-R (Vern Schaller)
This 5-player variant takes place on a new map located in the (you guessed it...) far East. In addition to land bridges located on the map, the rules contain a number of changes from the standard rule, primarily regarding fleets (for example, oceans can be occupied by any number of fleets, and two fleets are allowed to swap locations).
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: [ gif ]

Federation (Theo Kermanidis)
This 8-player variant is set at the turn of the 20th century. In reality, Australia became a federation on the 1st of January 1901. In this variant, peace between the Australian colonies disintegrates and the colonies revert to war. Standard Diplomacy rules apply with a couple of special rules regarding map geography.

Fiascomacy (Martin Edwardes)
A player for three or more players played on a standard map. In addition to the standard rules, each player starts the game with 8 "Political Factors" (PFs) which are allocated among the seven great powers. These allocations are permanent and PFs may not be reassigned. A player submits orders for all powers to which that player has allocated PFs. Moves for each unit are determined according to a voting scheme based on the number of PFs in support of each order. After each move phase, powers receive two additional PFs to allocate.

Five Italies (Mike Lea)
A five-player variant that uses the standard Diplomacy rules but with a new map which is symmetrical making this ideally a perfectly balanced variant. Similar to the Romans/Chromatic variants which were based on Five Italies. Unfortunately, an electronic version of this map is not available. However, Romans is a nearly identical variant for which a map is available.
  • Rules (at the Box Frenzy site)
  • Maps: [ gif ]

Fin de Siecle (Paul Barker)

Five-Man Diplomacy (Alan Calhamer, with Fred C. Davis, Jr. for revised version)
The original and revised rules for the five-man Diplomacy variant. Both are five-player variants that use standard rules and the standard map with portions of it removed.

Fleet Rome (Richard Sharp)
Identical to standard Diplomacy except Italy starts with a fleet in Rome instead of an army. This supposedly gives Italy a slightly stronger position in the initial game.

Formal Diplomacy (E. Sabatine)
This variant can be played with any map. The variant attempts to give consequences to actions by including concepts such as declaration of war, surrender and spheres of influence.

Four-Man Diplomacy ("Tarzan")
A simple set of rules for playing Diplomacy on the standard map with four players.

Game of the Clans II (Wayne Hoheisel and Stephen Agar)
A ten-player variant that uses a new map and modified rules. The home centers of the players are intermingled, making the diplomatic aspects of the game particularly important.
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: [ gif ]

Geophysical Diplomacy (Jeremy Maiden)
This variant uses the standard map. In addition to the standard Diplomacy rules, each turn a player can cause a geophysical event (such as turning a land space into a water space, turning a land space into an impassable mountain space, or vice-versa), and cancel a single geophysical event.

Global Diplomacy (Eric Pederson)
A six-player variant, using a new map of the entire world. Each player begins on one of the six continents (except Australia, and with two powers on Asia). Air forces and nuclear arsenal units are used, and SC's may be destroyed during the game.

Goals Diplomacy (Vincent Mous)
In this variant, the victory conditions are modified so that in order to win one must capture certain supply centers, called goals. Players may receive spies, which allow them to determine the goals of other players. The number of goals each power has can vary, but they affect the number of spies allocated to a power.

Goofy (Robert Rehbold)
In this variant, the object of the game is not to reach 18 Supply Centers, but to accumulate the most goofy points. Points are obtained in part by taking over Supply Centers, but more importantly they are also allocated by vote based on the goofiness of one's behavior.

Gunboat (PBEM) (PBEM community term for games where player identities are unknown)
PBEM community term for any game in which player identities are unknown. Equivalent to the term anonymous as used by the Postal community.

Gunboat (postal) (Postal community term for games without press)
Postal community term for any game in which press is not allowed.

Hardbop Downfall (James and Mark Nelson)
A seven-player variant that takes place in Middle Earth, the world of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. This variant uses a new map and substantially modified rules (such as new units, special locations and The Ring).
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: [ gif ]

Heptarchy (Geoff Bache)
A seven-player variant that takes place on map that is limited to the British Isles. Standard Diplomacy rules apply.

High Speed Diplomacy (Steve Jilks)
A fast-moving three-player variant played on the standard map. In this variant, there are two movement phases per season, with any unit that successfully moved the first time is allowed to submit a second order for the season before retreats are adjudicated. Armies can be converted to fleets (and vice-versa) at any time, and players are allowed a one-time declaration that makes a neutral supply center they own a home (i.e. buildable) supply center.

Hoplite Wars (Stephen Agar)
A seven-player variant in that takes place ancient Greek times, in which each power controls a major state and minor state. Modified rules apply, including two types of supply centers (cities and towns) and a garrison unit which cannot move but costs less to build.

Hundred (Andy Schwarz)
This three-player variant takes place in the period of the Hundred Years' War in the early 1400s. The game takes place on a new map consisting of the British Isles and a portion of Europe that includes France and surrounding regions. Standard Diplomacy rules apply.

Hyborian Age II (Burt Labelle)
This five-player variant is loosely based on another Hyborian Age variant which takes place in the Hyborian World of Robert Howard's Conan books. As you might expect, the variant takes place on a new map. Standard rules apply with a few modifications.
  • Rules (at the variantbank.org variant archive)
  • Maps: [ gif ]
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