Subject: Reich questions and answers From: "Darden, Elwyn" Questions for the publisher of REICH: 1. May diplomats be placed on another's cannon? Yes, otherwise why would it matter that the cannon is worth five control points? Also under CONTROL OF STATES: "any player may dispatch a diplomat to a state regardless of its current control situation." 2. Is it allowed to have more than one diplomat per state? Absolutely, but they are placed or removed one at a time (exception Foreign Minister, Ambassador). The bidding war is absolutely necessary for a marginalized player to crawl back into a game through diplomacy. Also under CONTROL OF STATES: "any player may dispatch a diplomat to a state regardless of its current control situation." 3. Is it allowed to mobilize a state controlled by a diplomat? Yes, control is control. "A player may mobilize any and all of his controlled states," and "Control may come through diplomacy or conquest." 4. Does holding Austria confer 4 MM and 7 div. once or every turn? Once, with 4MM and 8 divisions. The Austria and France cards are held after they are played (as indicated on the card), but their force is on the board. Only Statesmen, Blitz and Nation cards ever remain in the open after being played [CARDS]. Austria and France remain in the open until: Russia [Austria], England [France] or Papacy [either] is played; or all of the intervening divisions are removed by combat, Italian Situation, Coup d'etat or Propaganda. Once their forces are out of play the card is returned to the discard pile. Note the fourth sentence under CARDS "The effects of these cards are not pandemic, however: statesmen accomplish only a particular activity, a revolt card causes only one revolt, etc." An unfortunate place for an etc., but allowing any nation card to renew itself each turn would qualify as pandemic. Further, Nation cards, if not aggressively returned to the deck would NEVER circulate, Statesmen can be assassinated, Revolts settled, but nothing actually ever specifically removes a Nation card unless it is to be removed at the completion of the action. These are meddling, sovereign nations, not puppets to a German princeling, their support should not be the most reliable asset in your hand. 5. Does holding Switzerland confer 2 Merc. every turn? The Switzerland and Denmark cards are addressed in the fourth sentence under CARDS: "The effects of these cards are not pandemic, however: statesmen accomplish only a particular activity, a revolt card causes only one revolt, etc." There is nothing wrong in game terms with every player having all kinds of mercenaries in their employ. I would recommend either not returning the Danish mercenaries card to the deck until they join the controlling players armies in Germany OR to have the Danes melt away if the owner's attack stalls before it can make a juncture with the Danes. My preference is the latter option. Should you ever get the publisher of Reich, here are my rules problems: 1) The question that always comes up is when the rules say: "IMPORTANT: whenever control of a state changes hands or becomes neutral, all of its divisions beyond its border must be removed from play, and the players must remove all divisions within its borders which were not built there." Does that mean that two Hannoverians in Anhalt return to Hanover or desert when Anhalt resets? I have always played that outsiders desert. When I see "remove" I read eliminate, not relocate, but it is a legitimate gripe that always arises that garrisons are too vulnerable. 2) One possible quirk is that when a state is conquered and a Conquest counter is placed on it, it resets and "all" Diplomats are removed from the state, but no player is allowed to remove Diplomats from a state he controls. I have always played that your promises [Diplomats] remain, but it is because I prefer to have players bound (haunted) by as many of their old promises as possible. A fairer reading of the rules may be that the prohibition on removing a Diplomat is a prohibition using diplomacy to do so. Elwyn Darden