Conquer the world—destroy your roommates

By Patrick Hogan
Collegian Editor
March 29, 2006

After weeks of mounting tension, the military dictator of Greenland decided that it was time to begin the grand invasion of Quebec. As five infantry divisions marched across the water towards continental North America, most agreed that Quebec didn’t stand a chance as its army consisted of a single infantry division. All were surprised when the defenders wiped out the invading Greenland forces one division at a time with a zero percent casualty rate.

This may sound like an implausible situation, but it happens at least once a week in my townhouse through the classic board game Risk. For those unfamiliar with the game, it is a warfare simulator. The object of Risk is to basically conquer the world, one country at a time. It’s that simple, and that complex.

When a player sends his troops invade another country, the results are determined through the rolling of die. Attackers can roll up to three die (assuming at least three troops are invading) and defenders can roll up to two die (assuming at least two troops are defending). Then, the highest numbered dice are paired up, and the loser of each die combination loses one troop. Defenders will always win a tie.

Basically, the philosophy of the game is that although superior numbers can help stack the odds, fighting is basically completely random. This is why situations such as the opening paragraph are not totally uncommon, as Lady Luck can be a harsh mistress.

The real fun of Risk comes from something you won’t find in any of the rule books. As you expand your budding empire, you’ll quickly find yourself in conflict with other players on multiple sides. Everyone wants to avoid Napoleon’s mistake of fighting a war on two fronts, so as a result informal alliances are formed. A psychological “game within the game” develops as players find ways to convince each other that they are not a threat (yet) but that someone else is, and that an alliance should be forged to counter them.

The problem with alliances is that they are always doomed to disintegrate. All alliances are built out of distrust and suspicion, since each player knows that it will only be a matter of time until their partner betrays them. It is a rather cynical view of diplomatic relations, but one that oftentimes holds true. The USA is currently closely allied with Pakistan, a fundamentally Islamic nation that has a military dictator as its head of state.

This does not sound like an ideal alliance, though it exists in order to provide a check against other more radical forces in the area. The same principle works in Risk when Blue and Black ally because Green is on the verge of conquering Asia, and needs to be held in check.

Risk is a fun way of simulating a simplified world of warfare and cynical diplomacy. Just be careful where you roll the die, or your troops in Afghanistan will be crushed by a giant mysterious cube that fell out of the sky.

hoganp1@lasalle.edu