Favorite Edition of Diplomacy

[JimHacker]

I have three sets that I bought over the years (and one that I sold)

1961 Games Research, with wooden pieces
1985 Avalon Hill "bookcase" edition, with plastic stars & anchors
1992 Avalon Hill "deluxe diplomacy", wooden blocks with flag stickers (sold years ago, stupidly!)
1999 Hasbro, with the metal pieces and SC markers

Oddly enough, I like the 1985 edition. Why, because the stars and anchors don't take up as much space and obscure the province names, particularly when you take over smaller ones. Even though I know the names of all of the provinces, I think it looks easier to see. Some people refuse to play with plastic pieces but if you're playing with less experienced players, or they haven't played in a while, it helps to be able to see the names. Wooden blocks, or the cast-iron pieces, cover them up, even if they do look nice. However, I wish it came with more pieces for each player so you don't have to borrow from a defeated power later in the game. Of course, I've never survived that long...

[Latanst1]

I still use my mid-1970s Avalon version (wooden pieces, no stickers). It is great to use for testing out possible moves without taking the time to use the relatively slow Orders Solver and to visualize various scenarios.

I have three sets that I bought over the years (and one that I sold)

1961 Games Research, with wooden pieces
1985 Avalon Hill "bookcase" edition, with plastic stars & anchors
1992 Avalon Hill "deluxe diplomacy", wooden blocks with flag stickers (sold years ago, stupidly!)
1999 Hasbro, with the metal pieces and SC markers

Oddly enough, I like the 1985 edition. Why, because the stars and anchors don't take up as much space and obscure the province names, particularly when you take over smaller ones. Even though I know the names of all of the provinces, I think it looks easier to see. Some people refuse to play with plastic pieces but if you're playing with less experienced players, or they haven't played in a while, it helps to be able to see the names. Wooden blocks, or the cast-iron pieces, cover them up, even if they do look nice. However, I wish it came with more pieces for each player so you don't have to borrow from a defeated power later in the game. Of course, I've never survived that long...

[JimHacker]

I still use my mid-1970s Avalon version (wooden pieces, no stickers). It is great to use for testing out possible moves without taking the time to use the relatively slow Orders Solver and to visualize various scenarios.

Where is the Orders Solver? Which website?