As in any situation, in order to achieve your goals over those of anopponent, you must have some edge so that your plans receive a higherpriority. In Diplomacy, this is usually done from a position ofstrength, however, there are certain location on the playing map thatcan give this advantage to the player without that overwhelming power.
Greece is one of these important locations, being the most importantprovince in the eastern half of the board. Only Belgium can begin torival it for importance on the whole board. While Greece is a supplycenter, it is important not only for its own sake, but also because ofthe tactical advantages that it gives to its occupier. This advantageis in the form of supports. Greece is located in such a centrallocation that it controls both the land and sea routes between east andwest. In order to advance on way or the other, either you, or an ally6who is willing to give support, must control Greece.
Greece is very important to each of the three countries that surroundit, but holds the greatest importance for Turkey. With its cornerposition, Turkey has an excellent defensive position, but along withthis advantage comes the difficulty of trying to break out and make itsown attack. There is only a limited potential for advancement in thenorth, therefore if Turkey is going to have a chance at winning, itmust make an attack to the west. If an army can be maneuvered intoGreece, Turkey will have a unit in position which will be able to givesupport into the heart of the Balkans. If a fleet can be positionedinto Greece, Turkey then has the option of attacking Italy by sea,rather than having to go through Austria and attacking by land, adifficult achievement regardless. The major disadvantage is that theyare basically mutually exclusive. Without cooperation from, or at leastneutrality by the other, Turkey can not force both the Balkans and theIonian Sea since a fleet is required for one action, and a fleet for theother.
Any attack that Austria intends to make against Turkey must includeGreece. Greece is the pivot point upon which any type of invasion musthinge. One special advantage that Austria holds over Turkey is that afleet in Greece is infinitely more useful than an army. Whereas Turkeymust use a fleet for a seaborne attack and an army for a land attack, anAustrian fleet can support both a land attack into Bulgaria and a seaattack into the Aegean Sea. With such an advantage, it is surprisingthat Turkey so often does not contest Greece, rather allowing Austria tomove its first fleet in unopposed. However, if Austria is forced ontothe defensive, then the fleet may become a burden. All supply centersare land based, and the fleet can not support any armies which aretrying to hold in Serbia. Denying Greece to Turkey, though, still slowsdown any advance it might make.
Greece holds the least importance for Italy among these three powers,but it also holds the most potential. While both Austria and Turkeyhave special needs and gain certain advantages by controlling Greece,Italy's control of Greece can only lead to positive results. A fleet isable to support a second fleet into the Aegean Sea as well as anAustrian army into Bulgaria. An army can also support an Austrian armyinto Bulgaria as well as a Turkish army into Serbia. Not only doesItaly have every advantage that both Austria and Turkey do, but italso gains the advantage of outflanking Austria by convoying an army intoGreece. Italy can attack Austria from both sides at once beginning in1902. A second additional advantage Italy holds is that once the firstenemy is disposed of, the unit in Greece is still in a great position togive supports against the former ally. A third advantage is that ifeverything fails, Italy is usually able to back out and try another tactwithout much risk.
Even when Russia is taken into consideration, Greece still does not loseits importance. If a united front is being thrown at Russia, Greece canserve to support front line units against the onslaught. If one poweris allied with Russia vs. the others, the importance of Greeceintensifies as gains must be made to prevent Russia from overrunning theenemy and gaining all of his supply centers, or else to prevent yourselffrom being overrun quickly.
Frequently, the fight over Greece determines who will be the dominantpower in the easter portions of the board. It can serve as both a hingein any attack by any power in any direction, or as the lynch pin in astatic defense against overwhelming odds. With its central location inthe eastern Med., it can not be ignored. The major goal of any playershould be to quickly establish ownership, and if that is not possible toeither deny it to anybody else, or make them defend Greece witheverything they have.
As Austria-Hungary get this area in the first turns or you are at the mercy of whatever neighbour gets it.
Sincerely Gorm Eysteinsson Fjaerli
Greece; is the Belgium of the South.