These happen occasionally, but are not usually good ideas against experienced players. A triple would be opposed by a triple. This would bring the whole of Europe into a war, instead of small wars all over the continent. the forces would be about the same, so a early stalemate line being drawn would be likely.

Alliances are the biggest part of the game. However, some alliances are inherently better than others. Also, most alliances will benefit one power over the others. It is through the knowledge of these alliances that you can evaluate threats to your own empire. Be prepared for the unexpected thought, people have a tendency of not playing by the book. There are three main types of alliances: bordering, non-bordering, and corner. bordering alliances require more trust than non-bordering, and have less flexibility. Non-bordering are more likely to be used in the middle game, as the only two countries in the same region that are non-bordering are Italy and Russia. Non-bordering does not require as much trust. Just make sure that your ally is going to attack the same target as you. Corner are usually late in the game, and are between opposite corners of the board (Russia-France, England-Turkey) by far the safest, you really can’t be attacked very easily by your ally, because of the stalemate lines that you can use.

This is one of the funniest and hardest powers on the board. Very venerable in the start, he needs all the help he can get just to survive! However if he does survive, Austria is nearly impossible to destroy. At only around four centers Austria is hard to defend, but if he reaches around six to seven, his defense dramatically improves. The trick for playing Austria is to master betrayal. It is always easier to take an allies center than one of your enemies. If you do not discard allies when they are no longer useful, then you will not be able to master the explosive power of Austria. As Austria, you can usually take Serbia, and if Italy doesn’t attack you can get Greece.

Germany is one of the more aggressive powers, able to expand in four directions; Russia, England, France, and Austria. He can influence most of the board from his central position. Germany’s defense is not as good as France’s and England’s, but he makes up for that with power. With good allies on all sides, Germany is usually a pleasure to play. The important thing to remember is trust. Even though you are surrounded by good allies, they must trust you. Germany can be quickly destroyed if he has no allies. At the start expect to get Denmark and Holland. If you are greedy, then you can move the fleet to Holland and support yourself into Belgium. This is not suggested, as England and France will most likely attack you. Russia may send down their fleet as well, since they got Sweden.

Russia starts out the game with four units, but that does not mean that Russia is stronger than the other powers. Look closer, Russia has two fleets, one on the north and one on the south. This means that Russia has two fronts to fight on! And if he tries to fight on both, at first he will only have two units on each front. So it’s like Russia is two smaller countries added together, not one large country. Russia also has four directions of expansion; England, Germany, Austria, and Turkey. This means that Russia is very flexible. Also, he is already across on of the major stalemate lines. As Russia, expect to get Rumania. Germany might try to keep you out of Sweden, so don’t count on getting it.

A defensive power, it makes up the lower part of the northern stalemate. Just like England you have three directions to move in; Italy, England, and Germany. Just like England, you are fundamentally a naval power, but you can get army’s on the ground easier than England. The only problem is that it is too defensive, it’s kind of hard to expand after your initial target is defeated. However this slowness can garner you allies more easily than stronger powers. Expect to get Portugal and Spain at the start. You might be able to get Belgium if Germany or England aids you, but don’t count on it.