Playing Games (Risk)

Category: Statistics

Published: 05/30/2009 03:38 p.m.

To continue my obsession with group games (and winning said games), I thought I would tackle one of the biggest games of them all, Risk. If you are really a big fan of Risk strategy then check out Total Diplomacy. They regularly update and go into much more detail than I will here.

Most of my experience playing Risk is playing a modified, speedier version called iConquer, available on the Mac. This version allows up to 6 people, has multiple computer strategy engines, and keeps the traditional map and rules. The big difference that I use is attacking is set to roll the max dice and continue til the country is taken over or you run out of armies. So instead of rolling 3-2 for a 10 vs. 4 then rolling again for 8 vs. 2 (etc.), it simulates all of the rolls and leaves you with taking over the country with, say, 4 left over. This drastically speeds up the game, along with having the computer go fast. The only time I have to slow down is when Mikhail is playing and the laptop dies because he takes too long.

So, even though I play this way, the basics are still the same. The object is to take over the world. Each turn you get to additional armies based on your countries and you go from there. Here are my Top 4 recommendations to people who want to quickly increase their skills and wins.

Income is the key. Capturing a small continent (Australia or South America) in a large game, or a larger continent in a smaller game will start to boost you per turn income. So, when you opponents are adding 3 armies a turn, you add 5 (or more). This is incredibly valuable. Eventually these small sums will grow, and so will you empire.

Eliminate others to get their cards. The next key concept involves cards. You can trade cards to earn more and more armies, so when you see a weak opponent with a few cards, it's worth making some sacrifices to attack them. Cards, like income, gives you more armies which will give you a better chance of winning.

Be the last to attack. In a situation where you are near two other opponents, do you best to increase your armies there. Then, wait for the other people to attack each other (and hopefully not you). Once they wipe each other out, you will have a chance to sweep up some easy countries.

Play smart defense by breaking up others continents. When an opponent of yours has a full continent but has not properly guarded all of the entrances, then sneak in and capture just a single country. This will break their continent and cut into their income. This is a great defensive move and will drastically help you guard against an opponents strength.

The import thing is to keep playing and to move your style relative to your opponents. IF everyone is aggressive, then play more defensive, and vice-versa. Risk is one of the classic strategy games and it can really stretch your strategic muscle.