First off, i gotta say i love the concept of this game and i look foward to my upcoming first match. Before i start though i wanted to see if i could get some advise from yall beta players as to strategies and such. Should i be on guard for psychological warfare or do players tend to stay away from it? I personaly have already planted some seeds, but i would stray if itll bite me in the butt in future games. Anyways any info you guys can throw at me will be great, thanks!

1. Make allies. The people who lose are always the people without solid allies.
2. Make friends with everyone. Yes, I mean everyone. You don't have to stay friends with everyone, but the easiest way to get screwed is by not having enough connections.
3. Specialists are the key to this game's strategy. Anyone can count drillers. The brilliant maneuvers always involve specialists.
4. Have fun! You don't always have to win the game. Sometimes it's more fun to bolster an ally's victory than to win yourself.
5. Be a good sport. You will get stabbed in the back, I guarantee it. But don't flip out, it's a part of the game. Just keep a cool head and figure a way out. (This is where the "make friends" idea is key, since you'll have a safety net of friends when your ally stabs you.)
6. Get used to losing. I've been playing for months, and I've only ever won once. Even the best players rarely win. Winning this game is *hard* to do.
7. Try new strategies regularly. There is nothing more exciting than trying some new trick and having it work (if you don't believe me, watch the broadcast game on the devs' blog. Best feeling.)
8. I mentioned this already, but don't get upset when you lose. It's easy to get personally invested in these games, due to the long-term nature, but shake it off! Learn something from the loss, and try again.
9. This is going to sound like I'm advertising, but $10 is a steal for how much you get. Scheduled orders are extremely useful, and rated games tend to have better players with less dropouts. Up to you if you want to shell out the cash, but keep in mind: CoD asks you to pay $60 for the latest re-skin. Subterfuge is a full game that you'll spend years enjoying.

Thanks for the info man, ill be sure to keep it in mind.

My first few games, and even now in my 20th game or so - I always try not to be the first aggressor.

The first aggressor makes it an easy choice for others to label you the game's dangerous player. So I play it peacefully at first, then, if there is a first aggressor in the game, try to make some diplomatic friends and rally to contain the player.

Also, now that I have a few games under my belt, I change my play style up depending on what my first two specialist hires are.

So instead of always playing one particular strategy or way, I adjust it according to what my first few specialists are to help me.

It's also good to note that sometimes Mining quickly and/or first is not always the best course of action. I've often made friends with the first people that have mined, waited until they could fund me and then wreaked havoc with my new found funding. Afterward, you can still potentially catch and possibly overtake the miners at that point.

It's hard at times to remember that it can be a long game and taking outposts from miners, or taking mines, can drastically increase the game timer. I try to never feel rushed, even when my allies or others are goading me to attack. Keep a cool head and think about your moves and your diplomacy before you take action.

I've often boxed myself in a corner by making too many allies in the beginning as well, but it actually hasn't turned the worse for me. Information is king and allies are always willing to share it.